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Ulysse Nardin Maxi Marine Diver Chronometer Review

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There are vintage Submariners, and then there are watches like this.  You guys are familiar with the run of the mill mega-Rolexes – the Paul Newmans, the MilSubs, and the COMEX pieces (seen together here), but as we’ve told you before, there exists an even higher level of vintage Rolex collecting.

In this world, you’re not dealing with “a” watch, you’re dealing with “the” watch, as in this world revolves around singular pieces, not vague groupings like “a meters first Submariner”.  Specifically, here we are talking about “the Rolex 6538 Big Crown Submariner with an explorer dial, red depth rating, and officially certified chronometer marking, in spectacular original shape.”

The watch dates to early 1956 and retains all of its original parts, and even original beveling on the case edges.  This is, according to its owner, only the second watch of this configuration to surface, and in certainly the better condition of the two.  Based on the reaction on VRF, we tend to agree that this watch is absolutely something very special.  

We do not know how much was paid for this particular example, but based in similar (lesser) Submariners that have sold publicly in the recent year or so, we would put this one at $ 250K+.  Oh, and if you’re curious who sold this watch to its new owner?  It would our old friends Eric Ku (who we interviewed here) and Matthew Bain, who we work with on our GILT sales and pop-ups.

For more info on this spectacular and hyper-rare Rolex Submariner Ref 6538 Big Crown with explorer dial, red depth rating, and OCC markings, click here.

From:HODINKEE

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There are times that I wish I could have experienced the watch industry in the 1970s. Oh what an interesting time. Quartz regulated movements debuted in the late 1960s and was still an extremely expensive novelty which everyone was interested in, but no one quite knew what to do with. Mechanical watches still reigned supreme, and the era saw the creation of the modern sports watch as we know it. It was also a time of extreme optimism and experimentation from a design perspective. The world’s interest in space travel and futurism was at an all-time high, and product makers began to have more and more materials to play with. It was a good time marred by some ugly designs and outrageous ideas, but the overall sentiment seemed to be positive.

It was not until the 1980s when quartz-based timepieces became cheap enough to put a serious threat to the mechanical Swiss watch industry. Even during the late 1970s many Swiss watch makers saw it wise to totally abandon mechanical watches. They wanted their entire productions to be quartz. At the time it was thought by many people that mechanical watches were a thing of the past. I learned much of this traveling to Switzerland and listening to people discuss exactly what was going on and what they felt at the time. We now know that quartz and mechanical watches can coexist, but that is actually a modern concept.

Anyhow, going back to the late 1960s and early 1970s, the largest Swiss brands were heavily invested in making their own quartz movements. These movements were anything but mass-produced and cheap. Often times requiring as much effort as a mechanical watch to assemble, these accurate electronic wonders were considered luxury items. You’ll probably never again see a Rolex watch proudly labeled “Quartz” on the dial. The same goes for Omega – who was considered by many to be a pioneer in quartz movement development.

In the late 1960s the Swiss and Japanese were aggressively trying to beat each other when it came to releasing the first quartz wrist watch. Seiko narrowly beat out the Swiss, and the Swiss followed up with a bevy of interesting high-end quartz models during the late 1960s and mostly into the 1970s. A very special one is the Omega Marine Chronometer.

There are a few people online how have laid out the technical history of the Omega Marine Chronometer better than I will ever be able to do (for example you can watch this YouTube video with images of the Marine Chronometer and a soundtrack that sounds like the guy wants to make love to the watch). I believe that it officially debuted for sale in 1974 and was available for a few years with a couple of movements variations all based on the quartz caliber 1500 series that was made by Omega.

They called these movements “Megaquartz,” because of the frequency at which they ran was 2.4 MHz (mega hertz). These were also know as Megaquartz 2400 movements. One hertz is one cycle per second, so 2.4MHz is 2,400,000 cycles per second. This is extremely fast – and the faster a movement can operate the more accurate it will be. To put that into comparison, a standard quartz watch runs at about 32,768 hertz, and an average mechanical wrist watch movement such as the ubiquitous ETA 2824 automatic runs at 4 hertz. Can you notice how big those differences are?

