Watch brandsWatch wikiWatch videosVariousWatch calendarSaved articles
PopularRolexOmegaPatek PhilippeAudemars PiguetTudorGrand SeikoCartierSeikoIWCTAG HeuerBreitlingJaeger-LeCoultreA. Lange & SohneZenith

Results for Type XX

1,206 articles · 91 videos found · page 22 of 44

Related pages

Icon · Guide
Type XX Breguet

The 1954 French military flyback chronograph - reborn in-house in 2023.

New York’s Hold on Pizza, Once Considered Unassailable, Is Now Being Questioned - From Australia and Britain Worn & Wound
Studio Underd0g Feb 25, 2026

New York’s Hold on Pizza, Once Considered Unassailable, Is Now Being Questioned - From Australia and Britain

I’m going to say something quite controversial here, dear Reader, and tell you that I think pizza, in general, is just okay. I’ve had Neapolitan-style in Naples and Chicago-style in Chicago, and even Altoona-style in Altoona (for the unfamiliar, it’s got green peppers and American cheese on it and is disgusting). I’ve just never been especially impressed. With pepperoni or without, deep-dish or thin-crusted, it’s all the same to me. I mean, I like pizza, but I’m not one of those performative yuppies who sit behind their keyboard (okay, I am right now, but that’s because I’m getting paid to be) and tell you about the virtues of this type of tomato and that type of dough and the purity of ingredients and how pineapple on pizza isn’t real pizza and blah, blah, blah. Like I said, it’s not that I don’t like pizza. I just don’t think it’s anything to get worked up about. To me, it’s in the same category as Jacob Elordi or any organized religion: I have no strong opinions either way, I just don’t need to be told why it’s great all the time. Perhaps this is why I was dubious at first glance about the return of two pizza-inspired watches by Studio Underd0g and Time+Tide: the Burnt Pepper0ni and the Classic Cheese. Following the first pair of pizza watches released in 2024, this new iteration builds on that cult following with updated designs that lean into the theme without losing the brand language that has come to define Studio Underd0g. First, the...

Tudor Black Bay 58 Burgundy Review: Tudor's Best Dive Watch Yet? Teddy Baldassarre
Tudor Black Bay 58 Burgundy Oct 27, 2025

Tudor Black Bay 58 Burgundy Review: Tudor's Best Dive Watch Yet?

The Tudor Black Bay 58 Burgundy was released at this year's Watches & Wonders to nothing short of acclaim by enthusiasts. Not just a fresh color, this is a redesigned Tudor Black Bay 58, essentially from top to bottom. What you’re looking at is the next generation of everybody’s favorite Black Bay size, and it debuts in a color you simply cannot ignore, and one tied to Tudor history. The Burgundy Black Bay 58 took the burgundy color usage of Black Bays from the past while leaning into the bright color scheme much more boldly than before. Rather than just adding another bezel color, Tudor decided to make the whole dial and front of the case a study in this shade of red. Where the past few years have seen Tudor experiment with satin-finished dials in its hardcore sports watches, from the Pelagos to the Black Bay 54, the 58 range has been steadfast in its use of matte or textured dial surfaces. That all changed with this iteration, as we get a punchy, sunburst burgundy dial color. You might think this is an infusion of modernity in a model known to harken back to the past, but it isn’t. It’s just harkening to a different moment in time – to a watch that Tudor never technically released. Indeed, that would be a certain 1990s Tudor Submariner Ref. 79190 prototype that had a similar red bezel/red dial combination. And while that watch never made it to the production stage, it heavily influenced the brand’s decision when it released the very first Black Bay with a bu...

Phillips to Offer Francis Ford Coppola’s Personal F.P. Journe “FFC” SJX Watches
F.P. Journe FFC” Acclaimed director Francis Oct 23, 2025

Phillips to Offer Francis Ford Coppola’s Personal F.P. Journe “FFC”

