Tag: Baselworld 2015

Categories
Brand Gauthier

Show You The Romain Gauthier HMSTen

watch

 

A couple of months ago I finally had the chance to see the two examples of this ‘in the metal’, so I thought I’d share some photos of the platinum/ blue and white gold/ anthracite models, along with some thoughts.

You may recall an earlier post about some limited editions of Romain Gauthier’s HMS Ten, a continuation of the ‘Prestige HMS’ Collection and released in three variants of ten pieces each : platinum case with a blue dial, white gold with a champagne dial, and a red gold case with an anthracite dial.

 

This is a good looking replica watch, front and back. For those who are particular fans of fine finishing, and Gauthier is known for this, you won’t be disappointed.

Sharing the same case as their predecessors i.e. 41mm with a thickness of 12.10mm, the replica watch is notable for its sectored dial with off-centre hours and minutes, a partially open dial with the interestingly ‘cut’ seconds sub dial showing part of the hand-finished in-house movement visible through the display back, and the distinctive large flat case back crown which gives the case its clean design as well as the additional bonus of being easy to wind.

 

The numbers on the blue-dialled variant are silvered and the hands, rhodium-treated (gilded for the anthracite model). With the use of multiple layers and textures (smooth and Clou de Paris) for the dial, the result is really rather handsome. Gauthier’s continued use of layers and contrasting textures on his replica watches is, to my mind, something that he does incredibly well.

 

The opening between 4 o’clock and 8 o’clock reveals the balance wheel and seconds gear of the in-house Calibre HMS, which is also visible at the back. The movement is hand finished and polished, and its spartan lines, modern. With the exception of the mainspring, balance spring and jewels, all other components of the HMS Ten movement are designed, developed and manufacture by Romain Gauthier.

 

Coming on an alligator strap with a pin buckle also in a platinum buckle to match the case, this is, as Gauthier’s replica watches are, very much oriented towards horologically-inclined followers of independent replica watchmaking. There was, for a short period, an authorised dealer here in Australia. That business is no longer in operation, and as I looked at these and other of his replica watches, I wondered to myself whether they might reappear on the Australian retail market sometime.

Categories
Brand Romain Gauthier

Review of Romain Gauthier HMSTen

 

A couple of months ago I finally had the chance to see the two examples of this ‘in the metal’, so I thought I’d share some photos of the platinum/ blue and white gold/ anthracite models, along with some thoughts.

You may recall an earlier post about some limited editions of Romain Gauthier’s HMS Ten, a continuation of the ‘Prestige HMS’ Collection and released in three variants of ten pieces each : platinum case with a blue dial, white gold with a champagne dial, and a red gold case with an anthracite dial.

 

This is a good looking replica watch, front and back. For those who are particular fans of fine finishing, and Gauthier is known for this, you won’t be disappointed.

Sharing the same case as their predecessors i.e. 41mm with a thickness of 12.10mm, the replica watch is notable for its sectored dial with off-centre hours and minutes, a partially open dial with the interestingly ‘cut’ seconds sub dial showing part of the hand-finished in-house movement visible through the display back, and the distinctive large flat case back crown which gives the case its clean design as well as the additional bonus of being easy to wind.

 

 

The numbers on the blue-dialled variant are silvered and the hands, rhodium-treated (gilded for the anthracite model). With the use of multiple layers and textures (smooth and Clou de Paris) for the dial, the result is really rather handsome. Gauthier’s continued use of layers and contrasting textures on his replica watches is, to my mind, something that he does incredibly well.

 

The opening between 4 o’clock and 8 o’clock reveals the balance wheel and seconds gear of the in-house Calibre HMS, which is also visible at the back. The movement is hand finished and polished, and its spartan lines, modern. With the exception of the mainspring, balance spring and jewels, all other components of the HMS Ten movement are designed, developed and manufacture by Romain Gauthier.

 

Coming on an alligator strap with a pin buckle also in a platinum buckle to match the case, this is, as Gauthier’s replica watches are, very much oriented towards horologically-inclined followers of independent replica watchmaking. There was, for a short period, an authorised dealer here in Australia. That business is no longer in operation, and as I looked at these and other of his replica watches, I wondered to myself whether they might reappear on the Australian retail market sometime.

