Seiko has just taken the covers off a trio of limited edition dive watches with all the ingredients to be a crowd pleaser: a black-on-black colour palette mixed with faux vintage lume and a bright orange minute hand. The look isn’t novel, being vaguely reminiscent of vintage military dive watches – the IWC Porsche Design Ocean 2000 BUND comes to mind – but it’s a good one.
While the series is a limited edition, the total run for each model has not been announced (which Seiko has done several times in the past for other limited editions). The watches will be available March 2018.
The first of the trio is the Prospex Solar Diver (ref. SNE493 P1). It’s rated to 200m, and the case is 43.5mm in diameter. Inside is the cal. V157, a solar-powered movement that will run 10 months on a full charge. It will be priced at €380 (all prices include 19% value-added tax).
Also solar-powered is the Prospex Solar Chrono Diver (ref. SSC673 P1). The case is 43.5mm in diameter and rated to 200m. It’s a 60-minute chronograph, with a 24-indicator (and not a chronograph register) at three o’clock. The price will be €410.
And the best of the lot is the Prospex Diver Automatic “Turtle” (ref. SRPC49 K1). Spec-wise it’s identical to the standard “Turtle”, with a 45mm steel case, 200m depth rating, and the 4R36 movement inside. Retail will be €490.
Update December 29, 107: Retail prices in Euros added. And the watches will be available in March 2018, and not January as stated in an earlier version of the article.
But some stories were released hits with readers. Here’s a round-up of the most popular stories of the year.
1. Portrait: Masahiro Kikuno, Japanese Independent Watchmaker
The up-and-coming 33-year old Masahiro Kikuno crafts his timepieces by hand in a tiny workshop inside his home located in the Japanese city of Matsudo. A one-man operation, he makes almost the entire watch himself with eminently traditional techniques, and even produces his own mokume-gane, a type of pattern Damascus steel.
2. Real World Test: Diving with the Rolex Submariner, Sinn U1, Seiko Turtle & Prospex PADI
Dr Wong Ju Ming, a PADI Master Scuba Diver and Emergency First Response (EFR) Instructor offers his verdict after putting four of watchmaking’s most well-known dive watches – from the Rolex Submariner to Seiko “Turtle” – through their paces in the waters of Bali.
3. Living With the Omega Speedmaster “Speedy Tuesday”
One of the watches that sent the watch community into an acquisitive hysteria earlier this year was the Speedmaster “Speedy Tuesday” limited edition that was sold exclusively on Omega’s website. Not only did it generate tremendous buzz on social media, it showed the potential of e-commerce in a trade honour-bound by tradition. Of course, it also helped that the timepiece is well-executed on many levels.
4. First Look: Hands-On with the Tudor Black Bay Chrono Ref. 79350
Launched at Baselworld this year, the Tudor Black Bay Chrono was polarising, being a blend of vintage elements in a model that never existed in the past, rather than an out-and-out historical remake. But the truth stands tall: the Black Bay Chrono is smart looking, equipped with Breitling’s superb column-wheel chronograph B01 movement, and it’s a bargain.
Dictated in a letter to its retailers around the globe, Patek Philippe put an end to the sale of sealed and doubled-sealed timepieces in a bid to reduce “grey market activities”.
6. Hands-On with the Breitling Superocean Heritage II
Breitling revamped its retro-inspired dive watch at Baselworld 2017, with a little help from its friends. As a result of the collaboration with Tudor (which produced the Black Bay Chrono above), the ETA 2824 in Breitling’s Superocean Héritage II was replaced with Tudor’s MT5612 movement, which is COSC-certified, has a 70-hour power reserve and has been finished to Breitling’s requirements.
7. Living With the Tudor Black Bay Bronze Blue Bucherer Edition
Tudor’s first retailer-exclusive special edition, the Black Bay Bronze Bucherer Blue offers in one package, as SJX puts it, “a proprietary movement, a well-made case in the material du jour, and the bonus of an uncommon colour palette”.
8. The First Swiss Made Tourbillon Wristwatch Ever – It’s An Omega Circa 1947
Now the most expensive Omega ever sold at an auction – it sold for US$1.4m fees included – the prototype tourbillon wristwatch from 1947 was the first Swiss-made tourbillon wristwatch, pre-dating the competition by several decades.
