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Results for Sellita SW200-1

230 articles · 140 videos found · page 10 of 13

Czapek Introduces the Antarctique Sports Watch SJX Watches
Vacheron Constantin Overseas Self-Winding While May 26, 2020

Czapek Introduces the Antarctique Sports Watch

A marque revived via a crowdfunded effort in 2015, Czapek & Cie. has just announced its first sports watch, the Antarctique. The popularity of luxury-sports watches in steel makes that unsurprising, but the Antarctique is powered by a newly-developed, automatic movement with an interesting construction. Initial thoughts Doubtlessly conceived to cater to the current fad for luxury-sports watches in steel, the Antarctique is unsurprising in terms of design. While the overall look is reminiscent of a variety of watches, most notably the earlier-generation Girard-Perregaux Laureato, it manages to be different enough, in particularly with the C-shaped links. But more important and interesting is the movement inside, the SXH5. It was conceived by a team that includes prominent constructors like Emmanuel Bouchet, an independent watchmaker who is probably best known for the Harry Winston Opus 12, as well as Daniel Martinez, an independent constructor who worked at Sellita, MCT, and Greubel Forsey in the past. The SXH5 A large movement with high-quality features, the SXH5 has an interesting aesthetic that’s slightly inspired by vintage pocket watch movements but is clearly modern. And going by the photos, it also appears to be well finished. But the Antarctique is expensive – its price tag of US$18,900 is almost exactly the same as that of the Vacheron Constantin Overseas Self-Winding. While the Antarctique probably has a more compelling and unusual movement, the Czapek brand ...

Sinn Introduces the U50 Dive Watch SJX Watches
Sinn Introduces Apr 29, 2020

Sinn Introduces the U50 Dive Watch

Sinn‘s signature dive watch is the near-indestructible U1 that’s a large 44 mm in diameter. Now Sinn has unveiled the mid-sized version of the same, the U50, which offers all of the goodness of its bigger brother but in a 41 mm case. Initial thoughts I am a fan of the original U1 because it is seriously minded in its functionality, encompassing design, material, and testing. And it is affordable, making it great value for money. The new U50 has almost all of the same features and similar pricing, so it is hard not to like it. But one caveat: though the U1 is a largish 44 mm, it never really felt that large, perhaps because of the short lugs and wide bezel (thus a small dial). So while the U50 may fit better on some wrists, it might look smaller than its 41 mm diameter suggests. U50 at 41 mm (left), and U1 at 44 mm Super steel Like the U1, the new U50 has a case made of submarine steel, the same alloy used for the German navy’s submarines. Highly resistant to seawater corrosion and also especially nonmagnetic, the steel alloy comes from ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, a builder of naval vessels, and is the same material used for the hull of the stealthy U212 class of submarines. It’s rated to 500 m – hence the U50 moniker – and powered by the no-nonsense Sellita SW300-1, a clone of the ETA 2892. That’s less than the 1000 m of the U1, but 500 m is still plenty – and about the same depth rating as most navy submarines. And if the submarine steel alloy alone wasn...

Breaking News: ETA Movement Sales Halted by Swiss Authorities SJX Watches
Dec 19, 2019

Breaking News: ETA Movement Sales Halted by Swiss Authorities

News last weekend that Switzerland’s competition regulator, COMCO, also widely known by its German acronym Weko, was weighing a ban on ETA movement sales to third-party brands caused a major stir in the watch industry – and a terse, lengthy response from Swatch Group, ETA’s parent and Switzerland’s biggest watchmaking conglomerate. The move was ostensibly to allow alternatives to ETA – once Switzerland’s dominant supplier of mechanical movements – to develop. According to the Swatch Group, the ban was entirely without merit, especially given the fact that ETA was no longer the biggest supplier of movements to the industry. That title now belongs to Sellita, which supplied a million movements in 2019, compared to half the number for ETA. Now COMCO has formalised the year-long ban in an announcement that puts in place a “temporary suspension of the supply of [ETA] mechanical movements to customers”. The ban will be in force until COMCO makes its final decision by the summer of 2020. The ban, however, allows ETA to sell its movements to existing clients that are small- and medium-sized watch brands, defined as having less than 250 employees, which will probably be of little consolation to ETA. According to a Swatch Group spokesman quoted by Reuters, the majority of ETA’s movement sales are to companies with more than 250 employees, and as a result, ETA foresees it won’t be able to sell any movements next year. According to the statement, the ban is foun...

In-Depth: Montblanc Manufactures Le Locle and Villeret SJX Watches
Montblanc Manufactures Le Locle Aug 6, 2019

In-Depth: Montblanc Manufactures Le Locle and Villeret

Over the past two decades, Montblanc has evolved from a pure-play luxury pen maker into a serious contender in watchmaking. The company’s venture into watches began quite modestly in 1997, when it rolled out a line of watches powered by outsourced movements. But it was the 2007 integration of Minerva, a fabled maker of chronographs and stopwatches, that gave Montblanc bona fide watchmaking prowess. And by virtue of its own heritage, Minerva also bestowed a degree of legitimacy on Montblanc, along with an extensive archive of historical designs ready to be mined. Watchmaking prowess Le Locle, and then Villeret Earlier in the year I got to explore all facets of Montblanc’s watchmaking with a visit to Montblanc’s twin watchmaking facilities in Le Locle and Villeret. Both sit in the Vallee de Joux, the historical heart of Swiss watchmaking, and are about a 45-minute drive from each other. Each factory is dedicated to a distinct class of watchmaking – simpler and entry-level watches at Le Locle, and haute horlogerie at Villeret. Together, the two factories give Montblanc a unique diversity that has translated into three price categories of watches. Le Locle is responsible for both the first category, entry-level watches powered by Sellita-based movements, and the second, those equipped with mass-produced, in-house movements. Unsurprisingly, the facility produces tens of thousands of watches annually, all manufactured and assembled on an industrial ...

Haven Watch Co. Introduces the Chilton Chronograph SJX Watches
Jun 28, 2019

Haven Watch Co. Introduces the Chilton Chronograph

Based in the American Midwest, Haven Watch Co. makes its debut with the Chilton, an eye-catching, hand-wound chronograph that’s a blend of retro design elements and affordably priced. The watches takes inspiration from the 1970s, perhaps the golden age of sports watches, and specifically, the funky designs and bold colours of the era’s regatta timers. Despite the incongruent combination of design features, the watch is refreshing and captures the bold, experimental spirit of the 1970s. Beyond the design, the Chilton is notable for being the first watch on the market powered by the new, hand-wound, “compax” chronograph movement from Sellita. While the movement is Swiss made, the external components like the case and dial are made in Asia, and the watches are put together in the United States. The Chilton is available on either a blue or white dial with a “compax” layout, both of which feature the same regatta-style 30-minute register that is divided into 10-minute segments. It doesn’t have an actual countdown function, of course, but vintage aesthetics, and not utility, motivate the design. The chronograph counters are small and far apart, just as it was on vintage chronographs, albeit ones that came long before the 1970s.  And if the chunky hands look familiar, they are similar to those found on the Universal Geneva Compax “Nina Rindt”. The vintage styling also explains the decimal scale on the blue dial and pulsometer scale on the white. T...