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Results for AHCI (Académie Horlogère des Créateurs Indépendants)

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MB&F; Marks 20 Years with Legacy Machine Longhorn Editions SJX Watches
MB&F; Jan 14, 2025

MB&F; Marks 20 Years with Legacy Machine Longhorn Editions

As part of its 20th anniversary celebrations, MB&F; has unveiled the Legacy Machine Perpetual Longhorn and Legacy Machine Sequential Flyback Longhorn. These new models retain the groundbreaking movements developed by Stephen McDonnell but add a fresh twist in the form of elongated lugs, or “horns,” that give the watches their name. Limited to just 20 pieces each, the Longhorn editions feature stainless steel cases and a more muted take on MB&F;’s signature style with black dials. The Longhorn is a revival of sorts of a 2009 prototype of the Legacy Machine 1. To ensure good fit across a range of wrists, the longer lugs include dual spring bar holes; one at the tip and another closer to the case. Initial thoughts As a fan of MB&F;, and especially the work of Stephen McDonnell, I was immediately interested in the Longhorn editions, despite the fact that they’re largely cosmetic variations of existing models. The watches are intrinsically interesting, given their groundbreaking movements, and new versions of good watches are always worth a look. Visually, the Longhorn editions are more monochromatic than most MB&F; designs. Featuring stainless steel cases, black lacquer sub-dials, and rhodium-plated base plates, the Longhorn editions are a departure for MB&F;, offering an alternative to the brand’s signature, extroverted style. Notably, the black-and-silver livery was used on the recent LM SE Eddy Jaquet, albeit without the “long horns”. But there’s no denying the f...

Just Because - The 10:10 Position of Hands is so Deeply Rooted in Watchmaking that AI can’t Generate Anything Different Monochrome
Jan 13, 2025

Just Because - The 10:10 Position of Hands is so Deeply Rooted in Watchmaking that AI can’t Generate Anything Different

Artificial intelligence, or AI, is on everyone’s lips. It’s a topic that divides and generates strong opinions (pros or cons), and it will, in the future, become increasingly important, whether you like it or not. These tools, at least the tools that we, the public, can use (image or text generators such as ChatGPT), are […]

Introducing - The New Hamilton Jazzmaster Open Heart Auto 36mm and 42mm Watches with Midnight Blue and Emerald Green Dials Monochrome
Hamilton Jazzmaster Open Heart Auto Jan 13, 2025

Introducing - The New Hamilton Jazzmaster Open Heart Auto 36mm and 42mm Watches with Midnight Blue and Emerald Green Dials

The Hamilton Jazzmaster collection features a good range of models in various sizes, complemented by useful functions such as date indication, power reserve, and chronograph. The dials primarily come in classic shades like silver, black, and blue, with additional green, beige, and white options. The Open Heart models in the collection have always stood out, […]

The Three Watch Collection for $5,000: Devin Pennypacker Worn & Wound
TAG Heuer Aquaracer Professional 200 Solargraph Jan 10, 2025

The Three Watch Collection for $5,000: Devin Pennypacker

Editor’s Note: We pause on reader submissions to the Three Watch Collection for $5,000 series temporarily this week to make room for Devin Pennypacker, Worn & Wound’s Media Manager. Devin is a watch industry veteran with a penchant for tool watches, but that doesn’t mean he won’t class the place up a little from time to time, as you’ll see in his three picks below.  When Zach Kazan throws down the “pick three for $5,000” challenge gauntlet, you take it up. As a watch enthusiast and collector who has never felt the need to round out a collection but rather trusts a gut instinct, I figured this would be a fun opportunity to boil down what I would look for given the hypothetical. For my picks, I tried to think about what type of watch I wore the most and what those picks said about me. Looking primarily at the manufacturer’s price, I struggled to come up with a variety that spoke to me within the pricing restraints, often wandering too far above the line. So, I will admit that one of these picks is a pre-owned option. With my shame out in the open but integrity intact, let’s take a look at the picks. TAG Heuer Aquaracer Professional 200 Solargraph A bit of an odd pick heavily overshadowed by its titanium, and above this budget, sibling. Despite some contention, there can be no denying that the TAG Heuer Aquaracer collection is an iconic one. Instantly recognizable with a badge well known, the Aquaracer Professional can easily find itself serving as an adve...

