Is this Rolex boring or beautiful? Either way, it’s under $10k and you can probably buy it, so there’s that …
Editor’s note: There’s a knock on the Time+Tide HQ front door. It pushes open and a face pokes around. Is this Time and Tide, the watch website? (There’s no signage, so it takes logo recognition to find us.) Felix, Emma, Sarah or I jump up, walk over and say, yes it is, how are you, etc. Conversation turns quickly to watches — when they discovered us, what’s next for their wrist. And then, in all seriousness, seven times out of 10, it lands on the fact that you can’t buy a recent Rolex. Why? We usually steer the conversation in a positive direction. You CAN buy a recent Rolex and we show them pics of the DJ41, which is among our favourites of the last few years — along with the stunning grey-dialled OP39 (also widely available), a watch that one day will be mine, oh yes, it will be mine. Sure, it’s not as racy as a GMT Master-II, or as shiny as a ceramic bezelled Sub. It’s not as stealthy as a 2017 Sea-Dweller, but it has all the Rolex hallmarks in spades — to the extent that when it was released in 2017, Felix actually named it as his best Rolex in show.…
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Editor’s note: The rise and rise of not just the quality, but the cachet of German watchmaking in recent years has all but put to rest the notion that fine watchmaking is the preserve of the Swiss alone. It’s no longer an argument that has any heat — or any credibility. Therefore, a list of great German watchmakers in 2019 (first published in 2018, the superfans will tell you) borders on a no-brainer. But that said, there may be one or two discoveries in there. Felix runs us through some of his favourites, one or two of which he wears on a very regular basis. Though, sadly, not ‘The Felix’ — seriously, how good would that be. Not so long ago, Cam — fortified with a strong cup of tea and some crumpets — ran us through eight of the finest watches from British brands. Well, today I’ve had my cold cuts and pumpernickel for breakfast and selected eight of Germany’s most serious timepieces to start your day off right. Now, while Germany might not be the watchmaking powerhouse that their neutral neighbour Switzerland is, they’re no slouches either. The industry is based around two towns: Glashütte, in the east, is the best known, as it’s the oldest…
A century? Wait, isn’t the Zenith El Primero celebrating its 50th birthday this year? Yes, correct. However, in a surprise move, the brand is offering a 50-year warranty on these A386 Revival 50th Anniversary models in 18ct gold (white, yellow and red, all at the same price). Hence the 100 years — 50 years of goodness just gone, and 50 to come with these sensitively reissued 38mm tri-colour overlapping register chronographs with stunningly finished El Primero 400 movements. There’s really a lot to love about this collection, and most of it is good and simple. Zenith did the right thing by the original with this revival of the first ever El Primero in 1969. The case size is unchanged at 38mm, the power reserve is 50 hours, and the straps are alligator with gold pin buckles. As per this video, there is the option of a box set, or watches can be bought individually. Australian pricing for the Zenith El Primero A386 Revival 50th Anniversary pricing The Zenith El Primero A386 Revival 50th Anniversary watches in 18ct white, yellow and red gold, $27,500
Editor’s note: There were some notable absences at Baselworld 2019. A new Milgauss from Rolex, a new Monaco from TAG Heuer; in fact, the only birthday that happened on schedule, apart from the barnstorming return of Doxa in time for its 130th, was the glorious profusion of Zenith El Primero models. But no missing model was quite as glaring to us as the absence of the Tudor Black Bay Fifty-Eight, a watch introduced in 2018 that chiselled back the slab sides of the original Black Bay by circa 20 per cent and revealed a shapely, infinitely more ergonomic body. Will we have to wait a full year for more versions? Just imagine for a moment … A BB Fifty-Eight GMT (the obvious one), a chrono … Will Tudor eschew the ‘one big drop’ mentality of years past and surprise us mid-year? Who knows, but in the meantime, let’s remind ourselves what Yannick Chan thought of his Fifty-Eight after a month on the wrist. Being a Tudor enthusiast (or, for lack of a better word, a bit of a fanboy), the Black Bay Fifty-Eight was the watch that really caught my eye amongst the new releases from Tudor at Baselworld 2018. Yes, like everyone…
Franck Muller excel at three things: highly complicated watches, including the most complicated wristwatch in the world, shown in this video (worth a cool $4.3 million dollars); the sleek Curvex case, and diamonds. Lots and lots of diamonds. If you want to shine bright like one, and you have a million Australian dollars, you’re in luck. We have them on our wrists in this video. FRANCK MULLER VANGUARD INVISIBLE SETTING Fun fact: This extraordinary fully diamond-set watch is a challenge to create, because, according to the designer, the diamonds are effectively set upside down, with the crown and pavilion facing into the watch. The table of each diamond is perfectly aligned, so as to create an uninterrupted line to the eye and to maximise the reflection of the light as it enters through the table. Australian Pricing: $538K – $1m FRANCK MULLER INVISIBLE SETTING IMPERIAL TOURBILLON (Rubies) Fun fact: This is one of two Franck Muller watches recently bought by football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo. All 474 diamonds in the watch are officially graded colourless – D to F – in the colour scale, and VVS on the clarity scale. Featuring 474 baguette cut diamonds, with the flying tourbillon at 6 o’clock on…
