You may be forgiven for imagining that the Tortue was Cartier’s only design to receive that spectacular THA ébauche monopusher chronograph during the CPCP years. It is not so, but the second Monopoussoir, a Tank, is vanishingly rare by comparison at just 200 examples . . .ever. There are many...

The joys of Rolex Day-Date collecting are in many ways like the joys of mild alcoholism. In both, the satisfaction is to be found in minor variation. With any Day-Date, you are getting what is in essence the same functional capability, proportion, and design. But the details vary endlessly in...

With one glance at the El Primero Sub Sea, you get the feeling this is the sort of watch Zenith couldn’t create today. Not because LVMH don’t have the technical ability, far from it. But because there are committees, cohesive brand strategy, and focus groups. I adore Zenith and belive...

If the 3536 were a person, it would be a Michael Fassbender type. I know you think I’m talking nonsense, hear me out: like-able in a slightly bold and brash way, fastidious in attention to detail, broadly capable, not overly fussy, lightweight (that one’s a bit literal), cool yet not...

Recent re-editions of the Breguet’s XX, Breitling AVI, Heuer/Sinn’s 3H Bundeswehr, and Zenith’s A. Cairelli have brought increased attention to vintage Air Force chronographs. But there’s one that often goes forgotten, simply because the manufacture no longer exists to capitalize on that reissue dough. Leonidas merged with Heuer in 1962....

There’s something inherently worthwhile about going absurdly above and beyond a required goal. Maniacal focus to the extent of vastly overachieving has a kind of merit all its own. It’s why Roger Federer didn’t just win Wimbledon once, it’s why the door of a Mercedes S-Class from the 80s shuts...

We love a Royal Oak around here. However, not all are created equal. In the pantheon of neo-vintage Royal Oaks, a few dials are clear standouts. Right up near the top are the rare, electric-blue Yves Klein dials. Klein was a French artist who became known for frequent use of...

There aren’t many chronographs which can be described honestly as on par with a Paul Newman. This one can be, and it’s an order of magnitude less dear as well. It’s not just that it’s a Valjoux 72, hundreds of references were powered by one. It’s a Singer-made dial. It’s...

JLC knowns how to throw a party. And they went really, really hard for the Reverso’s 60th, throughout the whole decade of the nineties in a manner that would seem way too lavish in 2022. But it was the early 90s. Bon Jovi, Sting, Rod Stewart, and Nirvana were charting....

The 165.024 was never a rare watch, but it is today. Examples that haven’t been messed about with are far less common than you may think. It’s a bit like the 964 911 if you’ll follow the over-used automotive analog. Everyone thought they were common as chips, 40-50K USD cars....

The 222 is not VC’s only reference forgotten to the evolution time, now only known to enthusiasts. The phrase ‘post-quartz perpetual’ brings to mind almost exclusively AP’s 5548, debuted in 1978. However, just a hair behind (in terms of investment in time it takes to develop an in-house, ultra-thin perpetual...

The name written in Arabic on this dial is Saddam Hussein. Many of the world’s great leaders have worn a Patek Philippe: John F Kennedy, Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Diana, and even the Dalai Lama amongst many others. However, some less-than-ideal heads of state also acquired a taste for the...

You know that feeling when you go on holiday, come back, and just feel great? Perhaps you’ve been walking around more exploring, or at the beach out in the sun. You’ve lost a bit of weight and are sporting a light tan. You’re still you, just 10% more attractive. This...

The phrase ‘fashion watch’ is often used in certain spheres as an insult. This is retribution. Where high fashion is concerned, there’s been a relatively recent trend of sincerity; they’re taking watchmaking seriously. In fact, many of the very high end fashion brand’s first attempts at considered offerings are more...

Variety is the spice of life and quirky date windows are the joie de vivre de Heuer Carreras. Some of the earliest dates on a Carrera can come at 12, as shown here. Or 45, in the latter iterations or very latter Hodinkee LE. But also 6, as in the...

This is one of those rare occasions where a watch feels familiar, but isn’t. The ref. 3505 is an Ingenieur very like the ref. 3506, but, again, it isn’t. Both feature the desirable graph paper dial texture, but one is far less common. This, the 3505, was the very first...

Vacheron Constantin are famously reserved and austere about their watchmaking, in philosophy, design, and engineering. But that’s actually a more modern branding construction than anything. VC went full experimental in the 80s, to an unparalleled extent. The square 222 is that genre of watch which will make zero sense to...

The Daytona has Paul Newman. The GMT-Master has Marlon Brando and Fidel Castro. The Explorer II though? It’s never really had a unilateral poster-personality to align with. Except that’s not quite accurate, because unbeknownst to many, a cream dial 16550 has been worn for decades by one Gordon Ramsey. If...