Otsuka Lotec Archives

Hands-on – The Otsuka Lotec № 7.5, a Japanese Artisanal Watch in a Class of its Own

Jiro Katayama, a car designer turned self-taught, independent watchmaker from Japan, is quickly gaining popularity with his brand, Otsuka Lotec. Despite the brand’s limited distribution – exclusively within Japan – enthusiasts worldwide are drawn to Katayama’s craftsmanship and industrial-meets-steampunk watch aesthetic. Travelling to Japan to secure one of his coveted timepieces, be it the retrograde […]

Buying Guide – A Discerning Selection of Some of the Most Intriguing Jumping Hour Watches

Following our Buying Guide of watches that go “DING” or even produce an entire orchestra of dings to signal the time, we’re now shifting focus to a very different but equally captivating complication, the Heures Sautantes, or Jumping Hours! This departure from the typical indication of time often relies on a hand or disc to […]

Buying Guide – Five Highly Original and Creative Retrograde Watches

It’s common knowledge that the vast majority of watches use centrally mounted hands continuously rotating 360 degrees in a clockwise direction to tell time down to the hours and minutes, and most often the seconds. Often the seconds indication is moved to 6′ or 9′ and has its own separate sub-dial, but that pretty much […]

Hands-on – The Updated Otsuka Lotec № 6 by Japanese Watchmaker Jiro Katayama

In May of this year, we introduced Jiro Katayama, an independent watchmaker from Japan, and his brand Otsuka Lotec, which, despite its distribution being limited exclusively to his home country, has gained recognition across the continents. We had the pleasure of experiencing one of his models, the recently updated Otsuka Lotec № 6, and here […]

Portrait – Watchmaker Jiro Katayama, the Man Behind Otsuka Lotec and Japan’s new Sensation

Some brands want a global presence, while others are perfectly happy to focus on a much smaller part of the world. Such is the case for Jiro Katayama, a Japanese watchmaker who produces watches under the name of Otsuka Lotec. This low-key but high-impact independent watchmaking atelier has been making the rounds online despite selling […]

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Category: Otsuka Lotec

Hands-on – The Otsuka Lotec № 7.5, a Japanese Artisanal Watch in a Class of its Own

Buying Guide – A Discerning Selection of Some of the Most Intriguing Jumping Hour Watches

Buying Guide – Five Highly Original and Creative Retrograde Watches

Hands-on – The Updated Otsuka Lotec № 6 by Japanese Watchmaker Jiro Katayama

Portrait – Watchmaker Jiro Katayama, the Man Behind Otsuka Lotec and Japan’s new Sensation