I don’t know the precise accuracy rating of the Omega caliber 1500 megaquartz movements, but it was something like one second each 1000 years. To this day it probably remains the most accurate quartz movement every made. Something Omega pads itself on the back for accomplishing, but it does so quietly as the brand’s direction today is heavily on mechanical watches. The irony – that Omega themselves laugh about – is that the down-side of the Omega Marine Chronometer was its battery life. The movement sucked power such that a battery change was necessary each six months or so. That’s not horrible in today’s setting when the watch can be reset easily. But if you wanted the watch to be reliable for serious scientific purposes “out in the field,” you’d need at least two of them running, and you’d need to stagger the battery life as well as stockpile batteries. Just a fun fact about the caliber 1500 series movements.

The 1500 series came in a few variants and were designed to fit into the rectangular case of the Marine Chronometer. I am still not sure why it has the “Constellation” name of the dial. New products tend to get complex branding I find. The design of the dial interests me. It looks like something plucked from an instrument panel. Imagine a series of gauges each with a different label. Here you are looking at the “Marine Chronometer” instrument. And what is it? Well an Omega Constellation with a sweet sounding high-tech movement. This watch thematically like the Bell & Ross BR01, in that it attempts place something from an instrument panel on your wrist. They even both have four bezel screws.

Reading the dial is simple as it is designed to be very minimalistic and devoid of excess. The round dial lack frills and is very utilitarian. Perhaps almost too much by some standards. Still, given the technology and purpose behind the movement I am glad that the face looks like a wall clock. The date is neatly tucked-in at six o’clock. Omega wanted its logo and name in large print on the face – now that is being proud of a watch! The large “Marine Chronometer” label on the top of the dial is sort of silly, especially looking at it in hindsight. The title isn’t necessary, but it is a charming quirk about the design and the concept of the watch overall.

My understanding is that Omega only released one case style for the watch which was in steel with a 14k gold bezel and serial number plaque. The case is about 49mm tall and 32.5mm wide. It is 12mm thick and overall feels stately but not massive on the wrist. Retro by today’s standards a bit, the tapered single-link style bracelet and overall design does endure well in my opinion. I find it interesting that the serial number is so prominently displayed on the case. Another design feature intent on making it feel more like an important instrument rather than formal timepiece. This was a serious geek watch for its time.

Back in the mid 1970s the Omega Marine Chronometer was priced very high at $ 1,850. It was of course the only watch of its kind and pretty high-tech. Some more info on the Marine Chronometer can be found here as chronicled by the late Omega-expert Chuck Maddox. Today Omega Marine Chronometer watches are still out there. They aren’t terribly expensive, but do represent an investment in terms of adding one to your collection. I personally am really drawn to this unique watch and would gladly shell out to own one. It helps that I like how it looks on my wrist as well. Thanks to the good people at the Omega Museum for letting me play with it.

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EXTREM RARE OMEGA MARINE CHRONOMETER F 24 MHZ CAL 1516

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From:aBlogtoRead.com

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Mechanical and automatic watches should be cleaned and serviced every three – four years to ensure trouble-free time keeping. The moving parts of quartz watches also need maintenance, as they are not under tension and any small, foreign particle is sufficient stop them. The battery needs to be changed when drained. This is the time for routine maintenance. Where water resistant seals are fitted, cleaning is required less often, however seals must be changed whenever the case back is removed. Otherwise they should be changed annually and resistancy checked using pressure equipement, through the manufacturers agent. It is worthwhile remembering that regular exposure to chemicals, or sea water, can damage straps, plated cases, bracelets.

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The subject of today’s photoessay is the seldom seen, but utterly sublime, Chopard LUC Chronometer. A modest 38mm in diameter, it’s powered by the Chopard LUC 1.96 movement. The movement has twin barrels providing a 70 hour power reserve, and a solid gold micro rotor for winding; not only do I think the finishing is amongst the best I’ve ever seen – even under heavy magnification – it seems that the folks awarding Geneva Seals thought so, too. Interestingly, it’s also a very flat movement for an automatic – just 3.3mm. No doubt the micro rotor architecture contributes meaningfully here; it uses an ingenious lobed cam to drive a rocking pawl that ratchets back and forth to wind the barrel in small increments. The escapement is also similarly full of meaningful detail: the hairspring has a Breguet overcool and is held in an adjustable stud carrier, the regulator has a micrometer screw and tension spring to eliminate backlash. This particular example also happens to be a special edition, and has a hinged half-hunter case back which hides the sapphire display back. Sadly though, we don’t seem to see as much of this caliber as its obvious beauty merits – hopefully rectified to some small degree by this photoessay. Enjoy! MT

Please note all images may be clicked on for larger versions. Yes, real ice was used. No watches were harmed in the making of this set.

