WWR #34: Ingersoll Scott ref. IN8402GY

A few weeks ago, news broke out in the horological world about the the rarest (only two in the world) watch to be Auctioned.  And apart from that, its a Patek, and previously owned by guitar god himself, Eric Clapton.  Price will be monumental and for sure will break records.  Which brings us to a question, did Clapton wear this watch?  I think not.  I believe there are watches meant to be preserved in a vault somewhere and be unearthed from golden slumber again for the world to appreciate.  And then there are watches that are meant to be worn and care less about scratches, theives, resale value nor personal status.

Our 34th Weekly Watch Recommendation is the Ingersoll Scott ref . IN8402GY.

Now a lot of people shun the idea of a Chines made watch.  Yes, Ingersoll is an American brand, designed in Germany, and made in China.  For me, it really doesn't matter where its made, as long as it delivers what its supposed to and commensurate to the price tag.

What atttracted me to this watch is that it looks similar to Clapton's Patek.  Now the monumental price tag of that Patek is nowhere for the masses, this Ingersoll is.  Ingersoll Scott to be specific.

Scott is highly influences by the styling and cues of a classic Swiss dress watch with complications.  Now at first glance this may seem to have a split chronograph and possibly a perpetual calendar, it actually doesn't.  What the Ingersoll Scott has is a moon phase, day, date and month complications aside from the usual three hander.  Now the two chronograph-like buttons are a wild guess for me, it could either set-up any of those features mentioned above.  Will try to get my hands on one and update on the specific button functions.

Here is a view of the movement from the exhibition caseback.  We would all know that only a company named Seagull would create this movements in China, thus we'd assume Ingersoll bought their movements from them.  The movement is labelled as a 435 calibre automatic with 35 jewels.

The case size is 45mm including the crown with mineral glass on the top and bottom.  The dial is a light gray color with blue hands, big aperture under the 12 o'clock for the date and and roman numeral indices fill the whole dial.  Water resistant is 3atm, pretty standard for dress watches like these.  Do take note at the bottom of the dial, the print Germany Design. Well I find it to marketing cheesy and honest too.  The less knowledgeable on the WIS stage would find this value adding to the product while the rest of us so called idiot savants would know what this means.

But with all these characteristics at hand, as popularly would be the outcome, a lot of serious watch lovers would neglect the idea of having this strapped to their wrists.  But I tell you, in these times of economic struggle, where ever you put your business too, life ain't as easy as it used to be.  And it that these kind of watches come in.  With a dollar price tag of around  450$, it doesn't at all account to a mortal sin to have this to be paired with your everyday work suit, dress shirt and tie, to tell everyone that sometimes, we don't need to be extravagant, but just be humble and practical.  Yes that is what that watch is, humble and practical. If you are one, got get one.

WWR #31: Hamilton Khaki Field Automatic 44mm

30 Weekly Watch Recom posts ago, Hamilton made it to my first recommendation because it had to be.  A mid level watch brand that brings you the Swiss satisfaction covered with an American utilitarian look.  The watch that I am going to recommend for this week is the upsized version of the most iconic Hamilton watches out there. 

Now if you remember the time when Rolex upsized there iconic Submariner with the Deep Sea - Sea Dweller, the big boys celebrated but the purists shunned the bigger brother.  But on my side, we don't have all the same wrist sizes, and don't have all the same tastes, that would be weird to think if it did.  And now that the modern day standards of men's watch sizes is from 40 - 44mm, and anything below or outside that is somewhat unacceptabley puny or too wall clocky designed just for the cocky.  So Hamilton, did exactly that and co-released an upsized 40mm Khaki Field to a 44mm model.

Here are pictures of the iconic 40mm Khaki and the 44m one.  Any differences? Just minimal.