Acclaimed director Francis Ford Coppola, best known for films like The Godfather and Apocalypse Now, is selling the watch that bears his name, the F.P. Journe FFC – it is FFC’s FFC. Mr Coppola’s personal FFC prototype is expected to be the top lot at Phillips’ New York auction taking place in December. The timing of the auction is opportune for Mr Coppola, who funded his latest – and arguably most ambitious – film, Megalopolis by selling a vineyard and then borrowing against his other holdings in the California wine industry. Against a US$120 million budget, Megalopolis grossed only $15 million, and now the legendary director is auctioning off much of his prized watch collection. Initial thoughts Positioned at the top of the F.P. Journe collection alongside the Sonnerie Souveraine and Astronomic Souveraine, each FFC is engraved with the customer’s name. In this case, that name is Francis Ford Coppola. That makes it arguably the FFC to own, even surpassing the unique tantalum example made for Only Watch 2021, which sold for CHF4.5 million. In this context, the estimate of over US$1 million seems conservative. The unique FFC made for Only Watch in 2021. F.P. Journe rarely sells prototypes. Only a handful of the brand’s prototypes have ever emerged for sale publicly, and all of those were originally sold by Mr Journe well before the firm achieved the success it does today. F.P. Journe simply doesn’t need to sell prototypes anymore. The FFC, and Mr Coppola...

Seiko Introduces Six New Speedtimers, Including Three Limited Editions Celebrating the Datsun 240Z Worn & Wound
Seiko Introduces Six New Speedtimers Aug 5, 2025

Seiko Introduces Six New Speedtimers, Including Three Limited Editions Celebrating the Datsun 240Z

We’re several years deep into the era of collaborative, limited edition watch releases, and while a lot of the hype has subsided around some of these drops, there’s no sign that the overall strategy is shifting anytime soon. Brands both large and small are still keen to slap partner logos on dials and casebacks, and draw parallels between watches and, well, you name it. Obviously, the automotive world is ripe for these collaborations, and is the window through which a trio of new Seikos come into our lives. Three limited edition references made in partnership with Datsun are the headline here, but in a smart move, Seiko is simultaneously announcing corresponding regular production models that riff on the same themes without all the branding. So there’s something here for the Datsun enthusiast (of which we know there are many) as well as those that are more inclined to shun this type of commercial cross-polination and just want their watch to be a watch and not an exercise in remembering a very specific link to a carmaker’s history.  The premise for all these watches (or rather, for the limited editions) is Seiko’s relationship with Datsun, which dates back to the early 1970s when Seiko supported the 240Z in races across the world. Most notably, Seiko was a sponsor of the #11 car that won the East-African Safari Rally, a 6,200 kilometer race that is generally regarded as one of the most challenging on the international circuit.  All of the watches discussed here...

Arcanaut’s New “Havender” and “Klint” Dials Make Use of Unexpected Materials to Great Effect Worn & Wound
Nov 30, 2023

Arcanaut’s New “Havender” and “Klint” Dials Make Use of Unexpected Materials to Great Effect

We’re nearing the end of the year, and being the type of person who is already keenly interested in list making as a form of assessment, I’ve naturally started to think about the watches, brands, and new releases that have left the biggest mark in 2023. For me personally, there probably isn’t a more important release or addition to my own collection than the Arcanaut Arc II Fordite, a watch I’ve made no secret of my admiration for many times over. Arcanaut looms large for me as an independent brand that is accessible, contemporary in their aesthetic, and willing to experiment, all things I put a high value on when it comes to new watches. Their latest releases are something of an extension of the D’Arc Matter Colors Collection we told you about a few months ago, and lean heavily into the brand’s commitment to experimenting with materials in new and interesting ways.  First up is the Havender, which takes the Arc II platform and gives it a dial in a gorgeous shade of light purple. But this isn’t simply a coat of paint on a base dial – according to Arcanaut, the Havender represents the brand’s most ambitious composite dial to date. The source of the dial and its unique color comes from a surprising place: Scandinavian mussel shells. Part of the ethos of the Arcanaut brand is to source components locally whenever possible, and brand co-owner James Thompson saw an interesting opportunity via a mussel farm located close to Aracanaut’s headquarters.  Once a...

The Oliver Gallaugher Deep Space sports a star-struck dial and some fine movement finishing Time+Tide
Aug 14, 2023

The Oliver Gallaugher Deep Space sports a star-struck dial and some fine movement finishing

Sometimes, hearing about a new brand named after someone you’ve never heard of, some alarm bells ring. It’s a fairly classic trick used by companies to instil a sense of heritage for watches that are designed out of a catalogue and mass-manufactured for profit. Oliver Gallaugher couldn’t be further away from that stereotype, proudly attaching … ContinuedThe post The Oliver Gallaugher Deep Space sports a star-struck dial and some fine movement finishing appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.

