Many of those who knew Derek Pratt (1938-2009) compare his work favourably with that of his contemporary George Daniels, well known as the inventor of the Co-Axial Escapement and maker of the US$4.3m Space Travellers watch, but Derek’s contribution to horology is almost unknown.

Derek’s masterpiece was undoubtedly his Double-Wheel Remontoir Tourbillon pocket watch (though he also participated in two exciting wristwatch projects, which are now reaching fruition and are discussed further down).

The watch was entered in the Prix Abraham-Louis Breguet, a 1997 contest sponsored by the Breguet foundation to mark the 250th anniversary of A.-L. Breguet’s birth. Arguably, as Derek’s tourbillon watch perfected and enhanced two of Breguet’s inventions, the double wheel escapement and the tourbillon, it should have won (Carole Forestier took the prize instead with her concept that eventually became the Ulysse Nardin Freak).

Continuing the Breguet legacy 

In a mechanical watch movement, it is the escapement that ultimately transfers the energy of the mainspring to the balance.

The classic Swiss lever escapement has given years of service in many millions of mechanical watches but, in engineering terms, it is rather unsatisfactory. The action between escape wheel teeth and the pallets is like a chisel being forced along a wedge. There is friction and it requires lubrication. When lubricating a pivot the oil remains in the pivot hole, but on the escapement pallets it is repeatedly rubbed away. This is the main reason watches require regular servicing. Moreover the power reaching the escapement may vary during the running period as the mainspring winds down.

Derek’s most important watches were made with the objective of improving the efficiency of the watch escapement and providing a constant impulse to the balance. Use of a tourbillon enhanced the appeal, and the performance, of the pocket watches, since they were almost always vertical, either in the pocket or in the hand.

The Double-Wheel Remontoir Tourbillon

The Derek Pratt Double-Wheel Remontoir Tourbillon features a hand-cut, engine-turned dial divided into regions with different patterns, with two-fan shaped displays on the top half of the dial. The sector on the left shows the power reserve and that on the right, the temperature in Breguet style.

The twin-barrelled tourbillon movement shows Maltese cross stop-work and, below the right-hand barrel, the cone for the power reserve. As the watch runs, this conical nut moves along a thread and a lever interacting with its surface gives the indication. The cone repositions on rewinding.

Detail of the movement showing the double-wheel remontoir

A closer look at the tourbillon carriage, taken through the glass protecting the movement, shows the double wheel remontoir. In a conventional tourbillon the third wheel of the train rotates the tourbillon carriage, which is centred on a fixed fourth wheel whose teeth engage the escape wheel pinon causing it to rotate as the carriage turns.

In the double wheel escapement the twin escape wheels must turn opposite directions. They take it in turns to drive the balance back and forth. Daniels achieved this with separate trains, making his solar-sidereal Space Traveller a logical derivative of the construction.

Derek’s breakthrough was to realise that, whilst the usual outward facing teeth of a fixed fourth wheel would turn the escape wheel one way, additional inward facing teeth would turn it the other. The escape wheel on the right turns clockwise whilst that on the left turns anticlockwise.

Note that each escape wheel carries a small, coiled spring, similar to a balance spring. As one delivers impulse the other is rewound. This is the part of the remontoir mechanism, which provides a constant force to the escapement.

The UJS years

Derek’s most widely available work bears the name Urban Jürgensen & Sønner (UJS). UJS was an 18th century Danish-Swiss company that slowly faded in the early 20th century and was acquired by his friend, watchmaker and entrepeneur Peter Baumberger, who first bought the name in 1979 and then the whole company in 1985.

Such faded brands were often referred to as “shoebox companies” in industry parlance, nothing more than a name and a box of bits. In this case the “box” included some 90 historic UJS pocket watch movements. Peter’s plan was, with most of the work being done by Derek, to add complications and produce high-end pocket watches for wealthy collectors.

Based on an early UJS movement, the pocket watch above features a perpetual calendar, minute repeater, moon phase, and split second chronograph. Only the minute repeater was part of the original movement, the other complications were added by Derek.

Above, another 19th century minute repeating UJS ébauche was provided with a perpetual calendar, moon phase and equation of time; the latter shows the difference between solar time and mean time as it varies through the year.

Note that this watch is in a hunter case with a hinged lid and the crown at three o’clock. The case was designed to be held in the left hand with the crown towards the fingers, making it easy to open the case to see the time when riding a horse while chasing foxes with dogs, an activity now illegal in the United Kingdom.

The under-dial view of the same watch, above, shows the high level of finish, in a view the owner never sees, illustrating the devotion to craftsmanship. The moons are gold, as are the stars. The kidney-shaped cam above the moon display is for the equation of time. The notched wheel opposite the moon disc programs the 48 months in the leap year cycle.

Derek showed a remarkable range of skills with series of oval, flying tourbillon watches. He made the entire watch, including the cases, dials and convex oval glass; the latter requiring the purchase of a small furnace and lots of practice.

The work was done to the highest standard and, like George Daniels, Derek again made a feature of the individually crafted, engine turned, solid silver dials.

In the movement view of the oval watch, below, the cone-based mechanism of the power reserve indication can be seen to the lower right of the mainspring barrel, opposite the winding arbor.

The oval pocket watch with tourbillon and detent escapement made in 1991 for Urban Jurgensen

Engine turning is an extraordinarily demanding skill. Each line on the dial is cut with a single stroke on a manually operated machine that has to be readjusted after each stroke. Any lapse in concentration, at any of the hundreds of steps need to make a dial, means scrapping the work and starting again.

For volume production, similar work is done on a steel blank to produce a stamp that is then used to produce dials en masse, but stamped dials can never match individually cut dials. It’s rather like comparing a print with an original painting.

One of the entirely mechanical, hand operated, engine turning machines used by Derek

Derek using the engine-turning machine to decorate a wristwatch dial. The cutting tool is pressed against the dial, which is moved up and down by turning a wheel.

The wristwatch dial above looks perfect but was never used. Detailed examination shows minor flaws, circled below.

Each pattern is completed separately. Areas can be delineated by a groove (along the top edges of the power reserve display), knurling (top right corner), or inserting a separate piece, as with the crosshatched power reserve scale. Some makers assemble dials using separate pieces for each pattern, with the pieces joined on the rear.