The Least Expensive Panerai Watches Teddy Baldassarre
Panerai Watches Panerai might be Jan 8, 2025

The Least Expensive Panerai Watches

Panerai might be the most in-your-face example of the quintessential Tool Watch That Made Good as a Luxury Item. Unlike many other contenders for that title, a Panerai watch today looks essentially the same as it did back in the 1940s, when Italian navy frogmen wore them into underwater combat. Few concessions have been made to modern tastes and trends: the luminous material on the dials is no longer radioactive (inarguably a positive change), Rolex no longer makes the cases, and you no longer have to be a naval commando to own one, but otherwise the relatively few models that make up the Panerai family have stubbornly adhered to their military-issue origins. It is this adherence that makes Panerai, for many, an all-or-nothing proposition — either you’re in the brand’s worldwide, rabid coterie of fans and collectors, proudly self-dubbed the Paneristi, or you roll your eyes at the notion of ever owning one: they’re too big, too flashy, too clunky, too Stallone.  This article, the latest in our series of Price of Admission guides, is aimed at those aspiring to join the former group — in other words, those wishing to pull the trigger on their first Panerai but possibly intimidated by the breadth of choices — and, of course, by the ticket price for entry to that first tier of Paneristi-land. Without further ado, let’s find the most affordable Panerai watches in each of the current product families. RADIOMIR The Radiomir, first conceived in 1935 but tracing its m...

Out of Order Gets in on the Mother-of-Pearl Trend with a Collection of Affordable Quartz Divers Worn & Wound
Jan 7, 2025

Out of Order Gets in on the Mother-of-Pearl Trend with a Collection of Affordable Quartz Divers

Mother-of-pearl has long acted as a sort of bridge between the commercial and artistic worlds of Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. Venetian artisans were particularly known for incorporating mother-of-pearl into luxurious pieces of jewelry and decorative art, cementing its role as a symbol of opulence and elegance. It comes as no surprise, then, that Venice’s own Out of Order has released their unique spin on the material with the Casanova 38. While one elective course taken in college hardly qualifies me as an art historian, the first thought I had when viewing the Casanova was of artwork displayed on subdued museum walls, drawing the eye to the works themselves rather than their surroundings. In that vein, the Casanova’s three decidedly dazzling color options (pink, turquoise, and green) are paired with comparatively conservative styling. This lets the pearlescent dial rightfully take center stage, while other more functional features of the watch-like the screw-down crown, 100-meter water resistance, and butterfly clasp-act as supportive extras. That doesn’t mean that the Casanova lacks distinct design details, though. The hand-applied indices and aluminum bezel insert match the chosen dial color and feature Superluminova C3 lume, and the top of the seconds hand and crown both feature the cheeky signature triple-O logo, differentiating the Casanova from other similarly-styled watches in the company’s own lineup. Furthermore, Out of Order’s slogan, “Dama...

Longines Introduces a Conquest Heritage Limited Edition for the Year of the Snake Worn & Wound
Longines Introduces Jan 6, 2025

Longines Introduces a Conquest Heritage Limited Edition for the Year of the Snake