9. Jean-Claude Biver Reveals Zenith Defy Lab with Radical New Oscillator
In an exclusive interview with Jean-Claude Biver, watch division chief at LVMH, we got the scoop on Zenith’s revolutionary new watch unveiled earlier in September. The Defy Lab does away with the balance wheel, hairspring and lever escapement, replacing these with a single enormous oscillator forged from silicon.
Known for creating custom timepieces distinguished by creatively finished and heavily modified movements, Slovakian watchmaker Molnar Fabry have just revealed the one-off Classic Gentleman Blue. The watch not only showcases brand founders’ Michal Molnar’s and Igor Fabry’s virtuosity in engraving and hand-finishing, but also gem-settting – the duo having begun their careers as jewellers.
As with their preceding models, such as the Time Machine Regulator 911 and the White Lotus Split Seconds, at the heart of the Classic Gentleman Blue is an extravagantly decorated stock movement, the ETA Unitas 6497-1.
The Classic Gentleman Blue has a 44mm, handmade pink gold case with a silver dial that has been partially openworked, revealing the skeletonised barrel at six o’clock. Above the barrel sit a pair of blued steel, sword-shaped hands.
Encircling the exposed center wheel is a ring of alternating white diamonds and blue sapphires, while the chapter ring is engraved with the “banknote” technique. A style of intricate and complex engraving used in currency printing, banknote engraving is characterised by finely engraved lines and dots filled with dark blue lacquer to create greater depth.
The caseback reveals the Unitas 6497-1 which has been refined almost beyond recognition. Unusually the main plate of the movement is finished in two colours on each side: blue rhodium coating on the back, while the dial side is white rhodium treated.
The crown and ratchet wheels are skeletonised while the bridges are engraved using the same banknote technique as found on the front and secured with blued screws. Even the spokes of the gears that make up the going train have been embellished with a hand-engraved pattern.
The watch is equipped with swan neck regulator for micrometric adjustment and a titanium balance wheel – designed and made in-house – with 18k pink gold poising screws.
Price and Availability
The Molnar Fabry Classic Gentleman Blue is a one-off and priced at €36,400 without taxes.
When two of the longest serving chief executives in Richemont’s stable of brands (namely Vacheron Constantin and Piaget) were retired earlier this year, speculation intensified that Panerai boss Angelo Bonati would soon step down. Mr Bonati reached retirement age in 2016, and has led Panerai for a remarkable 17 years, being the first and only chief executive of the brand since Richemont bought it in 2000.
Now it is official, according to an internal Richemont announcement earlier this week: come April 1, 2018, Jean-Marc Pontroue will become the next chief executive of Panerai, the watchmaker best known for its military inspired Luminor and Radiomir watches. Credited with having grown sales at Panerai some 20-fold and turning it into a global luxury brand, the 66-year old Mr Bonati will stay on for a few months to help with the transition.
Chief executive of Roger Dubuis since 2012, Mr Pontroue’s move is a major promotion, given that Panerai is a significantly larger company, with annual sales of SFr450m, compared to just SFr80m at Roger Dubuis, according to estimates by Swiss bank Vontobel.
Well regarded by insiders at Richemont, Mr Pontroue will report to Emmanuel Perrin, recently appointed head of distribution for Richemont’s watchmaking brands. However, according to insiders, Mr Perrin, a Richemont lifer whose uncle was once the president of Cartier, will eventually become chief of the watchmaking division, taking over the post vacated by Georges Kern.
While still enjoying strong sales and one of the best margins amongst Richemont watch brands, Panerai has lost some of its allure amongst diehard collectors (the “Paneristi”) in recent years. Consequently Mr Pontroue’s direction for the brand will certainly be one worth keeping an eye on.
Correction December 22, 2017: Mr Pontroué’s last name was misspelled in an earlier version of the article. We regret the error.
Having unveiled the Classique 7147 with a delicately beautiful enamel dial earlier in the year, Breguet has now dropped an enamel dial version of the thinnest automatic tourbillon on the market. Originally introduced in 2013 with a guilloché dial (as the ref. 5377), the Classique Tourbillon Extra-Plat Automatique 5367 checks in at just 7.45mm thick, case and all.
Measuring 42mm in diameter, the Classique Tourbillon Extra-Plat 5367 is available in both platinum and rose gold, in the classic Breguet style with a narrow bezel, straight lugs and reeded caseband.
