Hands-on – Blancpain Villeret Quantieme Perpetuel 6656 – A Classic among Classics, Modernised
A classic among classics, the Le Brassus-based manufacture revisits its perpetual calendar complication with moon phases in 2018, in a larger 40mm case size and a choice of two metals: 18k red gold and stainless steel. With subtle design tweaks on the dial and a secured movement, the new Villeret Quantième Perpétuel 6656 models are presented in a more contemporary case size and in a more ‘democratic’ choice of steel… Is Blancpain on the hunt for younger customers?
Few colours have the symbolic weight of black. It’s meaningful in pretty much every culture. It’s associated — naturally enough — with darkness, mourning and solemnity, and with endings and beginnings. It’s also a colour of power and authority. All these associations and emotions are tied up in Moser’s latest conceptual piece, the Endeavour Perpetual Moon Concept Vantablack. Before we get to the greater meaning of this watch, let’s talk about the purely physical: steel case, 42mm wide, in the characteristically scalloped Endeavour case. A broad exhibition caseback shows off the HMC 801, manually wound, equipped with Moser’s interchangeable escapement and good for seven days of wind as shown on the indicator on the caseback. The strap is black alligator. All this has been seen before. What hasn’t been seen is the dial. Black, and stunning in its absence. Four hands sit upon a void of nothing. Hours, minutes and seconds marking time against an index-less dial. The stubby fourth hand serves as a day/night indicator, which you might think is redundant on a single time zone watch. But this little hand serves a purpose — accurately setting the phase of the moon. A moon that shows its face at…
Editor’s note: The watch industry is, in general, pretty big on segmentation. According to them, we should be wearing something different for every different activity in our lives. But that way madness lies. I’m a fan of watches that fit a range of purposes, and ranges don’t come much wider than sports AND luxury. So, in that spirit, here are five of the best … Sports luxury is one of those ephemeral subgenres in watchland that hides a multitude of sins. It’s easy for a watch maker to label any oversized solid-gold diver as sports luxe, but the reality is that most of these watches will never see any actual sports time. Frankly, that’s not good enough. So we found a select handful of timepieces that you could wear with ease on the court or in the boardroom. Patek Philippe Aquanaut I was never really on team Aquanaut, but then I caught up with David and his ‘one watch’ Patek Philippe, and I just got it. Like the Rolex, the Aquanaut has the winning combo of rubber strap and slender case. But beyond that there’s a dazzling mix of finishings, an interesting dial and top-notch movement. Beautiful but not delicate.…
Editor’s note: For a little under two centuries, Ulysse Nardin have been making marine chronometers fit for the captains and commanders of the ocean. In recent years, however, with watches like their Freak and Executive Skeleton collections, they’ve quickly propelled themselves to the forefront of watchmaking — being the first to use the innovative material silicon in their movements. The Marine Chronometer Torpilleur combines the best of both those worlds, so without further ado … Story in a second The Marine Chronometer Torpilleur shows a new, focused and driven face of Ulysse Nardin. I’m going to start this review talking not about mechanical watches, but naval warfare. In the late 19th and early 20th century, naval dominance was all about massive floating fortresses, with thick plate armour and a massed battery of cannons. These ships, which culminated in the dreadnought class of battleships, were the undisputed masters of the seas. To counter these ungainly behemoths, the Torpilleur, or torpedo boat, was developed. Streamlined, fast and modern, the Torpilleurs were armed with the latest technology — the self-propelled torpedo. These low-cost boats were intended as battleship-killers and presented a real threat to the dominance of the big ships. Now, do you really…
September was very much a mix of cars and watches, which understandably go hand in hand. The strongest commonality between the two hobbies? The collectors — and their unwavering passion. To kick off September, I made my way down to the German Auto Show 2018, put on by the Volkswagen Club of Victoria. I know enough ‘car people’ to expect to see some nice watches, and this event was no exception. A piece that jumped out amongst the vintage Porsches and VWs was a 2018 Rolex GMT-Master II in two-tone Oystersteel and Everose gold (reference 126711CHNR). This piece was an instant favourite of mine, back when I saw it in Basel earlier this year. The warm rose gold works incredibly well with the steel, and it’s the kind of watch that photos cannot do justice — you need to see it in person. Later in the month, I found myself getting stuck in to another car event, which also delivered some interesting timepieces. I bumped into Daniel, who was sporting his prized vintage Omega Speedmaster Mark II Racing Dial. Being a car guy, Dan is naturally drawn to vintage chronographs, and the colourful racing dial on this Speedy was the icing on the…