MY WATCH STORY: David’s Patek Philippe Aquanaut
Editor’s note: One morning at work, around 9:20am, I looked up from my desk and saw a face peering through the front door. This isn’t so unusual; our office has the sort of shop front that makes us look like we might be a retail space – we field a few of these queries a week. So when the face opened the door, and walked in, I certainly didn’t expect it to say, “Is this Time+Tide?” Turns out David works a few doors down the road, and is a big fan of our work (thanks for that), and recognised our office from videos. So, after we made introductions I (naturally enough) asked what was on his wrist, and was (to be frank) somewhat disappointed to see that it was an Apple Watch. But when David said that the Apple was his work watch, and that his other watch (to paraphrase bumper stickers everywhere) was a Patek, I had to know more. A few weeks later I caught up with David and found out the story behind his Patek Philippe Aquanaut. You don’t see too many Aquanauts around – what’s the story behind it? I’ve always wanted a Patek, and two…
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There you have it – another year done and dusted. Now we’re all trying to get our heads around writing 2017 instead of 2106, and ramping up the excitement about the new releases we’ll be seeing at SIHH and Baselworld. Over the past couple of weeks I’ve been able to take advantage of time off work to catch up with a few long lost friends, and to do some summertime watch-spotting. Most businesses might have shut up shop for the Christmas break, but that didn’t stop me from finding a few open cafes. After what feels like a lifetime of research and shopping around, good mate Stefanos FINALLY sought and bought his grail – a Rolex DateJust 1601 ‘Wideboy’, while in Japan. As you can see, the hard work definitely paid off, and he’s scored an excellent example, which is no doubt a keeper. There’s a lesson to be learnt about patience here. And now he’s got a taste for Rolex, I doubt this will be his last piece. Friend of Time+Tide, @Syn.chronus (AKA Glen) was back in town, this time with a pretty special Christmas present. After several weeks travelling around Europe, all roads led to Taiwan, where he picked up…
Ah, December, my favourite month of the year. It’s got the lot: my birthday, Christmas and of course it’s when the Michael Bublé calendar becomes available for the year ahead. It’s a time of year that tends to be action packed, as we all fall into mayhem trying to make sense of the past 12 months. And this month’s Spotted was no different, including a sighting (in the wild) of an astonishingly clean 1982 Rolex Sub, which you can read about a little further down… First up, I caught up with an old mate and fellow watch lover, Stefanos, to check out his new sock brand, Snich Sox. Stefanos has been slowly building a very respectable vintage collection (watches, not socks, thankfully) while he’s been studying medicine here in Melbourne for the past few years. What I like about Stef is that every time I see him, he’s got something different to show me. He’s a chronic flipper, and on a mission – a mission to get a Rolex Datejust 1601 ‘Wide Boy’, onto his wrist. He’s well travelled, so it’s ‘normal’ to receive messages and thousands of pics asking my opinion on pieces, like the time he bought a vintage Eterna in a…
A little while ago, we ran our annual reader survey, giving entrants the chance to walk away with an Oris timepiece – a choice between the limited edition bronze Carl Brashear Divers Sixty-Five and a Divers Sixty-Five in steel. The lucky winner was Alan from Sydney, who chose the mighty bronze Carl Brashear. (Interestingly enough, an Alan won in 2015 too, but they definitely aren’t the same Alan, and don’t feel that if your name isn’t Alan there’s no point entering our competitions. We love all Alans and non-Alans equally.) After spending the past few weeks weeping tears of sadness and regret that we no longer have the unmitigated joy of this bronze beauty in our life, we thought it appropriate to see how Carl is doing in his new home. Congratulations again, Alan! So, you’ve had the watch for just over a month now. How’s it going? Really great! I try to find as many reasons as possible to wear it, and it’s become my weekender for the most part and a staple for my casual Fridays at work. What were your thoughts when it arrived? Just WOW! I was very impressed by the box and it was quite the experience from…
October was a crazy, crazy month, but before we dive in, I must address the bronze elephant in the room. Carl has gone, and he’s not coming back. Yes, our lucky survey winner (at odds of roughly 3000:1), chose the Oris Carl Brashear Limited Edition. Anyway, back to it. This month you might’ve noticed me whipping around town in a Fiat 500x (yes, the viagra one), which quickly brought out my inner Italiano. I took Melbourne lawyer (and legend) Tom Le, along for a couple of chap-laps and, high on endorphins from two recent purchases (a Kermit and a Batman), it wasn’t long before we started plotting the next purchase. Currently, he’s torn between an Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Ultra-Thin, Patek Philippe Nautilus or Vacheron Constantin Overseas Chrono. Let’s vote later. Long-time friend of Time+Tide, @Calibre11 stopped past HQ at the start of the month, with the obligatory brace of Heuers. The new Monza he was packing was a definite stand-out. Not only was it serial number 11, it had ‘calibre 11’ engraved on the caseback. My regular Sunday brunch with the watch gang saw a lot of variety, and was the first time we’d all been together in quite some time.…
Editor’s Note: It will surprise no-one to learn that Andy Green spends a significant amount of time each month in cafés, handling watches – of fairly staggering scope and value – and meeting people. That was pretty much our brief to him when we started working with Andy officially back in the early days of Time+Tide. Go forth. Get buzzed. Take photos. We called the position the ‘Community Engagement Officer’. Whether or not we can take credit for creating the single origin snuffling watch monster he’s become, decorated almost daily in mouthwatering wristcandy, is debatable. But the fact is, we may have, and we feel it’s time we published his diary. Passed on his stories. They’re too good not to share. The column is called Spotted! by AG The idea is that it’s the people and the timepieces he spotted in recent times. If you’re wondering about the exclamation mark, it’s intentional. Have you met Andy in person? There will be passion. If you want to be #spottedbyag you know what to do, drop him a line at andy.green@timeandtidewatches.com We’ll look forward to reading about you right here in months to come! Thanks Andy, and all in our wider community for making…