Category: Pilot Watches

Back to Basics for Bell & Ross with the Vintage BR V1-92 Military

Back at Baselworld 2017, Bell & Ross pleased collectors by launching a new “Vintage” collection, which had quite some arguments: smaller in diameter, with slimmer cases, an overall redesigned shape, some cool details… A winning combination for many B&R lovers. Among the 3 watches presented (3-hand, 3-hand with rotatable bezel and chronograph), the model that probably stroke me most was the simpler HMS version, a no-nonsense utilitarian, small and reasonably priced watch. This Bell & Ross Vintage BR V1-92 today receives its “Military” badges, in a new (and super-cool) version.

7 years ago

Hands-On – Reservoir Watches, with Ultra-Cool Retrograde/Jumping Display

This was one of the cool finds at Baselword 2017. There’s some new kids on the block and they go by the name of Reservoir. Further to the presentation earlier this year, the brand is now launching on the market. Their timepieces provide their own cool, off-beat take on watchmaking, inspired by their fascination for all things mechanical and a nostalgia for the heyday of car culture and old measurement instruments: speedometers, tachometers, fuel, oil, temp, volt gauges, you name it!

7 years ago

Hands-On – Reservoir Watches, with Cool Retrograde/Jumping Display

This was one of the cool finds at Baselword 2017. There’s some new kids on the block and they go by the name of Reservoir. Further to the presentation earlier this year, the brand is now launching on the market. Their timepieces provide their own cool, off-beat take on watchmaking, inspired by their fascination for all things mechanical and a nostalgia for the heyday of car culture and old measurement instruments: speedometers, tachometers, fuel, oil, temp, volt gauges, you name it!

7 years ago

Hands-On – The IWC Pilot’s Watch MARK XVIII Edition “Antoine De Saint Exupéry”

Today, we are going hands on with a special edition of possibly one of the most legendary pilot’s watches of all time, or at the very least, one of the latest versions of it. Officially unveiled a few months ago, the IWC Pilot’s Watch MARK XVIII Edition “Antoine De Saint Exupéry” marks another addition to a long-line of military inspired models. It’s not a new watch as such, but rather part of an update to the existing Antoine De Saint Exupéry line, which includes two other models (a chronograph and a 36mm automatic ladies model). Like the standard Mark XVIII, it’s nicely sized at 40mm and features a third-party movement to keep the price down. Read on for the details and of course, some nice live photos.

7 years ago

Hands-On – Graham Chronofighter Vintage Pulsometer Ltd

The Chronofighter Vintage Collection made its debut in 2016. With this tasteful facelift, the brand’s signature trigger chronograph has been refined, and the case scaled down to 44mm, giving it a relatively subdued look (we said relatively… It is still a very bold watch). It features a redesigned start stop trigger, with a knurled onion crown and a mushroom shaped reset pusher. Graham have now added another model to this collection, further enhancing its vintage ‘flair’ with an attractive doctor’s watch, released in two steel limited editions of 250 pieces each, the Graham Chronofighter Vintage Pulsometer Ltd.

7 years ago

Hands-On – Dutch Brand EZA Watches Introduces a New Pilot Watch, the AirFighter

When you think about the right definition of a pilot watch, you know that the focus will be on resistance, durability, precision and of course, legibility. No need for fancy features and I would even say that the less fanfare you have, the best will be the watch. With this in mind, Dutch brand EZA Watches has conceived a brand new watch that ticks all the boxes mentioned above, the AirFighter. And just like their previous attempt, the Sealander, this new toolish AirFighter is a pretty good value-for-the-money deal.

7 years ago

Oris Launches the Big Crown ProPilot Worldtimer, With a Clever Bezel-Actuated Dual-Time Function

Over the past few years, Oris have wowed us with several practical, innovative timepieces that harness a utilitarian look, feel and features, with competitive prices. Think about the Oris Big Crown ProPilot Altimeter for instance, a highly practical watch with a hard to ignore bang-for-buck attitude, or the 2013 Oris Aquis Depth Gauge, a simple yet clever development. Today, there is a new kid in town, with yet again a cool innovative element (even if its name tends to indicate another type of watch), The Oris Big Crown ProPilot Worldtimer, a very intuitive GMT watch.

7 years ago

Review – Graham Chronofighter Vintage Nose Art Ltd. – Aviation Pinups on your wrist

Being known as a brand far from conventions, Graham has specialized itself in creating aviation-inspired pieces, with quite a bold design. One can’t denied that these watches are “special”, yet not void of a clear coolness. As already having in the collection some vintage- and military-inspired pieces – see here – Graham has decided to add something that is part of fighting aircrafts’ history to the Chronofighter: “Nose Art“. Pinups on the wrist, with the new Graham Chronofighter Vintage Nose Art Ltd… And once again, it’s audacious.

7 years ago

Launching on Kickstarter – The Bold Aviation-Inspired CJR “Commander Series” Watch

Most of the Kickstarter brands that we cover here on Monochrome tend to have an interesting unique story behind them, even though practically every single one of them is a micro-brand with very little traction in the multi-billion-dollar watch industry. CJR watches, which was founded in 2013, has now come out with the newly released “Commander Series”. A watch with a name that matches perfectly in my opinion, as when you look at it, it will command your attention.

7 years ago

Introducing – IWC Pilot’s Watch Mark XVIII Edition “Tribute to Mark XI”

IWC is on the vintage side since quite some months. After the introduction of an entirely new Ingenieur collection, based on the original 1960s style, or a 2017 Da Vinci Collection that is based on a 1980s design, the Schaffhausen-based brand is now operating on its praised Pilot’s Watch, with a new edition that is (sorry for such enthusiasm) simply a killer! Reasonably sized, perfectly legit, historically relevant, toolish… The kind of IWC we love. Here is the IWC Pilot’s Watch Mark XVIII Edition “Tribute to Mark XI”, based on the 1948 RAF navigators watches.

7 years ago