VIDEO: An everyday all-star – the Tissot Chemin des Tourelles
A little while ago I posited that the Tissot Seastar 1000 Powermatic 80 was the best-value diver of 2018, a bold claim I still back. Today, it’s time to meet the Seastar’s dressy cousin, the Chemin des Tourelles. This watch is powered by the same, quite impressive Powermatic 80 as the Seastar, but on the surface it’s a completely different looking beast. A 42mm case, with a flashy blue starburst dial with an outer level of quite fancy Clous de Paris style finishing, which goes well with the applied numerals. This Tissot hits a lot of familiar, friendly notes, and is a perfect contender for daily wear in a semi-formal context. And with a RRP of just on $1000 it offers a heck of a lot of value. Tissot Chemin des Tourelles Australian pricing Tissot Chemin des Tourelles, steel on leather, $1000
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The blacked-out Carbon capsule collection takes some sporty TAG Heuer staples and remixes them with carbon, in its various forms — there’s the Bamford Monaco, the colour-popping Aquaracer, and this guy, the Carrera Heuer 02 Carbon. Now, the familiar case on this Carrera isn’t all carbon; only the lugs and bezel are made from the lightweight, high-tech composite, more than enough to give the look (and the feel) of the material, while the central case elements are made from more conventional steel (albeit blacked-out). The other nifty thing about this watch is the Heuer 02 movement, which is a thoroughly modern model of a modern integrated chronograph. All told, the carbon additions to this boutique-only edition make for an interesting, and attractive, package. TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 02 Carbon Australian pricing and availability TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 02 Carbon, exclusive to TAG Heuer boutiques, $10,100
A few days ago, we introduced you to the opulent curves of Franck Muller’s Cintrée Curvex Grande Date, a curvaceously cased complicated chronograph with a big date and semi-skeletonised dial. Well, today we’ve got something just as Grande in the date department: the Franck Muller Vanguard Grande Date, with a dial that’s a little more openworked, and a case that’s still plenty curvy. Vanguard by both name and nature, Franck Muller’s Vanguard collection extends on those oh-so-well-rounded proportions of the brand’s famed Cintrée Curvex case design, with bolder styling, larger dimensions and equally as strong curves. The tonneau-shaped case of this particular Vanguard Grande Date measures 44mm across by 53.7mm from top to bottom, with a thickness of 12.8mm, and is available in a variety of materials, from stainless-steel or titanium, to carbon or 18k rose gold (as pictured here). A larger case also means more room for the things that delight our eyes, with the inner architecture of the automatic in-house manufactured movement put on full display through the openworked dial on the front and a sapphire crystal on the back. It is only obscured by large lume-filled hour markers and semi-skeletonised hands, and the outer rings of small…
At its heart, Panerai is about diving. The brand was born under the waves and continues to call the underwater world home. Which is why we found ourselves, several weeks ago, watching — slightly nervously — as a brace of Panerai Submersibles dipped into a giant tank full of rays, sharks and other (less threatening) fish at the Melbourne Aquarium. Thankfully, the watches were attached to the wrists of professional divers, who put them through their paces, leaving us in the position to debate the various merits of three stars in the Submersible line-up: the Submersible Carbotech, the Submersible in 42mm stainless steel, and the Submersible BMG-Tech. And while these three watches are all rock-solid, purpose-built dive watches, they also show off Panerai’s expertise when it comes to materials science. The Carbotech, named for the carbon composite it’s made from, is aggressive-looking, light-weight and downright cool. The 42mm steel model is classic in its construction and design. Finally, the BMG-Tech offers a bit of both: traditional Panerai styling with decidedly non-traditional material science in the form of the amorphous alloy case. For all that the superficial look is the same, these three watches are decidedly different.