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Best Super NEWS Watches
Letters To The Editor: A Painter's Thoughts On Watches As Art
The Art Piece 1 from Greubel Forsey features a micro-sculpture by the artist Willard Wigan. With three of the biggest players in the art auction world (Sotheby's, Christie's, and Phillips) all ramping up their wristwatch sales departments, it's worth noting the increasing similarities between the re-sale markets for fine art and (vintage and some modern) watches. Followers of the watch auction market will have no doubt noticed an increase in record-setting hammer prices for the best of the best, and provenance has become just as important for watches as it has always been for a Rothko. But this brings to mind a provocative question: Can watches ever be considered t...
The Author's Vintage Gallet Chronograph Q) I would love to own a vintage chronograph, but my budget is around $1000. Do I even stand a chance? A) Finding a high-quality vintage chronograph under $1,000 is not an easy task, but there are some options out there for the discerning buyer. One tremendously undervalued brand is Gallet. A number of vintage watch collectors continue to see Gallet chronographs as a true bargain.Just a month ago, I purchased a great circa 1950 Gallet stainless steel chronograph on eBay for under $1,000. As an added plus, the watch came on a period Forstner Komfit mesh bracelet, the predecessor to the famous J...
Pre-SIHH: Introducing The Baume & Mercier Clifton Collection
For SIHH 2013, Baume & Mercier will be unveiling an entirely new collection, Clifton. While most of the pieces will not be shown until January, we have a sneak peak at Clifton for you this morning. And if these three watches are any indication, Clifton is going to be a strong collection for B&M. The inspiration for Clifton comes from vintage dress watches of the 1950s, though the name comes from a South African sea-side resort. Go figure. The basic models like those here come in at 41mm and 42mm, which are certainly modern sizes, but not overly huge. The numbers on the dial are elegant, the three-piece case is sturdy,...
Today is thanksgiving in the United States, which means many of you ?will be in a complete tryiptophan-induced lethargy, so we're going to ?make this easy for you.? Sit back, relax, and watch our original video ?on best-selling author Gene Stone and his incredibly collection of ?travel watches.? What is a travel watch? You're about to find out!? You ?can read our original feature on Gene's collection, published last spring, here....
A Week On The Wrist: The NOMOS Orion
One of my pervading horological interests is the idea that great quality watches dont always have to equate to great amounts of money. When Im talking about watches that straddle the intersections of quality, value and price C one brand always comes up: Nomos.? The Brand For many years Nomos has been something of a watch aficionados brand C quietly making some great watches in the east German town of Glashtte. ?Quietly, but to critical acclaim C their watches regularly winning Watch of the Year, Goldene Unruh and Red Dot design awards. The noise around Nomos has been growing recently, and their Zurich...
Hands-On With A Paul Newman Daytona (Ref 6239)
Sometimes, we don't need a reason to show you something cool. This is one of those occasions. What we have here are just a few photographs of a super cool watch, an early Rolex Cosmograph Daytona with a so-called "Paul Newman" dial. If you don't know how to tell a Paul Newman from a regular Daytona, watch this video.If you do, then just enjoy these photos of this absolutely beautiful, exotic, rare, (and valuable) beast....
Hands-On: With The Kent Wang Bauhaus Watch: Easy On The Eyes And The Wallet (Live Pics)
The Kent Wang Bauhaus Watch Sometimes it's tough to remember that in the days before quartz, when "mechanical wristwatch" was a redundant phrase, that there were mechanical watches at all price points. Small online menswear brand Kent Wang is trying to remind us though with its Bauhaus watch, a cool mix of modern and classic design with a price tag that won't break the bank.As you might have guessed, the Bauhaus watch is inspired by the early twentieth century German design school from which it takes its name. There are tons of famous Bauhaus clocks and watches, including both the Swiss Railway Clock and the Max Bill watch, and these are designs that have really st...
