VIDEO: 4 of the best Tudor watches from Basel 2018 – including the GMT that has everyone talking
I always feel a slight apprehension walking into the Tudor press presentation at Baselworld. My expectation levels are maxed, and I’m always worried that the new range won’t live up to the high standards of the previous year. And, as usual, I needn’t have worried, as Tudor’s Basel 2018 collection is STRONG. New dials, movements, complications and collections — Tudor has it all. First of all, there’s a brand-new line, the 1926, a dressy, everyday option with strong hints of vintage and a decent dash of bling. Speaking of bling, there’s a new dial for the S&G — a new, molten gold champagne dial that really amps up the lux-factor of the already showy Black Bay. But it’s the Black Bay Fifty-Eight where things really start getting interesting. Ostensibly a smaller, 39mm Black Bay; for me the real charm of this watch lies in the slimmer profile, giving it a completely different (and really good) on the wrist feel. All these new additions are pretty great on their own, but the one that has everyone talking is the Black Bay GMT. And it’s easy to see why. Powered by a new movement, this GMT is integrated, meaning you can jump the…
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At the heart of many Grand Seiko watches beats the mighty 9S calibre, which is celebrating its 20th birthday, and the location of the party is Baselworld 2018. There’s a swathe of new offerings on the table, including this deliciously dialled number, the Grand Seiko SBGR311. Vital statistics Excuse me if I rush through the key stats, because, really, I want to talk about that dial. The SBGR311 is 42mm across, steel, with that characteristic mix of exceptional polish and brushed finishes that define Grand Seiko’s zaratsu-polished cases. From behind there’s the 9S68 (obvs), visible behind a sapphire caseback with a Grand Seiko lion and gilt 20th anniversary text. Now, that dial. Have you ever seen a brown dial quite so wondrous? It’s as mercurial as the brand’s best, glistening like hot chocolate when the light hits it just right. But beyond the colour and finish, there’s that pattern, a radial explosion of tessellating shapes, each marked with either the gothic G, S or historic Daini Seikosha mark. On top of that the applied, polished hours seem to float, as do those very pointy-looking dauphine hands. The choice of a gold seconds hand and ‘GS’ marker provides just the right…
Seiko’s venture into the dive watch world came hard and fast. Releasing their first dive watch in 1965, just three years later they upped the ante and introduced the Seiko 6159. A one-piece cased 300m rated diver, powered by a hi-beat movement that until then was being used only by the Grand Seikos of the time. Now, 50 years later – and revealed here at Baselworld 2018 – Seiko have re-created the original, with the brand new SLA025. Vital statistics With its black dial and bezel highlighted by polished golden hour markers, hands, and 60-minute scale, it has all the looks of the original. But, then, there’s also the framed date window at 3 o’clock and a familiar touch of red at the tip of the seconds hand that completes the package. Things are then taken one step further, by Zaratsu-polished lugs that define the sharp shape of a 44.8mm – and 15.7mm thick – monocoque steel case, with a screw-down crown. And, of course, there’s still a hi-beat calibre inside, racing away at 36,000 vibrations per hour – the modern Seiko 8L55. A slightly less finished version of the Grand Seiko 9S85, the 8L55 has a power reserve of 55 hours, and was designed and crafted for…
The foundation upon which modern Grand Seiko is built is the calibre 9S, first unveiled 20 years ago. Basel 2018 sees the Japanese brand pay tribute to this important movement with this new Grand Seiko model, the SBGH267 Vital statistics Grand Seiko’s dial and case finishes are rightly lauded for their high level of quality. But the far less visible movement is just as significant. And, if the watch is automatic, the chances are high that movement is the 9S. First introduced in 1998, this movement, with its high level of precision, lengthy power reserve and rock-solid construction, was ahead of its time for a high-volume commercial calibre. With a distinctive purple oscillating rotor in the style we’ve come to expect from Grand Seiko’s LEs, it forms the heart of this watch, which features a subtle mosaic pattern dial in Grand Seiko’s blue, as well as a completely new 39.5mm wide by 13mm tall case. This version is in steel, but there’s also a yellow gold version and a platinum model with a V.F.A. (very fine adjusted) movement, which promises accuracy of +3/-1 seconds, compared to the +5/-3 range of the SBGH267. On the wrist Classic Grand Seiko. The design is…