From 1990 the newly rejuvenated UJS produced some limited edition wristwatches based on modern Frederic Piguet movements with added complications, namely a perpetual calendar with moon phase (the Ref. 2) – 122 were cased in gold and 53 in platinum – as well as a model with an additional power reserve (the Ref. 3). At this stage Derek decided to teach Peter how to do the engine turning.

Peter was also keen to produce a unique wristwatch with a detent escapement similar to those found in marine chronometers. This posed an enormous technical challenge. The detent only impulses the balance in one direction and the return swing is driven by the balance spring. This operates fine with a heavy balance in a relatively stable environment, but with a lightweight balance swinging about on someone’s wrist, it was an enormous technical challenge.

Derek was able to produce a successful prototype but by 2008 he was very ill with a recurrence of prostate cancer and he died the following year. Peter then sold UJS to Dr Helmut Crott, founder of the eponymous German auction house, but was himself to die in 2010.

After perfecting the detent escapement with the help of Kari Voutilainen, Dr Crott sold UJS to former Nokia executive Søren Petersen in 2014, returning the company to Danish hands, though it is still based on Switzerland.

Independent Watchmaking

But there is much more to say about Derek Pratt. His commercial work, described above, only served to put food on the table while he indulged his hobby: designing and making unique watches and clocks from the ground-up; starting, like a chef, with the raw ingredients. He did that at his workshop, which occupied two floors of his spacious home on a hillside in Balm bei Günsberg, about an hour’s west of Zurich.

A young Derek Pratt is shown above on the 1914 motorcycle he used to travel to work in London in the 1960s. Old things were cheap then; collectors had yet to appreciate them.

Although warm and friendly and very ready to give help and advice, especially to students, Derek could be very bloody-minded.

Born in England in 1938, after a childhood making model aircraft and learning to use a lathe, which he financed by delivering newspapers, he was one of the most promising students on the course he started at the National College of Horology in 1956, but he never graduated.

The original prospectus said that students would finish and assemble a pocket watch in their final year, but, as the British watch industry was waning, the project was suddenly changed. Derek left immediately. He felt betrayed.

Soon after, when the course collapsed, the tutor, Andrew Fell, took Derek on in his micro-engineering firm and sent him to Switzerland to make the tiny, 25-micron soldering nozzles then needed in the fast developing field of micro-electronics. Derek also helped to develop the mechanics for a black box flight recorder.

It was in Switzerland in 1972 that he decided to go it alone as a watchmaker, and soon earned a reputation for being able to handle difficult watch and clock restoration projects – this was how he met Peter Baumberger, who was then an enthusiastic collector.

With the mechanical watch industry in decline due to the advent of quartz, Derek was able to obtain an extraordinary array of classic, high precision, mechanical watchmaking machines for next to nothing, many at their scrap value. There seemed to be unnecessary duplication of machines in his workshop, but it was actually very efficient, as each machine could be optimised for a particular type of job.

He could then start making watches. Notwithstanding all his equipment, much of the work was done by hand with a piercing saw (essentially a miniature hacksaw) and a small hand-operated lathe.

Derek worked from rough sketches, almost back-of-an-envelope stuff. Engineering drawings, he believed, are to show other people what to do. They aren’t needed when making unique pieces to a design, which is largely in your head.

Derek did have one special piece of luck. Soon after leaving the college, he had formed an engineering company with a like-minded childhood friend, Derek Goldsmith. Back then, the English were just being introduced to the concept of taking frequent showers rather than a weekly bath, but they were nervous about correctly adjusting the flow of hot and cold water.

The two friends had started working on a thermostatic mixer valve when Derek left for Switzerland. The valve, later developed and sold as the Aqualisa, was to make the friend a millionaire who, to his credit, became a financial supporter of Derek’s projects and a buyer of his most important watches, most notably the Double-wheel Remontoir Tourbillon described at the beginning of this article. That was followed by the single-wheel remontoir, later to be used in a wristwatch.

The remontoir carriage of a Pratt single-wheel tourbillon pocket watch.

In a conventional tourbillon, the escape wheel is driven by the rotation of the tourbillon carriage. In the Pratt remontoir tourbillons there is a discontinuity between the escape wheel and its pinion.

The escape wheel is not fixed to its arbor (or shaft) but rotates freely on it. Below it, fixed to the arbor, is a remontoir wheel. It resembles an escape wheel but has fewer teeth. The remontoir wheel is connected to escape wheel by a spiral spring. This is wound and released every second producing a constant force.

The remontoir with the balance removed.

Looking more closely, with the balance removed, it is easier to see how it operates. It is a “side-lever” escapement with the lever on the right. We can see its pallets engaging the teeth of the escape wheel. Below the escape wheel is the tri-toothed remontoir wheel.

Slightly out of focus on the left we see one of the pair of pallets, which lock and release the constant force mechanism. The arm holding these pallets is linked to the two-pronged fork, which embraces a triangle with curved faces. This is a special shape, a Reuleaux triangle, which has a constant diameter. It rotates with the escape wheel when locking and releasing the remontoir.

When the tourbillon carriage moves by its 6° step each second, the remontoir unlocks, the spring is wound, and the remontoir locks on the next tooth. The turning of the escape wheel is driven by the spring, with the same power delivered every second – a constant-force escapement.

Derek’s fascination with the Reuleaux triangle had lead him to buy two of the Wankel rotary-engined sports cars Mazda produced in the 1970s. He kept one in England and the other in Switzerland.

Derek and Daniels

George Daniels was twelve years older than Derek, and Daniels’ early work illustrated that there was a demand for unique pieces. Derek soon showed an equivalent level of skill and creativity.

For many years they had long telephone conversations each Sunday morning exchanging ideas, with George in the Isle of Man and Derek on his Swiss hillside. Sketches were exchanged by fax; neither had much truck with computers or email, even when they became available.

Derek’s working model of the double-wheel remontoir escapement was made of cardboard and driven by elastic bands – no computer required.

Although George could never bring himself to acknowledge his contribution, Derek made many of the components for George’s watches, especially the difficult dual escape wheel at the heart of the Co-Axial escapement.

