brand watches wiki – rolex watches, omega watches, replica watches

There is a lot to love about Basel World – the obvious, like 1300 exhibiting timepiece manufactures all within a square mile – and there is a lot one can do without – the long days, endless meetings, bathrooms oddly placed in smoke-filled stairwells and seeming total unavailability of lunch food beyond bratwurst.  But, without a doubt the best thing about Basel World is getting to see friends you don’t often see, sitting down over a beer and just having fun.  You see, the watch world is, at the end of the day, a rather small one, and the majority of us are dear friends.  Sure, we may write for this blog and they might write for that blog, and person X might slave away tirelessly and brilliantly with little aclaim, while person Y might be a media darling, but at the end of the day, we are all friends and while Basel is business for all of us, we make sure to take a night off from the glad handing to do what we want to do – and this post shows you exactly what we want to do.

Since I’ve been coming to Basel World, i’ve joined some good friends, like Frank from Monochrome, Gerard from In2Watches, and Robert-Jan from FratelloWatches for a saturday night of schnitzel and beer.  Last year, the group grew to include several other friends, like Ernie from Watchuseek, the Grönefeld Brothers, and Stepan Sarpaneva.  This year, the group grew to include several more friends – so many friends in fact that we took over the entire restaurant.  And, since we were all together already, it seemed like the perfect place for the folks from Timezone to present the “Watch of the Year” award to the Gronefelds.

Click through for a detailed photo report on our favorite night of the year at Basel World – schnitzel saturday shared with many of our friends, and many of the greatest watchmakers in the world.  See who you can spot after the jump, and we hope you enjoy this look at the very human side of the watch industry.

From:HODINKEE

Read Full Post »

Arcadia is the boutique brand of the Fleurier Watch Company that was originally found in the 19th century and brought back to life in 2007. With three types of collections (four if you include the watches made on request), Arcadia is able to fulfill the demand of all sorts of watch consumers. Arcadia has a Contemporary line of watches to which the reviewed AC01-V2  belongs, a Vintage collection that grabs back to chronographs of yesteryear and a collection especially for ladies.

We received an Arcadia AC01-V2 for review and we’d like to share the pictures we took with our readers.

This AC01-V2 chronograph by Arcadia has this unusual shape and is packed with all kinds of cool details. The AC01-V2 comes on a superb finished leather strap with a single folding clasp with the Arcadia logo engraved.

As you can see, the sapphire crystal has these diamond shaped facets all around and is attached to the case by 4 screws. The lugs on the Arcadia AC01 look really massive, but they are flexible and will adjust to any type or size of wrist.

The chronograph pushers remind us of racing car pedals. Although they don’t stick out the case that far, perhaps even not far enough for the eyes, they really feel like silk when using them. The winding crown has a nice finish as well and features the Arcadia logo. It’s easy to grasp and use by unscrewing it at first and then pull it for time setting and changing the date.

The ETA 2892-A2 movement with Dubois-Depraz module is a solid looking movement and has been proven to be an accurate friend over the years (since 1982). It does not only have a chronograph feature, it also has a 24 hour indicator at 12 o’clock.

More information about the Arcadia AC01-V2 can be found at the official website or their Facebook page.

The AC01-V2 retails for CHF 9900 excl VAT or 9795 EUR including VAT.

From:FratelloWatches RSS

Read Full Post »

The Breguet La Tradition was launched in the mid-2000s to much fanfare and many subsequently mixed reviews amongst fans and connoisseurs – here was a watch that put the escapement on the dial side, was constructed in a very traditional 18th century style (note the odd, almost arbitrary shape of the bridges and sub-plates), finished unusually (but very well indeed) and launched at a reasonably accessible price for what it offered.

Even the architecture was pretty unusual: the time dial was pushed to the top of the watch, regulateur-style, with the barrel in the center and going train laid out across the bottom of the watch. There’s also a little power reserve indicator tucked away at top-right, minimally decorated so as not to interfere with the symmetric aesthetic of the watch.

But then we turned it over, and were surprised by the vast emptiness on the top plate – sure, most of the going train was put on the front, but I think what looked odd to most people was not the emptiness – but the vertical height between the top plate and rear sapphire. I was told that this was the way watches during that period were designed and laid out; no milled recesses for components, just a plate with everything else bolted on to it. I still think a little deviation here and there for the sake of aesthetics would be acceptable – there’s no way they’d use 18th century oils on the escapement, either.