Categories
Angelus Replica Hands-on Swiss Replica

Closer Look At ANGELUS : From the Replica U10 Tourbillon Lumière to the U40 RacingTourbillon

Basel2016AngelusU10TourbillonLumiere5

In 2015 the venerable name of Angelus found itself once again in the replica watch spotlight after a three decade odd hiatus. Arguably the domain of vintage replica watch enthusiasts, its name was most frequently uttered alongside nostalgia about its movements (both for themselves and others) in particular, with the occasional lamentation about how it was a shame that they were longer extant.

If you are wondering about the shape of the case, Angelus say that it was inspired by the multi-display travel clocks for which they were known between 1930-1960. It is made of annealed stainless steel, which has fewer impurities than the usual 316L steel and is more finely grained.

Then, the U10 Tourbillon Lumière happened.

Released in 2015, the re-emergence of the Angelus name (by La Joux-Perret, who have done the same with Arnold & Son and are in turn owned by Citizen) was startling enough, but the form in which this replica watch took was so bold and seemingly antithetical to the Angelus replica watches of old that the collective attention of the replica watch world was immediately grabbed.

 

With a very 21st century look (not to mention sizing) that is glossily industrial and modern, its most distinctive characteristics are also the most obvious – the curved rectangular stainless steel case with the sapphire crystal wrapping around it. The one-minute flying tourbillon with its titanium bridge is highlighted through the use of four surrounding crystals through which you can see it from various angles.

Apart from the retention of the original logo and crown design, the modern Angelus bears little obvious ties, especially design-wise, to the original, but in terms of wanting to be at the boundaries in terms of pushing themselves technically and be known for this, then it can be argued that the old spirit is there.

If their goal was to say “hello, I’m baaaack!” with a bang then the limited edition (twenty-five pieces) U10 Tourbillon Lumière, with its flying tourbillon and dead beat second, certainly did that.

 

The case features a total of seven sapphire windows, including an open caseback that shows the manual in-house, 90-hour power reserve Calibre A100 movement powered by two mainspring barrels with laser-engraved plate pattern, hand-finished polished nickel-silver bridges and wheels. The size of the movement is 52.10mm x 30.40mm, in a case of 62.75mm x 38mm (thickness of 15mm), to give you some perspective.

On the side you can see a linear power reserve indicator. On the left is a transluscent grey-coated sapphire dial with a hour, minute and seconds hand, with the addition of SuperLumiNova at 12, 3, 6 and 9 o’clock (white) and black SuperLuminova for the hands. The deadbeat seconds hand is white lacquered.

Does the size detract from the replica watch? Well that’s going to be something subjective, but when I saw it, it seemed bigger than I had thought it would be but it was also more likeable than I had anticipated. I thought that its sheer size would overwhelm all other impressions but it didn’t; this is a slightly bonkers but attractive replica watch.

Because the movement is visible from so many angles in this piece you are treated to a variety of finishes from satin finishing of the mainplate with its laser engraving to the chamfered polished edges of the bridges, sunray satin finishing on the dial side of the plate, circular satin-finished wheels, bead-blasted and satin-finished tourbillon bridge, and the cage itself hand-chamfered and satin and mirror polished surfaces.

The overall impression of this is that it’s all shiny and rather big. At 99,500 CHF it’s going to rule a lot of people out anyway, but the size is something that needs to be experienced. It looks big on your screen, but it’s a replica watch that is impossible to get an accurate grip on without handling it.

As a follow up from this, Angelus have released the more ‘normally’ sized U20 Ultra-Skeleton Tourbillon, the U30 Tourbillon Rattrapante and the U40 Racing Tourbillon to add to their Urban Collection. I do love a simple numbering system; it really can’t be underestimated.

I didn’t have an opportunity to see the U10 until Baselworld 2016, when it was also my first ‘hands-on’ experience with the modern Angelus. Rather than have all of them in the one post I thought that I would leave the other 2016 pieces I photographed to a second one, so look out for it coming soon.

Basel2016AngelusU40RacingTourbiSkeleton2

To whet your appetite here is a glimpse of the U40 which at 26,350 CHF is quite frankly, not bad at all.

Categories
Angelus Replica Hands-on

ANGELUS : From the U10 Tourbillon Lumière to the U40 RacingTourbillon

Basel2016AngelusU10TourbillonLumiere5

In 2015 the venerable name of Angelus found itself once again in the replica watch spotlight after a three decade odd hiatus. Arguably the domain of vintage replica watch enthusiasts, its name was most frequently uttered alongside nostalgia about its movements (both for themselves and others) in particular, with the occasional lamentation about how it was a shame that they were longer extant.Replique Montre Hublot

Then, the U10 Tourbillon Lumière happened.

