HANDS-ON: Last year’s surprise Tudor hit just got bigger – the Heritage Black Bay 41
One of the standouts for Tudor last year was the small and simple Black Bay 36. For the first time Tudor’s key collection shed its dive watch origins in favour of a sleeker, more minimal look. It also lost a sizeable amount of bulk, trimming down to a svelte 36mm, making it ideal for women and suitable for men looking for something different. And while the BB 36 found plenty of fans, some were left wanting a little more. Well, Tudor has been paying attention, and at Baselworld the brand unveiled an upscaled, 41mm version. Case diameter aside, not a lot has changed. The watch is still dominated by the glossy black dial and wide, polished bezel. The instantly recognisable snowflake hand that is the hallmark of the Black Bay family is in evidence. And ticking away behind the scenes is an ETA-based automatic, rather than one of Tudor’s own movements. For me, the dial of the 36mm version feels slightly cramped because of the large, lume-filled applied markers – that’s not a concern here. All the visual elements are balanced and in harmony. The other new element is the strap, now offered in a rich tan brown, with contrasting…
The post HANDS-ON: Last year’s surprise Tudor hit just got bigger – the Heritage Black Bay 41 appeared first on Time and Tide Watches.
If you’re familiar with Raymond Weil it should come as no surprise that music is a recurring theme in their collections. From homages to iconic performers such as The Beatles and the late, great David Bowie, through to watches made to honour particular instruments – such as their Nabucco Cello Tourbillon – Raymond Weil definitely has a soft spot for this most harmonious of the liberal arts. Which brings us to the Gibson Les Paul. Just as horology has its holy grails, the world of guitars also has its undisputed icons. One such legend is the Gibson Les Paul. Since its conception in 1952, this solid-body electric guitar has had an important role in defining the sound of many of the most important musicians of the 20th century. And the shape, with its single cutaway, is an integral part of the visual language of rock’n’roll. While it’s difficult for a watch to capture the spirit of a sound, Raymond Weil has certainly done a solid job evoking the look of the Les Paul. The hour track is recessed, with a circular motif resembling strings and fret-like applied indices. The Gibson logo at 12 resembles the headstock, and the chronograph details are…
Seiko’s Prospex series of professional dive watches is renowned for two things: its exceptionally high quality-to-value ratio and its large number of passionate fans. And while there are a few perennial standouts in the Prospex family, some parts of the collection ebb and flow based on style and popularity. One such model is the so-called ‘Samurai’, a contemporarily styled 200m diver produced for a few years from 2004. Released in a range of dials variants, and in steel or titanium cases, the watch earned its moniker because the handset reminded wearers of the distinctive angles of the aforementioned warriors’ swords. Also, it’s an unwritten rule that wherever possible, Seiko model nicknames need to explicitly evoke their Japanese origins. As is so often the case with discontinued models, the Samurai developed something of a cult following, and prices for pre-owned models started, slowly but surely, to rise. So when Seiko announced at Baselworld earlier this year that the Samurai was back as a complete collection, it’s only slightly hyperbolic to say that the people rejoiced. Certainly people who care about well-priced, no-nonsense watches (which it turns out is quite a few) were pretty happy. That’s the backstory, so how about the watch?…
While the current Rolex Cellini collection will never have the same mass appeal or cool cachet as their ever-popular steel sports models, I think this chic and refined collection is just as important and emblematic to the Big Crown. When they revamped the line in 2014, I was quite taken – with their fluted bezels, interesting dial textures and small complications, the Cellinis spoke to a mid-century tradition of elegance that seemed almost diametrically opposed to the steel sports watches for which the brand is so famous. Three years later and Rolex has added another complication to the family – the Cellini Moonphase. In preparation for this review I re-read what I wrote in 2014, when the original came out and one line in particular stood out. In reference to the Dual Time: “…and is very reminiscent of the classic Rolex moonphases. On that note, Mr Dufour, if you’re reading this, I’d give major organs to see a full-on moonphase – a tribute to the 8171 would make a great addition to the Cellini line-up in years to come.” Well, excuse me while I search the darkweb for places to offload an excess kidney, because the reference 50535 Cellini Moonphase,…
If there’s one key take away from this year’s new watch releases, it’s that brands are playing it safe, with simple, round, steel watches being the order of the day. But, thankfully for the non-conformists out there, not everyone marches to the beat of the circular drum. Cartier and Jaeger-LeCoultre in particular have long and proud histories of making shaped watches. So for the latest episode of Apples to Apples we thought we’d let two of the most recognisable shapes in the business square off against each other. It’s time for the JLC’s mighty Reverso to meet Cartier’s legendary Tank. Who will prevail? 
