In Tim Mosso’s opinion, the Moser Endeavour Perpetual Calendar Tantalum Blue Enamel certainly appeals to the rational mind. It’s technically impressive, performs useful functions, and features sensible engineering. But selecting tantalum and enamel casts practical considerations to the wind. It’s simply stunning!
The last two decades have witnessed regular Rolex engineering advances, often in plain sight and in rapid succession. Despite these developments, Rolex remains a brand defined not by movements but by continuity, model families, and the Rolex image itself. Tim Mosso thinks that the root of Rolex’s soft-pedaled reputation for movement virtuosity lies in the company’s own branding strategy. That and more in this third installment of Rolex’s history of movement technology.
From the public’s perspective, Rolex’s surge into its movement revolution began with the now anachronistic-sounding Basel 2000 World Watch, Clock, and Jewelry Show. But the evidence of a long-term engineering campaign was mounting at the patent office and in the dealers’ showrooms as this article by Tim Mosso highlights.
If you want to love Rolex, but you love mechanical movements more than you love watch brands themselves, rejoice: Tim Mosso thinks that we are living in the halcyon days of Rolex movement innovation and shares a few well-illustrated technical and movement highlights right here.
The Angelus U41 Orange has an aesthetic that is more Richard Mille than Das Boot. At a launch price of $34,100, the notion of a tourbillon that can be enjoyed without care is compelling, and Angelus leans into it.
Hublot’s Big Bang Tourbillon Automatic Purple Sapphire is love-hate, but for a wealthy enthusiast who doesn’t take himself too seriously, Tim Mosso thinks that there’s a great deal to love.
The A. Lange & Söhne Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon lives up to its name. It has a date, a chronograph, a perpetual calendar, and a tourbillon. But it has more: this watch has character. Assigning human traits to a cold machine is a – romantic – fool’s errand, but it’s also irresistible in the presence of a masterpiece. A. Lange & Söhne’s warmest watch is more than a machine with a heartbeat. It has soul.
Which Rolex models will be most sought after by collectors in the future? That’s not a trick question. And Watchbox’s director of media Tim Mosso and global head of trading Mike Manjos are here to answer it for you in the second episode of Watchbox’s new video series “Around the Crown,” which is dedicated to future classics from the Rolex catalog.
The Patek Philippe 5002 Sky Moon Tourbillon launched in platinum for the 2001 model year, the 12-complication featured two dials. Dial one was devoted to a moonphase indicator and a perpetual calendar with retrograde date display. On the sub-dial display for months, simple text promised a tourbillon regulator within the case.
There exists a droll class of watch for which telling time takes a back seat to the packaging itself. And the Azimuth Mr. Roboto Bronzo Artist Series is a great example of this class, Tim Mosso explains why.