Category: Pilot Watches

Pre-SIHH 2019 – IWC Big Pilot’s Watch Constant-Force Tourbillon Edition “Le Petit Prince”

Among the four watches that IWC introduces for its pre-SIHH 2019 collection are three ‘standard’ pieces – a chronograph, a double-chronograph and a world time – and one very exclusive, complicated piece; the IWC Big Pilot’s Watch Constant-Force Tourbillon Edition “Le Petit Prince” IW590303 (yes, quite a name…) Nevertheless, if some will point to a lack of relevance […]

5 years ago

Pre-SIHH 2019 – IWC Pilot’s Watch Double Chronograph TOP GUN Ceratanium (Hands-On)

This is it… 2019 will be the year of the Pilot’s Watch at IWC. Don’t expect to see the entire range being remodelled, as that had been done already in 2016 – with a new Big Pilot and the Mark XVIII for instance. However, expect to see some nice new editions, some good-old designs brought back to life and some mechanical improvements. But before the real fireworks start at the SIHH 2019 in January, IWC teases us with 4 new pieces, including this new Pilot’s Watch Double Chronograph TOP GUN Ceratanium ref. IW371815.

5 years ago

Hands-on – Fortis B-42 Official Cosmonauts Chronograph

Fortis was founded in 1912 by Walter Vogt. Vogt’s idea was to design watches of outstanding qualities that would deserve the name Fortis or strong in Latin. Since then, the brand is known for its rugged, functional watches and for its long-lasting connection with aviation and space exploration. In particular, Fortis watches became part of the standard equipment for Cosmonauts, cooperating with Roscosmos, the Russian Space Agency (Editor’s note, the word Cosmonaut itself is used by the Russian Space Agency whereas, for NASA, one would use Astronaut). The first Fortis Cosmonaut watch flew into space in 1994 as Russia was operating the MIR space station. A second version – again for Roscosmos, specifically as the ISS followed MIR – was designed some 10 years later. Since then, several versions have been produced including the steel B-42 we are reviewing here.

5 years ago

Value Proposition – Review of Seiko 5 SNK809 – A Lot of a Mechanical Watch for Less than $100

A few years ago, we published a story named “The Cheapest High-End Watch“. We searched for the most affordable high-end watch, comprising a mechanical movement, in-house manufactured of course, from a brand with an undisputed pedigree, preferably family-owned, and the watch should be (relatively) small and elegant. And guess who won the title… not Patek, not Vacheron, not even Rolex or Omega. It was a Seiko 5! While pretty much everyone thinks of Switzerland when we’re talking about high-end watches, we felt that one specific brand was often missing in the discussion… Today that’s changing already and certainly since Grand Seiko has been positioned as a separate brand, this Japanese giant is taken very seriously. Japanese movement are gaining traction in general, and despite being cheap (the word affordable doesn’t even work anymore), Seiko 5 watches are true mechanical, bang-for-the-buck “high-end” pieces. Time to demonstrate this, with the not-even-100-dollar Seiko 5 Military SNK809.

5 years ago

Introducing – Alpina Launches Sporty Yet Elegant Shadow Line

Alpina, best known for its sporty pilot-style watches, is introducing a new range of smoked dials to its Startimer Pilot and Alpiner collections. In total, there are six different models to choose from in the new Shadow line: two Startimer Pilot big date quartz chronographs, three Startimer Pilot Automatic watches and an Automatic Alpiner 4 watch. All six models are already strong sellers for Alpina and the brand is looking to broaden their appeal even further with the introduction of these urban, lifestyle-oriented options.

5 years ago

Introducing – H. Moser & Cie. Presents Two Watches For Bucherer, Including a Surprising Heritage-Pilot Watch (Live Pics)

Bucherer certainly has some impact on brands and is powerful enough to have them creating some purpose-designed watches, exclusive to its stores. These watches are named the “Bucherer Blue Editions” and many watch brands already participated (Tudor, IWC, Blancpain and more). All of them share a unique colour for the dial; blue. While H. Moser already participated in this concept, this time the brand decided to go in a different direction. Not only these 2 new “Moser x Bucherer Blue Editions” aren’t blue (at least for their dials) but Moser also introduces a brand new watch, totally different from the brand’s previous creations; the Heritage – a surprising retro-styled pilot’s watch.

5 years ago

Introducing – Hanhart Primus Black Falcon Limited Edition

When it comes to Hanhart, we all know that it will have something to do with Pilot’s watches. Whether modern, rugged and bold in their execution – like the Primus – or inspired by the classic Flieger chronograph concept – like the Pioneer collection, including some with a cool monopusher movement – the world of aviation and the military inspiration are always present. Today, Hanhart presents a new watch in the modern Primus range, yet focusing on another kind of pilots… Meet the Primus Black Falcon Limited Edition.

5 years ago

Introducing – Oris Big Crown Pointer Date 80th Anniversary Edition 40mm Bronze

Oris launched a significant pilot’s watch back in 1938 and it’s become one of the brand’s iconic pieces. The original Big Crown Pointer Date had an oversized crown to allow easy adjustments for airmen with gloves. It also had the original date complication (patented in 1915 by A. Hammerly) that used a central pointer hand instead of the familiar date window (also patented by A. Hammerly). The watch was an affordable, reliable tool for pilots and has remained in production for 80 years. During the “Quartz Crisis” of the 1980s, the Big Crown Pointer Date helped Oris weather the storm and remain relevant, and is arguably the most important line in their portfolio. The company is celebrating this remarkable achievement with a special 40mm bronze edition with a green dial. This follows the bronze 36mm Big Crown Pointer Date that launched back in March of 2018.

5 years ago

Introducing – The HFLE 2019 Pellikaan Timing Flying Dutchman GMT

HFLE, an abbreviation few of you will probably be familiar with, is an indication quite known to Dutch watch collectors. Each year, this abbreviation is stamped on a watch, produced in limited numbers and selected through a democratic voting on the Netherland’s largest Dutch spoken watch forum: Horlogeforum.nl. After a bit of back-and-forth between the people of the forum and a watchmaker, a proposal is drawn up and scrutineered by the forum members. This process results in quite interesting collaborations, with the Pellikaan Timing Flying Dutchman GMT selected as the 2019 Limited Edition for the forum.

5 years ago

Value Proposition – Mercer Airfoil, an Affordable Pilot Watch with a Swiss Heart (Review)

Mercer Watch Co. is an American microbrand that I’ve been following for a couple of years now. I recently reviewed its Lexington Chronograph and was impressed by the aesthetics and overall quality for the price. Although it has a Seagull ST1901 hand-wound movement from China, Mercer assembles, regulates and tests each one in-house and this particular […]

5 years ago