2016 marks the 85th anniversary of Jaeger-LeCoultre‘s Reverso, with several models celebrating the occasion, including this piece, the Reverso Tribute Calendar. It’s very easy to take a brand like Jaeger-LeCoultre for granted: they have a discreet, laid-back attitude. They don’t boast a lot about their achievements. They have many qualities: they have been a true…
To my admittedly devious mind, the “positions” specified in watch adjustment conjure up an image of a plush, dimly-lit room somewhere in a watch factory where couples of workers are checking the correct functioning of watches while engaged in a variety of Kama Sutra positions. Alas, the reality is much less colourful. A watch adjusted…
Baume & Mercier have been working with Carroll Shelby’s sports car enterprise since 2015. The two limited-edition Capeland Shelby Cobra 1963 watches celebrate one of the Shelby Cobra models, the CSX2128 built for the 1963 12 Hours of Sebring race. The car was immediately recognizable for its yellow stripes, and it won an impressive number…
Ressence, founded in 2010 by Benoît Mintiens in Antwerp, Belgium, has achieved a lot over the last six years. In November 2013, the Type 3 was awarded the Horological revelation prize at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG). This year, 2016, Ressence have once again entered a watch into the competition, Type 5B, this…
Clifton is Baume & Mercier’s “expertise” range, with watches based on more complex movements. It has a busy dial, and a steel case 43 mm in diameter and 15 mm thick, with areas of high polish contrasting with brushed steel. It is enhanced by the alligator strap, with curved springbars that enhance the shape of…
The Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda Metrgraphe is part of the Métro collection. The names that Parmigiani gives to its watches are often rather unusual (different to the long succession of descriptive words that many brands use, such as “Master Ultra Thin Minute Repeater Flying Tourbillon”), and “Metrographe” was coined to give the watch an urban, metropolitan,…
If you ask advice from a collector about a watch as investment, he or she will invariably say: buy a watch because you like it. If you want to have something precious and see its value go up over the years, buy a bar of gold. But even a collector likes to be able to…
The Bell & Ross BR-X1 Tourbillon Chronograph is one of the three watches that the brand has presented in a marine chronometer style. Its complex square case is 45 mm in size, made in rose gold and rosewood, evoking the 19th century chronometers used on board ships. It has the commendable water resistance rating of…
Warning: this is not the usual blog post. It’s quite long. It’s a fictionalized version of a true story. I wrote it to try to understand the greatest mystery of this crime: why did he do it? Contents 1. Dealing the cards – 5 January 1783 Abraham-Louis Breguet and Count von Fersen 2. A bold opening…
The Bell & Ross BR-X1 Skeleton Chronograph is one of the three pieces that the brand have released on a marine theme, a departure from the aviation spirit on which they built their reputation. Like the Bell & Ross Instrument de Marine, this watch has a case made of bronze and rosewood, with titanium used…
The Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Chronographe Flyback Ocean Commitment II is a watch celebrating the brand’s efforts in the area of ocean environmental protection and research. It first appeared as a limited edition watch in 2014. It introduced a new concept of limited edition watches, providing purchasers not only with a rare piece, but making…
Bell & Ross achieve success for their higher-priced watches (their core business is from $2,000 to $6,000) by ensuring that demand is always higher than supply. Demand comes from quality design and originality, supply is restricted by limiting production. This piece, BR 01 Instrument de Marine, is a good example. Bell & Ross are tapping…
Just 17 watches. The Chopard Superfast Porsche Motorsport 919 Limited Victory Edition is similar in concept to the Chopard Mille Miglia 2016 XL Race Edition, with the same movement. It has a more elaborate design, with a rose gold bezel, and as a result it costs about €4,000 more. It celebrates the Porsche Motorsport team…
The great divide in chronographs is between cam chronograph movements, in which the pushers rotate a cam (or coulisse) which in turn moves a series of levers, and column wheel chronographs, in which the pushers rotate the column wheel which then operates the levers. The column wheel provides smoother pusher operation and is the higher-end…
The Grand Prix de Monaco is held every two years and sees vintage racing cars competing on the Monaco Formula 1 circuit. Every two years since 2002, Chopard has been the sponsor and timekeeper for the event, and has presented a limited-edition watch celebrating the race. The Chopard Grand Prix de Monaco Historique 2016 Race…
Just writing about a watch by A. Lange & Söhne gives me gooseflesh. Their pieces have a combination of technical creativity, watchmaking artistry and aesthetic discretion that is second to none. From the front, you have no idea of the marvels inside, and even when you turn it over, there are just a few beguiling…
Water resistance ratings as they are published and indicated on watches are very misleading. Most watches are rated at 3 bar, or 3 atmospheres, corresponding to 30 metres water resistance. So you may think, wow, 30 metres depth! No problem about taking my watch when I go swimming, or keeping it on in the shower…
The Chopard L.U.C XP 35 mm Esprit de Fleurier Peony is a limited-edition watch for women, with a dial in Tahitian mother-of-pearl, and a movement decorated with Fleurisanne engraving. Inside, the L.U.C 96.23-L calibre is very slim, contributing to the watch’s graceful lines. It is a new version of the Esprit de Fleurier launched in…
The new version of the Mido Commander Chronometer Limited Edition is similar to last year’s piece, but with different dial colours, and now with chronometer certification. Below the day and date, the lettering “Commander Automatic” has been replaced by “Chronometer Automatic.” The watch is Mido’s only piece with chronometer certification. The dial has distinctive looks…
With the Imperiale Joaillerie, Chopard demonstrates its dual identity as watchmakers and jewellers. The watch has a self-winding mechanical movement, enclosed in a case set with 581 sapphires, for a total of 47.98 carats, and requiring over 1,000 hours selecting, cutting and setting the gems. The rainbow setting is stunning, with colours running right through…