Weve had a lot of Oris on Fratello Watches as of late and theres a good reason for that. In general, we really like the looks of their watches and the fact that they bring great value to the table versus a lot of Swiss brands. We admire the brands independence, their offering of only mechanical watches, and also that they spell out pretty clearly on their site that theyre not a manufacture. So, with all the Oris love going on, I decided that I needed to get my hands on the new Oris Divers Sixty-Five for a hands-on review. We were really excited about this watch and featured it pre-Basel this year and then again based upon our meeting with the brand, but today s article is a good opportunity ...
Dear Hublot,Three years ago, we provided coverage of your Basel 2012 novelties at an event in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, hosted by your regional distributors The Hour Glass and attended by none other than CEO Mr. Guadalupe and Regional Director Ms. Sakai.Here is the original article, missing images which were hosted on flickr: https://www.fratellowatches.com/hublots-basel-2012-novelties//This morning, I received a takedown and copyright infringement notice from Yahoo – the parent company of Flickr, where the images were hosted – filed by Hublot SA specifically citing those images as infringing copyright.Except the problem here is twofold:Hublot SA did not contract those images, did ...
You might remember our photo-essay from last week on the DTM Finals with Oris and Audi Sport. The watch we are about to take a closer look is actually the piece I had on me during this visit to the legendary Hockenheim ring. Its a pretty cool timepiece with a great size and wrist presence. So ladies and gentlemen, without further ado, please feast your eyes on the Oris Audi Sport Limited Edition II.AudiOris has a long history?with car racing. They have a partnership with Formula 1 team Williams since 2003 but even before that cooperation was sealed they already had an endorsement deal with F1 driver Allan McNish. Though McNishs career was moderately successful throughout the years, Oris watc...
On December 9th 2014, I joined Omega s press conference where they introduced their new standards and certification?and the?important role of?independent institute METAS. A long-winded and opinionated report about that announcement can be found here.Since then, Omega has worked hard to set-up the processes needed to meet these new standards and to realize them in such way, that it can be done for high production numbers. I will get back to the details of these standards later on, but let me get a few mis-understandings out of the way about the name and the role of METAS and Omega with regards to the certification.Chronometer, Master Chronometer, METAS: Confused?When Omega announced these pla...
Our last photo essay from not too long ago was about the 6-hour race held at the Nrburgring in Germany. We were invited by Chopard and Porsche and had an amazing time there. Now a few months later and a couple of degrees lower we are back with a new photo essay from a new race. This time it was the DTM (German Touring Car Masters) and the companies graciously presenting us with some entry tickets; Oris and Audi Sport.PaddockOn a cold and grey October Sunday we were heading from our base in Karlsruhe to the nearby racetrack, the legendary Hockenheim ring. The weather was alright, it was no sign of rain but the temperature just would not go above 7 Celsius. It was already the end of the traff...
Gold. Its a metal, especially in its yellow tone that, in my lifetime, has never really been attractive to me. The fact that Ive been on this Earth for less than 40 years likely speaks volumes about that, though. Its odd because I remember gold being the, well, gold standard when I was at a very young age, but I actually equated the metal with those of a much older age. My Grandfather generally wore a gold watch, as did my Uncles and so on. Even my Dad wore one at times, but he normally wore steel as it was less flashy and suited his active lifestyle more aptly. ?Later, when I entered middle school, some of the other pubescent tweens began donning gold chains, but that quickly shifted to sil...
Not too long ago we showed you the SevenFriday V1/01 and V2/01, two new cool watches from this successful Zrich company. Today they introduce the V3/01, a model name that is slightly better picked in my opinion than V1 and V2 – for obvious reasons (but perhaps I am very?critical here). The V3/01 is basically the same as the V1/01 and V2/01, but with a different dial and perhaps the true successor of the very popular (and sold out) P3/01.The price for the V3/01 is slightly higher than the other new V-series, with CHF1135 Swiss Francs. But you do get a wonderful looking carbon-look dial or as SevenFriday puts it: a waxed carbon look pattern.Just like the V1/01 and V2/01, this new piece ...
