Watches Blog Wrist Watch Reviews

I continue to see progress at Antiquorum Geneva. The level of watches has seen a step up in this catalog and they already had some great results in their most recent Hong Kong sale. There is no massive pocket watch collection this time around, which is a relief for me as well. Overall, the outlook has been good ever since their separation with Antiquorum New York and I hope they keep up the good work.I had an interesting discussion with Julien Schaerer, Managing Director, during my early preview visit in Geneva. I was, again, curious about the massive size of this catalog. Just to clarify, when I say large catalogs I mean they regularly have 500+ lots in their sales and others like Christie' [...]

Guess what!? This is the 26th episode in the 52Mondayz column. That means that were half way. Half way the year that every week I wear a different watch which we present to you here at Fratello Watches.The Breitling Chronospace A56012.01 on my wristBreitling Chronospace A56012.01And this week Im going quartz again. A quartz watch from a brand which isnt directly my favourite, however from which one or two models always had my interest. First the classic Breitling Navitimer is of course a watch one cant neglect. This watch is as iconic and as of historical importance as the Rolex Daytona, Omega Speedmaster, Heuer Carrera and the like.Secondly Breitling always attracted my interest with their [...]

In today's installment of TBT, we'll talk about what I think is, hands down, one of the most perfect chronographs ever created, the Breitling 765 AOPA. In case you're in denial, have been reading elsewhere or are blinded by the fact that the brand's current offerings are far different (read: much larger) than its historic lineup, vintage Breitling offers a true treasure trove of goodies for the vintage chronograph collector. Well over a year ago, I compiled a lengthy interview with a couple Breitling experts and it ultimately covered but a fraction of the incredible models once offered by the aerospace-focused maker. Since that time, the brand has gained more and more respect amongst hardco [...]

Today's TBT takes a look at a chronograph that I've been hunting for a long time, a Mark 1 Breitling Top Time 810. It's a watch and a watch line that existed for some time that's been grossly underrated in vintage watch collector circles for some time, but is finally getting some deserved notice. Proof of this will come shortly after reading this article should you go look for one because -poof- they've all but disappeared.Breitling Top Time 810 vs Heuer CarreraThe Heuer Carrera receives the lion's share of credit for ushering in modern and clean chronograph design in 1964. We've covered the early 2447 and there's no doubt about it that it's one of watch history's most important pieces. [...]

Breitling Navitimer All BlackToday on TBT, we'll take a look at an all-time classic, the Breitling Navitimer All Black. It's a watch that I never thought I'd have a chance of owning, but thanks to fellow Fratello member Gerard, and especially to my wife, I've been fortunate to add a beauty to my collection. It's funny, it was almost a year ago this time that I wrote about another Navitimer that I had sourced: it was a rare transitional reverse panda model purchased from Rene. So, once again, it seems that Autumn is Navitimer season C and with that, let's take a look at a very special chronograph.Adding the Breitling Navitimer All BlackWhen I picked up the aforementioned transitional Navitim [...]

Watch AmbassadorsOnly yesterday, during a press event from a?watch brand, the topic of watch ambassadors and red carpet brands was being discussed with a colleague watch journalist. Here on Fratello, we touched the subject before (click here for my rant on watch brand ambassadors) so there is no need to do that again. Instead, lets have a look at the real watch ambassadors. People who endorsed a watch that were not on the payroll of a watch brand. People who made a watch famous even, without knowing it themselves. Or realizing which impact they would have on the watch (brand).Steve McQueen RolexAlthough Steve McQueen endorsed the Heuer Monaco during the movie Le Mans, he didnt pick it himse [...]

After the Baselworld storm and some other side projects calmed down, I found some time to work on this tasty episode. This time we zoom in on one of the biggest and most bespoke watches of the flower-power seventies: Breitling 1806 Navitimer., a.k.a Fried Egg. To?me it's more a gigantic pan with two fried eggs:ColossalWith its 48mm in diameter this octagonal shaped watch was probably the biggest or one of the biggest watches Breitling produced in the seventies. It's a very technical watch, with lots of measurement functions and a slide rule bezel (more on that in a sec). If we take a look at the dial, there are no less than three subsections/rings to separate the several timing functions bes [...]

