I’ve been working hard for the last few months collecting data and building a new site: Panerai Source. This site is intended to be a culmination of information on all the Panerai watches in an easy-to-use format similar to the one used for Breitling Source, but this time for Panerai Watches. Every single Pre-V and Current model should be in the database and on the site. I am still looking for photos of models especially discontinued ones, and looking to eventually add a vintage section as well. I’ll also slowly be building up the articles section to provide users and especially newcomers with useful information.
If anyone has some Panerai photos they have taken and would like to contribute them for use on the site.. please email me and let me know! I would be very grateful for them. Even pics of different straps and buckles would be exceptionally useful. But please take a look, join the forum and help make the Panerai Watch Source a great friendly community for everything 🙂
The IWC Portuguese is one of the most recognizable classics in the IWC line of watches, having changed very little from generation to generation, though new variations have been coming out such as the F.A. Jones, 7 Day 5000 series Portuguese with the Pellaton winding system, and the new Regulateur Portuguese. The Portuguese Chrono is probably the most commonly seen variation of this IWC, and also the entry level model.
The one I have here is a Steel case, with Opaline dial and Gold Arabics and hands. The Chronograph hands are blued steel to differentiate them from the ones that tell the time. The movement is a modified Valjoux 7750 which IWC calls the Caliber 79350. The date wheel has been removed, and the seconds subdial moved from the 9 o’clock position to the 6 o’clock position. The movement is also the all gold-colored version of the Valjoux 7750 as you can see below.
The dial is a beautiful peice of work, with Guilloche subdials and finely lacquered writing, and the three-peice case is very well crafted. The bezel is polished stainless steel with a domed Sapphire Crystall, and the case and caseback are mostly Brushed Stainless. The Crocodile strap that came with it is on the thin side, but still quite serviceable. The only thing the watch is missing is a Date, but the dial would likely suffer from the addition of a date window.
A rear shot:
The case is 41mm in diameter, almost the same size as the Breitling Navitimer, and it wears very similarly as well. The style of the watch lends itself to the slightly older consumer as it is less sporty and more classic. Overall, an impeccable peice, with tons of history and style. Wearing the IWC brand tells those around you that you are a watch aficionado, not just a casual wearer.
Sorry… I just really wanted to say that. Back to business… the Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso is probably one of the ugliest popular watches out there in my opinion, and I never really liked them. However, that is starting to change. The lines do not flow, the bezel is clunky, and it usually sports a set of very out-of-place looking Arabics. But obviously the designers at Jaeger are doing something right, because the watch sells.
I am starting to like the Larger Reverso Grande’s, with the bigger face and thick straps. Check out this bad boy:
That’s the JLC Grand Reverso Complication a Tryptique… it is mind-boggling crazy. Under the first watch is another set of comlications on both the rear and the base of the watch.. just too many to list! It won the Watchtime Reader’s Choice Watch of the Year for technical innovation last year. I’m not surprised! (notice it didn’t win for Design 😉 )
In a way, they remind of me Beer and Wine, and Spyderco Knives. An acquired taste, one that develops when a distinguished gentleman reaches a particular point in his life or somesuch. Or maybe it’s just a taste you never acquire.
At any rate, the JLC Reverso is not a watch I like enough to buy, but it is starting to turn my head when I see one. The dials are certainly beautifully made, and the reverso mechanism is machined beautifully to very exacting tolerances. I really enjoyed playing with the one I handled. But in my opinion, the Reverso is one of those watches that is so ugly it is beautiful.
Breitling has released a new model: The SuperOcean Heritage Chrono. Based on the 46mm SuperOcean Heritage, this model contains a caliber 13 movement, based on the Valjoux 7750. Watch comes on the Ocean Racer strap or Ocean Classic bracelet.
Chronograph Movement, with Date, and available in the Black, Blue and Bronze.
With the explosive growth of the luxury watch in the last 5-10 years, its suprising to hear one name not commonly associated with high-end watches come up over and over again: Timex. Yes, that Timex. The same Timex that makes drugstore watches and supplies the bulk of the inventory for Wal-Mart and makes the tried and true Ironman Watches with their familiar Velcro Nylon straps.
Here are a couple of watches from the TX (Techno Luxury) Line of watches from TX’s 700 series. They come in very large sizes, and look quite nice.. some as large as 46mm.
However, there is more to the new Timex than just the new TX Watches (www.txwatches.com). The Timex Group consists of several brands and licenses which now include: Vincent Berard, Versace, Versus, Valentino, Salvatore Ferragamo, Guess, Helix, Nautica, Mark Ecko, Avirex, Timex, TX, Acqua, and Carriage. They are spread among 5 divisions based in Switzerland and the USA.
I was quite surprised to find out that the Versace watches were owned by the Timex Group. I had been considering the purchase of one of them for my girlfriend for a while, and have actually owned a couple as you might have known from reading my previous articles. These automatics had nice decorated swiss ETA movements in them, hardly something I would have associated with the Timex brand.
Some of the offerings from the Timex Group include the Versace DV One, in black ceramic – a very beautiful jewelry watch:
But the real suprise is the company that sits at the top of Timex Group, in the same way Breguet sits at the top of the Swatch Group, but with much less esteemed company so-to-speak. The company is Vincent Berard. The company makes less than 100 watches a year, priced at around $70,000 a pop, and is a premier small manufacture brand.
Here is an example of his work, the esteemed Luvorene 1. Read more about it here.
Will the Timex Group soon join the ranks of the Swatch Group, Richemont and LVMH? It will be interesting to see what happens..
