Porsche Design 1919 Chronotimer x Porsche Driving Experience Winter
When it comes to sports chronographs, these used to be purpose-build timepieces. Now-a-days it’s rather a fashion/style statement, than anything else. However several decades ago, chronographs were mainly bought by gentlemen who had enough budget and time to enjoy playing around with fast cars. Competitiveness has always been a characteristic of mankind, especially of the 50% of human beings with more testosteron (also referred to as men.) A chronograph allowed them to measure time, and to compare lap times. And that’s what I didn’t do when I went to the North of Finland with Porsche Design for the Porsche Driving Experience Winter. Here’s a report about having fun in the snow, and on the ice, with pretty much the entire line-up of Porsche cars. I forgot to measure lap times, but when you see this video and the photos below, I’m sure you will understand.
Way back in 2013, Panerai released the PAM 389, a big, 47mm titanium beast with antimagnetic innards and an oh-so-sexy ceramic bezel. This powerful diver is a watch entirely in keeping with Panerai’s core values. Fast forward to 2017 and we’ve got a new and improved version of this Luminor Submersible, with an updated reference number to match — PAM 1389. Functionally and aesthetically not too much has changed, it’s still the same Luminor 1950 case, complete with that iconic crown guard. The bezel is still ceramic, with those excellent recessed interval markers and large lume pip at 12. But a few things have changed. Dial proportions have been given minor modifications — slightly fatter hour markers and a bright blue seconds hand, for example. The major change though is the one beneath the dial. This PAM is packing the latest in-house automatic movement, the P.9010, offering three days of power reserve across two barrels and an hour hand that can be quickly adjusted in one-hour increments. This movement is still safely ensconced behind a soft iron Faraday cage, as indicated by the Antimagnetic text on the dial. These are all incremental modifications that improve the functionality and legibility of this Submersible…
‘Novelty’ is one of the most abused words in the watch industry. Practically, it’s used to describe the steady stream of new models and designs being produced by watchmaking brands. But on top of that, it conveys a sense of newness and — marketing departments fervently hope — excitement. For example, Jaeger-LeCoultre’s 2017 novelties were their Master Control trilogy — they excited people, and rightfully so. And while this grey-dialled Master Ultra Thin Moon is a new release, it’s not really a novelty — it didn’t make headlines at SIHH, and doesn’t showcase any innovations in mechanics or material. But despite this (or perhaps because of it), this serious, ghostly grey Master Ultra Thin Moon is an exceptionally beautiful piece of watchmaking, the sort that JLC excels at. If you’re not familiar with the MUT Moon (as it’s sometimes known), here’ s the two-minute rundown. First introduced in 2012, this perfectly sized 39mm white gold dress watch is a case study on just how well Jaeger-LeCoultre does thin watchmaking. At 9.9mm tall it’s slender, but not exceptionally so, partially due to the complicated nature of the movement. On the other hand, it does feel pleasingly solid on the wrist, avoiding that anxiety-inducing…
Famous for their formidable and over-engineered designs — which range from technically advanced mission timers to hardcore divers made of submarine steel — Sinn are arguably the most renowned tool watch manufacturer in the industry. However, the German company also hosts a suite of dressier pieces that are better suited to a boardroom than a war room. Meeting somewhere in the middle is the Sinn 104. A professionally capable pilot’s watch that is equally at home outside of the cockpit – be it in the office or on the street. And at the beginning of this year, Sinn added to the 104 collection with a revised glossy white dial. The most crucial feature of any pilot’s watch is how easy it is to read – especially in low light conditions – and the 104 is about as legible as they come. With an enamel-like finish, the dial keeps the same markings as the original. Only this time the rectangular hour markers and syringe-style hands are outlined in black, creating a sharp contrast against the white, and increasing the at-a-glance charm of the 104. Within those black outlines is a coating of slightly off-white lume. Although it won’t be winning any #lumebattles,…
The story in a second: The Bell & Ross BR 03-92 Diver transitions smoothly from the sky to the sea. In the time I spent with the Bell & Ross BR 03-92 Diver I came to think of it as an armoured car. Not the conspicuously bulked up and blinged-out vehicle beloved by the A-list, instead this diver is more akin to the subtly strengthened Land Cruiser, one that looks significantly like the regular model, but can handle IEDs and assault rifles. To me that’s what this Bell & Ross is — a super tough take on the brand’s famous instrument watch. The case It’s the case that really earned the armoured car analogy. From a quick glance, the BR 03-92 Diver shares the same 42mm steel case, but look closer and you’ll notice that quite a lot has changed to earn that 300-metre water resistance rating. The sapphire crystal is significantly super-sized, at 2.85mm thick, and the caseback, with its four screws, is a millimetre thicker than regular, non-diving models. And while these modifications would go largely unnoticed, the block crown guards and solid unidirectional bezel give the dive watch game away. The dial Bell & Ross dials have…
The story in a second: When the going gets tough, wear a Black Bay Steel. Did you know that this year the Black Bay family is five years old? Well, it is, and the fundamental design isn’t showing any signs of flagging. Case in point is this watch, which represents the Black Bay stripped back to its essentials. The Tudor Heritage Black Bay Steel. The case There’s not too much to be said about the case of the Black Bay Steel that hasn’t already been said about every other Black Bay. It’s steel, it’s 41mm across and has those high, smooth sides that make the Black Bay such an easy watch to spot from under a cuff — though it must be said the big Tudor rose on the crown is a bit of a giveaway too. The real point of difference here is, as you’d expect, the bezel. The watch takes its name from the radially brushed steel bezel, and while in style and design it’s unchanged from other Black Bay bezels, this simple bezel gives the Black Bay Steel a different look and feel to other members of the Black Bay clan. To me it feels much more…
The story in a second: Maybe it didn’t get to the moon, but this Speedmaster still excites. Earlier this week, we ran a video review of the black-dialled Omega Speedmaster Racing Master Chronometer. Well, we liked it so much we thought we’d go into a little more detail, with the very different feeling grey-dialled version. The case It’s a Speedmaster, so no real surprises with the case. It looks and feels much like every other Speedmaster, except for its contemporary dimensions: it clocks in larger than your regular Speedy, at a not insubstantial 44.25mm wide, but it wears well, and sits comfortably on the wrist, thanks to a very reasonable sub-15mm height. The case is mostly brushed, with the exception of that sinuous polished line that stretches from lug-tip to lug-tip, adding an air of elegance to an otherwise utilitarian case. The dial Speaking of elegance, this dial variation is by far the dandiest. The black we showed you earlier is an undeniable classic, and there’s a white version, but this sunburst grey number is the real winner in my books. And not just because the grey is so mutable in the light. No, what really sets this dial apart…