Derek’s contacts and language skills played an important role in the eventual adoption of the escapement by Omega. Other companies had been approached but with the future of the mechanical watch in doubt, there was little enthusiasm for anything new.

Daniels, a vintage car enthusiast (left) and Pratt (right) with Grahame Brooks, UK Sales Director of Audemars Piguet, in 1986, on the way to visit its factory in Switzerland in Daniels’s famous 1928 “Blower Bentley” No. YU3250 to try to interest AP in adopting the Co-Axial escapement.

Replicating John Harrison’s H4

From childhood, Derek loved to visit the National Maritime Museum at Greenwich. He was fascinated by John Harrison’s sea clocks, including the Longitude Prize-winning H4, which in those days was on display and running. He was determined that one day he would make a copy.

This was no easy task as information was only available from the limited published sources. The museum has always refused to cooperate with replica makers and will not allow close examination of the H4. For many years it was claimed that this was on security grounds as the H4 belonged to the Admiralty.

Harrison had been careful, in the design of H4, to hide much of the detail of the mechanism. In attempting a reproduction a great deal of patient research and trial an error was required. Eventually considerable progress was made on the movement and other craftsmen were recruited to make the extraordinarily massive silver case, the large vitreous enamel dial, and to do the magnificent engraving.

Unfortunately, with Derek’s deteriorating health, it became obvious that he could never complete the project. In his last months he consulted very closely with staff from the London chronometer maker Charles Frodsham and it was they who finished the project in 2014, in time for the Pratt-Frodsham H4 to join a world tour of museums for the 300th anniversary of the Longitude Act.

The H4 is a very large watch.

The case of an ordinary pocket watch is shown sitting in the outer case of the Pratt-Frodsham H4.

The movement of the Pratt-Frodsham H4. The edge of the watch plate is engraved “Derek Pratt A.D. 2004 ~ Chas. Frodsham & Co A.D. 2014”.

The short film, A Detailed Study of H4, tells the story with fascinating technical details of the special skills and processes involved in making the replica. (It’s available from BD Videos and producer Barbara Darby donates video proceeds to prostate cancer research.)

Following Derek Pratt’s death, a memorial seminar and exhibition was held at the headquarters of the British Horological Institute (BHI) in 2009. The proceedings, along with copies of the many articles written by Derek, workshop notes and other material, were published by the BHI as a book Derek Pratt, Watchmaker, which I put together and is available from the BHI.

The Legacy

It was at Derek’s suggestion that Frodsham decided to incorporate the Daniels double impulse chronometer escapement in its new wristwatch, built entirely in-house.

The movement of the recently revealed Frodsham Double Impulse Chronometer Wristwatch with the Daniels chronometer escapement.

The Frodsham watch has twin barrels driving separate trains, with hardened gold wheels, curving around each half of the movement to allow for a large balance beating at 3Hz or 21,600bph.

Note that the barrels are wound in opposite directions so that the twin escape wheels, partly hidden under the balance, also turn in opposite directions and can take it in turns to impulse the balance, first in one direction and then in the other. They interact directly with the balance as in a marine chronometer. This is almost frictionless and requires no lubrication.

A wristwatch featuring Derek’s constant force escapement has been developed by a pair of American watchmakers, Stewart Lesemann and Ron DeCorte, under the Derek Pratt trademark.

The movement of the Derek Pratt watch developed by Ron DeCorte from a prototype planned by Derek. The twin motor barrels provide power to the constant-force escapement remontoir. They could be called flying or floating barrels as they lack bridges. Credit Guy Lucas de Peslouan

Credit Guy Lucas de Peslouan

Above, a closer look at the escapement shows the 15-tooth escape wheel co-axial with a three-tooth remontoir wheel below it. The gear train drives the remontoir wheel whilst the escape wheel is fixed to a collar, which rotates freely on the remontoir arbor. A spiral spring connects the two wheels.

When the remontoir wheel turns, it tensions the spring and the resulting torque drives the escape wheel. To the right of these wheels we can see a pair of pallets fitted to a T-shaped lever. The base of the “T” forms a two-pronged fork. This embraces a triangular jewel (as in the first Derek Pratt remontoir tourbillon it’s a Reuleaux triangle), which is fitted to the collar on which the escape wheel is mounted.

As the escape wheel turns, this triangular jewel alternatively locks and releases the remontoir. When it locks the spiral spring drives the escape wheel. Every second, after five beats of the 2.5Hz balance, the remontoir unlocks, the spring winds, the remontoir is locked and the cycle continues, with an equal amount of energy delivered to the escape wheel every second.

The memory of Derek Pratt the man will die with those fortunate enough to have known him, but as with all creatives, his legacy is the work he left behind. In addition to his watches, Derek made a handful of rather special clocks with highly imaginative mechanisms, but as a watchmaker, he was among the finest of his generation.

The help of Richard Stenning at Charles Frodsham & Co, Grahame Brooks, and Ron DeCorte in preparing this article is gratefully acknowledged.

Tim Treffry is of a generation that was given a Timex at 14, and a better watch at 21, which was supposed to last for life. Tim first became aware of the watch industry in 1989 when, well into middle age, he became editor of The Horological Journal, the periodical published by the British Horological Institute. At that time the Swiss industry was still suffering the Quartz Crisis but some were beginning to hope that perhaps the mechanical watch, an obsolete technology, had a future. It seems that it did. He became a freelance writer in 2006 and is mainly interested in technology – what makes it tick?

With a small number of unchanging sports watch models, with a good number that are best-sellers or even iconic, Rolex just needs to make relatively modest upgrades for a watch to be a huge hit. The new GMT-Master II “Pepsi” launched at Baselworld is one such watch.

Design-wise it’s not a new idea, combining the classic red and blue GMT bezel with a Jubilee bracelet, an option that was available once upon a time, many generations of GMT-Masters ago. But as is the case with many a Rolex, while the look stays constant, the intrinsic qualities of the watch are thoroughly modern.

Function-wise it remains exactly the same, with the hands able to track two time zones, and with the bezel, a third. The bezel’s colour comes from its ceramic insert – the two colours on a single piece being a Rolex patent – which has platinum-plated engraved markings, exactly the same bezel as found on the white gold GMT-Master “Pepsi”.

