This past Friday I visited my friends at Dorfman, a jeweler located on Newbury Street in Boston, Massachusetts. Dorfman is foremost a jewelry store, but they are an authorized dealer for one of the elite brands from Switzerland: Patek Philippe.
Most recently a watch that was released during Baselworld 2011 arrived at the store and fresh out of the box I got a look at the 5496P-001. It is a men’s grand complication featuring a retrograde date hand, perpetual calender, moon phases, and day, month, leap year in apertures.
Zoom of the dial
The window directly above ‘Patek Philippe’ tells the leap year.
Patek Philippe fitted the 5496P with 324 S QR caliber. The movement has a 45 hour power reserve and vibrates per hour at 28,800. 361 parts make up the movement.
Unfortunately, my pictures do not do this splendid watch justice. The 5496P is highly attractive and the future owner of this watch will have difficulty keeping his or her eyes off it.
Stolas is a fairly new, entry-level brand started here in the U.S. by outdoorsman and watch enthusiast Curtis Stolas. Reflecting its Founder’s passion for design and nautical sports, Stolas offers a trio of sport/dive watches, all offered at a reasonable price point. I recently reviewed Stolas’s Harbormaster Gennaker model and can say that it is a worthy choice for any watch buyer who is seeking a limited production, versatile dive watch with excellent lume characteristics and an affordable price tag ($619). All Stolas watches are available for purchase direct from the Stolas website.
Enjoy the review…
STOLAS Harbormaster Gennaker Watch Review (Video)
STOLAS Harbormaster Gennaker Watch Review (Photos)
(c) Perpetuelle.com
Stolas’s signature design element is undoubtedly the “lightning bolt” seconds hand — seen here on the Gennaker, but as well on the other Stolas models. For me, it took some time to get used to a jagged-looking seconds hand — definitely a conversation-starter!
The Stolas Harbormaster Gennaker also features a carbon fiber dial, which I really like — on some watches this type of dial can reduce legibility, but not on the Gennaker.
Curtis Stolas tells me that his technique for applying lume to the bezel (all the way from “12″ to “4″, or 20 minutes) is patent pending, and that Stolas is among the only watch brands to feature a luminous 20-minute bezel (luxury brand IWC Schaffhausen is another)
The case is stainless steel with a polished black PVD finish — it looks good out of the box, though I do wonder how it might look 5-10 years down the road after a lot of wear.
You can check out the full Stolas collection at http://www.stolaswatch.co/watch/home.html.
Courtesy of Monochrome…
Recommended Reading: Monochrome Editor Frank Geelen recently reviewed the Girard-Perregaux Sea Hawk Pro 1000m dive watch. This watch was first announced in April 2011 (I wrote about it here), and to my knowledge this is the first “hands on” experience with the watch. “The new Sea Hawk 1000m wears excellent, looks great and runs and performs perfectly” according to Frank, but you’ll have click through to the Monochrome blog to check out the complete and excellent review, including some great pics!
Girard-Perregaux Sea Hawk Pro 1000m Review
click image to see full review
Courtesy of Watch Freeks…
A couple weeks ago I featured the new DEEP BLUE Depth Master 3000 dive watch. My first impression of the Depth Master 3000 was positive (despite its too-big-for-me 49mm case size) and I noted that achieving such a water resistance rating put DEEP BLUE in the company of some of the world’s most esteemed watch manufacturers. Now I see that someone over at Watch Freeks forum (Don aka Tattoo Chef) recently managed to get their hands on the Depth Master 3000, from which a very nice review of the watch was produced. Seeing Don’s review keeps me intrigued with this big dive watch with a little price tag ($699). If you liked the “first look” at this watch, you will definitely want to click through and check out the full review over at Watch Freeks Forum.
DEEP BLUE Depth Master 3000 Dive Watch Review
(click pic for full review)
pic: Don aka Tattoo Chef at Watch Freeks
I just watched a review of the F.P. Journe Centigraphe Souverain watch over at KronosBlog. This was my first look at this watch, and I thought that the review was so fantastic that I wanted to share it here. As captured in the video, the hand-wound mechanical movement of the Centigraphe indicates elapsed time from 1/100th of a second to 10 minutes, visible on 3 dials, each with a time scale in red and a tachometer scale in black. A very impressive timepiece, both visually and mechancially. The F.P Journe Centigraphe Souverain price is about $75,000 (55,000 EUR).