24 Perpetual Calendar Watches from The World's Leading Luxury Watchmak Teddy Baldassarre
Jun 14, 2023

24 Perpetual Calendar Watches from The World's Leading Luxury Watchmak

The most sophisticated type of calendar watch, a perpetual calendar is endowed with a mechanical “memory” that enables it to record and display the time, day, date, month, and often the moon-phase, accurately for many years. The complex movement in a perpetual calendar compensates for the length of every month, including February in both leap years and non-leap-years, meaning that it should not need adjusting until the year 2100, which is the next annum in which the Gregorian calendar’s leap-year cycle is disrupted (it will be the first year since 1900 that is exactly divisible by 100 but not by 400, and thus not a leap year). As you'd expect, perpetual calendar watches (called "quantième perpétuel" in French) are extremely complicated in their mechanics and design, representing one of the highest pinnacles of high horology and priced accordingly. Throughout the modern wristwatch industry, only a relative handful of brands have mastered the art of the perpetual calendar: we showcase some of them, and their most impressive perpetual calendar timepieces, here.  A. Lange & Söhne Lange 1 Perpetual Calendar Introduced in 2021, the Lange 1 Perpetual Calendar adopts the new approach taken to perpetual calendar design that the Saxon maison established in 2012 with the Lange 1 Tourbillon Perpetual Calendar. In typical Lange fashion, the technical approach taken is complex in the service of user-friendly practicality. Its in-house, self-winding movement, Caliber L021.3, ...

IWC’s Mark Series Turns 75, and the Brand Celebrates with a New Silver Dialed Variant of the Popular Pilot’s Watch Worn & Wound
Rolex fans were close Jun 5, 2023

IWC’s Mark Series Turns 75, and the Brand Celebrates with a New Silver Dialed Variant of the Popular Pilot’s Watch

Last year, IWC launched the Mark XX in a somewhat unusual way for a marquee watch from a big Swiss brand: without much fanfare at all. We’re accustomed in the watch world to getting teased about new releases weeks ahead of time, with splashy PR campaigns to accompany the biggest reveals. The Mark watches, for many watch enthusiasts, are the watch collection that comes to mind when thinking about IWC. So for the new Mark, arguably the most critical of the entire Pilot lineup (don’t @ me, Big Pilot fans) to just kind of appear on the website one day last year was a little surprising.  Now, almost a year later, the Mark XX is very much out there and certainly no longer an under the radar secret to stumble over. The subtle updates to the dial (including a date window which appears to be a bit more in harmony with the outer Arabic numerals clocking the hours) and a higher spec movement have gone over well with the collector community, and the Mark XX is the rare update to a core collection watch, from any brand, that seems to have a consensus around being an improvement. Think about how rare that is, for a minute. When the new 41mm Submariner was announced in 2020, Rolex fans were close to war. But with the new Mark, if you liked the last one, chances are you were going to like this one more. If it was never your thing to begin with, your opinion probably didn’t change. It was that most uncommon type of watch release: one with no real controversy.  Since the black and b...

The Garmin Instinct 2X Solar Features an Array of Upgrades Including a Built-In LED Flashlight, Extended Battery Life, and Improved GPS Accuracy Worn & Wound
Apr 24, 2023

The Garmin Instinct 2X Solar Features an Array of Upgrades Including a Built-In LED Flashlight, Extended Battery Life, and Improved GPS Accuracy

You can tell a bit about a person just from the watch they’re wearing. A certain brand, particular style of watch, or a deep-cut reference can easily give away the wearer’s horology knowledge, adjacent interests, or occupation. To be fair, any ordinary person wearing a watch out in the wild could just have the watch on to tell the time, but watch enthusiasts in the room know what I’m talking about. This leads me to the smartwatch, and more specifically, the brand, Garmin. Does someone wearing a Garmin watch elicit that same mental process as someone wearing a mechanical watch? It does so for me. Whether it’s a waiter rocking their Garmin during a work shift or catching it on someone’s wrist during a casual grocery store run, in my head, I’m already painting a picture of someone who likes to “get out there.” Garmin remains as one of the most capable outdoor adventure and lifestyle smartwatch brands in the market today. In my opinion, the Garmin Instinct in particular happens to toe the line between analog and smartwatch. Yes, there is not an hour, minute, or seconds hand in sight (actually there is a model called the Garmin Crossover that offers this type of display). But relative to the entire Garmin smartwatch catalog, the Instinct is as analog as it gets. There is no touchscreen at all and navigation through the Instinct’s multi-function features requires an actual push of a button. The monochrome screen display is absent of any colorful distractions an...