 

The obvious difference aside from the size is the background color and finish of the dial and the red handed second hand on the 40mm.  The hour and minute hands still incorporate the same style but with a bolder and edgier look. The bracelets seem to have a difference on the middle links but I'm sure most would replace them with thick military/aviation style leather straps.So with these minimal differences, it basically boils down to size.  What size fits you most.  Its like jeans of the same model and cut but on a different waistline.  I have a puny wrist of just about 6.25 inches but seems 44mm watches fit right in with no problem.  So basically its what you prefer.  And of course, the greates advice prior buying is to actually wear one.  Try it on for size, and actual hands on is the biggest deciding factor in getting which and what model.

The 44mm still has the same movement, the ever reliable 2824 ETA automatic movement with handwinding capability and date complication.  The 40mm retails around $500 and the 44mm about $700.  Minimal price differences too right?  Either way, no once can get wrong.  The 44m model has some modern style looking color combination on pvd on its range but I'm more of a classic iconic styled taste person, and want my watches that never goes out of style. 



Here's a nice video from watchtanaka that displays the beauty of this classic.

WWR #30: Grand Seiko Hi Beat SBGH001

In the world of mechanical watches, there has been the long term battle for accuracy that for the longest time, a pure mechanical watch would already have an acceptance of such.  That is compare to electronic quartz and atomic timekeeping.  And aside from complications such as tourbillions, there has been once key aspect which has been talked about often as its relation to its accuracy.  Which is, the level of frequency if the watch.

The normal frequency of a watch is 5-6 bps (beats per second) or 18,000-21,000 bph.  It has been proven way back when pocket watches were the norm, 5-6bps was enough to achieve a level of accuracy that would make railroad schedules synch avoiding catastrophic crashes and would in majority pass COSC standards when professiionally adjusted.  So why the need a Hi-beat?  

Well, same goes with a lot of watches where there are features that we simply do not practically need. Its because in the expensive and interesting  world of watch collecting, we don't necessarily buy because we need it, we buy because we appreciate it.  We appreciate the hard work of the people who have worked behind it from conceptualization to design to production and the whole package.  Whatever that oddly new feature is, or call it complication, its worthwhile most of the time if its not that easy to do and it doesn't sound practically stupid. 

Enter  the Grand Seiko Hi-Beat.

The Grand Seiko hi Beat might look like an ordinary 3 hander but under the hood, to be able to offer the smoothest second sweep from a 100% mechanical watch, you must have the most advanced materials, robust engineering, and flawless design to make it work.  I mean if the mechanical gears run twice that it normally should, then that part must be twice as durable that the normal.

 

Though a hi beat movement has been around the longest time and some are still working as of this day, its a testament that this is not as delicate as it seems to be nor is it more high maintenance that the usual lady in a big city.

 Justifying the price of this beautiful piece should not be about accuracy, but all the components encased into this watch that make it twice that watch it is. And by standards it self, who has a higher standard than Grand Seiko?  Price of this piece starts around $6K.  A definite WWR grail from SOT.    

Here are the technical laydown on this grail from the official website.

Drive system	Mechanical Automatic (Hand winding capability)
Caliber No.	9S85
Case	Stainless steel
Case back	See-through screw case back with sapphire crystal
Glass	High definition dual-curved sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating
Bracelet	Solid stainless steel
Buckle	Stainless steel with three-fold clasp with push button release
Accuracy	+5 ~ -3 seconds/ day
Water resistance	10 bar
Magnetic resistance	4800 A/m (60 gauss)
Weight	151g
Case thickness	13.0 mm
Case diameter	40.0mm
Jewels	37

WWR #29: Longines Legend Diver with Date

Not many people know this but Longines is brand with a rich history dating back to the 19th century up to the current era.  And one of their famous stories is their pioneering pilot watch that emerged from the 1930s under the first man to fly over the atlantic ocean, Charles Lindbergh.  Then fast forward to the next few decades, embracing the quartz revolution. Well we know that story.  And up to what we see now, Longines is a brand donned by power tennis legends and an Indian Beauty.