Breitling is one of the brands that doesnt get a lot of coverage here. Perhaps because they make me think of two tone Crosswind models with those UTC bracelets, but I am aware that this is not entirely fair to this brand from Grenchen, Switzerland.However, I found this vintage Breitling Chronograph from the 1970s with a Valjoux 72 handwound chronograph movement. This movement has also been used by Rolex for their (Oyster) Cosmograph Daytona models from that period. The Breitling has more or less the same small dimensions as these 1970s Rolex Daytonas. A 37mm diameter case and 13mm in height.The small and sleek case with the big pilot crown for easy winding makes this watch also optically a [...]

I am not a big fan of Breitling watches, with the exception of the Navitimer. I have owned one and wasnt very impressed with it, to say the least. However, Breitling is on a roll with their new in-house constructed movements.Breitlings most interesting model, the Navitimer, is now available with their chronograph Caliber 01 movement. Column wheel chronograph with a vertical clutch and the classic tri-compax dial layout (sub dials at 3, 9 and 6 oclock). If it wasnt for the price of approx $7,600.- USD, Id put it on my list.My guess is that Breitling will quickly sell their stock of 2,000 pieces in stainless steel. The run of 200 pieces in 18 carat red gold probably wont sell as fast as the st [...]

You have probably heard the name G rald Genta countless times if you have an interest in watch design. His name is synonymous with two of the most successful wristwatch lines in the modern era; the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak and the Patek Philippe Nautilus. Numerous iterations have spawned from these core designs. And in the case of Audemars Piguet, the Royal Oak is the cornerstone of the brand's design DNA, even 50 years after its birth.So how did it come to be that two of the holy trinity Grand Maisons ultimately owe these successes to not just one designer, but the very same man? To understand this, you first have to understand the man himself G rald Genta, a legend of 20th-century Swiss [...]

In a recent video I recorded for Fratello, I introduced the Bvlgari Octo Roma World Timer. To date, that watch is my favorite model in the Octo Roma line because it brought a touch more visual complexity to the wearable and identifiable case shape boasted by the model line. If I thought that model was interesting, imagine my surprise when I first met the Bvlgari Octo Roma Carillon Tourbillon. This is one of the most complex watch movements ever added to the fast-becoming-iconic case design that evokes the architecture of Rome and went on to inspire the perhaps more famous Bvlgari Octo Finissimo a line of watches that we have, on these very pages, extolled as one of the finest modern sports w [...]

Well, now, this is something rare Ive seen a great many watch concepts in my time. Ive seen just as many great watches. What I havent seen so much of, however, is a watch that pays such literal respect to the sketches that birthed it into our material world. Here, the Bvlgari Octo Finissimo Automatic 10th Anniversary (reference 103672) brings the original pencil sketches of Bvlgari's Product Creation Executive Director Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani to the dial.This is too cool. Ive loved the Bvlgari Octo Finisissimo from afar since it was launched. And while I still maintain that the Octo Roma is a better fit for my wrist personally, I will stand on any mountaintop you like, screaming at the [...]

Since 2012 Bvlgari broke seven world records with its Octo watches. What better way to celebrate a decade of records with another one? Enter record number eight. The 2022 Bvlgari Octo Finissimo Ultra is the world's thinnest mechanical watch with a height of just 1.8mm it's the same height as a 20 euro cent coin, but it will cost you 400,000. Will this record ever be broken? Bvlgari thinks it's an absolute record that will probably never be beaten. Let's find out if there's a solid or a wafer thin argument behind that bold claim.It all started ten years ago when Bvlgari decided to take on Piaget in the ultra-flat watch department. It paid off. The brand scored no less than seven world record [...]