Vulcain Knows How to Play The Hits and the Chrongraphe 1970’s is their Latest Vintage Tune Worn & Wound
Vulcain Knows How Mar 24, 2023

Vulcain Knows How to Play The Hits and the Chrongraphe 1970’s is their Latest Vintage Tune

Since Vulcain received a new lease on life with entrepreneur and brand enthusiast Guillaume Laidet at the helm, the storied brand has not missed. By tapping into Vulcain’s deep archives and playing the hits, so to speak, many of us have thoroughly enjoyed getting reacquainted with the brand. Debuting with their most iconic watch, the Cricket, was the logical first step in relaunching Vulcain. It’s a watch that has all the name-cache with it being the first mechanical alarm watch and its historical ties to several United States presidents. Following the Cricket, Laidet and company hit us with an unexpected dive watch with the Skindiver Nautique. Once again, by essentially producing a recreation of a past reference, Vulcain released a diver with all the vintage charm you could ask for (a type of watch that every brand needs in their arsenal), packed into a tidy 38mm case. So how does Vulcain move forward from the aforementioned models? Well, with a presidential watch and a diver already in the quiver, naturally a chronograph is the next move. Continuing with what has been clearly working for the brand thus far, Vulcain recently announced the Chronographe 1970’s, a handsome chronograph and another spot-on revival from their back catalog. There is a certain magnetism and allure to the Chronographe 1970’s which I’ll try to identify as we go on. First, the dial. I applauded the typeface choice on the Skindiver Nautique during a recent On-Wrist Reaction, and I’ll do t...

THE TOP WATCH REVIEWS OF 2021 - The Omega Aqua Terra XXL (#14) Time+Tide
Omega Aqua Terra XXL #14 Jan 10, 2022

THE TOP WATCH REVIEWS OF 2021 - The Omega Aqua Terra XXL (#14)

Editor’s note: The Time+Tide team reviewed hundreds of watches in 2021. Here we count down the Top 30 reviews of the year by online traffic. At number 14, it’s the Omega Aqua Terra XXL… Today a rough count yields just over 61 Aqua Terra variations in the Omega range.  There are iterations as small as … ContinuedThe post THE TOP WATCH REVIEWS OF 2021 – The Omega Aqua Terra XXL (#14) appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.

Auction Watch: J.P. Morgan Jr’s Charles Frodsham Split-Seconds Chronograph with Tourbillon SJX Watches
Dec 15, 2020

Auction Watch: J.P. Morgan Jr’s Charles Frodsham Split-Seconds Chronograph with Tourbillon

A noted collector of art, objects, and also timepieces – he famously once owned the world’s most complicated watch that is now lost – banker J.P. Morgan was a frequent client of Charles Frodsham, having no doubt inherited the inclination from his father, also a client of the English watchmaker. Once preeminent globally, particularly in the late decades of the 19th century when Morgan was active, Charles Frodsham is perhaps most famous for supplying top-of-the-line pocket watches to Morgan that he then gifted to friends and partners of his eponymous bank. Sometimes known as “Morgan caliper” watches, these watches were amongst the most expensive watches in the world at the time. Some two dozen of these presentation watches are known – and 11 have been sold publicly – with all being identical in combining a minute repeater with split-second chronograph and tourbillon. Perhaps the most important of these watches is the one that will soon go on the block at Sotheby’s in New York on December 15 at 10:00 am EST. The watch once owned by J.P. Morgan Jr., bearing the serial number “010’330” The ebauche was probably produced by Nicole Nielsen The tourbillon with a Nicole Nielsen Type 2 cage Being offered by the estate of Alexandra McCain Morgan, who’s perhaps better known as the older sister of the late Senator John McCain. The watch was originally purchased by J.P. Morgan Jr. in 1933 – the lot is accompanied by a copy of the original invoice. The watch on ...