The only difference lies in the dial, which is now grand feu enamel and rid of its power reserve indicator. It features the same off-centre layout as on the guilloche version – a feature found on many historical excentré Breguet pocket watches – but with Breguet numerals in black lacquer. And the minute track is again inspired by 19th century Breguet pocket watches, with tiny lozenges for the quarters and a mystical symbol every five minutes.
The watch is powered by the cal. 581 that has a tourbillon regulator running at 4Hz. In contrast to the understated dial, the movement is richly decorated – the bridges, barrel and oscillating weight are all hand-engraved.
The identical cal. 581 as seen from the back of the ref. 5377
While the dial is classically styled, the tourbillon is contemporary in construction and materials. The tourbillon cage is made of titanium, with both the balance spring and lever escapement made of silicon. And the barrel mounted on roller bearings instead of a traditional pivot point – helping the movement stay remarkably thin – while still managing an impressive 80-hour power reserve.
Another reason the movement measures just 3mm thick is the peripheral winding system. The narrow, semi-circular platinum rotor is mounted around the edge of the calibre, instead of adding height on top of the movement bridges.
Price and Availability
The Breguet Classique Tourbillon Extra-Plat Automatique 5367 (ref. 5367BR299WU) is expected to be priced slightly lower than the existing model with a guilloche dial, which costs US$149,500 or S$214,800 in pink gold.
Only three of the Patek Philippe ref. 3449 were ever made. And this is one of them.
The ref. 3449 is uncommon enough that it is not especially well known, particularly in comparison to its closest equivalents, the refs. 3448 and 3450. Each of the three ref. 3449s made has been sold at auction in the last two decades (more than once for two examples), consistently achieving well over US$1m – it is a watch a small number of people will pay a large sum of money for.
Beyond its scarcity, the ref. 3449 is intriguing because it represents an aesthetic cul-de-sac for Patek Philippe. It’s a beautiful design that went nowhere. Distinct from other Patek Philippe perpetual calendars with its unusual case, the 3449 was made in 1961, just as production of the earlier ref. 2497 perpetual calendar was ending. Its case is 37mm in diameter, with straight lugs and a thin profile, thanks to the smallish manual-wind cal. 23-300Q movement inside (its contemporaries were powered by wider and thicker automatic movements).
Described by Christie’s in 2014 as “produced [at the] special request of Henri Stern, wishing to test the demand for a large size but very flat perpetual calendar wristwatch”, the ref. 3449 probably met with a lukewarm response; the ref. 3449 pictured here was produced in 1961 and only sold in May 1965. A year after the ref. 3449’s brief tenure, the ref. 3448 was unveiled and went on to enjoy nearly 20 years in the catalogue, becoming the definitive Patek Philippe perpetual calendar for the period.
Despite being exceedingly uncommon, the ref. 3449 has been thoroughly documented. Sequentially numbered on their movements 799000, 799001 and 799002, the three examples of the ref. 3449 all have yellow gold cases and silvered dials.
But intriguingly, and perhaps proving the thesis that they were experimental watches, each of them has a slightly different case. According to Christie’s Patek Philippe 175 catalogue, “no. 791’000 is fitted with a triple-stepped bezel and angular lugs; the second, no. 791’001, with a double-stepped bezel and angular lugs; the third, the present no. 791’002, with triple-stepped bezel and elongated straight lugs, at least 1 mm. longer than those of its predecessors.”
The second of the series, movement number 799001, was sold for almost SFr300,000 in 1989 at The Art of Patek Philippe thematic sale marking the company’s 150th anniversary. The buyer was the Patek Philippe Museum, which has had the watch on display since. And the example with movement 799000 was last sold publicly in 2011 for SFr1.43m at Christie’s in Geneva, and is now owned by an important collector.
And then there is movement number 799002, which is inside the watch pictured here. Having changed hands at auction thrice in the last two decades, this ref. 3449 was sold November 2014 at Christie’s Patek Philippe 175 auction, where it went for SFr1.21m. And not too long ago, the watch was acquired by the current owner, a collector who, to put it mildly, knows what he’s doing.
In the metal the ref. 3449 is instantly identifiable as unique in form. The 37mm case is large for the period, but the size is accentuated by the slimness and style of the case. Its is a classic flying saucer shape – tripled-stepped and downward sloping to a narrow rim, while the snap-on case back is convex. The stacked, sloping sides of the watch mean it sits thinner on the wrist than it looks in the hand.