The new Jubilee bracelet – and it is the first time Rolex has given the Jubilee bracelet the extendable Oysterclasp – gives the watch a different look, one that is almost retro.

Physically the Jubilee bracelet feels softer, with the smaller links making it more pliable than the Oyster bracelet, though there is not doubt the bracelet is as solid as it can be. The links are solid (but whether they have wear-resistant ceramic insides found in other Rolex bracelets is unknown), which means the bracelet won’t stretch like earlier generations of Jubilee bracelets.

More important than the aesthetic upgrades is the mechanical one, with the watch having the cal. 3285 movement. It’s a latest generation movement, taking the place of the cal. 3186 found in all GMT-Masters till now.

The cal. 3285 boasts all the features common to the latest generation calibres, all of which are eminently practical improvements: namely a three-day power reserve (compared to 50 hours for the cal. 3186), as well as a patented wheel train and Chronergy escapement designed for maximum efficiency.

The presence of the latest generation movement inside the GMT-Master II is indicated by a subtle symbol introduced with the 2018 releases. A tiny coronet at six o’clock, sitting in-between “Swiss” and “Made” distinguishes models with the latest movements from similar models with the previous generation of movements. So while the new GMT-Master II has the coronet at six, the other steel GMT-Master watches do not.

And the answers to final, obvious question: the Jubilee and Oyster bracelets are not interchangeable between GMT-Master models. The unspoken but logical rationale for that is that Rolex does not want the steel GMT-Master “Pepsi” being converted into a watch that looks like the white gold “Pepsi”, which is available only with an Oyster bracelet.

And on that point, the white gold “Pepsi” with a black dial (ref. 116719 BLRO-0001), has been discontinued and replaced with one having a dark blue dial (ref. 116719 BLRO-0002), clearly distinguishing it from the new steel model.

Price and availability 

Available starting May 2018, the GMT-Master II (ref. 126710 BLRO) is priced at US$9250 or SFr8800.

Based in Ukraine, Sergey Teterin is an artist on a microscopic scale. Using a fine-tipped burin, he sculpts minuscule bits of solid gold into sculptures measuring a fraction of a millimetre in size.

Requiring two to three weeks apiece to complete, the 36-year-old’s sculptures are small enough to fit in the head of a needle. Viewed from arm’s length, on the other hand, they are practically invisible.

A micro miniature sans magnification sitting on ruled paper

Rich men can now enter heaven with ease

While his work is now mainly sculptural, having done several exhibitions in his native land, Mr Teterin has experimented with micro miniatures as hour markers on a Soviet-era wristwatch. The sportsmen figures are painted on disc-shaped markers, but their equipment are micro miniature sculptures.

His work is available direct from him via Facebook.

Update October 15, 2019: Edited to remove out-of-date prices.

Baselworld, which touts itself as the world’s largest watch and jewellery fair, started 2018 as a bit of a punching bag. Already the fair was shortened by two days, with 2017 having seen less exhibitors and visitors.

Breitling chief executive Georges Kern singled out out the fair’s timing as being unhelpful for delivering new models, during a February interview (which is why most of its new launches were done in January leaving no surprise for the fair).

And days before Baselworld opened, Wei Koh, founder of eminent watch magazine Revolution, listed the myriad weaknesses of the event, from the city’s insufficient infrastructure to price gouging by surrounding restaurants. His criticisms were widely applauded by the industry.

Photo credit Baselworld

But it appears Baselworld will survive. Rolex made it a point to remind retailers that it would continue to show at Baselworld, as did Patek Philippe. But improvements will surely be made (might it be held earlier in the year?), albeit at the modest, 18,000 beats per hour pace that the Swiss watch industry operates on.

Photo credit Baselworld

Though the fair’s future might have raised some eyebrows, not many new watches did. Instead the majority of the new launches were solid, sometimes appealing, variations or upgrades of existing products – line “extensions” in industry parlance. Similar transpired at SIHH in January, but it felt more pronounced at Baselworld. But while the novelty factor was flat, watch retailers will have a meaty year and a long list of watches to order.

The most important watches came from the brands that between them account for probably three-quarters of the business done at the fair.

Unlike last year, when Rolex introduced the “Bao Dai-lite” Cellini Moonphase, a bold new launch by Rolex standards, 2018 was all about the GMT-Master II (reputedly a favourite model of its chief executive Jean-Frederic Dufour). Four new versions of the GMT-Master II were added, while sister brand Tudor rolled out a GMT for a smaller budget that is striking value for money. Equally good value, but of greater appeal to vintage-minded enthusiasts, is the downsized Black Bay Fifty-Eight Diver.

The Black Bay Fifty-Eight

And Rolex revived the Daytona “Rainbow”, a strikingly flamboyant watch that is a watch many desire but few will actually be able to obtain. Amongst a certain class of collectors it was the hottest watch of the fair. But despite all the buzz over everything else, the crucial Rolex launches are the Datejust 36 and 31, which give two all-time bestsellers the latest generation Rolex movements.

“Rainbow” sapphires on the bezel and dial

Diagonally across from Rolex, Patek Philippe did pretty much the same, rolling out bona fide bestsellers that are derived from existing models. The Aquanaut Chronograph ref. 5968A combines a lowish price and a bit of orange, which will probably give it the longest waiting list. That will be followed by the Nautilus Perpetual Calendar ref. 5740/1G.

The ref. 5270P with “salmon” dial was another crowd favourite, surprisingly often being the choice pick amongst those who also favour the Rolex Daytona “Rainbow”, which perhaps demonstrates the influence of international watch auctions in taste. It replaces all other versions of the ref. 5270 on strap, which rids Patek Philippe of fairly slow selling models.

Ref. 5270P

Less widely publicised but also notable is the fact that Patek Philippe introduced its widest ever Rare Handcrafts line-up in 2018, going all out with Dome Clocks, wristwatches and pocket watches. The motifs and decor for the Rare Handcrafts. however, varied from the fine and sophisticated to the peculiar.

Over at the Swatch Group, Breguet restyled the Marine, one of its bestsellers. The redesigned definitely raised some eyebrows, given how far it moves from Breguet’s signature look, heading towards a 1970s angular, integrated lug case instead.