Over the holiday break, I frequented the local Chinese restaurant not once, not twice, but three times. And each time, before my General Tso was brought to the table, I would pore over the paper placemat, going to the list of everyone’s birth year in my head. Oh, he’s definitely a horse, I’d think. Her? A dragon…eh, I don’t see it. I, myself, am a Sheep, which makes sense considering I’m pretty much useless and wear a lot of wool. But the real star of the show is the Snake. Representing wisdom, rebirth, and vitality – I’m cautiously optimistic about what 2025 may bring for us. And that optimism is only fortified by the string of new watches that are coming from Longines right out of the gate for the New Year. Their latest limited-edition, a Conquest Heritage model designed to honor the Chinese zodiac, is a bold, thoughtful design, and a welcome addition to this year’s Lunar New Year offerings from some of our favorite brands.  What’s noticeable first about this new edition to the Conquest Heritage line-up is the sunray gradient dial that’s as eye-catching as it is unique. Being a traditional color in the Chinese New Year tradition, red seems a fitting choice that also helps to set this specific reference apart from the more neutral dial colors of the line, which is all beige, black, and silvers. The gradient is a particularly smart choice, giving the lumed gold indices room to shine, while not being too vibrant against the stainless steel case. On th...

TAG Heuer is Once Again the Official Timekeeper of Formula 1 SJX Watches
TAG Heuer Jan 6, 2025

TAG Heuer is Once Again the Official Timekeeper of Formula 1

On the back of the hefty, 10-year LVMH-Formula 1 sponsorship deal signed last year, TAG Heuer now returns as the official timekeeper of Formula 1, just in time for the sport’s 75th anniversary in 2025. This is a homecoming of sorts of TAG Heuer, which was official timekeeper for F1 for a decade from 1992. In fact, the brand’s roots in motorsports go back several decades - Heuer was the first luxury watch brand to display its logo on a Formula 1 car in 1969, and the first to sponsor a team in 1971 when it partnered with Scuderia Ferrari. And TAG Heuer famously signed Ayrton Senna as an ambassador in 1988, just before he became a champion driver. Jack Heuer (centre, in blue) at Ferrari in Maranello In fact, the brand name itself references F1: well before TAG Group acquired Heuer in 1985, the Saudi-owned group was already shareholder in McLaren and only sold its stake in the automaker and racing team last year. TAG Heuer’s return to F1 comes at an opportune time, with the sport having evolved into a global entertainment franchise under the ownership of Liberty Media. According to F1, it now boasts an audience of 750 million fans, many of whom are drawn into the sport by the hit Netflix series, and also an upcoming film starring Brad Pitt.  

Peter Speake Returns with PS Horology and the Tsuba SJX Watches
Patek Philippe Nautilus But Jan 5, 2025

Peter Speake Returns with PS Horology and the Tsuba

Peter Speake has introduced the first watches under his new brand, PS Horology. Long separated from the eponymous brand Speake-Marin, Mr Speake has launched the Tsuba. A significant departure from his earlier designs, the Tsuba’s case and bracelet features flowing, organic lines inspired by tsuba, guards found on traditional Japanese swords that were functional but often exquisitely decorated. The debut of PS Horology, just six days into the new year, is the first significant relaunch of 2025 but probably not the last. Initial thoughts Mr Speake is a significant figure in the early history of independent watchmaking, so the launch of his new brand attracted my attention. While the designs are a departure from what I’m used to seeing from the projects he’s been involved with in the past, they are nonetheless executed with an eye for the details. The Tsuba is all about its case and bracelet design, which is almost organic in feel, calling to mind watches like the Patek Philippe Nautilus. But the Tsuba’s design has an altogether different influence, and the similarity is incidental. The unusual shape of the case means it’s difficult to manufacture and finish, with dramatic transitions between brushed convex surfaces and polished concave surfaces. The watch is powered by the well-known Vaucher cal. 5401, a thin, sophisticated calibre that helps the Tsuba achieve its appealing slimness of just under 9 mm. The multi-part dials are also worth close examination. The stan...

