In defence of obvious watches
I still get lost in the details of the Rolex Submariner that was my first serious watch. The proportions of its features seem divinely inspired, everything ideally sized and placed. Its glossy black dial is startling to look at, somehow bottled essence of the pure void. When I put it on, the oyster bracelet, in that tantalising 904L steel, seems simultaneously both lush jewellery and hardy tool watch. It has been in the ocean, on the ski slopes and in the boardroom. It’s also an obvious watch. You’ve seen it on the wrist of hundreds of people. Some might appreciate its place in watch history. Some may not. It’s at watch meet-ups, private airport lounges, and fakes are at every other holiday market stall. Most laypeople would recognise it before almost any other high-end timepiece. But my message to watch lovers everywhere is simple: don’t be afraid to love obvious watches. Seamasters, Datejusts, Monacos – these, and many others, are classics for a reason. They are aesthetically elevated above lesser watches, many of which fail as mere copies. They have progressed the history of horology, created new categories of watches and remade the landscape of expectation in high-end watchmaking. Obvious…
The post In defence of obvious watches appeared first on Time and Tide Watches.
Editor’s note: It’s not a controversial statement to say that Grand Seiko is the most strident contender brand in the luxury watch market. It has held that title for some time. I’d go as far as to say that it’s been that way pretty much since Time+Tide started in 2014. But the proof is in the timeline of releases, and just how rapidly the brand has evolved, sometimes – when lacking a competitor – in competition with itself. This is something Nick touched on in his most recent review of what he called their best dive watch yet. You have to watch your superlatives with Grand Seiko, as the brand can leave you shamefaced, when it ups the ante shortly after. That said, Cam’s list of 11 of the greatest Grand Seikos ever is still solid nearly two years on. What I like about this story is the substantiation. He includes his rationale for why they matter. Which is likely to be why this remains in our top 10 stories of all time for views. We hope you enjoy this thorough recap of key Grand Seiko models. Just 10 years ago, buying a Grand Seiko meant either having to buy…
Editor’s note: While our daily work at Time+Tide revolves around new models, this is not – in the main – how most of you experience watches. Which is why, from time to time, we publish stories, reviews, reflections and comparisons based purely on the wearer’s perspective. The buyer’s perspective. The enthusiast’s perspective. That’s how we connected with Bruce Duguay. He wrote a review of the Rolex GMT-Master II BLNR that also happens to be one of our most read stories of all time. Here, Bruce compares two watches he rates and appreciates, the Tudor Pelagos and the Rolex Submariner. This month, I had the good fortune to simultaneously have in my possession a Rolex Submariner and a Tudor Pelagos. Of course, a head-to-head comparison was inevitable, but not for all of the obvious reasons. Yes, these are two black dial dive watches and they come from the same parent company, but what I really wanted to explore is the criteria I feel makes the Tudor Pelagos so compelling from both the on-the-wrist and consumer viewpoints. This might be a bold statement, but in early 2020, and in my opinion, the Tudor Pelagos is a better dive watch than the Rolex Submariner. Hear…
The story of the Portugieser begins with two businessmen from, you guessed it, Portugal. They went to IWC asking for a watch as accurate as a marine chronometer but could be worn on the wrist, something that hadn’t been done before by the brand. The only way the Schaffhausen-based manufacturer could meet the brief was to house a pocket watch movement in a wristwatch case, thus giving birth to the oversized Portugieser we know today. The original Portugieser watch was the ref. 325, a 41.5mm wristwatch with a subsidiary second dial, bold Arabic numerals to mark the hours, and powered by the most accurate pocket watch movements that IWC made. This satisfied the exacting demands of the first two Portugieser customers, and began the story of one of the strongest, and most durable, watch designs of all time. This year we are seeing an extension to this important collection, including the new IWC Portugieser Automatic 40, one of the closest renditions of the original watch that has been produced by the brand. It is a slight departure from the time-only Portugieser watches that have been made in recent years, with the case size dropped to 40.4mm. This is a decision…