The La Tradition line has spawned a number of complications, some of which do actually use the extra space on the top plate to good effect – the tourbillon, for instance both fills out the front of the dial and the top plate well. It just looks more ‘complete’ to the eye. Whilst I personally prefer the monochrome color scheme with WG case and anthracite dial (similar to the tourbillon) – there’s no denying that the traditional gold version has its appeal too.

But enough of that, to the photographs. As usual, clicking on any of them will bring you to a larger version. The series was shot with a mix of equipment – the Nikon D700 and 60/2.8 macro; Leica M9-P, bellows and Zeiss 2/50 Planar; and finally, the Olympus Pen Mini. Furthermore, if you’re interested in how I made some of the higher magnification ones, please have a look at these two articles on my photography site (The never-ending quest for more magnification; Macrophotography and the Leica M) which both go into more of the technical details. MT

From:FratelloWatches RSS

Read Full Post »

The subject of today’s lens work is a very rare (and also well-worn with lovely patina) Tudor Submariner model 7016/0; the serial number dates it from the early 1970s.

However, I was told that this particular watch was actually purchased as part of a bulk lot by the French navy for their divers – hence the ‘Marine Nationale MN’ stamp on the case back. Unlike other military forces, the French bought off the shelf watches instead of commissioning a special batch – presumably to keep the costs down.

The eagle-eyed amongst you will notice that this is not the original dial. Instead it’s a replacement ‘snowflake’ – and there’s a good reason for this, too. Once again, to save costs, the MN employed their own in-house watchmakers whose objective was to keep the watches useable and running, not pretty; they simply swapped out whatever spare parts they had to hand to make a working piece and rotate it back into service as fast as possible. This has created a number of very interesting and unique pieces for the collector, especially an example like this – which has full decommissioning papers and accompanying photographs to authenticate that this was the exact condition it left the Navy in.

Enjoy the photos! As usual, a click on any one takes you to a larger version. MT

From:FratelloWatches RSS

Read Full Post »

The late, great George Daniels knew his watches, certainly, but he also had a serious love of fine automobiles.  As we previously reported, Bonhams have secured the Daniels automobile collection for an upcoming auction, and just yesterday in New York we stopped by to photograph what is one of the highlights of the Daniels Car collection.  You are looking at a historic 1929 Bentley Blower 4.5 litre supercharged, single-seater racing car that set the Brooklands Outer Circuit lap record of 137mph….in 1931.  137mph in 1931? Whoa.

This absolutely beautiful car will be sold in June at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.  Click through for a live look at one of the most important cars in the world, owned by one of the most important watchmakers to have ever lived. For more details on the sale, visit Bonhams.

PS – Pay close attention to those gauges!

From:HODINKEE

Read Full Post »

It seems to be Jaeger-LeCoultre month here – which of course isn’t at a bad thing at all! I recently had the opportunity to photograph the uncommon JLC Master Compressor Navy Seals Alarm Beverly Hills Boutique Edition (what a long name). It differs from the standard edition in a) it’s very limited production run; b) the yellow accents on the compressor crowns and strap; c) the logo printing on the underside of the sapphire crystal; d) the most obvious part, the anthracite case.

As usual, all images may be clicked on for larger versions.

The movement is the same as the regular model, subject to the 1000 hour Master Control test and equipped with both automatic winding and a loud and very functional alarm. Being a diver, it also has a functional 200m depth rating and locking compressor crowns to maintain water resistance; I’m just not sure how many submersions that nice leather strap will tolerate, though. There’s also plenty of luminous material and easily readable hands, much like its regular production cousin.

Enough from me, enjoy the images. MT

With a distant relative

From:FratelloWatches RSS

Read Full Post »

I think most collectors will be familiar with the Master Tourbillon line; it is one of the most accessible entry points for this complication, and finished to a higher level than JLC’s already excellent regular pieces. But it’s unlikely that you will have ever seen these particular examples, from the Haute Joallerie and fine art lines – special pieces that are made in extremely limited numbers and never seen outside the boutiques. Much more artisanal handwork is required than normal, from the cutting of the rare stone dial to inlaying of the diamonds to guilloching and enameling the dials; I personally much prefer the non-jewellery versions, but the aventurine stone dial has great depth and ‘pop’.

Left to right: Master Tourbillon enamels; Master Tourbillon Haute Joallerie Aventurine

Enjoy the photos! All images may be clicked on for larger versions, as usual. MT

From:FratelloWatches RSS

Read Full Post »

Richard Mille’s RM056 split-seconds chrono tourbillion is encased entirely in sapphire and costs $ 1.65 million – that much you know thanks to our post about it on Monday.  The feedback to this x-ray of a watch has been tremendous, and according to Richard Mille, all five of the production RM056′s have already been sold – what recession, right?