Though the case shape is faintly reminiscent of a handful of Calatrava models like the refs. 2429 and 3445 as well as the ref. 2551 “Disco Volante”, it’s unusual for a complicated Patek Philippe, maybe even avant-garde for the period. And the manually-wound movement is less convenient than an automatic, which is perhaps why it went to no further.
Notably, this example is engraved on the back with the name of the original owner, George E. Poston, the dates of his birthday and 30th birthday, as well as an abbreviated French phrase that translates as “Today more than yesterday and less than tomorrow”, borrowed from poet Rosemonde Gérard.
A Texas real estate developer, George E. Poston bought the ref. 3449 – for US$5500 at the time – at Linz Brothers, a Dallas jeweller that was the biggest seller of Rolex watches in the United States in the 1950s. Now in his eighties, Mr Poston sold the ref. 3449 in the late 1980s, though he remembered it well and contributed to the Christie’s catalogue when the watch came to market in 2014. He was quoted in the catalogue as saying, “I have an investor’s mentality and a collector’s heart. I love history, French Impressionist paintings, cars, and watches. But if a stock goes up 1000%, I sell.” He still collects Patek Philippe watches today.
Though the watch has changed hands several times since it left the Linz store in 1965, it has remained in crisp condition. On the outside, the shape, finish and edges are correct, while the hallmarks and engraving remain strong. And the inside has been similarly well preserved. The dial is clean and original, with only the faintest of darkening of its silvered finish.
Now a permanent resident in one of the world’s finest watch collections, this ref. 3449 is in good hands.
Watchmakers are rushing to outdo each other in the slimness stakes. Less than a year after Bulgari had introduced the world’s thinnest self-winding watch that checked in at 5.15mm – just a gossamer 0.1mm thinner than Piaget’s previous record holder – Piaget has reclaimed the record with the Altiplano Ultimate Automatic, an offshoot of the world’s thinnest hand-wound watch.
Scheduled to be officially launched at SIHH 2018, Piaget’s latest trumps the completion by just a shade under a full millimetre, which is actually a fifth of the entire height of the watch, and as its name implies, might just be the be-all and end-all of ultra-thin watches.
The first half of the technical solution in that achievement is a familiar one. Like the hand-wound 900P, the cal. 910P in the Ultimate Automatic makes use of the case back to support the movement parts, forming an indivisible unit totalling a thickness of 4.3mm.
The gears and pivots of the movement are mounted directly on the case back, eliminating the need for a main plate as in conventional movements, effectively shaving off an extraneous layer. Consequently there is no movement per se to be measured. It is just one very, very thin watch.
The off-centre dial is positioned on the space between the bridges on the front, and the entire gear train occupies the arc surrounding the dial, so everything from the ratchet wheel to balance wheel is visible. Certain wheels, including the additional transmission wheel held by a pivot in the chapter ring, measure just 0.12mm high.
And as with the 900P, further height is removed by simplifying the barrel. Instead of having a bearing at the top and bottom, the barrel is suspended from a single bearing on one end. The watch still manages a 50-hour power reserve nonetheless.
The second half of the solution is a peripheral winding system, which eliminates the additional height of a conventional rotor. The narrow rotor is mounted around the edge of the movement, incorporating itself around the movement rather than adding to its thickness. To ensure sufficient inertia to fully wind the watch, it is made of 22k gold and is mounted on ball bearings.
Lastly, the dial and hands are slightly recessed below the surrounding bridges. Thus when there’s any excessive pressure on the crystal, causing an ever so slight curvature in the case, the bridges around the dial protect the hands from coming into contact with the crystal.
The watch has a moderately large diameter of 41mm, which compensates for its unnerving slimness, and is available in both 18k pink gold and white gold.
Price and Availability
The Altiplano Ultimate Automatic 910P in white gold (ref. G0A43121) will be priced at S$40,800, while the pink gold (ref. G0A43120) will cost S$39,200.
Not long after Paul Newman’s Rolex Daytona became the most expensive watch ever sold at auction – for US$17.5m if you’re wondering – Phillips auctioneers has announced Daytona Ultimatum, a thematic sale dedicated to the Rolex chronograph.
Conceived as a compact offering of the prime examples of the Daytona, the auction is scheduled for May 12, 2018. While the watches will not come from a one collection, they will be curated by a single expert, just like how noted horological author John Goldberger put together a selection of vintage sports Rolex for Phillips’ Hong Kong sale last year.
