QP Perfection: 5 of the most exciting perpetual calendar watches of the last year
Few watches scream haute horology like a perpetual calendar. In fact, in the eyes of many enthusiasts, a QP is the nonpareil of complicated timepieces … which is totally understandable, especially when you consider that these infinitesimal mechanical movements are capable of accurately giving owners so much information. What’s more interesting still is how different one QP can look to the next. With that in mind, we thought we’d share with you five of the most exciting perpetual calendar watches of the last year: HABRING PERPETUAL-DOPPEL Arguably Austria’s best known watch brand stormed into 2019 with the Habring Perpetual-Doppel, which is a new perpetual calendar with the added complication of a rattrapante chronograph. It was released to celebrate the brand’s 15th birthday. This model comes in two dial variants. The dial-side modifications made in-house to relatively straightforward movements by the husband-and-wife-led team are really something. This particular Habring manages to display a huge amount of information in a clear, aesthetically distinct and unconsciously cool manner. Ref No: Perpetual-Doppel / Case size: 43mm / Case material: Steel / Movement: A11P / Price: $34,000 IWC BIG PILOT’S WATCH PERPETUAL CALENDAR SPITFIRE The Big Pilot series is one of the most iconic ranges…
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It was during a particularly cold snap in January that I decided to get off the couch and out of the house. I was restless. The internet had been bombarding me with watch photos, opinions, reviews and advertising. I’m quite sure the only Google algorithm pointed at me is for watches. On that frigid January evening all these influences conspired to push me toward the mall (which is a recognised natural habitat for most Canadians in the winter months). Luckily, as everyone else had stayed home, I had near-exclusive access to a great boutique which housed an impressive selection of my favourite watch brands. The sales rep was extremely patient with me and after much head scratching, it was down to two Omegas: the relatively new Seamaster Diver 300M and the venerable Speedmaster Moonwatch, both of which are priced within $300 of each other on a bracelet. If you haven’t already, you can read right here about some of the reasons it’s hard for me to buy a Speedy; however, I have to say, the Seamaster Diver simply charmed the wallet out of my pocket. The model I purchased was released in 2018 as an overhaul of the early 1990s…
**UPDATE: We have had confirmation from Franck Muller Australia that the stolen model is a round diamond watch, model number 4200 QZ R D3 CD 5 N with serial number 36. If you come across this watch, please contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000. No pictures of the watch are available at this time.** Our thoughts this morning go out to the staff at the Franck Muller boutique who, on Wednesday morning at 10:40am were subjected to a terrifying experience, when a man in an unconvincing long wig, and black rubber gloves (which are commonly spotted in the Melbourne on people, and particularly tourists, during this Coronavirus outbreak) entered the store, threatened them with an uncapped syringe and gesturing to a hammer concealed in his pants. He proceeded to take out the hammer, smash a glass display case and steal a rose gold and diamond model worth $100,000AUD. We do not know the exact model at this time, but will update the story if more information is shared with us. The entire burglary took around 45 seconds. Police have said “We are concerned that if someone is prepared to do that during the day, we want to identify and locate…
For an industry with such a rich tapestry of history, it’s surprising to realise just how many mysteries remain unanswered in the world of horology: Who really wore the Explorer up Everest? Who bought Paul Newman’s Daytona? And why is the California dial called the California dial? While Tenzing Norgay probably knows the answer to the first question, and Aurel Bacs definitely knows the answer to the second, nobody really knows the answer to that last question. Some theorise that the “California dial”, which splits half the numerals on a watch’s dial between Roman and Arabic, is so-called because that particular design was exceedingly popular in the state of California in the ’30s and ’40s. Others speculate that it’s because of a notable Californian watchmaker dial and refinisher, Kirk Rich, who was churning out this particular design in the 1970s. The truth is, we’re probably never going to know the real answer to this question, but we do know one thing for certain — a watch with a California dial is a good-looking thing, and below are four timepieces you can still purchase with the distinctive design: Panerai Radiomir California – 47MM Panerai has a very long history with the…
This week on Great ‘Grams we get up close and personal with the number of the beast, a custom Eastern Arabic dial from an independent watchmaker, and a very rare Rolex thought to be sold by a retailer off the coast of Miami. The Bahamas-based retailer in question is John Bull, established in 1929 and a current-day Authorised Dealer of Rolex, who once sold some rather unusual sports watches. There is little information out there on these watches, but it seems that John Bull would modify the cases of a handful of Rolex watches with a bark finish and engrave the caseback with the name of the boutique and sometimes an edition number. While it seems unbelievable that a retailer would be allowed to modify a Rolex prior to sale, a comparison could be drawn to some early examples of Rolex watches that featured both the Rolex and Tiffany & Co. signatures, which were sold by the New York retailer and had the Tiffany & Co. stamp applied at the boutique. Examples of John Bull Rolex sports watches that have come up for auction include Daytonas, Submariners, and GMT-Masters, but in small numbers as a result of their rarity. It’s a…