IWC Pilot Watch Automatic Top Gun Review WatchAdvice
Ming ly positive Sep 23, 2020

IWC Pilot Watch Automatic Top Gun Review

I have made a promise to myself for this review, absolutely no cheesy 80’s movie quotes for this review. The IWC Top Gun pilots watch is after all, not associated or affiliated with any Tom Cruise movie whatsoever. This watch is part of an ongoing collaboration with the Strike tactics instructor program of the US navy. A partnership that began back in 2007, in which IWC manufacture watches specially designed from robust materials.  The use of alternative case materials is a focal point of all the Top Gun watches from IWC, with models being constructed from titanium, ceramic and a hybrid paring of the two; Ceratanium. The use of tougher metals comes from the watches needing to meet the specific requirements of elite jet fighter pilots, those ‘Top Gun’s’ if you will. Recently I got the chance to go hands on with the latest three hander in the Top Gun series, the automatic pilots watch in Ceramic. My initial impressions of the watch were overwhelmingly positive. At 41mm x 11.4mm, the ceramic cased timepiece really appealed to me visually. I have never really been a huge fan of traditional Flieger style watches, the dials always felt so cluttered and heavy. Of course I understand the need for the traditional type A and type B style Flieger watches. Flieger style pieces were born of necessity and practicality during the second World War. Pilots needed large dials and indices for precisely timing flights and bombing runs, the watches therefore bore oversized hands, huge...

Baselworld 2014: Nick English of Bremont Explains The Brand’s Partnership with Boeing (Video) Revolution
Bremont Explains Apr 3, 2014

Baselworld 2014: Nick English of Bremont Explains The Brand’s Partnership with Boeing (Video)

Bremont introduces a brand new series of watches made in a partnership with famed jumbo jet manufacturer Boeing. Find out how the partnership got started and the special  type of stainless steel, “Custom 456” used to make the unique case. Interviewed by Adi Soon. (More Pictures Below…) [ooyala code=”AxYXl2bjr8-41G-JC_4GwmVyiqYN3V9Y” player_id=”906938bb2f324c93a733b2fb3b34b260″ width=”750″ height=”590″]  

Highlights: Unique Indies at Marteau & Co’s ‘The Encore’ SJX Watches
Oct 9, 2026

Highlights: Unique Indies at Marteau & Co’s ‘The Encore’

Yesterday Marteau & Co kicked off its fourth sale, The Encore, comprising primarily pièce unique watches from independent watchmakers, which is the founding theme of the online-only auctioneer. Beyond its focus on indies, the auctioneer sets itself apart with its “maker’s fee”, which rewards the maker of the timepiece with 3% of the hammer price for each watch sold Conceived to allow watchmakers to reap the rewards when their products appreciate, this fee is also known as the artist’s resale right, or droit de suite, a concept that’s been codified into law across Europe for fine art. Marteau & Co’s approach is the first instance of its application in watchmaking, and seems successful so far. Lot 9 – Yosuke Sekiguchi Primevere “Interprétation du Japon” pièce unique Yosuke Sekiguchi is Swiss independent watchmaker, born in Japan and trained in France, who cut his teeth at La Joux-Perret and Christophe Claret before pivoting to restoration work in 2016. Around that time he transformed an orphaned Jules Jürgensen pocket watch movement dating to 1871, casing it into a wristwatch, which inspired the Primevère. We covered the prototype of this watch in depth when it debuted in 2021, and shot another (this time in rose gold with a black enamel) earlier this year, but this stainless steel confirmation with a red enamel sub-dial – a look inspired by the Japanese flag – is perhaps the best looking configuration we’ve seen. Beyond its striking looks, this...

Watches, Stories, & Gear: An Unusual Apple Watch Strap, A Colorful Storage Box, and A New Huckberry x Marathon Watch Worn & Wound
Ming Oct 3, 2026

Watches, Stories, & Gear: An Unusual Apple Watch Strap, A Colorful Storage Box, and A New Huckberry x Marathon Watch

