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Best Super NEWS Watches
In-Depth: The 'Dirty Dozen,' An Incredible Collection Of 12 (Mostly) Inexpensive Military Watches
The Dirty Dozen is the name of a movie from the 1960s, depicting the misadventures of 12 fictional soldiers during the Second World War. It is also, in watch collecting circles, the name given to a group of 12 watches worn by those who actually fought in it C specifically, British soldiers. They were commissioned by the British Ministry of Defense (MoD) during World War II, and while they may not be as highly rated as other military watches when they are presented individually, as a set, they become some of the most collectible C specifically (but not exclusively), by British collectors. The British military had always ...
A Week On The Wrist: The Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Plasma Grey Ceramic
The original Fifty Fathoms wristwatch was one of those watches that helped to define the original, mid-20th century idiom of the modern dive watch: stainless steel case, timing bezel, simplicity in design with every other consideration subordinated to practicality (which is what you generally should do when you make something someone's life might depend on). It's common nowadays to say that the mechanical diver's watch is obsolete, and unlike many commonly held views this one is actually partly true; the primary wrist instrument for marine exploration is the digital dive computer. However, depending on which diver you ask, an analog dive watch is a great backup, with mechanical movements oft...
This is a big one, guys. Actually, it might be one of the biggest. Phillips, in association with Bacs & Russo, sent us word about their top watch of the upcoming November, 2016 Geneva sale, and wow. We're talking a perpetual calendar chronograph, from Patek Philippe, in steel. Yes, Phillips will offer one of four steel 1518s in the world this fall. Not sure why that's such a big deal? Read on for more. Phillips And A Short, But Insanely Strong History With Complicated Pateks In Steel First, one must understand what the 1518 is. It is, for the uninitiated, the very first serially produced perpetual calendar chronograph, ever. This watc...
In-Depth: A Game Of Tones: The AP Concept Supersonnerie
The Supersonnerie is a super-watch; one of those concept car projects companies produce not because they expect to sell them, but to show that they can. ?Building something like, say, Cartier's ID One and Two, is like building a Formula 1 car; you don't expect to make money selling them but what you find out making them, might help you sell more cars, or watches, down the line, with better engineering that helps you keep your edge over the competition. ?The thing about the Supersonnerie C a minute repeater that AP has been working on for eight years and that's the most recent chapter in over a hundred years of repeater manufacturing C is that you can actually buy it. ?(Well, maybe you can't....
Six Italian Vintage Watch Dealers To Follow On Instagram
Last week, I gave you six friends of mine C all of whom happen to be watch industry insiders C to follow on Instagram (find it here). You guys really seemed to like it, and in fact it became one of the most popular stories of the last week. So, it's Monday, and I thought we'd do something similar, but focusing on the vintage side of things. To take it a step further, we're only going to show you Italian vintage dealers, because, after all, that's where this whole vintage craze was born. Here are six Italian vintage watch dealers to follow on Instagram, and as you likely know, most of the best stuff they post on IG doesn't even make it onto their websites C it goes that quickly, so be sure to...
Watch Spotting: At New York Men's Fashion Week 2016
Men's Fashion Week, New York edition, wrapped up just a few days ago, and during the five day, men's fashion only event there were, as always, quite a lot of watch-spotting targets of opportunity. Brian Sacawa, founder of He Spoke Style, was on the scene for HODINKEE and pulled in a harvest of wrist candy. ? There were more than a few who went Rolex, but in a very wide range of watches. ?It was far from being an all-Sub or all-Daytona party, and some iconoclast out there even chose one of our favorites, a Milgauss. ...
How To Not Take A Terrible Watch Photo, Starring The Omega Speedmaster Professional
We take a lot of watch photos here at HODINKEE, and we see a lot of watch photos as well. Some are great, some are ok, and some are terrible. However, a lot of the terrible ones aren't terrible because the people who took them can't tell good from bad C they're terrible because a few basics are being ignored, often by folks who are distracted, or in a rush, or just haven't taken the time to think about those basics. As a person who's taken his own fair share of lousy watch pictures over the decades, here are a few things to think about making sure you don't do when you snap a picture of your favorite timepiece.Let's take a look at the shot we used above one more time, and analyze what's w...
