One of the most revered vintage chronographs Heuer ever made, the manual, screw-back Autavia is at the height of many collector’s Heuer lists. With a tri-subdial Valjoux 72 layout, rotating luminous bezel, and 39mm case, it’s a Daytona of the people. And it’s properly proportioned, thin—even a bit contemporary. It’s...

Souscription is often associated with Resonance and Tourbillon, but it was extended into the early days of the Octa range equally. In fact, they’re some of the most subtly excellent collector’s Journes made. After the success of first two models, Journe launched the Octa platform to prove that an automatic...

In 1983, Vacheron Constantin announced to the world their intentions to return to traditional, complicated mechanical watchmaking in the wake of the quartz crisis with the ref. 43031 Perpetual Calendar. Switzerland had been decimated, with watch industry employment falling from 90,000 to 28,000 and the number of dedicated watchmakers employed...

Antimagnetic or scientist’s watches are a long overlooked, often beautiful collecting category. A trend during the mid-century, when science was the way forward, these were usually a halfway-stop between a dress/three-handed and tool watch aesthetic. Patek Philippe had the Amag, Rolex had the Milgauss, Omega had the Railmaster. Yet, one...

The transitional 16550 marked the start of the Explorer II as a dual-time zone watch. In one instant, the hour hand was able to jump and the GMT-Master II had a credible rival. Further, it also introduced a massive fault we’ve all come to adore: the cream dial. Early 16550s...

To most, the word Saatchi brings to mind an art gallery in London or a man named Charles. To watch obsessives, Saatchi is a crowning adjective applied to Patek Philipps through the neo-vintage era. On the 5070, the Saatchi very much marks the traditional king of chronographs returning to their...

Despite sharing a strong family resemblance, this Observatoire is not a Vingt-8. It’s what came before, in tiny numbers, powered by a thoroughly reworked and beautifully-finished Peseux 260 before Kari’s own calibre 28 was ready. There's a huge degree of variance in early Kari and it's really beginning to pick...

Sincere Singapore have had many incredibly beautiful and unique small runs made for their clients, from guilloché Lange to LF and, yes, FP Journe. While this looks like a black label, it’s actually one of just 10 made with black mother of pearl. Yes, this is actually mother of pearl...

The Heuer ‘Siffert’, or properly the Autavia ref. 1163, arrived in 1969 as Heuer’s answer to a new era of automatic chronographs. The reference family shows up in Heuer catalogues a touch earlier, the watershed years when the brand debuted its automatic Calibre 11/12 Autavias alongside other iconic models like...

A 3940 doing its best Tortue impression, the 5040 is a ridiculously beautiful value today. But there are more variants than most realize. It’s not just a J with Breguet numerals, this is platinum—solid caseback only just like the 3940. Except this black Arabic dial with dot indices is unlike...

Debuting in 2002, the Octa Calendrier marked a milestone in modern watchmaking as the first annual calendar with a retrograde date. It was also the first F.P. Journe to win at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève, taking home the Special Jury Prize that same year. The Calendrier was the...

We love Pre-Daytona here, and 6238 is probably the most universally adored Rolex chronograph made. There are the critically lauded and quite rare black dial variants, the lesser known but quite rare and lovely gunmetal grey dials, and then silver. Silver is normally perceived as the most accessible and most...

The 3940 and indeed 3970 started at their very best. This smaller subdial with its 90 degreee signifies a far smaller, more hand-made production at the very start of serial production complication. To those paying close attention, this era (Philippe Stern’s) is really having a moment. 3940, 3970, and 5004:...

The 1675 is the defining travel watch of its generation. It’s the defining travel watch for many generations after. And gilt dials define many of the ultimate examples. Although the gilt 1675 evolved through numerous dials and even crown guards, the later generations have a subtle charm that makes one...

The Second Series 3970 occupies and entirely different mindshare than but five years ago. It is, quite obviously, ascending to become seriously collected, desired, and studied. But the platinum, well, it’s been described aptly by Ben Clymer as a, ‘kind of mini platinum 2499’. And he’s right, except there’s nothing...

Imagine walking into the office of Günter Blümlein in 1997 and proposing a massive alteration to the Lange 1 that would fundamentally alter the harmony of its dial: adding a tourbillon. Nonetheless, someone actually had the brass to suggest improving upon the Lange 1. The wildest part is that it...

A bracelet should never be an afterthought, but Wellendorff Lange is the opposite. While a First Generation Datograph is spectacular and deeply significant in its own right, it’s hard for any Wellendorff bracelet to not steal the show. This Datograph was sold by Wempe in 2001, two years after release....

Developed just after the initial World Timers by Louis Cottier, the ref. 2597 is a damn cool ‘Travel Time’ from 1956, the very start of the jet age. The reference can be thought of as a 570 Calatrava with a little je ne sais quoi complication, or a gentleman’s GMT-Master. The...