Less controversial were the Longines historical remakes of the Skin Diver and a British military watch. But in one of Baselworld’s mysteries, neither officially launched, despite being widely shown.

Omega’s big launch was the new Seamaster Diver 300m, a new version of an old watch, best known as the timepiece Pierce Brosnan wore during his stint as James Bond in the 1990s. The 007 connection made the blue Seamaster Diver 300m one of the hits of the decade, and perhaps Daniel Craig might do the same for the current model, which has been upgraded inside and out with features like a ceramic dial and Master Co-Axial movement.

The Speedmaster had a quiet year, with just the Dark Side Of The Moon Apollo 8 (which fuses racing elements from Michael Schumacher Speedmasters, the Moon Watch, and the Moon itself) making its debut. That’s probably because 2019 will be the 50th anniversary of the Moon landing, the event that made the Speedmaster a legendary wristwatch as well as a franchise that gives and gives, and gives.

The Lemania-powered Apollo 8

While the Speedmaster Apollo 8 successfully blended various elements, there were also some failures, like the Ferdinand Berthoud FB1R tourbillon with a heavily aged bronze case, in a limited edition of five no less.

Seiko, long operating on its own terms in a country beset by deflation, is now growing its high-end watch distribution overseas – and starting to behave like a Swiss luxury watchmaker. Besides hiking of retail prices and reductions in discounting, that means regularly revisiting successful products (like vintage diver remakes), and rolling out variants of popular watches, like the Credor Eichi II.

Nevertheless Seiko is still endearing and a nerd favourite, since it still puts out watches like the Grand Seiko V.F.A., a US$50,000, no-expense-spared timekeeper that’s regulated to just -1 to +3 seconds a day.

Speaking of nerds, TAG Heuer launched the Carrera “Tête de Vipère” Chronograph Tourbillon Chronometer, which is the brand’s bare-bones and low-cost (as such things go) chronograph with tourbillon, but upgraded with a nerd-approved observatory testing certificate from the Besançon Observatory, explaining the “viper’s head” hallmark on the movement. A curious combination but appealing in its own way, though a cynic might think it an attempt to perk up interest in a slow seller.

TAG Heuer’s sister brand Hublot continued its momentum, with its most interesting watch being the Big Bang Unico Red Magic, not because of design or complication, but because the case is a bright, bright red ceramic. The material typically looks dull in bright colours, but Hublot’s alchemy produced a striking shade of red.

Over at the independents a handful of watches, and one booth, stood out. MB&F had its largest booth to date, sitting on two sides of a corridor and over on the front, illustrating its rare success relative to most of its peers.

Moritz Grossmann’s Hamatic boasts what is probably the most elaborate winding mechanism recently launched, while Andreas Strehler debuted the Transaxle Tourbillon, which combines a remontoir and tourbillon, along with a clever construction.

Strehler’s masterpiece

Then there was the Akrivia Chronometre Contemporain, which might just be the next big thing, if the two brothers behind the brand can refine the prototype to perfection.

Lots of potential here

And it is also worth pointing out Jacob & Co., which always unveils extremely complicated watches, despite being first and foremost a jeweller. Often thanks to movement constructor Luca Soprana and his firm, Jacob the Jeweller usually manages to surprise with its complications, this time with the Twin Turbo Furious that features a “twin accelerated triple axis sequential tourbillon, a minute repeater and a mono-pusher chronograph”.

But the biggest makes-no-sense-but-really-cool watch at Baselworld came from Casio, which had on show a G-Shock  in solid 18k yellow gold.

A one-off made as a concept watch for exhibitions, it was undoubtedly the coolest unobtainable watch at the fair. Equally cool, and perhaps available as regular production one day, were the G-Shocks with coloured sapphire crystal cases and bracelets.

Sotheby’s upcoming Hong Kong watch auction that takes place on April 2 has a strong line-up of timepieces by independent watchmakers, being typical of auctions in the city where high-end modern watchmaking is desirable.

The catalogue includes the first ever F.P. Journe Vagabondage III to hit the auction market, and also a Roger W. Smith with a one of a kind dial. Here’s a look at some of the highlights at Sotheby’s, which just got its own watch department Instagram account.

Lot 2670 – Ulysse Nardin Genghis Khan minute repeater 

It was a big deal back in 1989 when Ulysse Nardin introduced its first minute repeater with automaton, the San Marco jacquemart, which was also the first of its kind on the market.

Ulysse Nardin relied on Christophe Claret for the movement, allowing Claret to establish himself as a pioneering complications specialist. Though Claret has now evolved into its own brand, it still supplies movements to Ulysse Nardin.

That’s exactly the case for the Genghis Khan minute repeater, which was a limited edition of 30 in platinum with an aventurine dial. It’s a Westminster chime minute repeater with four sets of hammers and gongs, as well as a tourbillon regulator, and automatons on the dial.

When the repeater is activated, the Mongolian warrior figures on the dial move to the striking of the chimes.

It is a lot of watch for the money, literally. The case is 42mm and correspondingly heavy.

With an original retail price of US$700,000 or so, this is a relative bargain. The Genghis Khan has an estimate of  HK$1.2m to HK$1.8m, or US$154,000 to US$231,000.

Lot 2854 – Roger W. Smith Series 2

This particular Series 2 is in white gold, with a dial that is “possibly unique”. While the stock Series 2 dial is heavily reminiscent of an 19th century English pocket watch – think silvered chapter ring with engraved Roman numerals – this example has a distinctly more modern look.

The Roman numerals are applied, and made of blued steel naturally, onto a dial is entirely engine-turned with a crosshatch motif. Not only does it look more contemporary, it also leaves the watch feeling slightly larger, though the case is the standard 40mm.

While similar examples of the Series 2 are known, not are exactly similar, differing either in case metal or guilloche pattern.

The hands remain Smith’s signature spade shape, beautifully shaped and made of blued steel.

The movement is also a higher-spec version of the Series 2 calibre, having an engraved barrel bridge and balance cock. The most straightforward versions of the movement have a frosted finish instead.

“MMXV” on the base plate indicates this is a 2015 watch

Peering deep into the movement reveals the lubrication-free Co-Axial escapement invented by Mr Smith’s late mentor George Daniels, and later further improved.