New Seiko x Shohei Ohtani Limited Edition Prospex GMT Divers For 2025 Teddy Baldassarre
Grand Seiko SBGJ217 back Jan 2, 2025

New Seiko x Shohei Ohtani Limited Edition Prospex GMT Divers For 2025

Just announced by Seiko is a pair of limited-edition Prospex watches done in collaboration with Los Angeles Dodgers phenomenon Shohei Ohtani. The SBEJ023 and SBEJ025 are both takes on the 1968 Heritage Diver’s GMT, which was released back in 2023 as the first mechanical GMT in the Prospex collection. These two diver GMT watches will come in the iconic Dodger Blue colorway, with the SBEJ023 having a blue bezel with black dial and the SBEJ025 sporting a blue bezel with contrasting white dial. While not totally on theme here, I recall Ohtani wore a Grand Seiko SBGJ217 back in 2023 when he signed with the Dodgers. For a little context, these aren’t the first Seiko watches done in collaboration with Ohtani. The first was the Prospex Diver SBDC191, which came in out in 2023, while he still played for L.A.'s other baseball team, the Angels of the American League. That watch had the red seconds hand and dial text as well as Ohtani’s signature on the clasp. These new watches have the Ohtani’s number 17 highlighted in red on the GMT rehaut and his signature engraved on the bracelet clasp. The SBEJ023 and SBEJ025 share the same basics as the standard 1968 Heritage Diver’s GMT, recognizable for its vintage-inspired, Marine Master-esque design. Measuring 42mm wide, 12.9mm thick, and with a 48.6mm lug-to-lug measurement, these watches are water-resistant to 200 meters and boast a very well-made ceramic bezel. The real GMT nerds will be a little disappointed with the lack of ...

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Worn & Wound
Jan 2, 2025

Lookbook: Get On Track with the Cadola Lydden Hill

Many of the automotive-inspired watches we love as enthusiasts often walk the line of being just out of reach. This can be due to pricing, styling, or branding. Cadola has set out to change all that, making approachable auto adjacent designs for the next era of enthusiasts. Their design language is fashionable, their branding is accessible, and most importantly their pricing is reasonable. This means that the rising generation of both racing and watch fans has a new alternative to turn toward in order to scratch their auto-inspo itch. The post Lookbook: Get On Track with the Cadola Lydden Hill appeared first on Worn & Wound.

Hands-on - The New Gradient Turquoise Dial of the Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra 150m Monochrome
Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra 150m Jan 2, 2025

Hands-on - The New Gradient Turquoise Dial of the Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra 150m

Very surreptitiously, Omega released a pair of Aqua Terra models just before Christmas that really caught our eye. As Omega’s everyday all-rounder capable of tackling most environments and still look classy, the new turquoise models are descendants of the more colourful and dressier Aqua Terra 150m Shades sub-collection – no texture on the dial, fully […]

Remembering John Weiss Through his Watches Worn & Wound
Jan 1, 2025

Remembering John Weiss Through his Watches

Early in the morning on May 9th, 2024, my dad, John Starr Weiss, passed away at the age of 77. He was a very kind, creative, and crafty person who always had some outlet for his imagination. From wild psychedelic drawings to photography to inventing toys (he briefly co-owned a toy brand, Weiss Twice), making leather bracelets, custom phone holsters, and modifying his clothes and hats with contrasting buttons or zipper pulls. In his later years, he carved strange sculptures and figurines out of wood, part of a ritual that went with smoking his pipe. He shared this passion with me, and I thank him for my creative abilities. Growing up, we weren’t into sports, religion, or the great outdoors, save for a light hike on a walking trail at places like Mohonk Mountain House, scouring outcroppings of slate for fossils. Instead, we bonded over art and objects. We would walk around talking about cars on the street, going into stores ranging from sporting goods shops like Paragon- looking at the gear, boots, and knives- to comic book stores (Forbidden Planet was the favorite), as well as antique and craft shops where my Dad would spend an inordinate amount poring over every detail. He was a collector by nature, perhaps to a fault, so he would easily get lost in minutiae. While going through his things, we discovered his collections went beyond what we knew. They included items of pure nostalgia, like dated corks from New Year’s Eve decades ago, sandals he made in college, slides o...