Released in 2015, the re-emergence of the Angelus name (by La Joux-Perret, who have done the same with Arnold & Son and are in turn owned by Citizen) was startling enough, but the form in which this replica watch took was so bold and seemingly antithetical to the Angelus replica watches of old that the collective attention of the replica watch world was immediately grabbed.

Apart from the retention of the original logo and crown design, the modern Angelus bears little obvious ties, especially design-wise, to the original, but in terms of wanting to be at the boundaries in terms of pushing themselves technically and be known for this, then it can be argued that the old spirit is there.

If their goal was to say “hello, I’m baaaack!” with a bang then the limited edition (twenty-five pieces) U10 Tourbillon Lumière, with its flying tourbillon and dead beat second, certainly did that.

With a very 21st century look (not to mention sizing) that is glossily industrial and modern, its most distinctive characteristics are also the most obvious – the curved rectangular stainless steel case with the sapphire crystal wrapping around it. The one-minute flying tourbillon with its titanium bridge is highlighted through the use of four surrounding crystals through which you can see it from various angles.

If you are wondering about the shape of the case, Angelus say that it was inspired by the multi-display travel clocks for which they were known between 1930-1960. It is made of annealed stainless steel, which has fewer impurities than the usual 316L steel and is more finely grained.

The case features a total of seven sapphire windows, including an open caseback that shows the manual in-house, 90-hour power reserve Calibre A100 movement powered by two mainspring barrels with laser-engraved plate pattern, hand-finished polished nickel-silver bridges and wheels. The size of the movement is 52.10mm x 30.40mm, in a case of 62.75mm x 38mm (thickness of 15mm), to give you some perspective.

On the side you can see a linear power reserve indicator. On the left is a transluscent grey-coated sapphire dial with a hour, minute and seconds hand, with the addition of SuperLumiNova at 12, 3, 6 and 9 o’clock (white) and black SuperLuminova for the hands. The deadbeat seconds hand is white lacquered.

Because the movement is visible from so many angles in this piece you are treated to a variety of finishes from satin finishing of the mainplate with its laser engraving to the chamfered polished edges of the bridges, sunray satin finishing on the dial side of the plate, circular satin-finished wheels, bead-blasted and satin-finished tourbillon bridge, and the cage itself hand-chamfered and satin and mirror polished surfaces.

The overall impression of this is that it’s all shiny and rather big. At 99,500 CHF it’s going to rule a lot of people out anyway, but the size is something that needs to be experienced. It looks big on your screen, but it’s a replica watch that is impossible to get an accurate grip on without handling it. Does the size detract from the replica watch? Well that’s going to be something subjective, but when I saw it, it seemed bigger than I had thought it would be but it was also more likeable than I had anticipated. I thought that its sheer size would overwhelm all other impressions but it didn’t; this is a slightly bonkers but attractive replica watch.

As a follow up from this, Angelus have released the more ‘normally’ sized U20 Ultra-Skeleton Tourbillon, the U30 Tourbillon Rattrapante and the U40 Racing Tourbillon to add to their Urban Collection. I do love a simple numbering system; it really can’t be underestimated.

I didn’t have an opportunity to see the U10 until Baselworld 2016, when it was also my first ‘hands-on’ experience with the modern Angelus. Rather than have all of them in the one post I thought that I would leave the other 2016 pieces I photographed to a second one, so look out for it coming soon.

Basel2016AngelusU40RacingTourbiSkeleton2

To whet your appetite here is a glimpse of the U40 which at 26,350 CHF is quite frankly, not bad at all.

Categories
Credor Replica Hands-on Men Watch

Full Review With Seiko Credor EichiII

SeikoEichi2dd

With last month’s opening of Australia’s first Seiko boutique in Sydney’s Queen Victoria Building it seems the right time to share with you a replica watch that is one of Seiko’s premium pieces.

 

It is not just in Australia that Seiko is associated primarily with a (huge) range of moderately priced  replica watches, but with this new boutique and a resident Grand Seiko specialist the full range of the brand’s wares will be more widely known here. Grand Seiko has been available in Australia for a a number of years now but not so Credor. Until now.

It is only in recent years that the (arguably still niche) world of high-end Seikos has gained some solid traction outside of Japan. The fact that many models have historically been ‘Japan only’ has perhaps added to its niche status, but as was pointed out during Seiko’s Baselworld 2016 press conference, the increasing popularity Grand Seikos is important to Seiko’s worldwide growth plans.