The Series 2 has an estimate of HK$1.0m to HK$2.0m, or US$128,000 to US$256,000. That’s in the same ballpark as the official retail price, but with a two year or so waiting list, the Series 2 typically sells at or above retail on the secondary market.

Lot 2857 – MB&F LM1 Alain Silberstein

This is the most recent collaboration between MB&F, arguably the most successful avant-garde independent watchmaker of today, and Alain Silberstein, who had the same title in the 1990s.

It’s based on the MB&F LM1, but face-lifted by Mr Silberstein, giving it his signature quirky style that emphasises geometric shapes and bright colours.

Amongst the most notable features are the wide sapphire balance bridge, as well as the vertical power reserve.

The back view is more classical, with the movement having been styled by Kari Voutilainen and constructed by Jean-Francois Mojon of Chronode, both of whom have signed the centre wheel bridge. The flowing shapes of the bridges are meant to evoke 19th century pocket watch movements, since the Legacy Machine series was Max Büsser tribute to historical watchmaking.

Made in three editions of 12 watches each, the LM 1 Alain Silberstein has long been sold out, so this should be a strong performer. And it will be helped by the fact that like all MB&F watches sold at past auctions, the watch will be serviced for free by MB&F post-sale.

The estimate is HK$550,000 to HK$700,000, or US$70,500 to US$89,500.

Lot 2881 – F.P. Journe Resonance Black Label

Sold only at the ten F.P. Journe boutiques to existing owners of the brand’s watches, Black Label timepieces are limited to 10 pieces per boutique each year. Consequently, despite not being a limited edition, the Black Label Resonance is fairly uncommon.

More unusual is the fact that this is a Resonance “RT”, a second generation model with an asymmetric dial. Despite the leftmost sub-dial being almost impossible to read at a glance, it makes the watch visually interesting.

And Mr Journe has hinted on several occasions the Resonance is due to a revamp, which will make the “RT” versions relatively uncommon versus the earlier symmetrical dial models.

The Resonance has an estimate of HK$500,000 to HK$800,000, or US$64,000 to US$103,000.

Lot 2882 – Zenith Academy Christophe Colomb

By no means the creation of an independent watchmaker, the Academy Christophe Colomb nevertheless is unusual enough to bend the rules.

Originally introduced in unadorned form in 2013, the Christophe Colomb combines both a chain and fusee constant force mechanism as well as a gyroscopic escapement. The gimballed escapement means the balance wheel is always flat and parallel to the ground, eliminating gravitational errors.

Technical specifics aside, the Christophe Colomb was later decorated with Spanish conquistadors, Latin American revolutionaries, and this version that depicts natives and conquerors.

While the political correctness of the watch might be lacking, in detail it is not. The decoration on the back is done in engraved relief that is then painted by hand.

Its original retail was approximately US$300,000. This is estimated at HK$600,000 to HK$900,000, or US$77,000 to US$116,000.

Lot 2887 – F.P. Journe Vagabondage II

The last two lots are a matched set of the F.P. Journe Vagabondage II and III, both in platinum and numbered “41/69”. While the Vagabondage is a trio, the latter two are arguably the true siblings, being almost the same size.

The Vagabondage II has jumping digital hours and minutes, with a symmetrical time display, albeit on an asymmetric dial bridge.

This has an estimate of HK$240,000 to HK$400,000, or US$30,700 to US$51,500.

Lot 2888 – F.P. Journe Vagabondage III

Announced only in January 2017 and delivered towards the end of last year, the Vagabondage III is a surprise lot in the sale. Practically unworn, this example is the first Vagabondage III to go on the block.

The “V III” is the most complicated of the Vagabondage trio, having digital jumping hours and seconds. The digital seconds, shown in two windows at six o’clock, are a first in the industry.

Because of the energy needed to turn the jumping seconds discs every second, the V III also has a remontoir d’egalite, a blade spring that is tensioned and released every second, providing the energy to turn the seconds discs without affecting the amplitude of the balance (and consequently timekeeping).

The Vagabondage III is estimated at HK$320,000 to HK$480,000, or US$40,900 to US$61,500.

Sale and exhibition information

All the lots will then be on show in Hong Kong from March 29 to April 1 at the New Wing of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wanchai, Hong Kong.

Sotheby’s Important Watches Hong Kong auction takes place on April 2, 2018 in the same location. The full catalogue, along with online bidding, is available here.

This was brought to you by Sotheby’s.

When I first encountered Akrivia three years ago, the watches felt paradoxical – large, modern cases that tried hard to be different, standing in stark contrast to the hand-finished movements. While the watches had shortcomings, the technical and artisanal skill was obvious, despite the Kosovar brothers behind Akrivia – Rexhep Rexhepi and Xhevdet Rexhepi – both being just shy of 30 years old.

The watches demonstrated the duo might be the next big thing, but independent watchmaking is perennially suffering from the up and coming. Nascent independent watchmakers are as likely to fall off a cliff in myriad ways as they are likely to actually become the next big thing.

Akrivia’s new Chronomètre Contemporain is proof of the positive, that the brothers are the real deal. The fact that the watches pictured are the first ever prototypes, yet are exceptionally good, reinforce the point.

Conceived at the suggestion of Singapore retailer The Hour Glass over the course of 2017, the Chronomètre Contemporain is a striking departure from Akrivia’s earlier work. The look channels the style of mid 20th century Swiss chronometer wristwatches, boosted by a restrained aesthetic flair on the dial and case.

While the Chronomètre Contemporain is still an Akrivia watch, the dials will be signed “Rexhep Rexhepi”, since the watch is largely the brainchild of Rexhep, the elder of the two brothers.

The dials are vitreous enamel, designed in a style that evokes early 20th century watchmaking. They are made by Geneva enameller Emaill’Art, a workshop that has done dials for Vacheron Constantin and Laurent Ferrier. The proximity of suppliers reflects the Rexhepi brothers’ desire to source as much as possible in Geneva.

Consequently, the hands are produced by hand in the Akrivia workshop. While obviously hand-made, the hour hand could do with being larger. That, along with several other elements of the dial, might change in the final production watches – a two-piece dial with a recessed seconds may be on the cards – but the overall dial design will remain the same.

