In theory, a mechanical watch is very simple: it’s ‘simply’ a spring (the mainspring) unwinding at a constant rate with hands attached to gears that rotate as the spring unwinds. Easy! Ian Skellern highly recommends anyone at all interested in mechanical watches to watch this video as it clearly highlights how a mechanical watch works.
The dial of the Czapek Promenade Plissé gives the impression of fabric being pushed and bunched up by the sub-dial into pleats across the dial.
Reimagining Serpenti into a Horological Machine required a complete redevelopment of this historical piece, not only in terms of mechanical engineering and movement conception, but also in terms of case design and manufacturing.
red gold – especially with a blue dial – does stand out, and it’s usually seen with more formally-styled watches, what colors work in a more casual setting? Urwerk proposes grey and green with the UR˜100V Magic T “Hunter Green” and the color combination works.
The new The Louis Vuitton Tambour Convergence has received a lot of press recently, and well deservedly so: it’s a well-size (37 mm), quirky take on modern dress watch. But Ian Skellern think it looks too much like a Urwerk UR-101.
Ian Skellern did not like the Ming 37.09 Uni dive watch on first sight. Or second. The ‘industrial’ – to my eyes – rather than elegant ‘chunky’ white minute ring, while practical i.e., highly visible, which is good for a dive watch, just didn’t work for him. But after a couple of days he looked at the dial again and decided that he liked it.
The Greubel Forsey Hand Made 2 embodies the ultimate pursuit of hand watchmaking. Every component, whether visible or hidden, is created, finished, and assembled by hand with unprecedented rigor.
2025 is MB&F’s 20th Anniversary and their celebrations kick off with two 20-piece Limited Edition “Longhorns” in stainless steel with rhodium-plated base plates, glossy black lacquer dials, and blued hands.
In the 7 years since Peter Speake parted with the Speake-Marin brand he has been collaborating with other brands and watchmakers. Now he is back with a new brand PS Horology and two new models: the Tsuba Blue and Tsuba Dong Son.
The good news is that prices have fallen less in 2024 than they did in 2023 or 2022.We probably haven’t seen the secondary market represent this much value-for-money since before COVID.