One of the Seiko high-end lines about which I’ve written before is the Spring Drive, named after the eponymous movement. As as segue within the Spring Drive line there was, for a brief two years between 2007 and 2009, a series of models called Izul, the only known Spring Drives that used the automatic Calibre 5R85 (49 jewels) sans GMT function, with a power reserve of 72 hours. Izul was Seiko’s fourth ‘premium brand’, the others being Grand Seiko, Galante, and Credor.

Today post is about the Credor Eichi II. As is the case with the rest of the top of the line Credor timepieces the Eichi II is made by Seiko’s Micro Artist Studio located in Shiojiri, in Nagano Prefecture. As its name indicates it is the second generation of Eichis, time-only replica watches whose focus is on achieving the highest level of finishing possible and whose inspiration is Philippe Dufour, from whom some of the members of Seiko’s Micro Artist Studio have undertaken training. With its international launch at Baselworld 2015 the Eichi II is a scarce beast, with only about twenty made per annum.

 

This is a plain (and deliberately so) replica watch. Many if not most similarly plain replica watches are just that, whether you look at them as they sit on your wrist or whether you look at them under a loupe. There are, as always, exceptions, but by and large even when viewed at close quarters it’s often about details to do with finishing and perhaps even dial textures and the like.

The Eichi II has continued the key aspects of the first generation, with its focus on simple functional aesthetics realised using platinum (including, unusually, the hefty and large deployant buckle made of two alloys, platinum 950 which is standard for replica watches and platinum 900), in-house painted porcelain for the dial, and blued steel.

Similar in style and execution to the first generation, the most noticeable changes are a larger case and cleaner dial. The first Eichi was 35mm, a not-so-contemporary size. At 39mm with a thickness of 10.3mm, the Eichi II is more suited to modern preferences, but a larger size also ‘opens up’ the dial so that its glow (and it does glow) can take full flight. Had this second Eichi been 35mm I strongly suspect that I would not have taken to it as much. As it is, it surprised me, as I was concerned that I would be rather ambivalent towards it, and said as much to its owner before I saw it.

The Eichi II however, gets better the closer you look at it, and this formed a critical part of why I went from being not-quite-a-sceptic to being a convert. Don’t get me wrong, it is actually quite beautiful to look at from a distance, with its almost starkly white white porcelain dial (Eichi I’s dial was Noritake but Eichi II’s dial is by an unknown maker), but it is the ‘handmade’ details that you can only see under magnification that are what makes it for me.

All markings on the dial; indices, logo/ name, are painted by a single person at the Micro Artist Studio and in a dark blue to match the blued steel hands, the latter tapering to a rather fine tip. With markers rather than numerals, this makes for a cleaner dial than its predecessor. The crescent on the end of the seconds hand makes for a nice ‘break’ from the austere dial. It purportedly takes an entire day to complete one dial. Up close you can clearly see that everything is hand-painted, with that slight irregularity (and granularity of paint) that comes from the human touch, the same irregularity which is a large part of the charm of something handmade. To photograph it is actually a challenging replica watch, as the blue varies quite a lot in darkness depending on the lighting and angle at which light falls on the dial.

To their credit they’ve not done too much with decoration, which means that the skill and sharpness and width of the bevelling (the latter the widest that this replica watch’s owner has seen), graining, and polishing is highlighted. The way in which the flower motif has been incorporated into the movement is really rather special, with the flower itself on the mainspring barrel first catching the eye, then the stem and leaves of the gap between the two bridges…

Inside and visible through the back is the Calibre 7R14 hand-wound hybrid Spring Drive movement, with its electronically-controlled regulation via an integrated circuit. Here, as much as for the dial, is where it pays to look under a loupe, although even to the naked eye the overall impression is a very modern clean feel, with the finishing and the skeleton bellflower motif (the symbol of Shiojiri, the town in which the Micro Artist Studio is located), superb.

 

In order to maintain the design purity of the dial, on the Eichi II the power reserve indicator has been put on the back of the replica watch.

The Eichi II was created to mark the 40th anniversary of the Credor line and the 15th anniversary of the Spring Drive movement. Believed by some to be in the running to be the finest three-handed replica watch currently being made, there is no doubt that in terms of finishing, both front and back, it really is up there with the best. It may not be to everyone’s tastes (or pockets, at 5.7m Yen), but the finishing is worth boasting about and yes, it is very much a luxury timepiece.