Matty Extension-C Cables I am currently writing this week’s column from the comfort of the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. As it stands, I’ll end 2026 with about two-month’s worth of hotel stays under my belt. And while the idea of room service and having someone else make the bed does have its perks, there is one constant I am noticing more and more the longer I’m on the road: my phone charger is either ineffectually short, or the outlet is too far away from the bed.  This can absolutely be chalked up as a minor inconvenience, but one that is annoying. But, lucky for me, one that can easily be fixed with the help of the Matty Extension-C Cable. Modeled after those classic chunky extension cords that populate parents’ garages and Christmas light bins alike, these ten-foot USB-C cables offer two very important things to me – style and functionality. Coming in three colors and starting at $25 (but cheaper if you bundle!), I think they’re perfect for anyone who travels and gets a little tired of the same ol’ same ol’ white cable from Apple.  Oh, and speaking of Christmas, they’d make a great stocking stuffer, if you ask me. Type 6 Strongbox Keeping with the vintage-utility theme in retro colors, the Type 6 Strongbox would go swimmingly on your desk set-up with one of the extension-c cables above. These compact boxes (measuring in at just 6.25”w x 4.25”d x 2”h) are the perfect size to store all that random junk that accumulates around the office.  Once you...

Is A. Lange & Söhne’s Saxonia 36 Annual Calendar The Best Dress Watch Ever? (Hands-On) WatchAdvice
A. Lange & Sohne Sep 13, 2026

Is A. Lange & Söhne’s Saxonia 36 Annual Calendar The Best Dress Watch Ever? (Hands-On)

A. Lange & Söhne put their best foot forward at Watches & Wonders 2026, but does it hit all their exacting standards? Let’s find out! What We Love: A compact watch that makes its presence known Legible despite its size Highly complex & beautifully finished What We Don’t: Little negative space; a consequence of compaction Date corrector disrupts symmetry Would you request the price? Overall Rating: 9.25/10 Value for Money: 9/10 Wearability: 9.5/10 Design: 9/10 Build Quality:9.5/10 Of all the richness within German watchmaking, A. Lange & Söhne could be considered the most emblematic of the region. The veritable golden boy of German horology, it has often been cited as the mainstream leader in what best comprises the country’s ethos around mechanics and craftsmanship. Depending on who you ask, the history of the brand does get fuzzy, though not for any fault of their own. The realities of the Second World War, Soviet occupation, and consolidation under the Iron Curtain may never unscramble Glashütte’s complex past. What cannot be questioned, however, is the quality of work A. Lange & Söhne routinely produces. It’s why they’re often cited as the first step into luxuriously acquired taste, the first bold venture beyond the grip of the Swiss or Japanese industries, opening the veritable Pandora’s box that is haute horlogerie. As of late, though, they’ve even been shirking that archetype, rising to compete as one of the greatest watch brands around, regard...

Anordain’s New Model 1 Combines Porcelain Dial and Custom Font SJX Watches
Breguet style reflecting Aug 27, 2026

Anordain’s New Model 1 Combines Porcelain Dial and Custom Font

Best known for its affordable watches with fired enamel dials, Anordain is diversifying its offerings with the Model 1 Porcelain. Sporting a traditional porcelain dial, the new Model 1 showcases a brand-new, custom font that’s a twist on the traditional Breguet style, reflecting the brand’s focus on the finer details of design. Beyond a new design direction for the Scotland-based Anordain, the Model 1 is also represents a scaling up of its business. While the porcelain dial is made the old fashion way – painted by hand with a clay-based mixture – it can be produced at a higher rate than Anordain’s enamel dials, making the new Model 1 accessible both in terms of price and availability. Initial thoughts The Model 1 Porcelain is interesting from a business perspective. It underlines Anordain’s growth, as well as the brand’s strategy for dealing with its growth. Scaling up production sizeably while still preserving its speciality of traditional, artisanal-type dials is a prudent approach that maintains the brand’s identity. The Model 1 Porcelain, however, is not an industrial product. Rather, it retains the quirky character typical of Anordain’s watches. The watch is still typical Anordain with its clean design and thoughtful details. The dial and typography are appealing, especially with accents like the five-minute numerals and railway-like minute scale. The seemingly mismatched hands leave me with mixed feelings, but the whole is still attractive. The opti...