Introducing The Jaeger-LeCoultre Duome?tre Unique Travel Time
Remember when Ben said there weren't too many high-end watch companies making great travel-time watches in his Lange review? Well add one more to the list.Coming to us from the manufacture Jaeger-LeCoultre is a brand new model in the awesome and always impressive Duometre family.? This time, we're looking at a limited edition travel-time watch in white gold called the Jaeger-LeCoultre Duome?tre Unique Travel Time.? Read on for details. For this new watch with a new movement, the Dual-Wing system is divided into two distinct mechanisms: the first is devoted to displaying the local time, and the second to show that in a second ...
The Chopard L.U.C 8HF The last few years, we've seen a number of record-setting high-beat movements, and here Chopard has given us another fast first. The L.U.C 8HF houses an experimental movement beating at 8Hz (57,600 bph), the first high-frequency escapement to receive the COSC chronometer certification. Here is a hands-on look at this history-making watch. Inside the 8HF is a new movement for Chopard, the L.U.C 01.06-L. Though this is the first movement to receive the 8Hz COSC-certified escapement, it likely won't be the last. Instead of developing the escapement solely for one movement, Chopard has smartly created a system that can be adapted to work with almo...
Hands-On: With The Jaeger-LeCoultre AMVOX7 Chronograph And The Aston Martin Vanquish (Live Pics)
The AMVOX7 Chronograph In The Aston Martin Vanquish An hour or so outside of London, down a country lane lined with 150-year-old cottages, you'll find Millbrook, the maximum security car testing facility, tucked neatly into a man-made valley. Behind the layers of gates, barbed wire, and security checkpoints are the courses where car makers from all over the world bring their creations for testing. And it's also where we were taken to go hands-on with Jaeger-LeCoultre's new AMVOX7 and the Aston Martin Vanquish. Close-Up Of The AMVOX7 When I say Millbrook is maximum security, I'm not exaggeration at al...
The Man's Guide to Buying a Watch Episode 2: What is a Complication?
In case you didn't already know, our executive editor Ben Clymer is hosting a series of videos with IWC, entitled?"The Man's Guide To Buying a Watch." Today we've got the second installment for you, "What Is A Complication?" Legendary watchmaker Kurt Klaus talks about inventing IWC's perpetual calendar before there were computers, and other members of the IWC team introduce viewers to complications from chronographs to minute repeaters.?If you haven't already, check out?Episode 1: What Is A Movement?, and you?can see the entire series?on?Facebook,?YouTube, and?IWC.com?as well. And, of course, be sure to keep your eyes on HODINKEE for Episode 3....
And we're back! This week we've found you a really nice 1970s Rolex Daytona issued to the Peruvian Air Force, a killer looking Tudor Snowflake Sub with an awesome dial and bezel combo (plus box, mesh bracelet, and booklet), and what is arguably one of the rarest military watches / Heuers ever produced - the Sternzeit Reguliert! To find out what in the hell we're talking about, read on. 1974 Rolex Daytona Issued To The Peruvian Air Force What's the only thing cooler than a Daytona? A military-issued Daytona. This sigma dial ref 6263 was issued to the Peruvian Air Force (FAP - FUERZA AEREA DEL PERU) a...
The Results Are In: A Look At The Winners Of The 12th Annual Geneva Watchmaking Grand Prix
Last night, with much fanfare, the 12th Annual Geneva Watchmaking Grand Prix (GPHG) was held and the winners were revealed. An awards show for watchmaking, the Grand Prix is a chance to acknowledge the advances the successes of the watch industry in a big way. The TAG Heuer Mikrogirder Taking this year's top prize, the "Aiguille d'Or," is the TAG Heuer Mikrogirder. It has undergone a slight facelift since we gave you a look at the impressive timepiece a few months ago, but what's under the surface is what this watch is all about. Instead of using a balance wheel, the Mikrogirder uses a "linear oscillator" to achieve a rate of ...
VIDEO: Inside The Hublot Manufacture With Life + Times
Courtesy of our friends at Life+Times, here we have a nice inside look at the Hublot manufacture in Nyon, Switzerland. Mr. Jean-Claude Biver, Hublot's Chairman of the Board, discusses Hublot's proprietary gold-ceramic alloy, his quest to "conquer tomorrow," and perhaps most interesting of all, what he learned from his previous employers Audemars Piguet and Omega.? Enjoy....