Introducing: The Longines Heritage 1969
The Heritage 1969 is the latest Heritage model from Longines, one of our favorite collections from the Swatch-owned brand. Based on a yellow gold, cushion-form yellow gold wristwatch originally released in the late 1960s, the new Heritage 1969 embodies the old-world vintage charm that collectors love so much, and looks like a solid continuation of Longines' ability to make appealing, vintage-inspired timepieces rooted in best-of-breed vintage designs. The original watch came in three variations: steel, gold-plated steel, and 18k yellow gold. The updated version is available in steel and measures 36mm x 36 mm, which is a welco...
Hands-On: The Mido Multifort Chronograph Adventure
The last time we looked at Mido, it was to check in with the Baroncelli Heritage wristwatch, which impressed us so much that it made it into our Value Proposition column not once, but twice. Today, we'll look at a more complicated Mido: The Multifort Chronograph Adventure, an affordably priced, above-entry level mechanical chronograph, that wants you to love it for its overall style and its attention to detail. Let's see how it stacks up, quality-wise, next to the Baroncelli, and to some of the competition. Competition from mechanical chronographs for hearts and minds at the $3000 mark C both slightly above and slightly bel...
Hands-On: Weekend Warrior: The Casio WSD-F10 Smart Outdoor Watch
One of the oldest makers of multifunction digital watches is Casio, which, over the years, has done things like moonphase and tide complications (in 1989) early touch screens (1991) fitness tracking (also as far back as 1991) blood pressure and heart rate monitors (once again, 1991) and one of the very first watches that could send you an alert when your phone rang: the VivCel VCL-100, which was released in 1994. And then, of course, there's the G-Shock, which was originally designed to tolerate just about anything, and which since its birth has been redesigned again and again, to serve just about every special purpose imaginable. The G-Shocks have been joined in recent years by the Pro Tr...
Forty seven years ago today, man walked on the moon for the very first time. It is no secret that along with the good men of Apollo XI went an Omega Speedmaster or two. As such, on this anniversary of one of mankind's most momentous achievements, we look back at some of our favorite Speedmaster-related stories. We ran a similar story last year C read that first C and then enjoy these five different and awesome stories on the Omega Speedmaster. 1. A Week On The Wrist Video With The First Omega In Space Arguably the HODINKEE-base's favorite current production Speedmaster if the FOIS, or First Omega In Space...
Ask any vintage Rolex lover what watch they'd love to own the most, and there's at least a fifty percent chance they'll reply "MilSub." These similar but different Submariners were made by Rolex in the 1970s explicitly for the British Ministry of Defense, and are very much the same as your standard Submariner with the addition of a few purpose-built touches: fixed spring bars (eliminating the weakest part of a watch), larger sword shape hands (easier to read under water due to more luminous material) and a bezel that is graduated for a full 60 minutes instead of just 15 (giving divers a more precise reading), and finally, a circled T on the dial indicating the use of tritium. ...
There are a number of interesting things about writing about watches from Arnold & Son these days. ?The company is owned by Citizen Holdings, which owns (among other things) Citizen Watches, and Bulova, as well as the Swiss movement manufacturer La Joux-Perret; Miyota; and, of course, the subject of our present discussion, Arnold & Son. ?This is a little parenthetical to the timepiece above, but not entirely; the existence of a Japanese owned Swiss based brand named after an English watchmaker who died in 1799, and which has as an important stablemate a US based brand headquartered in the Empire State Building, says a lot about the nature of the world of watch design and manufacturin...