Maen Rounds out the Manhattan Collection with a New Larger Case Option Worn & Wound
Maen Rounds out Dec 31, 2024

Maen Rounds out the Manhattan Collection with a New Larger Case Option

Maen Watches, based in Stockholm, Sweden, has been crafting unique timepieces since 2017. With over eight different collections, they have developed a cohesive design language that is instantly recognizable as a Maen watch. Maen entered the integrated bracelet sports watch market about two years ago, although perhaps a tad late. Conversely, they appeared to embrace the resurgence of square(ish) watches early, offering a design that I personally prefer over a more recent controversial cubical release. Although I don’t have any hands-on experience with their watches yet, I have closely followed their development from the beginning and am pretty impressed with their attention to detail and the use of polished facets. This is particularly noteworthy considering their price point. Following the success of their Manhattan 37 Automatic and the Manhattan 39 Ultra-Thin Manual Wind, Maen will launch a new line, the Manhattan 40, with a larger case and automatic caliber.  Two standard models will be available: one in midnight blue and another in copper/salmon. Both will feature vertically elongated Côtes de Genève dials. Additionally, a special-edition model will feature a dial made of green jade stone. Jade is a valued gemstone with a craft history of about 7,000 years, renowned for its toughness and beauty. In China, it rivaled gold and diamonds. The Mayans, Aztecs, and Māori also cherished jade. Ancient Egyptians linked it to love and balance. Today, jade symbolizes goodness...

The Gear that Mattered to Me in 2024 Worn & Wound
Ming ly disparate things connected Dec 30, 2024

The Gear that Mattered to Me in 2024

Okay. Confession time. I’m not the most organized guy on the planet. Pretty much anyone in my life could confirm that for you. Pedantic, yes; OCD, diagnosed; but organized? No, not really. As somewhat befits my lifestyle and career, I like to be surrounded by things I love. I’m not a hoarder, but I’m also not a big believer in sterility. I like to be able to see my tools, my things. Open shelving is my friend, and I am very careful about how I use drawers: Drawers are where things go to die. A consequence of this is that my desk is, more often than not, coated in stuff. Pictures, books, stationary, watches, camera gear - it’s all within arms reach. In short, my desk is a pretty great representation of how my brain works. Put another way, my desk is a cacophony of seemingly disparate things connected only by a shared surface and a network of invisible threads that will only ever make sense to me. Also, there are a lot of watches. I love watches, and they take up a huge amount of my time, as well as my physical and mental real estate. But I’m not interested in watches in a vacuum, none of us are (at least not in my experience). Like any hobby, watch enthusiasm is a fluid thing, frequently intersecting and colliding with other interests, passions, and obsessions. An interest in dive watches might lead one collector to learn how to dive, while hours spent on Instagram might encourage a genuine passion for photography in another. Regardless of what parallel interest...

Introducing: The G-Shock MRG-B2000JS-1A Juryoku-Maru: San Fratello
Casio G-Shock presents Dec 28, 2024

Introducing: The G-Shock MRG-B2000JS-1A Juryoku-Maru: San

Casio G-Shock presents a high-end MR-G model inspired by Japanese craftsmanship every year. A regular MRG-B2000 is already on G-Shock’s top shelf. However, models designated with resounding Japanese names, such as Tsuiki, Tetsu-Tsuba, Sadanobu Gassan, Shougeki-Maru, and Hana-Basara, are the epitome of G-Shock technology. The Juryoku-Maru: San, a katana specially made for G-Shock by master […] Visit Introducing: The G-Shock MRG-B2000JS-1A Juryoku-Maru: San to read the full article.