From:FratelloWatches RSS

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Grand Seiko is something of a cult brand. Lauded by some as a worthy alternative to the very finest of Swiss Made watches, the brand has just relaunched in the United States for some years, and at some very fine Swiss Made prices. 

So, the watch we have here today is a great value if you’re looking for a piece of Japanese fine watchmkaing but don’t necessarily to spend the dough to buy new.  Dating to 1970, this Seiko GS features the manually wound, rhodium-plated Cal. 5722A and looks very much the same as the 130th Anniversary Grand Seiko we saw at Basel World this year, though with a slightly different case.  The best part about this vintage Grand Seiko is the estimate: only $ 1000 to $ 1500. 

This watch will be auctioned off tomorrow in New York via Antiquorum.  Click here for more details.

Related Content: For a look at a $ 400,000 Seiko Credor Minute Repeater, click here.

From:HODINKEE

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Driving in London is bad enough, but during the 2012 Summer Olympics it is going to be even worse. Omega will be there. Omega is always there. I hope they have a few private helicopters for the event (or hotels within walking distance of ALL the events). As the long-time official timer of the Olympics, Omega also gets to release special watch models each two years for the games. These Omega Olympics watches are often fantastic, and for 2012 Olympics they have devised a retro piece.

Most Omega Olympics themed watches are based on their modern collection but this is a vintage-themed model. It is based on classic designs from the late 1940s. Specifically 1948 – which is apparently the last year London held the summer Olympics. According to Omega is it also the debut year of the Seamaster watch. What a coincidence!

I have a hunch that there is going to be yet another watch for the 2012 Olympics that Omega will release closer to the games. The release of this Omega Seamaster 1948 Co-Axial Chronometer just seems early – although it fits the bill well for a proper limited edition model. Actually to be specific, the watch was debuted exactly one year before the Olympic games are sent to begin in the summer of 2012.

Looking at the original watch you can see how similar the design is and where Omega drew influence for this recreation model. The new piece will be limited to 1,948 pieces – a number that should surprise nobody. The case is 39mm wide in steel with an 18k yellow gold caseback. The case has a sapphire crystal and is water resistant to 120 meters. The caseback has the London 2012 Olympics logo done in relief. The case is very old-timey sport with an easy to read dial and lovely detailing all over the face. You know what really surprises me? Just how faithful Omega has been to the Original dial. Just look at the 2011 Seamaster Planet Ocean watch and tell me just how much of the original DNA is in it? A lot actually.

This new limited edition Omega Seamaster 1948 Co-Axial Chronometer watch is larger than the original with an automatic Co-Axial movement. It has also been COSC Chronometer certified, using the in-house made caliber 2022 automatic movement. Aside from the 18k gold caseback, Omega adds additional gold on the dial. The applied Omega logo and hour indicators are all done in 18k white gold. The result is very subdued and appealing, just what many retro-watch lovers are looking for.

Omega matches the finely conservative watch to a black alligator strap. The combination of history, style, and Olympics fandom will help this be a very popular limited edition for Omega in honor of the upcoming games. Price is said to be relatively reasonable at $ 6,800.

From:aBlogtoRead.com

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what are the small circles inside the dials of chronometer watches for?? what all does it do?! or show? like for example.. in rolex daytona u’l have three such small dials. wut does they show?

Answer by kunal k
could you upload a photo of the watch as example coz i don’t really get what ‘circles’ you are talking about

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Question by Kevin: rolex oyster perpetual datejust superltive chronometer officially certified 468B?

how much is it worth

Best answer:

Answer by mccoyblues
Take it to a jeweler and have it appraised.

Add your own answer in the comments!

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Rolex Oyster Question&Answer:
Question by Kevin: how much is a rolex oyster perpetual datejust superltive chronometer officially certified 468B watch worth?
my brother found it w/ a metal detector on the beach

Best answer:

Answer by Mike Shinoda
You can try asking online… found this site… they eliminate the guess work in trying to figure out what your Rolex is worth. Their process allows you to have a REAL OFFER within 24 hours of them receiving your watch. Eliminate the hassle of consignment, false price ranges, and pawn shops – They will help you sell your Rolex fast, safe, and for a price that will make you happy. Take advantage of their international buyers network today by submitting a form to speak with one of their professional Rolex brokers.

Give your answer to this question below!

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