So, we went back and gave the RM056 the HODINKEE photo treatment.  What does, exactly, this watch look like in the flesh?  Well, it is visually striking.  With light behind it, it glows.  The RM caliber is, as always, just beautiful. The sapphire case almost looks plastic (we assure, it’s not). The RM056, of course, reminds us of the first sapphire-centric uber-watch, the MB&F HM2 Sapphire Vision, though the RM takes the use of the brittle but scratch-resistant glass quite a bit further.

We have over ten live, detailed photographs of this amazing watch below, so be sure to click through to get a better impression of one watch that was the talk of SIHH.

Click Through For More Live Photographs Of The $ 1.65 Million Richard Mille RM056.

From:HODINKEE

Read Full Post »

Once in a very, very rare blue moon, a truly amazing piece crosses your way. This is one of them: The Mother Of All Reversos. The Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Gyrotourbillon 2. A double-axis tourbillon with cylindrical hairspring; reserve de march and date indicators. 373 parts and 58 jewels keep everything turning. Oh, and it runs for 50 hours off one massive single barrel. As you would expect, the case is truly enormous to accommodate most of all the spherically shaped tourbillon; the movement alone is 11.1mm thick, accommodate in a case around 16mm thick. The case is so massive there’s a secondary integrated lock slider near the crown to prevent accidental reversing.

Click all images for larger versions.

A watch like this transcends practicality and sits very much in the rarefied field of art, so I won’t attempt to comment on pedestrian things like its water resistance; it just isn’t important. Besides, I would seriously question the sanity of a person who chooses to go swimming with a six figure complication on a leather strap. They should immediately have all their watches confiscated by some higher horological authority. Suffice to say the piece has enormous wrist presence; it’s our horological bling in the best possible way. I personally love how the movement itself forms the dial, allowing you to appreciate the variations in surface finishing (clous de Paris, anglage, perlage, matte, brushed, polished…it’s all there) and the tourbillon itself.

In fact, I believe one of the very reasons the watch does not have a dial is to keep the thickness down due to the tourbillon; it appears that the cage is the thickest part of the movement. And what a cage! Two axes of rotation, different periods. I would imagine the end point of the tourbillon would probably trace a path covering all points on a sphere, if one were inclined to wait long enough. It’s actually quite a challenge to photograph this movement (and hugely more so to regulate it) because the tourbillon doesn’t stop. Your final composition is a bit of a surprise, because the cage keeps moving. I guess the barrel has to be blocked or a tool used to stop rotation to adjust the rate of the watch.

More information: www.jaeger-lecoultre.com

Enough words. Enjoy the images! MT

From:FratelloWatches RSS

Read Full Post »

As usual, click on the image for a larger version.

It’s time for something a little different. Firstly, this piece is something the ladies will enjoy: a well finished, 33mm hand-winding classical watch. Although 33mm used to be Patek Philippe‘s mens’ size, today it’s a little on the small side even for the fairer sex. Amongst contemporary watches, the only comparable piece would be the JLC Master Ultra Thin at 34mm, and perhaps a Patek repeater or two (but obviously they’re all in very different price categories!)

This Nomos, however, is eminently affordable, and is another one of those watches that delivers great bang for the buck: you get a semi-inhouse movement, beautiful dial and hands, and a nice case. The movement is a heavily modified ETA (formerly Peseaux) 7001, which now sports a three quarter plate, snail graining on all the wheels and a very nice ‘Glashutte stripe’ finish. The hands are polished deep blue batons which hover over the ethereal silver dial, itself having a warm luster and sheen.

At this point, you’re probably wondering if the watch itself is the ‘something different’: there’s one more surprise. These images were shot with Leica M rangefinder lenses – the 50/1.4 ASPH and 28/2.8 ASPH – with a combination of adapters, extension tubes and bodies. The second image was actually shot with an M9-P rangefinder body, Visoflex III adaptor and continuous LED lighting. The Visoflex III is an old accessory that Leica made from the 60s onwards to compete with the SLR onslaught; it allows SLR viewing on your M rangefinder. I’m very pleased with the tonal palette; expect to see more of this in the future. Combined with extension tubes on the Nikon D700 body, far greater than normal magnification (up to 3.5:1!) is possible – all of these images, including the closeups, are the full frame and not crops.

Enjoy! MT

Second hand. No blue paint here; everything blue you see on a Nomos is colored by heat treatment, the old fashioned way.

Official Nomos website

From:FratelloWatches RSS

Read Full Post »