But during the 1960s,  Longines was part of the Diving watch frenzy.  And like JLC, Hamilton, IWC, UG and Vulcain,  the brand developed a Super Compressor Dive watch.  It was called the Longines Legend diver as seen on the picture below.

Stunning watch isn't it?  Well since the past few years has been the time where we've seem numerous remakes and tributes is just about anything that happened about half a century ago, Longines, re-released the new version of this legendary diver.  Now what struck me with this watch is that compared to other tributes from the 60s, this model resembles so much from the original one that if you'd see a mint condtion 60s Legend Diver.

The new one is upgraded with a Sapphire Crystal with AR coating, screw in crowns, new movement with 28,800 bph.  Now this tribute watch has two versions, with and without date.  The one I am recommending is the with date.  Though the ultimate remake would be the no date but I just can't live without a date complication.  And it's the best distinguishing mark compared to the old one.

Here is the new legend diver after 50 years.

the no date

                                



the with date

So why this Longines compared from other super compressor dive watches around? The price is just below $2,000 USD, great tribute watch, from a trusted brand, and most of all, if the Omega that I featured last week could be a contender for the one watch to fit all, then this would be one of it's greatest challenger.  The Longines would look great under a dress or wet suit.  Young or old. Contemporary or an artist. 

Well the design might not be blendable to everyone's taste but I'm sure those with good ones will consider it.  My initial reaction to the legend diver was that of the hour hand.  I first thought it was too short, but then again, weren't hour hounds supposed to be, to be recognizable and big compare to the minute hand.  And if you were the 50s designer of the original one, there was no other way, and the design they ended up is perfect to which I would conclude.  Some designs need to grow on us.  We are not all masters of our taste.  That's what for me a good design is.  A design that not just acts as a pusher but actually teaches us and makes our way to the roots of our tastes and molds and corrects it.  And the simple dial, and inner rotating bezel, crown design, and the most common looking case, sets this to be an immortal classic, that is not that popular to the point of being unique. 

Longines usually has no defined image to their watches except for the Lindbergh hour watch which is a totally different interesting story in itself, and so with this Legend diver, I hope they carry on to this type of image with their sport/dive watch categories and forget the urge to follow the trend but rather be the trail blazer.   

WWR #27: Ball Trainmaster One Hundred Twenty

When I was at my local tailor shop the other day to have my suit done, I was flipping the pages of this fashion magazine and admiring the sweet models and nice suits in its prints.  While quickly turning the pages for boring features, an small glimpse of something familiar caught my eye at the least focus area of my natural lenses.  It was a watch.  Gold case, brown leather strap, grayish dial, well don't see that quite often I said.

I thought it was from the usual big Swiss brands that offer fine haute horlogerie and nothing less.  But I was surprised that it was from the hardcore (well that's my personal perception of the brand) Ball as the matter of fact. Those tough anti magnetic water resistant gas power lighted watches has come up with an elegant dress watch to celebrate 120 years of the brand.  And, hence its name the Ball Trainmaster One Hundred Twenty.  I love the name.  Simple and meaningful.

Here is the gorgeous watch.

 The case is rose gold at a perfect dress size of 39.5mm. An anti-reflective sapphire crystal protects the grey sunburst dial that is nicely complemented with gold markers that have gas powered lights that will illuminate and eliminate all non luminous dress watches.  Its powered by an ETA 2892 movement that gives you the standard automatic movement with date function and over course hacking and handwinding capabilities.

With the gas lights on...

Well I really can't say anything about this watch but pure absolute drooling praise.  I mean the reason dress watches aren't so popular as dive watches or chronographs, is for the fact that they are so refined looking and doesn't offer anything more but elegance and formality.  While for this, at $6000, you can still get that elegant classy look plus a 120 year heritage of a tough watch brand that simply gives you legibility at night when most evening affairs are done.  And its not from the usual suspects.  Its not mainstream.  For me its one of the most underrated brands that exist today.  And this watch is their cream of the crop.  Get this while you still can.

Get a Ball for your next ball.

