If you had to choose just one Patek Philippe of recent history to represent what we love about the brand, or perhaps what the brand used to be, it would have to be either a 5004, 3970, 3940, or, indeed, 2499. These are the height of the brand’s ability in...

We cannot approve of casual use of the phrase ‘the white dial Speedmaster’ here at Hairspring. The recent lacquer dial, for all the attention, was not the first. Nor was the Canopus. In fact, it goes way back to a watch called the Stafford, more on that later. But, prior...

In retrospect, the 16800 was one of the last great Rolex tool watches; push just a little bit further, and we’re into Hermés-ified luxury territory. The 16800 presided over a flash of production which is a bit of a sweet spot for Rolex heads: sapphire crystal and a tritium dial...

The Oysterquartz is more adored today than it ever has been historically. However, if you’re looking for the one Oysterquartz that encapsulates late-70s opulence, this has to be it. The halo product Day-Date version of the Oysterquartz, ref. 19018. It was given its own interpretation of the President bracelet, still...

It is universally understood that De Bethune make spaceships for the wrist. Except, they haven’t always. In fact, the first decade was largely extremely classical with Roman or Breguet-like numerals, pomme or feuille hands, and remarkably normal cases. Collectors are starting to talk about early De Bethune with the kind...

This looks like your average common or garden 1803 Day-Date at a glance, but it really isn’t. First, it’s in pink gold. No one knows exactly the fraction, but we know pink gold was but a fraction of overall production (something like 1 in every 100 examples or less). Pink...

The early Carrera has always been every bit the watch a 6239 Daytona or 105.012 Speedmaster is (perhaps just a hair less to the Speedy for the 321). However, it’s always been the odd one out, a sort of third-musketeer. Yet, in quality of design and fulfilling its role as...

If ever a special order Cartier client got it right, this salmon white gold NSO Crash is it. This is traditionally Swiss aesthetic spice on a deeply French dish in London. If you love watches, I promise that should make sense. The salmon dial craze of 2020 has come and...

Onyx might not look like this in nature, but it does in Datejust. And that’s enough. Stone dials have had a rough time of late, but the OGs are as index-less and lovely as they’ve ever been. Normally, I would always slightly preference a Day-Date, everything else being equal. But...

In 1947, this was the height of the Omega catalogue. Man hadn’t stepped on the moon, limited editions hadn’t been invented, and Ploprof was still just what you said when you sneezed. But post-war economic buzz was strong and this was Omega’s halo product. Known today as the Cosmic Complete...

The 6609, widely known by its nickname the ‘Thunderbird’, is one of the most important Rolexes to not be famous whatsoever. The Turn-O-Graph was the first Rolex with a rotating bezel, but it’s not even in production anymore. This 6609 is amongst the very earliest rotating bezel Datejusts, before the...

This ref. 6087 was Vacheron Constantin’s answer to the water resistant 1463 ‘Tasti Tondi’, though released considerably after. Even in the mid-century Vacheron were the slowest moving of the holy trinity. However, where they landed is so expressive that it has stood the test of time as one of the...

We don’t usually talk about modern Rolex much, most of it doesn’t fit the criteria here. But some do. There hasn’t been anything like the Le Mans before. There’s this (broadly true) narrative that Rolex is increasing precious metal and pricing at a rate fast enough to become the next...

Early Urban Jürgensen has been one of the better kept secrets of independents for a few years. This, I suspect, because the brand has one of the most convoluted and difficult-to-follow histories of any. Here’s what’s relevant to this, their 90s Perpetual Calendar. The storied Danish brand was acquired by...

Not all Speedmasters are created equal. I don’t just say that because there’s a calibre 321 inside this 105.012, but because of condition (which is really everything in vintage). This example is fantastically sharp on its case, entirely correct, full set even, and sporting a dial that can only be...

To understand the Daytona is to not just understand the attitude of Rolex in racing, professional tools, and the Oyster case; today it necessitates understanding how small differences in production sum to huge differences in collectability. The gold Daytona has always been a trophy. The 6263 and 6265 mark the...

The original Ingenieur has not been bettered. Released in the same year as the 3700 Nautilus, it is the overlooked third Genta album of the 1970s integrated steel sports splashdown. But unlike the 5402 or 3700, this was at its (iron) core an antimagnetic watch. And so it’s not really...

Sylvain Pinaud is one of the more recent guard of independent watchmaking, one can be easily forgiven if the name is unfamiliar. His work is of a very high bar, both in being design led but with masterful quality. Pinaud’s story differs from many of the more recent independents in...