More than 600 luxury watches are available in Heritage Auctions Oct. 24 Watches & Fine Timepieces Auction in New York. Read on for some of the exceptional pieces spotlighted in this sale. 14k Gold Ref. 6241 Paul Newman Cosmograph Daytona John Player SpecialThe most coveted and commercially successful model produced by , the Daytona, is being offered by Heritage through an ultra-rare 14K gold variant of s Daytona Reference 6241 John Player Special featuring the highly desirable Paul Newman dial. This remarkable piece has never before seen an auction room and was purchased in a private transaction between two friends in 1971.F.P. Journe T-30 Historic Anniversary TourbillonCreated by F.P Jo...
In 2006, Panerai introduced their PAM00249 (Radiomir 1936) that featured a California dial. Limited to 1936 pieces only, and collectors jumped on it. Before I head over to my review of the PAM00424 (Radiomir California 3-Days), a few words on the dial first.California DialsThe term California dial is said to be coined by dial maker Kirk Rich, who did dial restoration and refinishing in the 1970s and was located in Los Angeles. In short, the California dial is a combination of an Arabic and Roman dial, as can be seen on the images. According to this story, this dial layout was at some point referred?to as California dial because clients of Kirk Rich found it easier to use that name than talk ...
E.C.Andersson Watch Co. is on the frontline of bold Scandinavian watch design, using sophisticated clear-cut lines merged with a progressive attitude. Thats particularly evident in the all new Arctic Sport, the third iteration of the Calypso collection.The Calypso Arctic Sport is made with the dark Scandinavian winter in mind, targeted to outdoorsmen that often find themselves in nature without access to electric or natural light. The anti-reflective dial, however, is as legible during the few hours of sun, when snow may cast a blinding glare.The light gray dial has a matte sand-like texture to counteract reflections, while working as a perfect contrast to the matte black indices. The large ...
The Seiko Astron GPS Solar receives an update that will make it thinner, smaller and less energy consuming. Oh, and there is a very cool new bracelet that comes with it. Although this watch will be available from December onwards, we had the opportunity to see, try and photograph it already.Besides the impressive technology and its specifications, the watch really looks good. Perhaps you remember Michael Stockton s hands-on review of the previous/current Seiko Astron GPS Solar (find it here), I think it is a safe bet to say that this new version (we have reference SSH003 here) would fix the minor issues (mainly based on size) he had with that one.Seiko Astron GPS Solar 5X series – SSH0...
We all know someone who has or had this awful disease called cancer, perhaps you do or did yourself. Did you know that prostate cancer is the most common cancer and the second leading cause of cancer death among men? Prostate cancer usually grows very slowly, and finding and treating it before symptoms occur may not improve men s health or help them live longer.?Today, 5.6 million men are living with or beyond prostate cancer. Testicular cancer continues to claim young lives. Every year, 500,000 men take their own lives C thats one a minute. Keep on reading, there s a watch to talk about as well.The Movember FoundationYou might have heard about the Movember Foundation, or at least about this...
A few weeks ago, we were invited to join Audemars Piguet in a trip to Montreux where we were able to talk to golf players Andrew ‘Beef Johnston and Matt Wallace. They ve been ambassadors with Audemars Piguet relatively recently, so we thought it would be nice to ask them some questions regarding watches and golf (we covered the topic on wearing watches while playing golf here).Andrew ‘Beef JohnstonRobert-Jan: Just recently, but 25 years too late, I started playing golf myself. And Ive noticed it is very addictive and I find myself reading golf magazines, while only understanding half of its contents sometimes, but I dont care. Can you imagine that people find watches just as ad...
This time we re looking at a question sent to us through our contact form by Carlos from New York. Carlos inherited a Cortebert Chronograph from his grandfather. But in a side-walk collision he, unfortunately, lost one of the chronograph pushers, and he s now looking at how to have the watch repaired.You Asked Us: How important is it to use an authentic part to repair my Cortebert Chronograph?Here s the full text of Carlos question:Hello! Would love to hear your thoughts on something. I inherited my grandfather s watch, and although it was a brand I d never heard of, I thought it was one of the most beautiful watches I d ever seen and worked perfectly.However, someone on the streets of NY r...
