Are Today’s Vintage Watch Buyers Killing Watchmaking?

To the extent that new enthusiasts represent the future of the watch market, is it possible that their enthusiasm for the past will prove highly damaging, or even lethal, to the industry’s future? GaryG shares his thoughts on the subject here.

Rolex GMT-Master Reference 6542 (photo courtesy Bobs Watches)

First Rolex GMT-Master Reference 6542, And Why The Gold Version Is Much More Desirable – Reprise

In recent years, the Rolex GMT-Master with its multi-time zone display has become one of the most desirable Rolex watches to own. And the very first GMT-Master, Reference 6542, is easily the rarest and most sought after of all the vintage GMT-Master references. Especially in the version we show here.

Wrist Watching: Miles Davis, Virtuoso Jazz Trumpeter, And His Jaeger-LeCoultre Memovox GT

Miles Davis is best known for wearing a Breitling Navitimer during performances, but Nick Gould has discovered something new: he found a few photos of him wearing a 1960s Jaeger-LeCoultre Memovox GT!

Going vintage: the Jaeger-LeCoultre Futurematic on the author’s wrist

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

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.

Longines Heritage Military (photo courtesy Dr. Magnus Bosse)

Fauxtina: A Faux Vintage Faux Pas – Reprise

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 is from 1978. So, he asks, is the current vintage trend something we should all be wholeheartedly embracing?

Rolex Submariner Ref 14060

The Golden Age Of Rolex Movements Part I: Sowing The Seeds Of Greatness

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.

Aging, perhaps gracefully: dial of the Vacheron & Constantin Reference 4560

Why I Bought It: Vacheron & Constantin Reference 4560 Triple Calendar

Oh, those Geneva auctions! While GaryG’s intention is usually to browse the rare pieces on offer, gain an education from his auction-house friends and escape unscathed, it seems that more often than not there is a piece that puts him into bidding mode. And sometimes, that piece is entirely unanticipated as was the case of the Vacheron & Constantin Reference 4560 triple calendar that he stumbled across at the Sotheby’s preview. Here is why he bought it.

Breguet Tradition Automatique Seconde Rétrograde 7097 and Deconstructed Abraham-Louis Breguet Souscription Pocket Watch

Breguet Tradition Automatique Seconde Rétrograde 7097 And Abraham-Louis Breguet Souscription Pocket Watch Deconstructions: What The Naked Watchmaker Didn’t Reveal

The Breguet Tradition collection, as exemplified here by the Tradition Automatique Seconde Rétrograde 7097, does just what it says on the label: provide tradition. And it does that very well as Ian Skellern illustrates in a comparison with an original 200-year-old Abraham-Louis Breguet Souscription pocket watch.

Cartier Ceinture

Cartier Ceinture: Largely Ignored, Often Overlooked, And Usually Underestimated

The Cartier Ceinture was named after its case, which is shaped like a belt’s buckle (‘ceinture’ is the French word for belt). This Cartier watch with a very interesting square case featuring corners that appear to be “cut” and an unusual crown to be found nowhere else in the collection is a hidden gem on the market for vintage watches. George Cramer explains why.

Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Ultra Thin (left) and Piaget Altiplano

Ultra-Thin Head To Head: Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Ultra Thin Vs. Piaget Altiplano

It might seem an unlikely comparison as the age difference between the Piaget Altiplano and the Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Ultra Thin in this article spans more than four decades, yet as Martin Green explains these two ultra thins have a lot more in common than you might think.