Archive for December 2022
Tropical 6262 Rolex Daytona
If there is a god, I like to imagine that tropical dials are his way of saying, ‘wear your damn watches’. The sun is a ball of nuclear chaos 8.3 light minutes away from Earth. But its effects are not always this attractive. Consider for example the female residents of Florida between the ages of…
Read MoreTropical Gilt PCG 7928 Tudor Submariner
Of all the many adjectives one could throw at this 7928 including tropical, ghost, gilt, and PCG, I believe the most interesting may be antifragile. That word has more depth than the etymology alone may suggest. Nassim Taleb, a Lebanese author and risk analyst, has a book on the topic. In it, he defines antifragile…
Read MoreRuthenium Dial FP Journe Octa Jour et Nuit
Becoming truly obsessed with watches can elicit many unintended consequences: financial ruin, loneliness, a sudden urge to wear cardigans, and, perhaps most surprisingly, an expertise in materials science and metallurgy. This last pair comes mostly from the independent watchmakers, who seem to be running an unspoken competition to see who can find the coolest alloys…
Read More3805 IWC Ingenieur Chronograph Alarm
Without doubt, this is one of the most curious IWCs to ever wear the name Ingenieur. The 3805 is a mecha-quartz chronograph with alarm complication in a 34.5mm steel case unlike any other. The design feels influenced by aviation, Genta, and a fascination with knurling. It’s not what first comes to mind when one references…
Read More’25 Years Service’ Coca-Cola 6565 Rolex Oyster Perpetual
I don’t really understand flex culture, in watches or any other discipline. But surely, if you wanted to show Jake Paul that the sole thing worse than a fake Richard Mille is a real one (I jest), this is the ultimate flex: a watch which tells the world it’s owner knows how to be dedicated…
Read More2446C Heuer Autavia GMT Second Execution
How many truly water resistant GMT Chronographs from the 60s can you think of? My guess is one, although there are a few others. The C or compressor case Autavia is possibly most useful 60s Heuer and it’s not difficult to image the lifestyle it was made for. This GMT offered the ability to fly…
Read More1 of 300 Platinum Jubilee ‘RaSP’ Tudor Black Bay
Despite the name ‘Platinum Jubilee’, this is not a platinum watch. No, it’s steel, and it’s far, far cooler than that. In celebration of Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee, marking the first British Monarch to give 70 years service, a small run of 300 Black Bays were made. But not for her staff. These were made…
Read MoreSalmon Dial 5035 Patek Philippe Annual Calendar
This may come as a surprise, but Patek’s annual calendar calibres actually requires a greater number of components than their perpetuals: 324 for the annual base calibre vs 280 for the perpetual. This 5035, the world’s first annual calendar complication, was intended to help bridge the gap between a Calatrava and full-on perpetual calendar. At…
Read MoreLip-Signed Blancpain Fifty Fathoms
If you didn’t know, the original Fifty Fathoms was developed in collaboration with the French Combat Diving School, a tool needed for the most elite units of the French Navy (later Commando Hubert). Captain Robert Maloubier, who was previously a British Special Operations secret agent during WWII (and had an enviable mustache) and Lieutenant Claude…
Read MoreCartier Privé Asymetrique in Platinum
It seems like a simple idea: take 12 and, instead of aligning it to the top of a watch, align it to the point at which your eye naturally rests when a watch is on your wrist. But the effect is profound. This play on true north brings with it just enough interruption to expectation…
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