Limited editions are a hot topic today, bot in sales as well as in discussions. Perhaps in the pre-internet age, it was less transparent and as a result, less complaining. What we have here today is a perfect example of a limited edition without a real reason, yet it is starting to become a really sought-after watch.27 CHRO C12This gold Speedmaster Professional dates back to 1992 and was limited to 999 pieces to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the 27 CHRO C12 movement, the predecessor of the famous calibre 321 movement. That is right. It celebrates a movement that was not even used in the Speedmaster, but its successor was. But does it affect the coolness of the watch? Heck no. This watch ...
The beauty of collecting vintage watches is that theres a fanbase for everything. Vintage chronographs from the 1940s and 1950s are one of the hottest areas. Just think of how vintage Seikos popularity grew in recent years though. The brand did not have the following base in 2014 like it has today. Roughly the same happened to vintage Doxa divers as well. Another area that has always been around but collectors were kind of low-key about them were time-only watches. Three-handers if you want to call them, and especially jumbos. Jumbos are simple time-only watches that have exceptionally large cases for the time they are coming from. In vintage terms, this could be anything from 35.5-36mm upwa...
With the success of the first two projects (First project, total funded HK$ 427,860; Second project, total funded HK$ 1,344,752) LENVINO returns to Kickstarter to introduce their Third collection to you.Tourbillon is a historic complication originally designed to improve the accuracy of pocket watches which was invented by the famous watchmaker Abraham-Louis Breguet in 1795. It is the term of a complex feature of traditional watch craftsmanship and present in a classic design of the high-end timepieces.LENVINO would like to let most of the watch-addicts can appreciate and enjoy for the tourbillon remarkable watch craftsmanship and complication, they used the most premium materials, reliable ...
Earlier this year, we visited the Sellita manufacture in La Chaux-de-Fonds. Many watches out there today are powered by Sellita movements. Brands that are not part of the Swatch Group that can t or don t want to use ETA movements, might use Sellita movements instead. During our visit to Sellita, we asked them their production capacity, their history and future plans. We found that the Sellita management was surprisingly open about these items, as you can read below. Enjoy!Sellita Manufacture VisitWhen one digs deeper into the world of horology, it becomes obvious that a watch is so much more than just aesthetics. Its about heritage, technology, and craftsmanship. Simple things like complexit...
A young Dutch watchmaker living his dream, that s basically what is happening to Yvo Staudt right now. A clever guy who has an eye for detail, who is capable of making watches and who understands what it takes to market his watches properly. Earlier this year, Yvo Staudt introduced to us the Staudt?Praeludium Chronograph as we reported here. There s also a bit more background on Yvo Staudt himself in that article, so go ahead and have a read. Today, however, we will go hands-on with the?Staudt?Praeludium Chronograph. It will be about the watch, not the man.Staudt?Praeludium Chronograph ReviewOne of the first things that come to mind if I look at the Staudt Praeludium Chronograph (besides pra...
I admit that I dont spend a ton of time looking at IWCs latest offerings. No, I dont find IWCs unattractive, but theyre often too large for me. Plus, theyre expensive. But the real reason that my eye rarely finds itself glancing at the current collection is primarily due to the brands activities during the late 90s that spanned until the early 2000s. This was when the brand was in the throes of its GST – Gold, Steel, Titanium – collection (as well as making some other gems like the Mark XII we reviewed) and thats where well center our attention today with the IWC Aquatimer 3536.Introduced in roughly 1997, the IWC Aquatimer 3536 was made in three distinct flavors. The -2 variant c...