It took Apple, and their eponymous watch, to really hammer home the point that the traditional fine watch industry was stuck in the past. No, not with regards to the watch itself — I’m still plenty fine with gears and wheels — no, the real revelation was that it doesn’t have to be so hard to change a strap. As someone who’s sworn at more flying spring bars than I’d care to admit, that first, buttery-smooth Apple was a revelation. And clearly not just for me. In the following years, the number of tool-free strap-changing methods has increased significantly, heralding a new wave of user-friendliness (and more proprietary straps, which doesn’t hurt the bottom line). So without any further ado, here’s our pick of the systems that might usurp the spring bar. Cartier Santos de Cartier The renaissance of the Santos is real, and one of the major features, along with the new case, was the elegant and sturdy QuickSwitch. It’s excellent, and will be familiar in functionality to Apple Watch owners. Hublot One Click Hublot’s widely used One Click strap system lives up to the name – a distinctive button on the outside of the case is used to activate…
A few weeks ago, New Zealand, Australia and indeed the world were shocked by the horrific violence perpetrated against the Muslim community in Christchurch. In the aftermath of this event, what stood out was the overwhelming response, on all fronts, from political leaders, through to local and international communities. It can be seen in the watch community too, as the New Zealand chapter of RedBar has teamed up with Dion, from Kiwi watch company Magrette, to raffle off two watches, with all funds being donated to the Victim Support’s Christchurch Shooting Victims’ Fund. The watches being raffled off are a limited edition Magrette Mania (#4 of 25), featuring a stunning hand-engraved case back, with a RRP of $1875 USD, and a Magrette Moana Pacific Professional Kara LE, worth $775 USD. Winners will randomly be drawn at the next RedBar NZ meetup on April 13, and announced on RedBarNZ’s Instagram and Facebook. Raffle tickets are $10 USD each. To purchase, email redbarraffle@gmail.com with your full name, location and the number of tickets you would like to buy. Payment details will be sent to all entrants (PayPal available), and ticket numbers provided once payment is successfully received. Well done to the guys…
Editor’s note: The Longines Legend Diver got a dark makeover last year, and even though it’s 12 months on, we still can’t get enough of this all-black look. Can you blame us? The Longines Legend Diver Watch, a reimagined version of a diving watch from the 1960s, had a dramatic reintroduction in 2017, care of the Milanese bracelet addition — perhaps the best strap hack of the year, period — and now it’s going to set pulses racing even faster with a new version in black PVD. Vital statistics Apart from the PVD, the Legend Diver remains true to the bold styling that made the original timepiece something of an icon in the Longines canon. It houses Longines’ L888 caliber. In terms of design, the lines of the original watch have been preserved, including the boxed glass (but in sapphire crystal) and the bidirectional internal turning diving bezel. While upholding the 1960s spirit of this legendary timepiece, Longines have also equipped it with contemporary and high-performance technical characteristics, including a black PVD coating for a resolutely modern design, a sapphire crystal, two crowns and a screw-down back to guarantee water-resistance to 30 bar. The bezel is activated and stopped by the crown…
John F. Kennedy was a watch guy. He was rarely, if ever, sighted without one. A personal favourite of his was this Omega Ultra-Thin ref OT3980 gifted to him by his friend and former member of the Florida State House of Representatives Grant Stockdale. When we visited Omega’s headquarters in Bienne last year, we were fortunate enough to be given a tour of the museum, with a rare invitation to handle any watch that caught our eye. This was absolutely one of them. How to describe the feeling of holding in your hand an object with the human detritus of JFK visible on the strap, around the lugs and so on? He wore this watch frequently. You can tell. It was oddly unsettling. Powerful. I go on after this experience to handle Elvis’ watch, too. It wasn’t the same experience. I can’t advance any theories here, just an observation. An interesting backstory of this watch, aside from my esoteric rambling, is that Stockdale engraved and gifted the watch to JFK the summer before the November election, such was his faith in JFK. In December of 2005, Omega purchased the watch at auction for $350,000 USD. There’s much more to the…
Editor’s note: Many (many) times we’re asked to recommend a ‘good’ watch at the roughly $1000 price point. The Tissot Visodate, one of the brand’s staple heritage pieces, is always high on the list. It’s not a new release, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t an incredible piece of kit. Here at Time+Tide we spend a goodly amount of time talking about the latest watch releases. Well, this isn’t one of those times. Instead, today we’re talking about a stone-cold classic that’s as good today as when it was first released – the Tissot Visodate. The Visodate is an historical reissue of a mid-century watch that was novel for its inclusion of – wait for it – the mighty (and occasionally maligned) date window. While these days the date is de rigueur, it’s easy to forget that back in the day it was a big deal. The re-release honours the original not just in the snazzy name but also with a date display that’s deliberate in its style and placement. For me, though, the charm of the Visodate extends well beyond this complication. The case shape, the opaline dial finish, the arrowhead markers. All perfectly on point for a dressy…