Archive for October 2022
16/1860/2 Chopard LUC Calibre 1.96
I make no bones about the fact that the LUC calibre 1.96 is the Chopard I find most attractive, save Ferdinand Berthoud; it is possible for something to be expensive and massively undervalued. Much in the way that a multitude of collectors have only recently begun to acknowledge the exceptional watchmaking in early CPCP pieces…
Read More5621H Rodania Geometer
There is a highly divisive branch of theoretical physics which holds that there are infinite realities. Some call it the multiverse, others call it the twin-world model level IV. The latter more extreme theories hold that if you can imagine a reality, it has existed or will. Yet, I’m already struggling to think of watch…
Read More’10 Year Safe Driver’ Winn-Dixie 14000M Rolex Air-King
Alongside all the sexy Pan-Am, Qaboos, or Tiffany-signed Rolex dials, there are also a wide variety of more salt-of-the-earth stamps at 6: Pool Intairdril, Honda, Domino’s Pizza, and this Winn-Dixie. Winn-Dixie are US supermarket franchise of the South who, for many years, had thing for Air-Kings and fresh produce. This is an earned watch, given…
Read MoreZenith x Voutilainen x Phillips Calibre 135-O
Last year, an early-2000s Formula 1 Ferrari V10 engine known as the F2003-GA, capable of 845hp at 18,300rpm, was auctioned off for 36K EUR. The power unit was a piece of history, having taken Michael Schumacher to his sixth championship title. Here it was, separated from its context, sold alone. What, if anything, is the…
Read MoreGallet Flying Officer 2nd Generation
This two register chronograph with a world time dial and rotating bezel has almost certainly become Gallet’s most famed model. The watch was introduced in 1939 and made for the US Army Air Corps, even being worn by Harry Truman at its height. Some have argued this is the world’s first time-zone wristwatch, others point…
Read MoreTropical 14790ST Audemars Piguet Royal Oak
Through both a design and historic lens, the 14790 is perhaps the truest iteration of the 36mm mid-sized Royal Oak. After introduction taking over from the first ref. 4100 in 1992, it remained in production longer than any other mid-sized Royal Oak to date. This open window allowed for a huge degree of variants to…
Read MoreMeters First 1680/8 Rolex Submariner
Rolex’s fabled gold Submariner may in fact be the single watch most classically representative of the ‘fuck-you-money’ attitude. Or at least, it was. See, the gold Submariner has gone through this sort of inverse bell-curve of public acceptability from the 1960s through today in 2021. To start, it was a hallmark of a highly successful…
Read MoreWalser Wald-Signed, Steel ‘Tasti Tondi’ Patek Philippe 1463
Any Patek Philippe executed in that noblest of metals, steel, could be said to be a significant watch. But a steel Tasti Tondi? That’s beyond special. Of the ref. 1463, just 750 are thought to exist across all metals. Those in steel make up just a handful of that production, produced sporadically over the life…
Read More1575 Cartier Santos-Dumont 90th Anniversary
Last week, John Mayer wrote an excellent short piece for the big H on 5 neo-vintage watches we ought to be paying attention to. I’m certain creating a list as concise as just five watches was a challenge. Nonetheless, I was surprised not see a single Cartier entrant. Therefore, as one topical honorable mention, I’d…
Read MoreE853 Jaeger-Lecoultre Memovox
The E853 is little-discussed corner of the vintage Memovox world that offers much of what modern collectors seek: history in the form of being the world’s first automatic alarm movement, minimalist dial signatures, 37mm steel proportions, and, perhaps most crucially, no date. See, the considerably more famous and more widely-produced ref E855 is the date-bearing…
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