The ghost of Emile Vichet

Properly sized for this style of watch, the case is 38mm wide and 9.5mm high, with an elegant concave bezel and back. Both the bezel and back flare outwards at six and 12 o’clock, a feature taken from Akrivia’s original case design.

The lugs are lengthy and curved downwards, taking inspiration from the arched lugs of 1950s Patek Philippe cases made by Emile Vichet. Their length means when placed flat on a table, the watch sits on the underside of the lugs, rather than the case back, just as it is with vintage Vichet cases.

The good bit

The movement inside is the cal. RR-01, named after Rexhep’s initials. It was designed and constructed in-house, and based on the calibre that made its debut inside the AK-06 launched last year. Most of the components are produced by suppliers, and then finished at the Akrivia workshop in Geneva’s Old Town, though Rexhep is working towards producing parts in-house.

The RR-01 has several interesting features. Despite the relatively small size – 30mm or 13”’, which is the same size as the Valjoux VZSS or the Voutilainen cal. 28 – the power reserve is a lengthy 100 hours, achieved with a single barrel.

Additionally, the movement features a hacking, zero-reset seconds. When the crown is pulled to set the time, the seconds hand resets to 12 o’clock and stops. This is accomplished with a heart-shaped cam and lever, the conventional approach to the feature.

Visually the movement layout is symmetrical, a feature of nearly all of Akrivia’s movements to date (even those made by third parties). Symmetrical movement construction is actually uncommon in watchmaking, a straightforward idea that is less straightforward to implement.

Arguably the foremost practitioner of symmetrically constructed movements is Francois-Paul Journe, with his Resonance cal. 1499 being almost perfectly symmetrical. Even the symmetric cal. 1304 in the Chronometre Souverain is strikingly balanced visually.

The most striking quality of the RR-01 is its almost exaggerated style of movement finishing. The cocks for the balance and wheel train feature anglage on steroids, with as many sharply pointed chamfered edges as could be reasonably included.

The same holds true for the balance bridge, which is further enhanced by a bar-shaped winding click that intriguingly runs under the bridge to preserve the movement symmetry.

Even the finer details of the bridges are accentuated. The polished countersinks for the jewels and screws are mirrored, bowl-shaped and larger than usual.

Right below sits the steel bridge for the centre wheel. Elongated, rounded and tapering towards its ends, the bridge is of the form typically used for a tourbillon carriage. This is black polished, as are the other steel parts, like the cap for the balance cock.

The balance wheel is large and free-sprung, fitted with four adjustable masses on each spoke.

The barrel bridge, cocks and base plate are rhodium-plated German silver. While Rexhep is debating different plating colours for the plates, Cotes de Geneve will likely be the only surface decoration offered.

According to Rexhep, a frosted finish (which is the only viable alternative for a watch of this quality) is more prone to oxidise or stain over time if moistures enters the case or as the result of careless handling during servicing. Geneva stripes, on the other hand, is a more robust finish.

As they are, the prototypes are finishing to an exemplary standard, though not a flawless one. Small but important details, like chamfered slots for the screw heads, the finish of the pallet fork, or consistent graining of the perlage on the base plate, will be refined as much as humanly possible according to Rexhep.

It’s too early to say if the Chronometre Contemporain will join the likes of the Philippe Dufour Simplicity and Roger W. Smith Series 2 in the Valhalla of modern day watchmaking but the Rexhepi brothers are young and may yet one day ascend.

Price and availability 

The Chronometre Contemporain will be available in 18k rose gold or platinum. The price is forecast to be SFr55,500 in gold and SFr58,000 in platinum. A Besançon Observatory testing certificate is an option for a modest extra fee. Delivery is uncertain but might happen towards the end of 2018.

An impressively refined wristwatch, the Seiko Credor Eichi II just made its debut in rose gold at Baselworld 2018, launched to mark the 10th anniversary of the Credor Eichi I.

Aside from the case metal, the new Eichi II appears identical to its platinum sibling, but it is not. The differences, however, are as modest and subtle, but perhaps interesting to the sort of collector who values the subtleties found in the Eichi, or 叡智 in Japanese, which means “wisdom”.

The case is exactly the same dimensions as the platinum model – 39mm wide and 10.3mm high – but with a different shape that’s achieved via a different manufacturing process.

All of the surfaces and lines of the case are rounder than on the platinum version, intended to give the watch a softer look to match the warmer tone of the gold case. So the bezel is slightly domed, while the case band is slightly convex. It is practically imperceptible unless both the rose gold and platinum watches are put side by side.

The reason for the changed form is the result of cold forging, used for the first time in Seiko’s top of the line watches. Unlike hot forging, where a metal blank is heated and then pressed into shape, cold forging is done at room temperature with greater force.

The cold forging process is repeated several times in order to create the case components, raising the density of the gold, which in turn allows for Zaratsu polishing.

Also known as Sallaz polishing (after the defunct Swiss machine tool maker that built the polishing machine), the technique creates a mirror finished surface that is extremely flat, with almost no distortion.

The domed bezel (pardon the scuffs)

But Zaratsu polishing can only be applied to a relatively harder metal, because it can distort the edges and corners of softer alloys. With the platinum Eichi II cold forging was not necessary, since platinum is slightly harder than gold.

Another minor difference lies with the folding clasp. The platinum clasp for the platinum Eichi II is made in Japan, but the 18k rose gold folding buckle for the new Eichi II is made in Italy.

Consequently it feels like a clasp found on a high-end Swiss watch, while the Japan-made platinum buckle is thinner and slightly more old fashioned in construction. The reason for the change of supplier is currently unknown.

A more obvious change can be found on the dial, which is still luminous white porcelain. Whereas the original model had the hour markers and logo in blue, the rose gold Eichi has them in dark grey, or even black depending on the lighting and magnification. The markings are still applied the same way – painted freehand with a fine-tipped brush and microscope – with the new colour selected merely to match the case colour.

All three hands, however, remain exactly the same – flame blued steel.

Over on the back, the movement is largely the same – and still gorgeous. The most obvious change is the blue lacquer filling for the lettering, done to match the colour of the blued steel screws. On the platinum model the lettering is gilded.

