Depth-Testing My Seiko SKX013 Dive Watch: Jumping In At The Deep End

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Professional watchmakers have specialist machinery for testing the water resistance of their watches, but Colin Alexander Smith does not. So after servicing his Seiko SKX013 he was on the lookout for an opportunity to take it down deep. And he found the perfect opportunity while summer holiday diving at Aiguablava cove on Spain’s Costa Brava. But it didn’t go quite to plan and his Seiko came out of the experience a tad better than he did.

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Vintage Jaeger "Panda dial 4 ATM"

Vintage Watch Restoration: Should You Or Not? A Guide To The Oft-Controversial World Of Making Things Worse By Trying To Make Them Better – Reprise

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Deciding whether or not to restore a vintage watch is a tough decision to make. The internet is awash with tales of watches butchered by an incompetent independent watchmaker or, worse still, the brand itself. Even more confusing is deciding which options offered should be accepted. Refinish the case? Change the hands? Replace the crystal? Here is some help for you.

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What Makes A Daily Wearer Wristwatch? – Reprise

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GaryG wears all of the watches in his collection, though some watches are more suited to daily wear than others. A reader’s question got Gary thinking, both about which pieces in his assortment are the go-to routine watches for frequent wear and, at a more fundamental level, what makes a watch a “daily wearer.” Read his opinion on that right here.

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How Dangerous Is It To Wear Your Watches In Public? (With Tips For Minimizing The Risks)

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As a collector, and a fairly visible one at that, GaryG has been paying attention to reports of muggings and thefts of watches and wondering whether it makes sense these days to wear valuable pieces in public. He polled a group of 20 watch enthusiast friends on their personal safety while wearing watches to learn what steps they take to keep safe.

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Fitting Rolex balance wheel and Parachrom hairspring

Hairsprings: Origins, Progress, And (Dare I Say) Exciting Future – Reprise

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The tiny, delicate, nearly impossible-to-create hairspring is the one of the biggest advances for modern scientific technology there is. Here Joshua Munchow takes a dive into the muscle of the beating heart of most mechanical watches: the hairspring.

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Longines Heritage Military (photo courtesy Dr. Magnus Bosse)

Fauxtina: A Faux Vintage Faux Pas

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Ashton likes vintage watches so much that his prized possession is a 1978 Rolex Submariner Reference 1680. Why does he love this watch so much? Not because it looks like it’s from 1978, but because it is from 1978. So, he asks, is the current vintage trend something we should be wholeheartedly embracing?

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Blasting off: composite photo posted online by a Harry Winston Opus 3 owner

Sex Sells – But What, For Whom, And To Whom? – Reprise

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When someone says “I’m no prude,” it is pretty easy to imagine what typically comes next: a prudish commentary on some aspect of modern society or youth culture. GaryG likes sex. There we go! To the point and leaves no doubt as to intent. That said, he typically tries to keep his interests in sex and watches somewhat distinct. But does the watch industry at large?

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Why The Patek Philippe Nautilus Is King: A Collector Weighs In

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After reading article after article discussing the virtues of Patek Philippe’s Nautilus, it became clear to watch enthusiast and Quill & Pad reader Perry Heim that none stated a self-evident truth that appears obvious to him. In this “letter to the editor” Perry explains in detail what he finds so appealing about the Patek Philippe Nautilus Reference 5711. And he stacks the Nautilus up against some serious contemporary contenders.

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Open Letter To Bulgari CEO Jean-Christophe Babin: I’m Sorry, I Was Wrong. Whether Geneva Watch Days Runs Or Not In Late August 2020, It Was Worth Optimistically Planning For

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Whether Geneva Watch Days takes place or not, and whether it’s deemed successful or not because of all the travel and quarantine restrictions, doesn’t change the fact that there was a good chance that it could have run very successfully. Which means Ian Skellern was wrong in calling Bulgari CEO Jean-Christophe Babin delusional for organizing it. And for that he apologizes.

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Zen And The Art Of Wristwatch Maintenance: The Benefits Of Learning To Service Your Own Watch

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Colin Alexander Smith’s journey into what some call “watch fettling” began with a case of cat-killing curiosity: one of the subdial hands on a cheap watch had come loose, bringing it to a halt. That led him down a horological rabbit hole. Here he explains why you might want to consider a similar path.

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