The GS Snowflake, or reference SBGA211, is one of those watches that really got to me. It does not happen that often (in recent years), but once in a while I am still swept off my feet when I see a beautiful watch. Ive been writing for Fratello since 2004 and the times that this happens is simply very rare. Especially when it concerns a watch that doesnt have the same price tag as a decently sized car or an entire house. I think it has to do with the fact that we see so many watches every day and week, that the ones that truly stick, are just a few.Grand Seiko SBGA211 SnowflakeIt was in October 2015, when I visited the Grand Seiko manufactures in Japan (I reported about that trip here, with ...
Based on Sinn s 556 model, a special and very limited edition watch has been designed to commemorate the retirement of the Canadian CH124 Sea King helicopter. The CH124 Sea King was designed for shipboard use by the Royal Canadian Navy and the Royal Canadian Air Force.For anyone ever involved with (or interested in) this Canadian combat aircraft, this watch might be very interesting. Limited to just 55 pieces and only available via Watchbuys, the North American official distributor for many German brands, including Sinn Spezialuhren.Sinn CH124 Sea KingThe 55 Sinn CH124 Sea King watches refer to the 55 years of service of this aircraft and via WatchBuys pre-order, you can make your preferenc...
The Omega Speedmaster Mark series is a very exciting one. Some fans say that no collection is complete without them, others frown upon the thought of owning any. Again, others look at them as novelty watches of a bygone era. Remainders of a time when Omega was experimenting with various technical improvements. Regardless of which group we belong to one thing is for certain; the Omega Mark watches mark an era (no pun intended) in the history of the Speedmaster. So much so that 2 (the Mark II and III) even made it to the 60th-anniversary poster by Omega from 2018. Surely that poster does not feature of all the iconic Speedmaster but its a great indicator of what the brand considers ground-brea...
Technique and functionality can be wonderful. They can make life easier, provide better user experience and are an ideal hook to show off to your friends. This also applies to watches. But, is focus on technique always the best way to go?Thin, Thinner, ThinnestA good example is a race for the world s thinnest watch. While the current records are quite an accomplishment I wonder if we (the customer)?still care about that 0,005mm less thickness. Is it not just a battle between the brands? Although it might sound like a waste of money I m sure a lot of us prefer this ‘marketing method above another method: pay a higher premium on every watch from the brand to pay first class actors to pr...
One of the perks of living in Baden-Wrttemberg is that German watchmaking surrounds me. Whatever direction I go C apart from the west, that being FranceC I will soon arrive at a watchmaking city. In the north, you can find Frankfurt with Sinn being the largest company in that area. Drive east and youll soon reach Pforzheim, the jewellery and watch centre of (West-) Germany with brands like Laco, Stowa or Benzinger. Lastly, you have the south with the Black Forrest. Many brands come from this area like Hanhart and Junghans (in Schramberg). I visited them about 3 years ago during the presentation of their then-new Junghans Meister Pilot collection. They did not only show us their latest creat...
Since the introduction of the Patek Philippe Nautilus 5711/1A in 2006, the watch has reached a mythical status. Especially during the last few years, it seems this watch has been picked up by a larger audience than ever before.With a retail price of?26.810,- Euro, not an easy sell for an all stainless steel watch with no complications other than a date. Wrong! These watches have a long waiting list today, and a pre-owned Nautilus 5711/1A is not a cheap alternative with prices starting at around 40.000,- Euro. It is the watch craze we live in today I am afraid, but it has gone to extremes with the Nautilus.Patek Philippe Nautilus 3700/1A and 5711/1A TodayThis article is a comparison between t...
Blue is a dial colour that Vacheron Constantin always associated with steel watches, as it has this cold look to it. At least, according to their Style & Heritage Director,?Christian Selmoni. That s what he told the crowd in a short but interesting panel talk with Laurent Perves (Chief Marketing Officer Vacheron Constantin), Patrick Graf (Chief Commercial Officer Bucherer) and Ben Clymer (CEO Hodinkee). Patrick Graf was delighted to introduce their latest Blue Editions cooperation, this time with Vacheron Constantin. In total, Bucherer did 21 collaborations with 13 different watch manufacturers. We covered previous editions here and here, for example.Vacheron Constantin Bucherer Blue Edi...
