11 of the greatest Grand Seikos yet, and why they matter
Editor’s note: It’s not a controversial statement to say that Grand Seiko is the most strident contender brand in the luxury watch market. It has held that title for some time. I’d go as far as to say that it’s been that way pretty much since Time+Tide started in 2014. But the proof is in the timeline of releases, and just how rapidly the brand has evolved, sometimes – when lacking a competitor – in competition with itself. This is something Nick touched on in his most recent review of what he called their best dive watch yet. You have to watch your superlatives with Grand Seiko, as the brand can leave you shamefaced, when it ups the ante shortly after. That said, Cam’s list of 11 of the greatest Grand Seikos ever is still solid nearly two years on. What I like about this story is the substantiation. He includes his rationale for why they matter. Which is likely to be why this remains in our top 10 stories of all time for views. We hope you enjoy this thorough recap of key Grand Seiko models. Just 10 years ago, buying a Grand Seiko meant either having to buy…
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Editor’s note: While our daily work at Time+Tide revolves around new models, this is not – in the main – how most of you experience watches. Which is why, from time to time, we publish stories, reviews, reflections and comparisons based purely on the wearer’s perspective. The buyer’s perspective. The enthusiast’s perspective. That’s how we connected with Bruce Duguay. He wrote a review of the Rolex GMT-Master II BLNR that also happens to be one of our most read stories of all time. Here, Bruce compares two watches he rates and appreciates, the Tudor Pelagos and the Rolex Submariner. This month, I had the good fortune to simultaneously have in my possession a Rolex Submariner and a Tudor Pelagos. Of course, a head-to-head comparison was inevitable, but not for all of the obvious reasons. Yes, these are two black dial dive watches and they come from the same parent company, but what I really wanted to explore is the criteria I feel makes the Tudor Pelagos so compelling from both the on-the-wrist and consumer viewpoints. This might be a bold statement, but in early 2020, and in my opinion, the Tudor Pelagos is a better dive watch than the Rolex Submariner. Hear…
The story of the Portugieser begins with two businessmen from, you guessed it, Portugal. They went to IWC asking for a watch as accurate as a marine chronometer but could be worn on the wrist, something that hadn’t been done before by the brand. The only way the Schaffhausen-based manufacturer could meet the brief was to house a pocket watch movement in a wristwatch case, thus giving birth to the oversized Portugieser we know today. The original Portugieser watch was the ref. 325, a 41.5mm wristwatch with a subsidiary second dial, bold Arabic numerals to mark the hours, and powered by the most accurate pocket watch movements that IWC made. This satisfied the exacting demands of the first two Portugieser customers, and began the story of one of the strongest, and most durable, watch designs of all time. This year we are seeing an extension to this important collection, including the new IWC Portugieser Automatic 40, one of the closest renditions of the original watch that has been produced by the brand. It is a slight departure from the time-only Portugieser watches that have been made in recent years, with the case size dropped to 40.4mm. This is a decision…
This time a couple of weeks ago, the challenge was set, and it was formidable. A fast approaching watch fair – Watches & Wonders – with no watches in sight. None to have. None to hold. None to video. What choice but to fold? We didn’t do that, though. We’re Aussies, we don’t give up that easy. And also, as newly minted media partners of the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie (FHH) – a responsibility that we are honoured to uphold – we had a duty to deliver. Like we talked about in last week’s Wind Down, we considered that many of you, our dear readers and viewers, are currently on the couch, rapidly bingeing through ALL the series like Joe Exotic binges on hair dye. We considered that while we couldn’t hold them in the metal, we could talk to the good images we had of them, and we could bring in some friends, and off-site team members to talk to the detail and the highlights. And then, late in the piece, the boss of IWC joined in, too. We could also make it look more fun than usual. Like a Late Show. Voila. We had a virtual watch fair…
“Why is he yelling?” someone in the YouTube comments has already asked. And it’s a good question. In my first appearance in Every Watch Tells A Story, I am shouting like a person in a particularly noisy pub. That’s because, for the shoots that comprise this series that’s what the Time+Tide office turns into. A particularly noisy pub. It’s the excitement. It’s the enthusiasm. And yes, it’s the refreshments that are always flowing. These events, usually based around Club get-togethers or, in this case, an Indie Explorer evening, are ones to let the hair down at. The official brand events are special, too, but they’re usually more about discovering collections, meeting the people behind the watches and, very often, education. They’re super fun for the team, too. And I miss them like I never thought I would right now. Anyway, the lady doth protest too much. Yes, I’m shouting; yes, I’m well refreshed; and yes, I’m enthusiastic about these two watches. Very much so. What we have here is the DOXA SUB 1200T, a now discontinued model. And we have the William Wood Valiant, Red Watch. In a first for Every Watch Tells A Story, the modern variation of the…