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WatchAdvice
Zenith Chronomaster Revival ‘Shadow’ 2020 Dec 26, 2024

Best of WatchAdvice: Hands On Reviews

As the holiday season comes to a head, we’ve taken the time to curate some of our favourite articles from the past. So, curl up close to the fire (or for the Aussies, the air con!) and relax as we give you a rundown of our best Watch Review Articles to date! Here at WatchAdvice, we have a unique opportunity to go out and about with some of the watch industry’s finest offerings. While we have the privilege of wearing timepieces the world over, that doesn’t stop us from giving our honest opinions on them. We always make sure that – while we opt to review watches we actually like – we stay aware of how elusive perfection truly is in the watch world. While this has allowed us to maintain a fairly even opinion of our watches over the years, there were definitely some we got our grubby mitts on that we were sad to see go. Similar to the Best of WatchAdvice: Education article I just wrote, we decided to compile a list of our favourite watches that we have ever reviewed, all for your reading pleasure. So as we creep closer to the new year, relax and enjoy some of our best Review articles to date! Zenith Chronomaster Revival ‘Shadow’: 2020 & 2024 Back in 2020, founder of WatchAdvice Chamath Gamage was able to get his hands on a then-recent drop from Zenith: The Chronomaster Revival ‘Shadow.’ A modern reimagining of a 70s-era Zenith watch that was never produced, this watch was exemplary for several reasons. Its period-appropriate design was faithfully recreated by...

12 Technical Achievements in Watchmaking from 2024 Teddy Baldassarre
Jaeger-LeCoultre Piaget sometimes it's about Dec 25, 2024

12 Technical Achievements in Watchmaking from 2024

The word I keep reading to describe the watch industry in 2024 is “conservative.” There is certainly a case to be made for that view (and my colleague Bilal Khan does so quite eloquently in yesterday’s article), but there is also, I feel, ample evidence of the industry’s ongoing (and, to my mind, essential) devotion to doing new things on the technical side. In this day and age, with the watch business so diversified, so international, and so independent of one another in their schedule of releasing new products (the Spring windfall that is Watches & Wonders Geneva notwithstanding), it can be easy to overlook these innovations when you’re trying to tie up the watchmaking year in a neat bow. Of course, every watch brand has its own approach. Sometimes it’s about setting records (Jaeger-LeCoultre, Piaget); sometimes it's about elevating a brand’s repertoire to the next tier of complexity (Breitling, TAG Heuer); often, it’s just about taking a fresh approach, or adding a clever twist, to existing complications (Nomos, Swatch). For those who may have missed them or even forgotten about them, here are the technical innovations in the horological world — major and minor — that I found worthy of attention in 2024. Ball Model M Roadmaster A With the Roadmaster M Model A, Ball Watch introduces a mechanical alarm function to its predominantly rugged, tool-oriented lineup for the first time. But it’s not just any mechanical alarm function but an “Alarm-Matic...

Year in Review: Our Best Stories of 2024 SJX Watches
Vacheron Constantin manufacture Dec 24, 2024

Year in Review: Our Best Stories of 2024

As we look back on the year, we take pride in the stories we’ve shared and extend our sincere appreciation to all our readers for their support. As 2024 draws to a close, we revisit some of our standout features, spanning in-depth explorations of complex movements, historical perspectives on timekeeping, and comprehensive reviews of the latest watch releases. Our founder SJX looked at some of the most significant watches to emerge in 2024, including the record-setting F.P. Journe Tourbillon à Remontoir d’Égalité “15/93” prototype, and the fascinating Patek Philippe ref. 767 grand complication with double split-chronographs (which means triple elapsed time measurement) that was acquired by none other than the Patek Philippe Museum. Together with David Ichim, he also co-authored a series of stories explaining notable Rolex innovations, including the brand’s most complicated watch, the Sky-Dweller; the instantaneous Day-Date; and the Deepsea with its unparalleled pressure resistance. Based in Seattle, Brandon Moore nonetheless travelled to Geneva, where he visited the Vacheron Constantin manufacture in Geneva suburb Plan-les-Ouates and the Akrivia workshops in the city’s historic Old Town. Brandon also managed to visit the Patek Philippe Rare Handcrafts exhibition at the brand’s Geneva Salon, resulting in his photoessay. And in between all that, he pondered the last two decades of the perpetual calendar’s evolution, a span that has arguably given birth to s...