The curator’s identity seems to have been the inspiration for the forcefully worded sale title. Phillips declined to reveal his name, but name of the sale ultimately makes it obvious: the Italian collector and expert Pucci Papaleo. He’s best known for the gargantuan book titled, unsurprisingly, ULTIMATE ROLEX DAYTONA, a 7kg tome that costs over US$4000.
According to Phillips’ specialist Arthur Touchot, Daytona Ultimatum will consist of a small number of watches, well under the 50 lots of the recently concluded Heuer-only auction, perhaps “around 30, plus or minus a couple”. According to Mr Touchot, the watches in the sale will be both pristine and complete with paraphernalia like “boxes, tags, papers”. He adds that the condition of the Daytonas in the line-up means that it’s unlikely that any collector will be ever able to buy a similar watch at a similar price in the future, hence the “ultimatum” moniker.
Not the ultimate but still pretty flash
Notably, most of the Daytonas in the sale will be manual-wind models, meaning those powered by the Valjoux 72 that came before 1988, when Rolex unveiled the first automatic Daytona that was powered by the Zenith El Primero movement.
The timing of the sale smartly capitalises on the momentum from the world record for Paul Newman’s watch, but perhaps not in the manner market observers might expect. While watch enthusiasts might have seen enough of the Daytona, the endless publicity in the mainstream media about Paul Newman’s Daytona has broadened the appeal of the Rolex chronograph beyond the traditional watch collector audience.
Even executives at rival auction houses have privately conceded the astounding US$17m price has resulted in a spate of walk-in clients having dug up an old Daytona at home and hoping for a windfall – the rising tide that floats all Daytonas (bless their screw-down crowns and pushers). Though the upcoming sale will be curated by a recognised expert (with the watches probably from known collectors), the likelihood of new faces and new money raising their paddles is high.
Correction December 16, 2017: An earlier version of the article stated that the sale will only include one example of each reference; that is incorrect.
Greubel Forsey teased at a remarkable development at SIHH in January 2017, revealing conventionally sized wristwatch with a 180-day, or half-year, power reserve, titled Mechanical Nano. Little was revealed about the workings of the movement, but it was understood to be miniaturised to a extreme degree and combined with friction-free materials, rendering it exceptionally efficient.
Now Greubel Forsey has given away a bit more, with the announcement of the Nano Foudroyante EWT. The name explains it all: a unbelievably tiny lightning seconds, or foudroyante, mechanism. In fact, the Nano Foudroyante EWT takes up 96% less space than a conventional lightning seconds, according to Greubel Forsey. The miniature mechanism cuts the energy needed to operate the lightning seconds by a factor of 1800.
The first Mechanical Nano prototype on Stephen Forsey’s wrist at SIHH 2017
Beyond the tremendously reduced scale of the mechanism – the disparity in size between the lightning seconds gearing and the balance wheel is visible below – the construction of the foudroyante is novel. It’s essentially a series of tiny gears (including a conical, bevelled gear to translate the lateral gear motion into vertical motion of the lightning hand) connected directly to the escape wheel, bypassing the gear train. The gears have a low moment of inertia, meaning they need very little energy to turn.
While the mini-lightning seconds is displayed in the same manner as a conventional version of the complication – a hand that makes eight steps around a sub-dial every second – the Nano Foudroyante EWT is so tiny the hand has to be magnified 23 times to be visible.
More on the new technology will be revealed in due course, but one of the most interesting aspects of the development is not the mechanism itself, but how such remarkable small parts are produced to the required tolerances.
As Stephen Forsey explained at SIHH 2017, the goal of the Nano Mechanical movement is not a make a remarkably tiny movement for the sake of sheer size, but to free up space and energy for more or better complications.
Introduced just earlier this year, the Joker was a hit at Baselworld 2017 and quickly sold out. Its creator, Russian watchmaker Konstantin Chaykin, has swiftly followed up with a second run in titanium.
The titanium Joker is almost identical to the first version in steel. The dial forms the same silly face, with the time indicated in two eyes, while the tongue forms the moon phase display inside the mouth.
Beyond the material, what makes is different is subtle: the guilloche on the “nose” is slightly more elaborate hobnail motif.
Like the original, it’s powered by an ETA 2824 topped with Chaykin’s in-house time display module. The titanium case is 42mm in diameter and 13.7mm high.
And unsurprisingly, given the success of the original, the Joker in titanium costs more.
Price and availability
The Joker in titanium is limited to 99 pieces, priced at €8880, compared to €6990 for the steel model.