This year, Cartier are shining the spotlight on the pioneering age of aviation as a source of inspiration. And that brings to the fore the wristwatch that started it all, the Santos-Dumont. The model returned to prominence in 2019 with the quartz Cartier Santos-Dumont. While the Cartier family and Brazilian inventor Alberto Santos-Dumont are inexorably linked through his role in their development of the first-ever men’s wristwatch, it is exciting to see his work used as a motif in a series of limited editions this year. One of the most striking of these limited editions is the Cartier Santos-Dumont “La Demoiselle”, a platinum wristwatch that references an aircraft developed by Mr Santos-Dumont in 1907. The Santos-Dumont Demoiselle aircraft was built to compete in the Grand Prix d’Aviation. In order to promote aircraft development, a 50,000 franc prize was offered to the first person able to fly an aircraft around a circular 1km circuit. It would also be the last aircraft that Santos-Dumont would build. For Cartier to name a watch after this important aircraft is a fitting tribute to the man who invented it, and an appropriate way to celebrate a pivotal moment in the history of what was then a French jewellery company.…
The best thing about perpetual calendar watches is they are truly set-and-forget timepieces. So if you’re reading this a few decades from now and you’ve picked up a 2020 Vacheron Constantin Overseas Perpetual Calendar as a birth-year watch, don’t worry, it won’t need to be adjusted till well into your retirement in 2100. Vacheron Constantin have released two new perpetual calendars in the Overseas collection this year, and while they have a lot of similarities, the impression they each leave you with couldn’t be more different. Vacheron Constantin Overseas Perpetual Calendar Ultra-Thin Skeleton First, let’s look at the Vacheron Constantin Overseas Perpetual Calendar in pink gold with skeleton dial. As far as complicated-looking luxury sports watches go, this one is exceptionally clean looking for all that is going on. While some skeletonised dials can fall into the trap of looking overly ornate or garishly exposed, or just plain busy, this watch is none of those things, giving a nod to the Vacheron Constantin history of skeleton dials while remaining contemporary in its execution. The prominent calendar sub-dials return some legibility and some symmetry to a dial that can look messy and confusing, while the floating gold hour markers and hands…
The translucent blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea often conjure images of beach towels draped over deckchairs, shade umbrellas and Aperol Spritz, offering sunbakers relief from a cloudless sky, and small fishing boats rocking back and forth not far from shore. It is this idyllic scene that Panerai has embraced with their latest collection of limited edition Radiomir Mediterraneo pieces (reminiscent of their 2018 collection). The PAM01144 Radiomir 42mm Mediterraneo Edition and the PAM01078 Radiomir 45mm Mediterraneo Edition are both replete with rich blue fumé dials that seek to offer a moment of tranquility when you aren’t on the Amalfi Coast enjoying an afternoon apéritif. Looking at the larger of the two watches, the PAM01078 Radiomir 45mm Mediterraneo Edition has its size considerably offset by the use of brushed titanium to case the watch. This makes it substantially lighter on the wrist than steel. In comparison, the PAM01144 Radiomir 42mm Mediterraneo Edition has 3mm shaved from its diameter and is cased in polished 316L steel, which has the effect of altering the proportions slightly from its larger sibling, and a case that will actually gleam in the sunlight. Both watches feature the sunburst brushed blue fumé dials, khaki-tone lume for…
Looking at the new watches Jaeger-LeCoultre released for W&W 2020, my overriding impression was that the brand is calmly focusing on what it does really well: refined, technically rigorous and beautifully executed watchmaking that won’t stop the traffic from 100 paces (no look-at-me gimmicks here) but will invite us to pause, look more closely and appreciate the lasting value. In these strange times, it may be just what we need. So, this year La Grande Maison has brought us new versions of two of its great classics – one a complete redesign and the other a colour variation – and one stunning high-complication piece. Master Control 2020 While many houses have chosen to introduce additions to existing collections and variations of existing models, Jaeger-LeCoultre has been bolder, re-launching an entire collection – with four new models to kick things off. In the 28 years since the Master Control line first saw the light of day, it has stood for technical expertise combined with restrained styling. That hasn’t changed. But with the re-launch we’re seeing a total redesign, a raft of technical upgrades to some of the Maison’s most emblematic complications, a completely new movement and a new complication. Aesthetically, the new…
When it comes to big days, they don’t come much more memorable or special than your wedding day, especially now, when it seems like every wedding has its own hashtag or custom location check-in. So it’s only natural that you’d want to ensure every inch – from top to wrist – is looking its finest. When we think of well-suited weddings, we think Mr Carl Navè, a Melbourne-based tailor who sees plenty of grooms at his Bourke Street showroom. We sat down with Mr Navè to get the lowdown on where men’s matrimonial style is at right now. Time+Tide: Are people even getting married these days? Carl Nave: Yes, they are! Weddings are huge. Traditionally, in Melbourne and Sydney, wedding season used to be a season in the second half of the year, whereas now, it’s non-stop. It’s great. Weddings are exciting. Weddings are fun. Fifty per cent of my business is weddings. And, of course, they’re looking better than ever, and more people than ever are seeing them. You look at the level of beautiful photography that exists now. It’s not a wedding day, it’s a wedding shoot. T+T: And how does this translate to the groom, and what…