Hands-On: the Orion Sylph Worn & Wound
Seiko NH movements- Dec 23, 2024

Hands-On: the Orion Sylph

I have a confession: I previously dismissed Orion for the wrong reasons. As an avid collector of microbrands, somewhere along the way I subconsciously created an arbitrary value scale based solely on movements. Collecting primarily in the sub $500 range, most watches that have passed through my watchbox have been powered by Seiko NH movements- the long reigning king of budget friendly 3rd party workhouse movements. On the occasions that I crossed that $500 threshold, I’ve been conditioned to expect a Miyota 9000 series, slightly more expensive, and considered an upgrade largely thanks to an extra two beats per second and the resulting sweeping second hand. Truth be told, I could care less about beat rates, but owning something deemed more premium is hard to pass up. It’s this human desire for the seemingly better thing that led me to shy away from Miyota powered watches over $700. Afterall, having $700 to drop on a microbrand opens up the option to own a watch powered by a Sellita SW200, a Swiss movement synonymous with luxury. Of course, this is a deeply flawed way to collect watches and judge value. And, (spoiler alert) a guaranteed way to miss out on value-packed brands that don’t blow their entire budget on a movement. After spending time with Orion’s Miyota 9039 powered Sylph collection, which hovers just over $700 like much of their catalog, I’ve gained a new appreciation for brands that prioritize finishing and design over being the best bargain by spec sh...

Watches, Stories, & Gear: A Profile of RaMell Ross, the Year of the Smart Lock, and Death of a Unicorn Gets a Trailer Worn & Wound
Ming   Dec 21, 2024

Watches, Stories, & Gear: A Profile of RaMell Ross, the Year of the Smart Lock, and Death of a Unicorn Gets a Trailer

“Watches, Stories, and Gear” is a roundup of our favorite content, watch or otherwise, from around the internet. Here, we support other creators, explore interesting content that inspires us, and put a spotlight on causes we believe in. Oh, and any gear we happen to be digging on this week. We love gear. Share your story ideas or interesting finds with us by emailing info@wornandwound.com. A Special Edition of a Great Pack from Triple Aught Design  We are at the point where time is, frankly, not on your side if you’re looking for last minute holiday gifts. But we couldn’t help but include this new edition of the highly regarded FAST Pack Litespeed from Triple Aught Design as a last minute holiday gift for the gear and EDC enthusiast, Or for yourself, no judgement, we promise. The Black Magic Edition is, as you’d expect, a completely blacked out rendition of the 22 liter pack. It features Challenge Sailcloth’s ULTRA 400 fabric, an uncommonly lightweight, strong, and waterproof material. The retail price is $550, and more information can be found here. The Year of the Smart Lock is Coming  The end of the year always brings a slew of think pieces from many of our favorite publications on what to look for in the new year in terms of trends, tech, and just about everything else. Over at The Verge, they’ve got a story on 2025 being the year of the smart lock that caught our attention. Smartlocks make a lot of sense – they can be tied to an app on your phone, an...

