Entries by Ian Skellern

2015 International Chronometry Competition Now Underway, But Does Anyone Care?

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International timing competitions used to be the Formula 1 of watchmaking, and the watchmakers who prepared the high-precision (pocket) watches were treated like Formula 1 drivers. And that shouldn’t be surprising because until recently, the primary raison d’être of a timepiece was to tell the time. To tell THE time, not the approximate time. An error of 30 seconds day isn’t much . . . until you miss your train by 10 seconds.

Video: Stéphane Belmont Of Jaeger-LeCoultre Explains The Gyrotourbillon Collection

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The multi-axis regulator of the Jaeger-LeCoultre Gyrotourbillon has been fascinating watch aficionados since the introduction of the Gyrotourbillon 1 in 2004. In this video by The WatchesTV, Stéphane Belmont, international marketing and product director of Jaeger-LeCoultre, explains some of the thinking and history behind this groundbreaking line of timepieces.

The Collector’s View: Tattooist Mo Coppoletta On Watches

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“Whether collecting art or watches, when I fall in love with something, then I need to understand, I need to research deeply,” Mo Coppeletta explains. “You may have taste, but if that isn’t backed up with knowledge then it is superficial.” Coppoletta was wearing an Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar Skeleton. “It’s my summer watch,” he commented. What else does he own and how did he get into collecting watches?

Artisans Du Temps: 30th Anniversary AHCI Exhibition At MIH Museum In La Chaux-De-Fonds

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In 1985, Svend Andersen and Vincent Calabrese founded the AHCI: Académie Horlogère des Créateurs Indépendants. The aim was to help independent watchmakers survive at a time when large brands and quartz watches were dominating the horological world. In 1985 very few people even knew that there was such a thing as independent watchmaking, as advertising and exhibitions (of which there were very few) were far too expensive for them to participate in. Today, 30 years later, the AHCI boasts 35 members and four candidates. Not bad for an organization I once described as “like herding cats.”

Video: Stephen Forsey On The Art Of High-End Finishing At Greubel Forsey

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Today’s watch components are produced with relatively high levels of finishing straight from the machine, so having company artisans, watchmakers, and technicians spend hours, days, weeks, and even months beveling and polishing might seem like a waste of time (and money).

In this video by The Watches TV, Stephen Forsey explains why superlative hand-finishing is such an important element in the timepieces of Greubel Forsey.

350 Processors And 90,000 Watts of Power Just To Mill A Curved Line? CNC Primer

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On a recent visit to the Valbray manufacture, I surreptitiously looked at the electrics in back of a CNC machine (as one does). Seeing my interest, Côme de Valbray, who co-founded the brand with his wife Olga, casually mentioned that the racks of electronics contained the processing power of 350 powerful computers and that the machine drew up to 90,000 watts of power in operation: that’s equivalent to the power used by around ten homes.

LM101 Frost By MB&F: It’s Surprisingly Warm

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MB&F’s Legacy Machines are the avant-garde brand’s take on traditional complications. With the limited-edition LM101 Frost, MB&F has added a new string to the brand’s traditional bow, which until now had been strung with reinterpretations of traditional complications and mechanisms: finish.

Quill & Pad Baselworld Awards 2015

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Welcome to the 2015 Quill & Pad Baselworld “awards,” in which we highlight a few of the watches and ancillary Baselworld potpourri that caught our eyes at the world’s largest watch exhibition. Please accept these citations in the way they are presented: generally tongue-in-cheek, sometimes serious, always fun!