WWR# 24: Kobold Soarway GMT

I really find the Watch Snob column over at askmen.com very entertaining and insightful at the same time as we see a character, no one knows if he's real or  just another creation, who lives higher in the food chain and basks in a lifestyle where nothing is acceptable unless it is haute.  And while so, he accepts questions from readers asking about his opinion on advice from the lowest forms of watches to haute horlogerie.  But something new and quite very interesting was his column a couple of weeks ago.  It was a watch challenge from a watch manufacturer himself.  This is quite the first time that a watch manufacturer has communicated with the Watch Snob aside from the askmen readers.

That company was Kobold, who is obviously founded by Michael Kobold.  What was the challenge?  well basically Mr. Kobold wrote a letter to the Watch Snob telling him some surprising information about his company and his watches and gladly sending the snob an actual Kobold watch for some scrutiny and criticsm. That is one bold step I would say but goes to show how confident Mr. Kobold really is with his creations.

Well, I know someone would hint me at the back and say that this could be one whole marketing stunt, but none the less, the letter that Mr. Kobold sent made me change the whole impression of what Kobold watches really are.  You can check out his letter here.

After reading the lengthy letter, I have to say only a few of these types of companies really do what they are passionate about.  I mean, I am passionately sure that in majority of watch manufacturers in the market right now have hugely big profit margin with insanely prices that even an expert cost accountant could not justify, to where only a high profile businessman could just give you a smirk.  Is there really a watch out there where we could physically get our money's worth?

So for my 24th WWR, it's non other than the Kobold Soarway GMT watch.  Aside from the striking good looks that pointed out to me while I was looking at their line up, the totally of how Kobold manufactures their cases in USA with great quality and powered by a bulletproof swiss ETA movement and at a price that normally would come out a few times over is a great deal itself.

More on the watch, I like the sunray textured blu dial with an unmarked bezel with only a lume pip at 12'o clock for a classy function for marking elapsed time.  And paired with a brown leather strap is somewhat awkwardly matched but I think came out really great.  and a GMT hand for those who want to know the home time the old fashioned way.  And of course, change the strap for rubber or nylon and you can dive it in with its 500m WR rating.  I have also attached some pictures of another version of the Soarway GMT with a grey bezel matched with a grey zulu strap, strikingly calm and military cool I have to say.  Both watches are a sure winner.

Technical specs:
Case Diameter of about 46mm w/o crown, stainless steel
24 mm lug width
500m WR
Movement ETA 2893-A2, Automatic, Hacking, Date, GMT, 40hr PR, INCABLOC Shock Resistant System
Antimagnetic 80,000 a/m


Priced at $4,550, I say value is claimed to your it should be.

I'm still looking forward for the results of the challenge but I'm confident that even though the Watch Snob might have something bad to say about it, well he ain't a snob just for nothing, kobold watches will be at the higher end of our scores for the average men that compose most of the watch wearing market everywhere.

And, I would like to end this quote from Oscar Wilde, that would gladly fit our WWR topic for today.

"Nowadays, people know the price of everything and the value of nothing"

WWR #23: Citizen Eco-drive Watch BV1060-07E

Many watch freaks don't like quartz powered watches, they have no life, soul, nothing romantic about the ticking seconds hand and totally boring. But I'm not doing thus do just for crazy collectors like me, but also lots of watch consumers out there who seriously need a watch and not rely everything on the digits on the iphone. Every reasonable ans respectable man must ans I say must have a watch strapped to his wrist. For this week, I am recommending a watch that you can literally and practically say the only watch you will ever need putting aside a collectors or fashionable stance. I'm talking about this simple yet classically designed Eco-drive from Citizen. Look at it, I swear it looks or would want to have an automatic mechanical movement inside it and the small second hand sweeping through with about 6 ticks per second, but no no no. As long as the sun shines,this baby will give you the time as accurate as you will ever need it to be. A true maintenance free watch that you just set it and forget it. Well adjust the date every two months actually and everything is done. From Citizen, this will cost you $199 and that's it, you have a dependable and beautiful watch that will fit in every occasion or attire you desire. 43mm case size with leather strap, date function and classic sub-dial second hand at 6, you can never go wrong.