In addition to the scene-stealing 9S 20th anniversary pieces, Grand Seiko have announced two new Spring Drive models at Baselworld 2018. Reference SBGA373 with a champagne dial, and SBGA375 in rich blue. Vital statistics With its inexorably smooth sweeping seconds hand, there’s something hypnotic about Grand Seiko’s Spring Drive technology, powered and regulated by an ingenious combination of kinetic, magnetic and electrical energy. And while the Snowflake tends to garner the most attention, there are other time and date members of the collection, the most recent being these two. Both are powered by the 9R65, visible through clear casebacks on both models, and housed in broad-shouldered 40mm, 44GS-inspired steel cases. It’s worth noting that these pictures are of prototype models, and I’ve been told that the (very) large crowns are likely to be replaced by something a little smaller and more balanced. On the wrist Grand Seiko’s champagne dials are exceptional and — apparently — very technical, requiring numerous layers of lacquer to achieve that soft golden colour that is nigh on impossible to capture with any accuracy. In direct, bright light it fades to silver. It may lack the flash of the brand’s more distinctive dials but it’s still…
What if you were a brand born in a cockpit and were an ace at aviation-inspired watch designs? What would be your next step? Why, you’d design a plane, of course! And that’s exactly what Bell & Ross have done. The brainchild of Bruno Belamich – co-founder and creative director of Bell & Ross – the BR-Bird is a way-out V12-powered propeller-engine aircraft that’s designed for speed. With short, broad wings placed nearly at its tip and a single-seat cockpit set as far back as possible, the ultramodern bird was designed to compete at the Reno Air Races – an extreme aviation speed competition set on the edge of the Nevadan desert. To commemorate this flight into the world of aviation, Bell & Ross have also introduced two brand-new limited-edition watches inspired by the decorative elements of the BR-Bird. Vital statistics Limited to 999 pieces and dubbed the BRV Racing Birds, the pair – consisting of a three-hander, and a chronograph – sport the colours and aesthetic of their high-flying inspiration. White dials are highlighted by hints of orange and grey, and the font for the blue Arabic numeral hour markers is taken straight from the on-board counters of the…
Longines have a well-earned reputation for exceptionally strong heritage releases, and while their Baselworld 2018 collection featured a particularly hot blacked-out Legend Diver, it was newer lines, like the extensions to Record and V.H.P. that really stood out. On the one hand, the new gold and two-tone additions to the traditionally styled Record impressed with their simplicity and everyday wearability, while on the other, Longines added a chronograph and a GMT to their super-accurate V.H.P. collection. This line in general is well beyond your average quartz collection. Longines’ Baselworld 2018 collection goes to show that this twin focus on making quartz cool and COSC-level accuracy accessible seems to be a real winning formula for the brand.
Crowdsourcing is all the rage at the moment. And we love being on-trend as much as we love the idea of involving our community on the site, so here’s what we think we might do. For Baselworld, we’re going to publish our favourite comments from social media on a semi-regular basis. Why? Because occasionally there’s such high concentrations of wisdom, humour and ignorance that we think it would be rude not to share. In the comments, we also see a daily journey as the watches we’re unveiling cause emotions: good, bad and ambivalent. So, let’s begin. But before we do, here’s how to play if you want to feature in a future Crowdsourced Content dispatch: be wise, be funny, or be outrageous. That ought to do it. The day started with the battle of the cola-flavoured beverages. Well, one in particular — the Pepsi (the Rolex GMT-Master II in stainless steel, or ‘Oystersteel’) as delivered by both stablemates Rolex and Tudor. Our fearless leader, Andrew, got the jump comparing both models. Did we expect it? Good question. A steel Rolex sports models was on most prediction lists for this Baselworld but many speculated it would be a Coke (Black and Red…
In an opening salvo of releases that instantaneously became the first buzz topic of Basel 2018, Rolex and Tudor have simultaneously released ‘Pepsi’ GMTs; Rolex with a GMT-Master II with two-colour blue and red Cerachrom bezel and the Tudor Black Bay GMT, with two-colour red and blue aluminium bezel. The Rolex is one of three new versions of the GMT-Master II and houses a brand new movement, the new-generation calibre 3285. The first new version, in ‘Oystersteel’, is equipped with a bi-directional rotatable bezel and a 24-hour two-colour Cerachrom insert in red and blue ceramic. The new Tudor Black Bay GMT in steel is also a completely new movement, the MT5652, with 70 hours of power reserve and a fully integrated GMT, just like the Rolex. The Tudor also has a snowflake style GMT-hand and comes with a stainless steel bracelet, leather strap or fabric strap. 5 Early reactions to the Rolex vs Tudor Pepsi GMTs SURPRISED: There was a lot of buzz and chatter about a steel Coke GMT-Master II (black and red) for Rolex, and frankly,, there was no noise at all about a Black Bay GMT, simply because rumours about it ran so hot in other years and proved groundless. So, on…