It’s very easy to get caught up in the aesthetics of a watch and subsequently make a judgement call based purely on how it looks … we’ve all done it before. And that’s not to say that looks aren’t important — they are crucial. But equally, if not more important than the way a mechanical watch looks is, well … its mechanism. A timepiece’s movement is its heart, its soul — it is the thing that gives it life. Because of this, I reckon more appreciation and admiration should be heaped at a watch’s case back, rather than its front. Nicholas Hacko, the only watch manufacturer in the entirety of Australia, recently uploaded a wonderful video to YouTube that showcases the various bespoke tools and machines used to make their latest watch, the Nicholas Hacko NH2 Timascus. It only lasts for a couple of minutes, but it gives you a pretty profound appreciation for just how intricate and precise the art of watchmaking is. Additionally, it did, for myself at least, fill me with a great sense of patriotic pride knowing that there are still people in this country keen to make mechanical things from scratch, to challenge the status quo laid…
While a great many of the best watches unveiled in 2019 were vintage-inspired homages, there were also plenty of timepieces released that were resolutely modern and quite eccentric. And while we’d like to mention all of them, we’ve narrowed it down to these, the five quirkiest watches released in 2019: SWATCH FLYMAGIC The Flymagic is apparently a Swatch. But beyond the branding, the strap-fitting, the box, and the fact it is available in the Swatch shop, it’s not very Swatch at all. While it seems at first glance to be surprisingly expensive for a Swatch, the specs stack up. A Nivachron balance spring tops the bill, reputedly reducing the impact of magnetic fields on the watch by a factor of 20. And the mechanical movement has 66 parts. You get what you pay for, after all. Ref No: YHS100 / Case size: 45mm / Case material: Steel / Movement: Flymagic / Price: CHF 1500 GUCCI GRIP While Gucci is primarily a fashion label, the brand occasionally produces watches of stylistic note. While this quartz-powered, cushion-shaped timepiece is not going to take home any awards at the GPHG, it is actually pretty interesting. Yes, it looks like bathroom scales, but its…
The gauntlet has well and truly been thrown down on the polished concrete floors of Time+Tide’s headquarters in this week’s office row, as a truculent James Robinson asseverated that pocket watches in 2020 are about as useful as a solar powered watch in a sensory deprivation tank … that is to say, completely pointless. Deputy Editor Nicholas Kenyon was having none of it, however, and was locked-and-loaded with a counter argument that could’ve knocked Robinson’s Watch Rats socks clean off. Enjoy the figurative fisticuffs. Nick Kenyon – The For Argument Yes, the pocket watch is irrelevant, but so too is the wristwatch. In fact, it is the charm of a mechanical bygone era that makes collecting watches so interesting. You are engaged by the richness of the history of the watchmaking firm, the skill of the artisans producing the components, and what the watch says about the time in which it was made. The ’80s were awash with gold and two-tone watches thanks to the growth of Wall Street and the booming American economy. Watches from the ’40s were designed with a utilitarian focus, pared back to the single goal of communicating the time and nothing else. To disregard the…
Valentine’s Day is a tricky one, because there can sometimes be tremendous pressure to pick the love of your life the perfect gift. You know, the one that says I understand you and will love you regardless until the end of days. But if you aren’t sure you can measure up against that specific level of Romeo and Juliet, then you must at least be romantic with your gift, especially when you’re buying your significant other a watch. The Hearts-and-Flowers thing: Some women genuinely love this (all year round). If that’s your woman, go for it! Perhaps the Frédérique Constant Double Heart Automatique. Or if you have the wherewithal to go totally nuts, Blancpain’s limited-edition 2020 jewellery watch (watchgeek bonus points for Calibre 510, a rectangular mechanical movement). Beware: unless you are really, really sure that this is her definition of romance, don’t go there. The jewellery thing: Diamonds are Forever (and so is your love). This is an occasion where diamonds on a woman’s timepiece may be totally justified. Beware: if she’s an outdoorsy action-girl, she probably won’t see the point. The colour of love: Red. So long as you steer clear of anything remotely kitsch, it can be…
Life moves pretty fast, but before it can get away from us, and the stunning generosity shown towards Australia is forgotten – when one crisis is replaced by the inevitable next one, which is already sadly happening – we want to pause and celebrate the moment. With a party. Buy tickets here. Because just one month ago, Australia was in dire trouble. 150 bushfires were burning, some of them ‘megafires’ covering many thousands of hectares. People all over our vast continent were displaced from their homes, thousands of which burned to the ground. Animals were dying in their millions. For wildlife and Aussies still enduring the aftermath, there is now more than $200,000 of extra funds at their disposal, thanks to the world watch industry. For a list of auction lot results, check in over here. Today we announce the ‘Watch & Act!’ World Watch Auction Wrap Party, to be held on Saturday the 29th February at our Melbourne headquarters. This is all about recognising the donors of the watches and the enthusiastic bidders, who pushed 90 per cent of the watches above their retail value, some to the tune of 500 per cent! Tickets are $80 / $40…