This charming watch – explaining the Tudor Heritage Advisor
Editor’s note: I’ve always had a real soft spot for the Tudor Heritage Advisor. Not only is the alarm one of my favourite complications, but this watch — for all that it’s an outlier in the current catalogue — is a hugely important piece in the modern rebirth of Tudor. Read on to find out why … Last year, Tudor unveiled its first manufacture movement to nigh-on internet-breaking levels of fanfare and buzz. So impressive was the MT-5621 that it overshadowed the retro-modern North Flag that showcased it. But it’s a little remarked upon fact that Tudor’s first foray into in-house happened way back in 2011, in the Tudor Heritage Advisor — one of the earliest, and (in my opinion) most underrated of the Geneva-based brand’s popular Heritage collection. Before we talk about why the Advisor holds such a special place in Tudor’s line-up, let’s find out a little about where it came from. First released in 1957, the original Tudor Advisor was a small alarm watch, often in an Oyster-style case, powered by a manually wound A. Schild movement. Few watches capture the charm and anachronism of mechanical timekeeping quite like alarm complications. In these days of Google alerts and iPhone reminders it’s…
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Affordability is a difficult thing to pin down. What is easily affordable for one person may be eternally out of reach for another. So, to avoid making too many assumptions, this article will include five watches that each feature in a different price bracket. These are picks for five of the best affordable dress watches in their respective categories. Under $1000, the Hamilton Ardmore $650 AUD There’s been a rumour abounding for years that Richard Gere wears a Hamilton Ardmore. While the veracity of that claim is hard to pin down, it certainly wouldn’t look out of place on his wrist. While some would classify the Ardmore as a woman’s watch due to its relatively petite dimensions, it has been carried off with aplomb by many a man before, so it seems unisex would be a fairer description. What’s great about this watch is that it does pretty much everything you could ask of a Deco-inspired timepiece made in the modern world. Its quartz movement is ideally hassle-free, while the sub-dial seconds hand is small enough for a tick rather than an automatic sweep not to matter. The dial is clean and has its roots in the early part of the…
It was a long time between drinks. An epic 200 years. And both beverages were served in Britain. We are talking about the invention of the lever escapement, the ‘beating heart’ of the mechanical watch, by British clockmaker Thomas Mudge around 1775. The only successful alternative, the co-axial escapement, was unveiled nearly two centuries later by another Englishman, George Daniels. While others, including Abraham-Louis Breguet in 1787, made minor modifications to the tech, the story of the escapement is almost exclusively a tale of two Brits – or three, if you include Daniels’ apprentice Roger Smith. The co-axial escapement comprises a system of three pallets that separate the locking function from the impulse. This reduces the sliding friction of the lever escapement and, theoretically, the need for lubrication of the pallets, though in practice some is used to reduce impact corrosion. Twenty-five years later, Smith is a celebrated independent watchmaker in his own right. He explains how a movement that is now wholly associated with Omega, is pictured in this Rolex. Also, importantly, how it has come to be in his possession. T+T: What is the story of this watch? How did it come to have a modified escapement? RS:…
Editor’s note: I’ll be honest, there is a part of me that really likes this watch. There is something about a gold-tone full-metal G-Shock that appeals to the same part of my brain that is excited by a solid gold Doxa; it’s a part tickled by totally unnecessary extravagance that is just so fun. Luckily, Cam put together his thoughts on what it’s like to own one of these nuggets, which is well worth a read if you haven’t yet. I have a confession to make: In 2018, I, Cameron Wong, did not purchase a single watch for myself. Not on purpose, it just kind of happened. It’s not like I didn’t have any on my radar either, I just think that I was able to satisfy the itch all year long by having the luxury of being able to review watches for a living. At least that was until Christmas time rolled around, and my trigger finger began to twitch, and the golden tones of the Casio G-Shock Full Metal GMW-B5000GD-9 moved clear into my sights. Now I know I just confessed to not buying a single watch for myself all year, well, that’s still technically true, because this…
Last weekend, Omega treated their faithful VIPs to a night with eyes trained to the stars, and the moon, in their lush boutique at Chadstone, the Fashion Capital. It was to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of humankind touching down on the moon – and the fact that this defining moment in the history of our species had an Omega watch at the centre of the action. And not just to look back on the epic Calibre 321 Speedmaster Professional that has looked down on earth from the moon, but also the watch that is commemorating the anniversary, the equally epic 50th Anniversary Limited Edition. We were honoured to be invited to speak at the event. The story went pretty much as follows. Omega was the first brand to offer Time+Tide a truly special event opportunity in our very early days, way back in 2014. It was ‘A Night of Omega Firsts’ – and it involved the Museum Manager (at the time; he now enjoys the loftier title of Brand Heritage Manager), Mr Petros Protopapas, bringing 12 irreplaceable Omega Watches to Vue de monde in Melbourne to tell their stories. One of those watches was a pre-moon Cal 321 Speedy. While…