Bring a Loupe: A Full Set Tropical, Gilt Rolex Explorer, A Heuer Skipper, Two Minervas, And More
This week, our selection comes from both reputable dealers, and a lot of eBay hunting. Hence, the diversity of watches, from a $20,000+ full set Rolex Explorer to an unusual $500 Concord Mariner SG. You will see also see two Minervas, illustrating the craftsmanship of the former independent manufacture, able to make great military chronographs and dressy wristwatches. This is your Bring A Loupe for July 22, 2016. A Minerva Chronograph VD 712, For The Swedish Army The Swedish Army had great taste in chronographs; a notable example is the rugged Lemania Viggen that we covered here. In the late 1950s, th...
In-Depth: Five Of The Absolute Best Summer Watches, Reviewed (In Crazy Detail)
I went to the bank this morning to take out some cash, dripping in the kind of sweat you see only in New York City in July. If you know what I'm talking about, I'm sorry. If you don't, trust me, you're better off. While I was there, I thought to myself, "Hey wait, I have one of the best summer watches in the world down in the vault and I almost forgot about it!" So I went downstairs and fixed that. And now, here I am, writing this story in shorts and t-shirt, sunglasses clipped to my breast pocket C in full-on summer mode C with my Tudor Heritage Chrono Blue on my wrist (the 116500LN sits on my desk, temporarily). It got me thinking about what the very best summer watches are C I believe the...
Business News: Mid-Year Swiss Watch Sales Results Show Industry Beset By 'Perfect Storm'
The mid-year results for the Swiss watch industry have just been released by the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry FH, and the steep declines in sales volume as well as profits seen in recent months continue C showing an industry struggling with external negative forces beyond its control, but also, internal issues as well.The report stated in part that "Swiss watch industry exports fell faster than at any other time in the first half, reflecting the difficulties with?which the branch has had to contend for many months. They were worth 1.6 billion francs in June, 16.1%?less than in June 2015." Precious metal watches appe...
Among the many things in this world that it's been impossible to not hear about over the last few weeks, one of them at least is about bringing a little fun into the world. ?Pokmon Go lets you find, via an augmented reality app, the adorable little monsters that are the subjects of the game, lurking out there in the real world. ?Alas, every silver lining has its cloud, and for Pokmon Go, it's the fact that walking around in the real world while your face is buried in your phone can have some unpleasant real world consequences.According to our friends over at TechRadar, the device (which communicates with your phone via low energy Bluetooth) flashes blue when a Pokmon is nearby. ?You push ...
Carl F. Bucherer is one of the very few manufacturers in the world to have a peripheral rotor automatic movement in its repertoire. Caliber CFB A1000 was first introduced in 2009 and it was, and remains, a very interesting piece of engineering, with a sophisticated bearing system for the rotor, a distinctive design in terms of bridge configuration and finishing, and the use of a special system for isolating the regulator and balance spring stud carrier from shock C a system which in theory means the regulation of the watch shouldn't drift between service intervals. Just this month, CFB introduced the next evolution of the movement: caliber CFB A2050; as well as a new watch to house it, the...
In-Depth: A Game Of Tones II C The Bulgari Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater (With Live Recording)
Seeing a minute repeater is one thing, and hearing a minute repeater is another, and hearing and seeing a minute repeater is another thing entirely. ?The approach that Audemars Piguet has taken in making the Supersonnerie is to emphasize acoustic characteristics C the approach Bulgari has taken with the Octo Finissimo minute repeater, on the other hand, is to go for a particular range of physical characteristics while doing everything possible, within those constraints, to emphasize the sound quality of a very traditionally constructed movement. ? The Bulgari Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater is, as you've probably heard, ad infinit...
Introducing: The Girard-Perregaux Competizione Chronograph Line
Girard-Perregaux had a pretty big year at Baselworld in 2016, releasing watches such as the 1966 Dual-Time and the Esmerelda Tourbillon, but one we haven't talked about yet is the new Competizione Line of vintage-inspired chronographs. Within this new line, GP released two new watches C the Stradale and the Circuito.? The Stradale with a strap. Girard-Perregaux was known for their racing chronographs, produced in the 1950s and 1960s, which were loved for the simplified case design and overall balance. With the Competizione Line, you can get that same vintage feel in a 42 mm case. The Line has two versions, the Stradale and th...