.

WWR #21: Orient Star GMT Star Seeker DJ00001B

Yes yes another Orient, the most recommended brand since I ever started WWR.  But how can I resist when they churn out one of the most affordable watches around in various styles and designs.  And now, has offered I would say the most complications at price it is being offered.  I challenge anyone to come up to me and tell me another timepiece that has a GMT function, power reserve, and date complication that can beat its price of the Orient Star GMT Star Seeker under reference number DJ00001B.  And I have seen that around $450 price range.

 

Specs of the beautiful watch.
Power Reserve: 40-Hour Power Reserve Indicator
Crystal: Sapphire crystal with anti-reflection coating
Movement: Mechanical Movement : ORIENT caliber 40P51 Made in Japan [22 jewels | 21600/hour vibrations], hacking and handwinding
Clasp: Fold-over with Double Push Button
Water Resistance: 100m
Case Material: Stainless Steel
Case Diameter: 41.50mm
Case Thickness: 13.75mm
Lug size: 22mm 
Dial Color: Black, also available with white
Calendar: Quick-set Date
Band Material: Solid Stainless Steel

Pics of the gorgeous watch.  

The crown at 2 o'clock is a screw down and adjusts the GMT hand.  The crown at the 4 o'clock is a non screw-down and adjusts the time as well as date and is the crown for winding.

pic of the simple but slightly decorated movement.

And normally, as what sometimes adds excitement to collectors of Japanes watches is that similar to Seiko, Orient too releases different kinds of version of  their watches.  And for this one, we have the WZ0011 with slight changes to the hands and crystal and some other markings in the dial.  Here is a pic below.  Well normally,  rarer versions are more exclusive and retail a higher price later on, well might be a steeper price compared to the common version.  If you were to ask me, I like the DJ00001 version better, the spacing on the hands and not really a fan on cyclops lenses on the date aperture. And

here is the other or first version.

  

Pics courtesy all over the net.  Thank you!

WWR #12: Halios Laguna 500M Watch

I saw a prototype of this model months back from another dive watch website and it instantly captured my WIS senses.  It's design that is perfectly simple and yet unique is what attracted me to it. It kinda reminds me of a BMW M3, sedan on the outside, outstanding sports car in the inside.  The Halios Laguna looks like an ordinary 3 handed watch from the front, but surprise you, this thick and big watch under that simple dial can go 500M. 

What i love about it?
- Big and thick casind, 43mm and 14.5mm respectively
- 4mm thick sapphire crystal
- Simple dial design with inner rotating reflector, doing away with the usual divers external bezel
- Excellent lume
- Screw down crown design (watch it from the video review)
- Case design is unique
- WR500M, and doesn't look like one
- And the price at $670

 

Specifications from Halios Website:

• Comfortable, modern size: 43mm width, 49mm lug-to-lug, 14.5mm thickness
• Highly scratch-resistant 4mm sapphire crystal
• Swiss ETA 2824-2 automatic movement
• Internal rotating bezel operated by non-screwdown, bi-directional crown at 2 o’clock
• 500M water-resistance
• C3 Superluminova-coated hands, dial and bezel markers for optimal low-light visibility
• Ships with: HALIOS bracelet, genuine Isofrane® 1968 rubber strap and tools
  
  All in all, this is really a value for your money.  And you are sure this ain't any next door Rolex or Timex that you  would see from your neighbor's wrist.  Something you can uniquely call your own Laguna.

Here's an excellent review by James Stacey from WatchReport.com.



That's all for this week.  Hail to Halios for this impressive watch!

WWR# 11 - Casio Edifice Red Bull Limited Edition Watch

F1 fan you are?  Well look no further.  F1 has it's youngest champion yet, and the most advanced F1 watch yet.  The Casio Edifice Red Bull Racing Limited Edition watch EQS-A1000RB is the Weekly Watch Recom for this week. 