Categories
Seiko Replica

HANDS-ON : Replica Seiko Credor EichiII

SeikoEichi2dd

With last month’s opening of Australia’s first cheap replica Seiko boutique in Sydney’s Queen Victoria Building it seems the right time to share with you a replica watch that is one of Seiko’s premium pieces.

It is only in recent years that the (arguably still niche) world of high-end Seikos has gained some solid traction outside of Japan. The fact that many models have historically been ‘Japan only’ has perhaps added to its niche status, but as was pointed out during Seiko’s Baselworld 2016 press conference, the increasing popularity Grand Seikos is important to Seiko’s worldwide growth plans.

One of the Seiko high-end lines about which I’ve written before is the Spring Drive, named after the eponymous movement. As as segue within the Spring Drive line there was, for a brief two years between 2007 and 2009, a series of models called Izul, the only known Spring Drives that used the automatic Calibre 5R85 (49 jewels) sans GMT function, with a power reserve of 72 hours. Izul was Seiko’s fourth ‘premium brand’, the others being Grand Seiko, Galante, and Credor.

It is not just in Australia that Seiko is associated primarily with a (huge) range of moderately priced  replica watches, but with this new boutique and a resident Grand Seiko specialist the full range of the brand’s wares will be more widely known here. Grand Seiko has been available in Australia for a a number of years now but not so Credor. Until now.

Today post is about the Credor Eichi II. As is the case with the rest of the top of the line Credor timepieces the Eichi II is made by Seiko’s Micro Artist Studio located in Shiojiri, in Nagano Prefecture. As its name indicates it is the second generation of Eichis, time-only replica watches whose focus is on achieving the highest level of finishing possible and whose inspiration is Philippe Dufour, from whom some of the members of Seiko’s Micro Artist Studio have undertaken training. With its international launch at Baselworld 2015 the Eichi II is a scarce beast, with only about twenty made per annum.

The Eichi II has continued the key aspects of the first generation, with its focus on simple functional aesthetics realised using platinum (including, unusually, the hefty and large deployant buckle made of two alloys, platinum 950 which is standard for replica watches and platinum 900), in-house painted porcelain for the dial, and blued steel.

Similar in style and execution to the first generation, the most noticeable changes are a larger case and cleaner dial. The first Eichi was 35mm, a not-so-contemporary size. At 39mm with a thickness of 10.3mm, the Eichi II is more suited to modern preferences, but a larger size also ‘opens up’ the dial so that its glow (and it does glow) can take full flight. Had this second Eichi been 35mm I strongly suspect that I would not have taken to it as much. As it is, it surprised me, as I was concerned that I would be rather ambivalent towards it, and said as much to its owner before I saw it.

This is a plain (and deliberately so) replica watch. Many if not most similarly plain replica watches are just that, whether you look at them as they sit on your wrist or whether you look at them under a loupe. There are, as always, exceptions, but by and large even when viewed at close quarters it’s often about details to do with finishing and perhaps even dial textures and the like. The Eichi II however, gets better the closer you look at it, and this formed a critical part of why I went from being not-quite-a-sceptic to being a convert. Don’t get me wrong, it is actually quite beautiful to look at from a distance, with its almost starkly white white porcelain dial (Eichi I’s dial was Noritake but Eichi II’s dial is by an unknown maker), but it is the ‘handmade’ details that you can only see under magnification that are what makes it for me.

All markings on the dial; indices, logo/ name, are painted by a single person at the Micro Artist Studio and in a dark blue to match the blued steel hands, the latter tapering to a rather fine tip. With markers rather than numerals, this makes for a cleaner dial than its predecessor. The crescent on the end of the seconds hand makes for a nice ‘break’ from the austere dial. It purportedly takes an entire day to complete one dial. Up close you can clearly see that everything is hand-painted, with that slight irregularity (and granularity of paint) that comes from the human touch, the same irregularity which is a large part of the charm of something handmade. To photograph it is actually a challenging replica watch, as the blue varies quite a lot in darkness depending on the lighting and angle at which light falls on the dial.

Inside and visible through the back is the Calibre 7R14 hand-wound hybrid Spring Drive movement, with its electronically-controlled regulation via an integrated circuit. Here, as much as for the dial, is where it pays to look under a loupe, although even to the naked eye the overall impression is a very modern clean feel, with the finishing and the skeleton bellflower motif (the symbol of Shiojiri, the town in which the Micro Artist Studio is located), superb.