Recently, I did an in-depth review on the Seamaster 300 Spectre, but Omega also sent us this Seamaster 300 Sedna gold watch some time ago. Where the Spectre is limited to 7,007 pieces, this Seamaster 300 Sedna gold model is part of the regular collection and has all the ‘default features. For reference, the Seamaster 300 Spectre featured a lollipop second hand, an hour-scale bezel and a slightly different logo on the dial just for the occasion of this year s 007 movie.The watch for review today is the Omega Seamaster 300 Sedna gold in titanium, reference?233.62.41.21.03.001. It was part of the batch of Seamaster 300 models that was introduced this year, with a leather strap instead of...
The watch I am about to discuss today is not new to this website at all. Over the years various generations (3 to be precise) of X-33 have been discussed on the pages of FratelloWatches. We did reviews; covered watches worn by astronauts and even did write-ups on personal stories connected to this model. Some love this watch, some say its not true to the heritage of the Speedy Pro and I say it is a very interesting piece with a lot to offer. Its the perfect tool watch, for me something very similar to the Tissot T-Touch. Since you can find many in-depth articles about the various functions and models of the Speedmaster Skywalker X-33 I will not go into details. You are free to browse the pag...
As every wednesday, it is Wednesday Watch over at MotoringExposure. Today it is time to put Marvin Watch in the spotlight! This brand, over 150 years old, has recently been re-invented and the on-line promotion and presence is unbelievable. This brand knows how to put themselves back on the horological map again.Reasonable priced (mechanical) time pieces with great eye for detail! In Basel I had the chance to have a look at them and was impressed by these classic looking (see below) watches.Check out my latest MotoringExposure article about Marvin Watch and let me know what you think! Click here…...
Almost all watch forums seems to have these weekly or even daily threads about what s on your wrist today. Well, in my case it is quite easy, the vintage Submariner I recently got is hard to beat on a sunny day like this ??Our friends over at the German Forum (Das Forum) are clearly having fun with this What are you wearing?-thread, hence the 469 pages (and counting) filled with the most beautiful watches AND photos. Forum member Kurt tops the last few pages with his white gold Cosmograph Daytona (I love the dial on the white gold version), this picture could easily be in the catalogue if you asked me.This white gold Cosmograph Daytona has reference number 116509 (in case you want one) ...
Wrist Game or Crying Shame is here again and it s time to have a look at the Tudor Heritage Chrono. This is the watch that brought Tudor back in the game, but will you let it play? Before we answer that question…Last week, I showed you a discontinued delicacy with the Seiko Spring Drive Tuna. You gobbled up that ahi with a convincing 67% and hoisted it to a 67% Wrist Game win. This week, with the Tudor Heritage Chrono, we look at a watch that has just begun its second decade completely unchanged. Whether Tudor just plain forgot about this watch or if this watch soldiers on because it s so good is a topic for another day. Today, we re here to hear a little yarn from me about this watch ...
Glycine (founded in 1914) introduced a multiple time zone watch in 1953, the Glycine Airman. These watches were meant to be for travellers and pilots that needed a watch that enabled them to read two different time zones. Through all these years, the Airman watch was never absent from the Glycine collection, but it changed a bit every once in a while. Purists will swear by the original vintage Airman model (nicked ‘Old Airman ) that was in production from 1953 till 1973. This model was embraced by the military (chopper) pilots during the Vietnam war with its useful second time zone and AM/PM indicator. These first models had a Felsa caliber 692 movement and was succeeded in 1960 by an ...