This watch is really the cream of the crop for quartz lovers.  Seeing the specs below, I bet you won't even use 50% for regular folks like us but the marvel of engineering to fit all those in analog watch  is pure advanced and innovative electronics and mechanisms.  I mean I seldom see these features on a high-end Master of G, G-shock watches, but no, its on a Casio Edifice with only hour, minute and second hands.  The mystery of how it works and how it all fits in this simple watch is what makes this very interesting.  Plus, this has the tough solar technology, similar to Seiko Solar and of course the popular Eco-Drive from Citizen.  This is probably the priciest Casio yet at around $700, but I bet all my collection that this is the most high-tech, full featured, most accurate watch of all F1 branded watches.  Especially that majority of which are mechanicals, really, though I am in love with mechanical watches, do you really think that F1 teams use a mechanical watch to capture lap times up to the most milliseconds? Not a chance.  If the price is too steep for you, there are a lot of Edifice models to choose from sans the Red Bull Logo. 


Specs from Casio:

• Case / bezel material: Stainless steel / Aluminum
• Stainless Steel Band
• One-touch 3-fold Buckle
• Solid Band
• 100-meter water resistance
• Mineral Glass
• Neobrite
• Screw Lock Crown
• Partial ion plated
• Solar powered
  
• World time
  29 time zones (29 cities + coordinated universal time), daylight saving on/off
  
• 1/20-second stopwatch
  Measuring capacity: 59'59.95''
  Measuring modes: Elapsed time, split time, 1st-2nd place times
  
• 1/20-second stopwatch
  Measuring capacity: 59'59.95''
  Measuring modes: Elapsed time, lap time
  Memory capacity: Up to 5 records
  Other: Fastest lap
  
• Countdown timer
  Measuring unit: 1 second
  Input range: 1 minute to 60 minutes (1-minute increments)
  Other: Auto switching to elapsed time measurement (1-second units) when the end of a countdown timer operation is reached
  
• Daily alarm
  
• Low battery alert
  
• Power Saving (hands stop to save power when the watch is left in the dark)
  
• Full auto-calendar (to year 2099)
  
• Date display
  
• Regular timekeeping
  Analog: 3 hands (hour, minute (hand moves every 10 seconds), second), 1 dial (TM (mode))
  
• Accuracy: ±15 seconds per month
  
• Approx. battery operating time:
  6 months on rechargeable battery (operation period with normal use without exposure to light after full charge)
  31 months on rechargeable battery (operation period when stored in total darkness with the power save function on after full charge)
• Size of case/total weight: 51.6 X 46.2 X 14.3 mm/193 g

Here is a quote from the Champion himself:

"Let me share a secret with you: to win in Formula One, you need to be ready for new challenges all the time. Whether you’re a driver, designer or engineer, the commitment is the same. You only need to look at casio edifice watches to understand that they have a similar philosophy"

WWR #8: Orient Power Reserve Dress Watch DJ0200

What of the things that I look for when choosing watch brands is the way how they are able to meet the demand of the consumer which is me of course. What I mean is, we as watch idot savants or watch consumers have needs. We have specifics that we want a watch that has an inhouse mechanical movement, perpetual calendar, chronograph, power reserve indicator, tourbillion, platinum casing, etc etc..blah blah blah. But of course, most of the time, those needs are not met because of the constraint of our capacity to pay our credit card bill after a month's purchase. And it surprises me when there is a product our there that meets my needs, and at the same time I can demand (I can afford I mean). And this is one example that I will recommend for this week. The New Orient Power Reserve Dress Watch.




Mostly, low to middle-end watches that come from the land of Japan have basic automatic movements and features non decorated movement which some do not hack or wind. It may feature day-date and thats it. For this watch that I recommend, it has that, plus a real GMT hand function, a power reserve, and a winding and hacking function to complete a jetsetter yuppie's demand of a classical timepiece. To add to that, it has a Sapphire Crystal and a see thru exhibition caseback for the view of the decorated new movement.