Holthinrichs Ends the Year with a Limited Edition Collaboration with The Horology Club Worn & Wound
Holthinrichs Ends Dec 19, 2024

Holthinrichs Ends the Year with a Limited Edition Collaboration with The Horology Club

One of my favorite stories to cover over the course of 2024 has been the evolution of Holthinrichs, a brand I’ve long been fascinated by for their unique Horlogerie Brut design language and apparently boundless ambition. The brand shifted course quite dramatically in 2024, moving away from a reliance on 3D printing for their case construction, and focusing on a more affordable CNC-machined product that they hope will allow them to scale and reach new clients without sacrificing the brand’s vision. At the same time, they’ve also developed an insanely complex haute horlogerie piece that is easily their most ambitious watch to date. We covered the new affordable Signature collection earlier this year, as well as Ornament Nouveau, and we even had brand founder Michiel Holthinrichs on the podcast to walk us through all of it. To say it’s been an eventful year at Holthinrichs would be an understatement, and yet they’ve found time in the last days of 2024 to unveil yet another new piece, a collaboration with The Horology Club, a Hong Kong based collector community.  The limited edition Signature Ornament “Concrete Jungle” can perhaps best be viewed as a creative spin on the current stone dial trend. The dial is made from lume infused concrete, which according to Holthinrichs makes this the first luminous concrete dial ever made. We believe them, simply because concrete dials are incredibly rare (though not completely unheard of). Concrete, of course, is not a natur...

Longines Ultra-Chron Carbon High-Frequency Diver Review Teddy Baldassarre
Longines Ultra-Chron Carbon High-Frequency Diver Dec 17, 2024

Longines Ultra-Chron Carbon High-Frequency Diver Review

Just over two years ago, Longines launched the Ultra-Chron, a revival of the super-accurate 1968 original that gained notoriety as the world’s first high-frequency diver. Now Longines has released the Ultra-Chron Carbon, which is the brand’s first watch with a case made from carbon fiber, which, of course, is known for its lightweight durability. The watch, in fact, comes in at just 80 grams for the case and strap. The original Ultra-Chron Diver Ref. 7970 from 1968 was a cushion-cased steel watch that measured 41mm wide with 200 meters of water resistance. It was outfitted with the 5Hz Caliber 431 movement, which was accurate to 2 seconds per day. Our resident expert Mark Bernardo went into all the details of this model as well as the brand’s history with high-frequency timekeeping, in an article you can read here.  The 2022 revival was a little bigger, coming in at 43mm wide, but also beefed up the water resistance to 300 meters. This new Ultra-Chron Carbon shares the same basic specs as this revival model but the blacked-out design kind of makes all the difference in terms of style versatility. Rather than a red minutes hand and matching red accents on the bezel, we see a sleek, monochrome aesthetic that is more stealth than sporty. The use of a contemporary material like carbon also offsets some of that overt “vintage-inspired” design language in favor of its own identity. The cushion-shaped case measures 43mm wide and 14mm thick with a 48mm lug-to-lug measu...

The Omega Speedmaster for Military Pilots is Now Available to Civilians SJX Watches
Omega Speedmaster Dec 15, 2024

The Omega Speedmaster for Military Pilots is Now Available to Civilians

Originally conceived for pilots of the US military (and covered here by Fratello), the Omega Speedmaster Pilot is now available to civilians. The origins of the watch explain the military-influenced, instrument-style dial design, which is meant to evoke the utilitarian nature of an instrument panel inside a fighter jet. The regular production version of the watch retains the same specs as the military exclusive, but with different livery. The case has the straight lugs of the Speedmaster “Ed White” but in a larger format thanks to the automatic cal. 9900 inside. Initial thoughts I’m something of an outlier amongst enthusiasts since I prefer automatic to manual-wind, even within the Speedmaster collection. While a manual-wind movement is traditional for the Speedy, I appreciate the day-to-day convenience of an automatic. Additionally, Omega’s latest-generation automatic chronograph movements are all impressively high-spec. While the Speedmaster Pilot may not achieve the same aesthetic purity as its manual-wind counterparts, it remains an excellent everyday option, especially with the military provenance. That said, the military provenance is not exactly military-issue. The watch was designed for military pilots who presumably buy it on a personal basis for off-duty wear; it is not an actual mil-spec instrument watch. This can be seen in the dial design, which has aviation-inspired elements, rather than actual, functional indicators for pilots. Even though this is m...