Introducing The Patek Philippe Ref. 5396G, Made Exclusively For Tiffany & Co.
There is a rich history shared between Tiffany & Co. and Patek Philippe, and nearly five years ago Patek Philippe opened their first US boutique in the iconic Tiffany & Co. flagship on New York's Fifth Avenue. To celebrate the five year anniversary of this opening, the duo have released a special edition annual calendar, and here we have your first look at this amazing watch.These two companies have been working together for the better part of two centuries, with a formal connection going back to 1851 with the founders of both firms agreeing to work together to promote excellence in their respective fields. You may have even seen so-called Tiffany Dial Patek Philippe watches before, ...
Event Recap: Celebrating 40 Years of Porsche Design And The New Flat Six Collection
Red on Black Flat Six Tuesday evening we welcomed dozens of guests to Porsche Design's Soho boutique to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the brand. There were cocktails from Tequila Don Julio, food from celebrity chef Angelo Sosa, and of course a variety of watches from Porsche Design. A fitting way to celebrate 40 years.After being welcomed by both our own Benjamin Clymer and Porsche Design's Dennis Newsham, guests had the opportunity to explore the full range of Porsche Design's offerings, horological and otherwise. But the focus of the evening was the new Flat Six collection, with representatives on hand from Porsche Design to walk guests through the various co...
Introducing the Ochs and Junior Anno, An Amazingly Minimal Annual Calendar
In the small world of independent Swiss watchmakers, there are brilliant individuals working hard to constantly push the boundaries of both whats possible in horology and how we think of horology. One such individual is Ludwig Oechslin, the man behind some great cult-favorite watches: The Freak, The MIH watch, and more recently the very impressive Captain Winsor from Zenith. And now we have the Anno.Oechslin's own brand (or, as they would prefer, an anti-brand), Ochs and Junior, makes some striking, unusual, and unique watches. A little while ago, we got our hands on their amazingly simple and accurate Selene - which contains a moonphase complication with only five parts. ...
Hands-On: With The Limited Edition Frederique Constant Worldtimer (Live Pics)
Frederique Constant Worldtimer With Map Dial Regular HODINKEE readers will know by now that Frederique Constant is particularly adept at offering high-quality watches with in-house movements at accessible prices. And they're at it again. This time they give the value treatment to a worldtimer, offered in two limited edition configurations. We just had to take a closer look. Details On The Map Dial It is worth noting right up front that the Frederique Constant Worldtimer is a true worldtimer, not a GMT with a cities ring, meaning you can read the time in all timezones at once. That's not to say the wo...
A Hands-On Look At The Jaeger-LeCoultre Grande Reverso Ultra Thin SQ (Live Pics)
If the Grande Reverso Tribute to 1931 is the cleanest, most straightforward Reverso in Jaeger-LeCoultre's current lineup, the Grande Reverso Ultra Thin SQ might be the most ornate and detailed. The highly-decorated skeletonized movement is a thing of beauty, and Jaeger-LeCoultre has presented it in a more-than-worthy package. At last week's Salon QP we went hands-on with the skeletonized Reverso, and here are our thoughts.The SQ is housed in an 18k white gold rendition of the same Grande Reverso case that houses the Tribute to 1931, though the similarities stop there. The SQ is thin (7.2mm) but the larger case size prevents the SQ from looking too feminine, even with all the fine decoration....
It's not often that an auction house decides to put three watches on the cover of a catalog - usually there is just one. But when Christie's Geneva consigned three otherworldly Patek Philippes, and all in platinum, mind you, they went ahead and made the cover a triumvirate. Well, the auction took place just this morning in Geneva and we have the final sales results of Eric Clapton's amazing 2449P, JB Champion's Observatory Chronometer wristwatch, and the 1579P chronograph. Click through for the details.Clapton's 2499 (which you can see in video here) sold for $3,655,757JB Champion's platinum observatory chronometer wristwatch (story here) sold for $4,012,520And the third cover lot, a plati...