The history of commissioned timepieces is a long and colorful one, but collector group commissions are perhaps a more recent phenomenon. GaryG recently met with Adam Eisendrath of San Francisco-based collectors 49 Crowns to learn more about the club and to check out two customized watches commissioned from Swiss-based Finnish independent Torsti Laine.
The majority of today’s numerous flieger-style watches are inspired by the now-iconic German pilot’s and navigator’s watches of World War II, becoming a genre unto themselves. Bhanu Chopra flies high to take a deep dive into the long history of this popular style.
So far in 2023, GaryG has traveled to Switzerland twice: once for the Watches and Wonders week, and again in June for a very special event. Here he focuses on the independents, starting with a sequential journey through his first trip.
Some people understand the benefits, limitations, and mechanics of duty-free shopping for a luxury watch at an airport: they know a deal when they see one. For these savvy individuals, shopping at the airport can and does make economic sense – sometimes. In this article Chris Malburg explains watch shopping at airports for the rest of us.
Humans have long had a fascination with the depths of the ocean, striving to go ever deeper, ever further, and ever faster by pushing the limits of the human body, technology, and advancing modern science. But like all things, we are often faced with limits. And the helium escape valve was invented to push one of those limits as watchmaker Ashton Tracy explains.
The Omega Planet Ocean launched in 2005, and in less than 20 years has gained an iconic status. Raman Kalra takes a deep dive into the Omega Planet Ocean.
Pol was the first champagne Ken Gargett ever tried – a sneak swig under the kitchen table from a bottle at one of my parents’ dinner parties. And he particularly loves the Sir Winston Churchill.
The Richard Mille RM UP-01 Ferrari is a stunning feat for two main reasons: it is the thinnest mechanical watch in the world and it meets some extreme requirements for shock and water resistance all while being only 1.75 mm in height. Here Joshua Munchow takes a deep dive.
With the Regulator MK II you can see the development that Garrick has been through in just five short years. Regulator MK II is not an evolution but a revolution!
Until recently, George Cramer has exclusively collected watches from classic brands with long histories and traditional styles of watchmaking. But that all changed when he bought himself a Ressence Type 2 e-Crown. Here he explains why.