As soon as you buy (or collect) a few nice timepieces, make sure to store them safely to protect them for dust, moisture, children, hungry pets etc. The best way to store your watches would be in a safe, so make sure you pick a watch box that will fit your safe or the safe you have in the bank.One of my favorite on-line accessory shops, watch-winder.co.uk, sells a few great watch boxes. I have ordered some watch winders from them before, but never a suitable watch box. Their black piano finish watch box with this orange effect for holding 8 timepieces was the way to go for me. The compartments are 35mm wide, which means every strap or bracelet will fit on the pillows. Since I have a collecti...
Today would be the birthday of Steve McQueen (24th of March), him being an avid wearer, I though it might be a good day to write about one of the new introductions based on an all time classic sports watch. The Explorer.Perhaps the classic sports watch of all times is the Explorer (or Explorer I, as it is sometimes referred to). Even James Bond wears an Explorer in the original books by Ian Flemming. The first Explorer models (1953) are quite similar to the current model, although it has –? of course – been updated through time to keep up with modern requirements of the consumer. However, what didn t change was the diameter of 36 mm.Now, in 2010, introduces the 39mm version o...
In 1960, Bulova introduced the Accutron Spaceview 214 wristwatch. This battery operated non-quartz watch, was considered to be the most accurate timepiece available in those days. Using a tuning fork, this watch hummed all day and at night, it was impossible to sleep when you left this watch on the drawer next to your bed. There were several Accutron models available in the 1960s (as you can see in my 2001 article here), but the most pretty one imho is the Spaceview with the triangular shaped case as pictured below.As you can see, the tuning fork mechanism, humming at 360 herz has been made clearly visible through the (then) plastic crystal of the Accutron watch.At BaselWorld 2010, Bulova re...
A timepiece that has been produced in your year of birth, seems to be an all-time favourite wish for many watch collectors. I ll have to admit that I once almost pulled the trigger on a Speedmaster Professional from my year of birth (1977). However, after a phone call to the seller in France to discuss last details, it seemed that this watch was not made in 1977. One of the inscriptions on the inside of the case back clearly stated that this watch was produced in 1978. Bummer.I can have more luck with a from my year of birth, however, the prices of these vintage beauties are becoming annoying. Just a few days ago, I noticed that ‘friend of the show Henrik over at SubGMT has a Submar...
Normally, my coverage on quartz driven watches is second to none, however, I ll make an exception for this special timepiece. The Blancier Desert Wolf is dedicated to the Dutch troops in Uruzgan.The watch case of the Desert Wolf has a 45 diameter and a hard PVD finish. The buckle of the strap also has this PVD finish. As you can see, the dial of the Blancier Desert Wolf is marked with the coordinates of the Dutch Uruzgan camp. The orange markers and hands refer to the Dutch heritage.The crown and chronograph pushers are located on the 12 o clock position of the watch, which makes it a ‘bullhead watch. Something we ve seen in the past on Omega and Seiko watches (and a few more).???? Ot...
The design of the Submariner 114060, is unmistakably , despite the size and use of modern materials such as ceramics. Compare the modern 114060 to the 1953 Submariner 6204 and you will immediately notice that these watches share the same DNA.Owning and wearing a Submariner is one thing, but to dive into the history of this watch is quite a task. To make it somewhat easier for you, we hereby show you the history of the Submariner in a nutshell, including a table with most important references since 1953 till the current line-up of Submariner watches.Diving Into SubmarinerThe Submariner is a watch with an interesting story. Introduced over 60 years ago, the current Submariner model (updat...
I haven t seen this one before, a DLC GMT-Master. This neo-vintage GMT-Master with tritium dial has been treated with the famous Diamond Like Carbon coating by Time and Gems.The coating on this timepiece is a mixture of polished and brushed parts, which is a bit different from the regular ref.16700 and ref.16710 models. The center links have been polished, as well as the lugs of the watch case. The anthracite colour on the brushed parts is a bit darker than the coating colour on the polished parts, giving it a bit of room to play with the light.The cool thing about the GMT-Master in DLC edition is that the red GMT-hand stands out. I have seen the newer GMT-Master version (ref.116710LN) in ...