Also different, though it has yet to be unconfirmed if it is an intentional change or variation in finishing technique, lies with the chamfered countersinks of the jewels nearest to the edges of the bridges. On the platinum model the countersinks and bevelled edges of the bridges touch, while on the new rose gold version they are separated by a tiny margin.

All in all, the changes with the Eichi II are tiny. The watch remains marvellously well crafted. If anything the rose gold Eichi II is better value, since it retains all the signature qualities of the Eichi, namely the hand-finished movement and porcelain dial, but costs almost 25% less than the platinum model, priced at approximately US$41,000 versus US$54,000.

Price and availability 

The Credor Eichi II in rose gold (ref. GBLT998) will be available starting July 2018 in Japan, and in August for the rest of the world. It is priced at ¥4.3m before taxes, or about US$41,000.

Boasting a team of in-house gemologists and gem-setters, Rolex consistently produces some of the most impressive bejewelled watches, none as distinctive and desirable as the Rolex Daytona “Rainbow” in 18k Everose gold – a surprise launch when Baselworld opened its doors.

While some might find the multicoloured gemstones peculiar, perhaps reminiscent of an Elton John concert costume, the Rainbow is memorable in form and impressive in detail. And it is also, almost unbelievably, more desirable than practically any other modern Rolex.

Like the Patek Philippe ref. 5270P with “salmon” dial launched at the same fair, the new Daytona Rainbow is a watchmaker’s affirmation of market demand by producing a model with lofty valuations on the secondary market.

The first generation Daytona Rainbow was introduced in 2012 in white and yellow gold, with a retail price of US$89,100. Produced only for a brief spell, reputedly because of difficulties in sourcing sufficient coloured sapphires in graduated colours, the original Rainbow now sells for US$250,000 or so. It’s buoyed by several factors, including rarity, an audience beyond the usual male watch enthusiasts since it appeals to women, and also the fact that many watch dealers who propel the secondary market are inclined towards flashy watches.

The new Rainbow is priced at SFr92,400, or about US$97,600, making it a relative bargain – and a lot of bling for the money.

The bezel is set with 36 baguette-cut sapphires in graduated hues, starting with red at 12 o’clock, and transitioning to yellow, orange, yellow, green, blue and violet. The stones are splendid in colour; other watchmakers have done similar “rainbow” bezels but not quite as impressive.

While the original Rainbow featured diamond hour markers, the new Rainbow uses coloured gemstones, with each hour marker being a baguette-cut sapphire that echoes the bezel.

Inset onto the black lacquer dial, the chronograph registers are the same material as on the original Rainbow, being made of “Gold Crystals”. It’s actually a pink gold alloy treated to create a crystalline structure in the metal, giving it the appearance of semiprecious stone.

The lugs and crown guard are set with 56 brilliant-cut diamonds, though they seem almost like an afterthought compared to the party around the bezel.

In the standard Daytona style, the 40mm case and bracelet are 18k Everose gold, Rolex’s proprietary rose gold alloy that’s fade resistant. And the movement is the cal. 4130, an in-house chronograph that’s regulated to -2 to +2 seconds a day, the norm for a Rolex “Superlative Chronometer”.

Like all Rolex movements the cal. 4130 is technically solid, with all the features expected of a modern chronograph, namely a column wheel and vertical clutch, plus a free-sprung balance wheel that’s standard Rolex.

The new Rainbow will inevitably for a premium over retail, but it is difficult to conceive it will reach the same frenzied heights as for the first generation models. And might the Everose Rainbow cause values of its predecessors to soften?

Price and availability 

The Cosmograph Daytona “Rainbow” in Everose gold (ref. 116595 RBOW) is priced at SFr92,400, or S$130,300 in Singapore. Delivery dates are unknown.

Historically an aftermarket customiser of Rolex watches, Bamford Watch Department recently got the seal of approval from establishment watch brands after inking an agreement with TAG Heuer and Zenith. Now the “authorised customiser” for the twin brands, Bamford’s first serially produced design for TAG Heuer has just been unveiled: the classic Monaco with an unusual carbon composite case.

Bamford’s all-black watches are traditionally black-coated metal, making the case material for the Monaco Bamford a novelty. It’s lightweight carbon composite, with the carbon fibres inside the polymer arranged at random, creating a marbled appearance.

That’s matched with pale blue for the sub-dials, minute track and hands, as well as the logo on the crown – a colour combination that is typical of the high-contrast creations of Bamford Watch Department, founded by George Bamford, the son of English excavator tycoon Anthony Bamford.

Though the material is new, the case is the same 39mm as the classic Monaco remake, and powered by the same Calibre 11. That’s actually an ETA 2892 with a chronograph module on top, as well as the crown sited on the left of the case to mimic the configuration of the Chronomatic Calibre 11 used in the vintage Monaco.

Price and availability 

Limited to 500 pieces, the Monaco Bamford (ref. CAW2190.FC6437) is priced at US$8100 or S$11,400. It will be available only at TAG Heuer boutiques and its online store.

Correction March 27, 2018: The Monaco Bamford is a limited edition, and not part of the regular collection.

Following the launch of the new Navitimer 8 collection, Breitling has now introduced the Navitimer Super 8, an outsized “destro” that takes inspiration from the ref. 637, a thigh-borne stopwatch used by bomber pilots during the Second World War.

This little known military watch was designed by the Huit Aviation, Breitling’s aviation instrument department, and made oversized for optimal readability and ease of use. It was worn on the thighs so the stopwatch could be read by glancing down with hands on the controls. The ref. 627 had a large, notched bezel and a pronounced crown located on the left side of the case for easy operation, even with gloved fingers.

The ref. 637

The Navitimer Super 8, however, is time-only and not a stopwatch. But in a concession to its history it does have an inner bi-directional rotating bezel to measure elapsed time.

The Super 8 is available in two iterations: stainless steel with a black dial, and titanium paired with a green dial.

Like the rest of the Navitimer 8 collection, both watches feature luminous Arabic numerals and hands. It is by far the largest watch from Breitling this year, measuring 46mm, or 50mm if you include the notched bezel.

Powering the Super 8 is the Breitling B20, which is based on Tudor’s MT5612, a COSC-certified movement presently used in the Tudor Pelagoes and Black Bay. It features a variable inertia balance wheel and a 70-hour power reserve.