Recommended Reading: 'Universal People, Universal Dreams' Is A Timely, Heartfelt Telling Of One Man's Collecting Journey Into The Rarest Of The Rare Hodinkee
Grand Seiko Aug 24, 2026

Recommended Reading: 'Universal People, Universal Dreams' Is A Timely, Heartfelt Telling Of One Man's Collecting Journey Into The Rarest Of The Rare

Last week I kicked off a mini-series where I'm finally taking some great books off my shelf and sharing them with the world. We covered a brand-backed "Grand Seiko" book by ERG Media, which set a great tone. This week we're looking at another brand-focused tome, the much more recently released "Universal People, Universal Dreams," which documents the hyper-focused collection of one man. But it's more than a book about Universal Genève. I first met the author and publisher, Luca Mignini, a few years ago, though I'm not exactly sure where. Maybe at an auction in Geneva? At some point, he just turned into a fixture in my vintage watch sphere, a person who could turn up anywhere there was a vintage watch. At the famed antique fair in Parma, Italy? Sure. Luca Mignini and Max Bernardini He had a prototype Universal Genève Space Compax/Polerouter Sub dive watch made for the U.S. Navy, which I shared in my photo report from the fair. On that same trip, he just randomly showed up as I was looking at Patek 1518 dials with Max Bernardini (Uncle Max, to his close friends) at his shop right across the street from "The Last Supper" in Milan. That later encounter makes sense, as Bernardini (and his team, including Mauricio Gimenez, who is named as "The Trusted Advisor" in the book) was instrumental in curating the collection. Mignini frequently travels between his home in Rome and Milan, where he serves as a professor at Bocconi University.  During the COVID-19 pandemic, Mignini and B...

Introducing: The Krayon Parhelion, A Maximalist Take On The Brand’s Anywhere Watch Hodinkee
Krayon Jul 13, 2026

Introducing: The Krayon Parhelion, A Maximalist Take On The Brand’s Anywhere Watch

What We Know Pretty much anything that independent watch brand Krayon produces feels like it rests solidly in the if-you-know-you-know realm of exquisitely engineered high-end complications. The brand's focused catalog contains variations on three main complications—the universal sunrise and sunset calculator that is the Everywhere, the watchmaker-adjustable sunrise and sunset-indicating caliber that is the Anywhere, and the most recently introduced weekday and weekend pointer date display in the Anyday. Sure, Krayon's recent Pac-Man collaboration in a limited run of Anywhere watches might feel like an odd one out, but most of the examples I've seen on the wrists of collectors have all flown well under the radar with tastefully measured executions. But if you've ever wondered what a Krayon would look like with a touch—scratch that, a lot—of bling, well, the new Parhelion might just do the trick. It's hard to mistake this new watch for anything else in the catalog thanks to the sheer number of baguette-cut sapphires set across the entire watch—159 of them, to be exact. To house this number of gemstones, the case is 42mm in diameter, made from an alloy of white gold with a high percentage of palladium for a very white hue to match the brightness of the stones. Thickness, given the complication, is impressive at 9.5mm. When I first saw a prototype of the Parhelion a few months ago, only the bezel was inlaid with sapphires, in a stunning gradient from white to blue. Bu...

The $2,100 Question: Hampden’s First Hand Watchmaking Workshop Worn & Wound
Jun 29, 2026

The $2,100 Question: Hampden’s First Hand Watchmaking Workshop

I was recently invited by the Hampden Watch Company to participate in their First Hand Watchmaking Workshop and experience what it’s like to build my own watch from the ground up. I first happened upon the program through an Instagram advertisement at the beginning of 2026, only a couple of months after its December 2025 launch. Upon my initial review of the program’s website and details at that time, my only gripe was the cost of the workshop itself (a topic we will revisit later), especially as an enthusiast who bases his collecting solely on the affordable vintage sphere. When Hampden reached out to me, I became eager to see how my area of watch collecting would intersect with a different sphere of the hobby; in essence, how my ultra-budget-conscious perspective on watch collecting would intertwine or potentially clash with that of a more luxury oriented experience. Additionally, having personally performed minor maintenance and repairs on watches without professional equipment or knowledge of how to fully disassemble or reassemble a movement, I was curious to see what type of experience I would gain and potentially implement in my daily watch life through participating in the workshop. The day starts at 9:30 AM in Hampden’s headquarters located in a rather quiet area within the West Loop of Chicago. The well-preserved architecture of the building’s interior is a remarkable demonstration of how to properly preserve old industrial spaces from a period gone by–...

