IN-DEPTH: Is this the next evolution of Hublot? The Big Bang Meca-10
The story in a second New movement + new look = new ball game? Hublot describe their Meccano-inspired Big Bang Meca-10 as a ‘transitional object’. It’s an interesting choice of phrase. You could take it literally and assume that Hublot are referring to the watch as a way for people who obsessed about Meccano and technical constructions when they were younger to move into some more grown up gadgets. Or you could interpret that it’s talking about a transitional object for Hublot the brand, and their design language. We are erring on the side of the latter. You see, we think the Big Bang Meca-10 is quite an important watch. With a deep new movement (that isn’t a chronograph) and a look that somehow seems even more confident and assured, we can’t help but wonder if this the start of the next chapter of Big Bang? The dial What dial? But seriously folks, it looks like Hublot forgot to include the dial when they cased up these watches. And honestly, we’re so glad they did. Because the view of the pinions, gears, wheels and springs draws you in with seemingly endless, enthralling detail. And Hublot is absolutely right; if you were the sort…
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Was it really necessary? To take a journey involving two flights (one of them aboard a very small plane) to a tropical island somewhere between Sydney and New Zealand that, at any given time, has a maximum of 750 people on it to test out the new Vacheron Constantin Overseas Collection? I would argue that, because Lord Howe Island occupies the very special timezone of UTC +10:30, and is one of the 37 timezones displayed on the gorgeous dial of the World Time, that it wasn’t just necessary… it was meant to be. The beauty of the location – aside from its outrageous natural beauty, good Lord! – was that it provided us the perfect testing ground to put all three new Overseas models, and their conveniently interchangeable strap options, through their paces. Fine dining and fruity cocktails in the restaurant of Capella Lodge, tick – hello tuxedo. A completely deserted beach, our very large outdoor gym for a chronograph session. And a glorious ex-volcano / mountain was our chance to get on top of the world for a view of the World Time. Before you say it, let me jump in, yes it’s a tough job, but somebody has to do it, right?
Editor’s Note: @fakewatchbusta cultivates the ‘horological Batman’ image perhaps in the hope that one day he’ll vanquish contemporaries like @rolexenforcer – who’s going for more of a Robocop-for-Rolex vibe, oh it’s a funny world Instagram – and be the sole crusader on social media righting the wrongs on wrists all across the world. But there’s one similarity to Batman, and to Robin Hood, that we can confirm beyond any doubt; unless FWB’s accountant is REALLY late in invoicing us for the couple of stories he wrote, he’s not in the game for the money. He appeared, wrote on two hot topics, then disappeared. Very superhero. There’s always a chance he walks among us in his Bruce Wayne guise – so I guess we should all look out for a sharp-eyed watch lover, scrutinising the hand-stack on your GMT… If you’re reading @fakewatchbusta, thanks for the memories. I am the person behind the @fakewatchbusta account on Instagram and I was kind of shocked when I got the assignment of writing on this topic. It’s like asking Superman if it’s OK to bring kryptonite to the party. Anyways, I’ll approach this as seriously as I can…. ARGUMENT #1 – “I wear fake watches when…
Last Sunday I boarded a plane in Melbourne and made the 8,000-odd kilometre trek to Tokyo. And in the last week I have travelled, by Shinkansen, bus and car a further 1500 or kilometres across Japan. On my wrist every step of the way – from airport lounges to traditional Ryokans – was the Seiko Astron. The Astron is a tremendously important and innovative watch for Seiko – it takes its name from the first quartz wristwatch, developed by the brand in 1969. The orginal Astron was a major milestone, not just in watchmaking, but in the history of electrical engineering. Seiko is hoping that the current Astron, released in 2012 will prove to be just as significant; it is the world’s first GPS solar watch, and aims to be an unfailing, ever-accurate timepiece, no matter how obscure your timezone. There’s no doubt it sounds impressive, but what’s it like on the wrist? My first impression was…Confusion. I’m a mechanical watch kind of guy, and the Astron, for all its appearance as a conventional watch, is a very hi-tech product. At first glance it appears to be a chronograph, but closer inspection reveals that the subdials are actually a second time zone, the…
Story in a second Omega adds an extra hand, two millimetres and a whole lot of text to their Constellation-inspired Globemaster. The Globemaster was one of the breakthrough watches of 2015, and it would have been naive to think that Omega wouldn’t extend the collection. And, while predicting a calendar version would have been a pretty safe bet, no one expected it to look quite like this. Given that the collection will be hitting Australian shores soon, we thought it was time to take a closer look at the Omega Globemaster Annual Calendar The dial When I saw the press images of this watch I was worried that Omega had taken one of the most handsome, heritage-inspired designs of 2015 and ruined it with wordplay. After all, there’s a whopping 21 words, albeit abbreviated words, on that dial. But in the real world, on the wrist, my worries about the dial faded away in about 90 seconds flat. That cursive, italic calendar text isn’t overly in-your-face. It’s a bit more distinctive on the white dialled model, but the contrast works. You know what really jars with me though? The radial flip. I’m sure there’s sound design theory behind changing the direction of…