Here are the tech specs of the watch from Orient's site.
Mechanical Movement : ORIENT caliber 40P51 Made in Japan
Self-winding & Hand-winding movement
22 jewels
21600/hour vibrations
Power reserve indicator, Date indicator
24hour hand (Dual-time function)
Second hand halt mechanism
Stainless steel case
Sapphire crystal
See-through caseback with crystal
Stainless steel bracelet
Water resistant to 50m
Diameter 40.40mm
Thickness 11.98mm



The thing though is, I haven't yet seen one in the wild so I cannot validate the price and the value, but with the experience with the brand and its value and affordability always in mind, I'm sure it will meet my demands and expectations.

If you have this actual watch, please send me a message on your thoughts about it and pictures of it, I would gladly update this post with your shared pictures for everyone to see.

WWR #6: J. Crew X Timex Andros Watch

The Timex and J. Crew collab has been very successful with the military watch model that you can see it in most fashion magazines or websites or simply people buying it aside that it has quite a hefty price for a Timex.

And with its new piece from their partnership, the Timex Andros Watch is our 6th Weekly Watch Recom. When I first saw this watch, I didn't expect it to be a Timex, well to think that Timex really doesn't have a consistent design, they adapt to the market, and upon seeing the Timex Logo upfront, guessed it right, it was another J. Crew. And boy does it look good. It has an matching ocean blue color for the dial, rotating bezel and the neat nato strap. With matching explorer style markings and a pilot inspired hands, this is a sure winner.

Now the price of this piece is a bit high for a Timex ($175) at this level, but I do believe that brand and exclusivity add another value that is hard to find these days. Fully justified you think? If you have the funds, I think it is. Timex is known for providing dependable, robust and quality watches that will take a licking, add that with a classic uniqueness and simple class from the J. Crew group, I think that is a good back-up for your fashion getaway.

There aren't too much info on the J. Crew site except for the obvious 100meter WR rating from the 330ft indication on the dial. A quartz movement and a functional rotating bezel. I would assume it has luminous hands, but for indiglo, I doubt. But none the less, I'm pretty sure this watch will serve a proud owner for many many years and will become a collector's classic in the future on.

And from this on, we'd only hope that Timex and J. Crew to continue what they are doing.

Pictures from the J. Crew Website.

WWR #5: Steinhart Nav B-Uhr automatik F0304

It will come to a point in time when your watch wearing purpose is to tell time and to match the suit you wear or to the even you are about to go. This time will be when you are more knowledgeable about the world of horology, the industry moving it, and the addicted drug called watch collecting. And with that, one will come familiar different types of watches depending on what it was made for etc etc.. And indeed, the Pilot watch is one of them. Dig into google and you'll get tons of these models lying around. And so my 5th WWR is a pilot watch. There is one very particular style of pilot watch comes from the Beobachtungs-uhr design from the war era. Big bold and a defenite classic.

Now Steinhart is a German Watch brand that has quite a collection of watches and why I chose this one? Aside from loving the design of classic timepieces, it is because Steinhart watches are value for your money watches. It's equipped with an ETA movement, wide at 47mm, superluminova, sapphire crystal, at a price of $500 or less....and not to mention a sterile dial, truly a classic timepiece.














Here are the specs from Steinharts website

Model: Nav-B automatic
No.: F0304
Movement: Swiss ETA 2824-2 automatic
features
Jewels: 25 rubies
Hour and minute hands with white superluminova C1
Central second hand
Case: Brushed Stainless Steel
Rear: stainless steel screwed (with engraving)
Diameter: 47 mm
Height: 14.2 mm
Weight: 112 g
Dial: Black
Glass: domed sapphire crystal, interior anti-reflective coating
Bezel: Stainless Steel
Indexes: white superluminova C1
Band width 22 mm
Band: brown calf leather, with double rivets
Clasp: screwed Stainless Steel buckle