The first Bell & Ross I ever laid my hands on, back in 2008, was the Marine, an uncommon and somewhat unusual beast that took the brand’s trademark dial and transplanted it into a large, 1000m water resistant, tonneau-shaped case that looked like it could handle anything short of being run over by a main battle tank (and even then it’d probably only scratch the case a little). And it turns out that this isn’t the brand’s first foray into the world of hardcore divers (check out the Hydromax). The only issue is that these older models don’t neatly fit into the Bell & Ross family. They’re round pegs trying to fit in a square hole. The newly minted BR 03-92 Diver has no such problems. Bell & Ross has taken the instantly recognisable BR 03 case shape and turned it into their first ever square dive watch. The first thing I thought on seeing it was – why haven’t they done this before? There is no doubt that the BR 03-92 Diver looks every inch the professional diver, as well it should, given that it has all the bells and whistles required by ISO 6425 – the international standard…
There’s something gloriously, incredibly and fabulously over the top about a solid gold dive watch. It’s the ultimate juxtaposition of functional object and precious ornament, all bundled up in a neat, wrist-optimised package. It’s this contrast that lies at the heart of the PAM 684’s appeal. And make no mistake, this is an incredibly lust-worthy watch. At first glance it looks like a slimmed-down version of the Submersible we know and love – that crown, the matt black ceramic bezel insert, the hardy rubber strap – so far it’s very much what you’d expect from Panerai. But then your brain processes the fact that the case is, in fact, heavy red gold, and everything changes. Much like the case has transmogrified from a base metal into a precious one, so too all the utilitarian elements have taken on a luxurious tone – this is one supremely confident watch. Sure, it has workmanlike origins, but the chances are slim to none that this watch is getting its hands dirty. Not that this Panerai couldn’t handle it. Functionally it’s all there: P.9010 movement, good for three days of power thanks to its twin barrels; ultra legible dial with small seconds at nine; and…
There is definitely a case to be made for letting the dust settle on the wrist before throwing out definitive lists like, for example, a top 11 from Baselworld 2017 actually recorded at Baselworld about five days through the six day fair. However, I would raise two points in our defence. 1. For us to film a list at Baselworld, capturing some of the energy of what was happening around us, we had to shoot it during the fair, while it was buzzing. Which meant that it was hotter off the press than ever. Do you really want us presenting this with jetlag, between two ferns (or apples) at the office, weeks later when all the vibe has gone? Ask yourself. 2. First impressions still count. It will be interesting to see which of these picks, which run the gamut of affordability, from a couple of grand to a home mortgage, will stand the test of time. Often we look back in anger, and wonder how we missed this or that, but that’s also part of the fun. Lastly, if this post has left you with any questions, such as, uh, what is Baselworld? What’s it really like? Then, allow us to…
Heritage is here to stay. What started as a trend intended to appeal to the hard core of collectors has slipped into the mainstream, and somewhere along the way it became a key pillar in major brands’ release strategies. In 2007 it was very much novelty, now it’s the new normal. Case in point is Patek Philippe’s hero model of 2017 – the 5320G Perpetual Calendar, an undeniably handsome take on a very Patek complication. The 5320G is not a remake of a particular vintage reference (though it does bear a striking resemblance to the ref. 3448); rather it’s a melange of mid-century design codes, neatly combined in a 40mm white gold, retro-modernist package. Most of the attention heaped upon the 5320G has focused on the dial, and it’s easy to see why. The layout is balanced, with day and month apertures at the top, and a moonphase display and pointer date at the bottom. The functions at six are flanked by relatively discreet portholes displaying day/night and leap year indicators respectively. Aside from that the dial is a very warm ivory or cream colour, paired with applied black gold Arabic numerals and syringe-style hands. Both hands and numerals are…