Via: KronosBlog (click through for full review and some great pics).
F.P. Journe Centigraphe Souverain Watch Review (Video)
40mm platinum or rose gold case (10.7mm thick), manual wind Journe Caliber 1506 (80 hours power reserve-max)
F.P. Journe Centigraphe Souverain Watch
Since high-end Swiss-watch manufacture Armin Strom announced a high profile sponsorship of the Marussia Virgin F1 Racing team late last year, I’ve been eagerly awaiting the wristwatches that would be announced as an outgrowth of the deal. The first look came at Baselworld 2011 when I previewed the Armin Racing Chronograph, noting that it featured “one of the best designed chrono dials I recall seeing in quite some time.” And now, thanks to Totally Worth It, the official Armin Strom distributor in North America, I have hands-on experience of this watch that I want to share with you. I hope you enjoy the review.
Video Review: ARMIN Racing Chronograph Black
Limited Edition 500 pieces
44.4 mm black PVD titanium case (13.85mm thick), automatic mechanical movement
Photos: ARMIN Racing Chronograph Black
(c) Perpetuelle
Check out my review of the Armin Strom Blue Chip Skeleton watch here>>
I recently put my hands on a spectacular watch from a little-known brand called Dodane 1857. For five generations now the brand is owned and operated by a French family of the same name — Dodane is prounounced “do-dan” with a long “o” (like “no”) except with a smooth French accent (which I lack). In addition to supplying its watches to French air force pilots, the company also produces cockpit instruments for the French air force (learn/see more on Dodane’s website). I reviewed the Dodane Type 21 Flyback Chronograph, the brand’s signature model, and what to say except that I sooooooooooo want to own one of these watches. The look, the feel, the “character” of this watch is immense — you really feel like you have something special on your wrist when wearing this watch. The Dodane Type 21 Flyback Chrono price is about $4,000, and Alexis at Totally Worth It will hook you up if you want to buy one. Now…on to the review!
Dodane Type 21 Flyback Chronograph (Video Review)
Dodane Type 21 Flyback Chronograph (Photos)
(c) Perpetuelle
In my ongoing series of watch reviews, I recently took a look at a new watch from a new brand – the Fitzroy London Automatic Chronograph. This is the first sub-$1,000 watch I have ever formally reviewed, and I must say that overall I was pleasantly surprised with the Fitzroy Automatic Chronograph. If you are looking for a basic mechanical automatic watch infused a bit of “London flair” in it, this watch should suit your tastes quite nicely. In addition to my review, you should also check out the Fitzroy Watches website, as you can see some of the other color and strap combinations that I mention in the review. Lastly, I would love to hear any of Your thoughts, comments or questions about this watch, too — just drop a note in the comments section below! Thanks for watching, and I hope you enjoy the review!
Fitzroy London Automatic Chronograph Video Review
Fitzroy London Automatic Chronograph Photos
Since showing you the Xetum Tyndall Limited Edition Watch last month I’ve had the chance to review the watch hands on, courtesy of Xetum. As noted in the review, Xetum is a startup watch brand (~2 yrs old) based out of San Francisco, CA. In general I like what I see from the brand and I was glad to finally get one of its watches to review. The Xetum Tyndall Limited Edition watch price is $1,595, direct from www.xetum.com. Here is my review, as well as a few pictures I took. If you have any questions about the watch, please feel free to leave a comment/question below and I will reply. Thanks for watching!
Xetum Tyndall Limited Edition Watch Review
Xetum Tyndall Limited Edition Watch Photos
I recently had the opportunity to review the Hydroscaph Titanium watch from Clerc SA, a small but estimable watch manufacture based in Geneva, Switzerland. Clerc is known for its robust dive watches and unique designs. While I enjoyed the watch I reviewed and think it is generally representative of the brand, I believe that Clerc has far better Hydroscaph models to offer if you are actually looking to make a purchase. There’s also the brand’s great looking and technically advanced Odyssey Silicum models, which look to be in a class all their own. After you watch my review, click through to the Clerc SA website and have a look for yourself. You can also keep up with the brand in on its Facebook page. Lastly, thanks to Thomas Carey who made this review possible. Enjoy the review:
Video Watch Review: Clerc Hydroscaph Titanium 1000m
Photos of the Clerc Hydroscaph Titanium 1000m
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