To show that Bvlgari has definitely made its way into Haute Horlogerie and to connect that fact to its beginnings as a jeweler, the brand has launched two new members of its Sinfonia Della Meccanica. The Bvlgari Octo Roma Blue Carillon Tourbillon is a blue version of the watch that was first released last year in black. And the Bvlgari Octo Roma Emerald Grande Sonnerie houses the brand's most complicated minute-repeater movement yet. Welcome to a concert by the Bvlgari Symphony Orchestra Letting you experience the beats of a mechanical watch movement through the music created by multiple hammers and gongs!Very few of us might actually end up with one of these on the wrist. That may be becaus [...]

There are times in a person's life when they depart the mundane. The stars align, the background noise of the day-to-day falls away, and one is left standing, full of life, defiant, in tune with oneself and the cosmos. These moments are when the poetry of existence reveals itself, and time and our place in it are not exempt. For such occasions, there is one watch I'd have on my wrist above any other, testament to myself and others that I am truly alive and full of wonder for the universe and my experience: the Bvlgari Serpenti Tubogas.I am a man, as much as I am anything. The Bvlgari Serpenti Tubogas, (ref. 102680 as my personal choice) is very much marketed to women. One might say it is a w [...]

And all of a sudden, 2021 is done. In case you're wondering what happened from a horological perspective, I tried to reconstruct the year in about 1,500 words what struck me, stayed with me, and what have I learned in the last year. And thats important, if you ask me, because it's easy to look back at what happened, but learning from the past to understand the present and the future is the hard part. So let's have a look at Watch Year 2021 in retrospect, and check the lessons learned that will help us cope with the horological future.Numbers don't lie. The most popular (most-read) stories of 2021 with you, our beloved readers, were about Rolex, Seiko, and the Omega Speedmaster, of course. Th [...]

We spend a lot of time talking about the Bvlgari Octo Finissimo on Fratello. Quite frankly, its because we love that line dearly. But the Octo Roma line has a lot to offer also. In fact, while the Finissimo is truly groundbreaking, for some people, its incredible thinness can be a bit too much. The Octo Roma has that same Roman flair, but with a bit more muscle backing it up. Let's take a closer look at the WorldTimer version today.It isn't uncommon for a brand to labor away for years and years in the shadows, doing all the right things and getting none of the credit it deserves. Oftentimes, it takes one moment, one seminal release to make the watch-loving crowd sit up and pay attention. For [...]

I try not to complain too much about my job (because that would be pretty ridiculous), but when our newly minted Managing Editor asked me to pick my Top 5 watches released in 2021, I felt obliged to whine a little bit given my unusually hands-on involvement with a trio of releases this yearSo I cant put the Czapek in there?Well, maybe an honorable mentionNo Minase either?Rob, its too transparentCome on, man. Youve gotta let me put the NOMOS on the list.No. Not a chance. Pick someone elses watches, for goodness sake.Alright, Nacho. Youll get your way this time, because Im in an uncommonly?good mood, but dont expect me to be so forgiving next year. For any of you reading Fratello for the first [...]

When Bulgari acquired Daniel Roth back in 2000, it acquired the designs and watchmaking know-how that included Roth's patented Papillion time-display method. Fifteen years later, that acquisition led to Bulgari's creation of the Papillon Tourbillon in a large 45mm Roth-inspired case.In 2021, we see the Papillon take on a new form as it joins the celebrated Bulgari Octo family. However, the addition of the central tourbillon created a beautiful harmony, with the butterfly and the whirlwind in the classy Octo Roma case: call it The Butterfly Effect.The Papillon rebornThe original Roth-inspired 45mm Papillon is a large and oversized watch by current standards. This year, Bulgari decided it was [...]

This year was a letdown, to be truthful. I was expecting no, demanding a joyous, amazing year filled with nothing but celebration and the burning of face masks, but alas, this was not the case. But even with the pandemic still roaming the world, Bvlgari was poised for the start of revenge spending with some rather tempting releases in 2021.Thats right, a trend that has sparked an application to the Collins Dictionary for a new English term. I dont have to explain, but here you go spending excessively after a period when one has had limited opportunities to spend.?We expected everything to subside, and it didnt. But Bvlgari did its Roman-Swiss best to distract us from January to Geneva Watch [...]