Introducing the Autodromo Group C Turbo Sport, the Brand’s First Ana-Digi Watch Worn & Wound
Jun 10, 2026

Introducing the Autodromo Group C Turbo Sport, the Brand’s First Ana-Digi Watch

Few innovations in automobile engines have been as impactful as the turbocharger, first brought to production cars in the 1960s and popularized in the United States largely thanks to the iconic turbodiesel 1978 Mercedes-Benz 300SD. With a telltale whistle accompanying that extra boost of power, the turbocharger soon became synonymous with motorsports and performance cars of the 1980s: the Audi Quatto’s breathy flutter, the 930 Porsche 911 Turbo’s heartpounding lag, and the Ford Sierra RS Cosworth’s European rally dominance all helped propel the decade into the “golden era” of turbocharged performance.  With their latest release, motorsport-inspired watchmakers Autodromo are bringing another homage to a period of automotive innovation, this time highlighting the Group C “prototype” class of sports cars from the 1980s, many of which featured bold (and sometimes dangerous) turbocharged power. The basis of this new collection is their already-successful Group C digital watch, initially released in 2023, and the new Turbo Sport models draw inspiration from the analog tachometers of turbocharged ‘80s motorsports legends to create an ani-digi design that straddles the classic and modern eras of automotive and horological design.  First, the dimensions: measuring in at 38.5mm in case diameter and 40mm lug-to-lug, the Group C Turbo Sport is compact, and sits fairly lightly on the wrist with a 11.4mm case thickness measurement. The case itself is anodized aluminum ...

Ming, How’s the Peeping? Introducing the 29.06 Peep Show Worn & Wound
Ulysse Nardin are May 12, 2026

Ming, How’s the Peeping? Introducing the 29.06 Peep Show

Naming a watch is important. This goes without saying, probably, but it’s something we don’t really talk about or think about enough. Just last week I was having a conversation with a colleague about how unfortunate it is that Grand Seiko seems to keep missing the mark with naming conventions. With so many releases, it’s tough to keep individual reference numbers at the front of the mind, and “Tentagraph” has yet to permeate watch culture in the way the brand perhaps thought it would. Some brands have a knack for coming up with catchy and distinctive names for watches that both make a ton of sense and are easily remembered and associated with a given watch. The team at Ulysse Nardin are the kings of this. The Freak? The Super Freak?? The Blast??? All immediately iconic in my opinion.  Today, Ming joins the Watch Name Hall of Fame (side note: that’s an article idea we’ll be pursuing shortly, I’ve just decided) with the Peep Show. When the Ming team first showed us a prototype of the Peep Show at Geneva Watch Days last year, we were led to believe it was a working name, or a code word for a product that was not fully fleshed out. Obviously we all thought it was pretty amusing at the time. But just last month, during Watches & Wonders week, when I learned that Peep Show was indeed the official name of the watch, well, let’s just say I was surprised and delighted, because it’s honestly perfect.  What is the Peep Show, you might be asking yourself at this ...

Introducing: Naoya Hida & Co.'s 2026 Slate Of Releases, Including Two Brand-New Models And Their First Porcelain Dial Hodinkee
Naoya Hida Apr 30, 2026

Introducing: Naoya Hida & Co.'s 2026 Slate Of Releases, Including Two Brand-New Models And Their First Porcelain Dial

What We Know It's spring, which means it's time for Naoya Hida's annual trunk show, where the brand tours the world to showcase its new watches. If you're in town for one of their few stops (like next week in New York), you can treat it like any tailor's trunk show and find out if the watch is a good fit. And every year, Hida-san and his team unveil a few new styles. In fact, you can see the ten releases on offer below. Some are familiar; others have small tweaks (the Type1 is now the Type1E because of the new domed crystal that makes it 10.9mm). But there are three watches that are so distinctly new that it's worth talking about. Let's go in numerical order, starting with a watch that is essentially just a dial revision, but it's a dramatic one at that. The Type2 series has been around for six years now as the brand's central seconds movement, followed by revisions in 2021 and then the coveted collaboration with The Armoury in 2022, called "The Lettercutter." I know a lot of people fought to get that piece, but there's a new Type2C-2 that's going to get some attention. While a big draw for Naoya Hida is the hand-engraved German or Argentium silver dials (in fact, that's where a lot of the price goes), they've pivoted here to their first-ever porcelain dial. The watch, powered by a Cal. 3020CS manually-wound movement with 45-hour power reserve and 4Hz beat rate, is cased in 37mm by 11.4mm stainless steel with a 44.8mm lug-to-lug. The glass is a curved sapphire crystal with...