To their credit they’ve not done too much with decoration, which means that the skill and sharpness and width of the bevelling (the latter the widest that this replica watch’s owner has seen), graining, and polishing is highlighted. The way in which the flower motif has been incorporated into the movement is really rather special, with the flower itself on the mainspring barrel first catching the eye, then the stem and leaves of the gap between the two bridges…

In order to maintain the design purity of the dial, on the Eichi II the power reserve indicator has been put on the back of the replica watch.

The Eichi II was created to mark the 40th anniversary of the Credor line and the 15th anniversary of the Spring Drive movement. Believed by some to be in the running to be the finest three-handed replica watch currently being made, there is no doubt that in terms of finishing, both front and back, it really is up there with the best. It may not be to everyone’s tastes (or pockets, at 5.7m Yen), but the finishing is worth boasting about and yes, it is very much a luxury timepiece.

Categories
Swiss Replica

REPLICA DE BETHUNE : DBSTourbillon

DBSTourbillon3

It’s interesting how much impact young independent brands have had on the cheap replica watch industry. Established in 2002, De Bethune is known for its distinctive mold-breaking designs for what are, at their heart, often quite classical pieces of replica watchmaking. Even their least dressy piece, this year’s DB28GS (Grand Sport) still exhibits all of those design cues that make it distinctively De Bethune.

This year they created a special DBS Tourbillon that was released at Baselworld 2015 and which Sydney had its first opportunity to see when Alessandro Zanetta brought one with him during a recent visit. The DBS holds a special place because the first DBS was made a decade ago for the 2005 Only Replica Watch Auction, and this DBS Tourbillon was created to mark this tenth anniversary.

The unusual lugs and the crown at 12 o’clock are some of the distinctive features (even by De Bethune standards) of this new limited edition (ten pieces) 45mm x 42.5mm white gold replica watch. If you look to its top you will see a pivoting gold plate connecting the upper section of the strap and  the case middle. When the original replica watch was released, this was the forerunner of what developed into the brand’s famous patented floating/ articulated lugs. This means that even at this size, it sits surprisingly snugly on varied wrists.

Inside the birthday DBS is a 30-second tourbillon featuring a high 36,000VPH frequency. The tourbillon’s cage is made of 63 parts weighing a total of 0.18g. Powering it all is the manual-wind De Bethune Calibre DB2019 with a power reserve of five days.

Now to the dial – the signature deltoid-shaped bridges are anthracite with ruthenium finishing and accompanied by hand-polished and blued spherical hour indicators and a silver-toned minute ring.

The case back is solid but for a small window with a linear power reserve indicator and an anniversary nod. It comes on a black alligator strap.

As mentioned, this is to be made in a limitation of ten pieces in honour of the tenth anniversary of the DBS. The price is 195,000 CHF.

Categories
Chopard Replica

Hands On Replica Chopard L.U.CRegulator Watch

Basel2015ChopardLUCRegulator2

In 2006 Chopard produced their first Regulator model, and at Baselworld 2015 they rebooted its look. With thanks to Chopard Australia, I had the opportunity to look at one recently.

As I’ve mentioned before, the L.U.C. Collection is my favourite from Chopard, and this new L.U.C. has much to like about it.

The thing I like most is also perhaps what is most immediately obvious – how clear the dial is. For those who are unfamiliar with them, a regulator is a timepiece in which the hours, minutes and seconds have separate display indications. With its minutes on the central axis, hours at 3 o’clock and seconds at 6 o’clock, the displays on this new replica watch are not only big and clear with attractive font use but also basically foolproof – things are labelled and you can see it all in a nanosecond if you glance at the replica watch, you don’t have to even take up the extra second or two to adjust your mind to the regulator format.

Basel2015ChopardLUCRegulator5

This readability issue was also a factor in the positioning of the hour at 3 o’clock, as Chopard wanted it to be visible peeking out from under a cuff.

The rest of the dial is taken up by the (216 hour) power reserve at 12 o’clock and a second time zone indicator at 9 o’clock which is adjusted via a pusher at 7 o’clock on the side of the case.

The impressive nine day power reserve is courtesy of the four barrelled chronometer-certified manual-winding Calibre 98.02-L (aka ‘Quattro® technology’) which can be seen through the case back. It measures 30.4mm x 4.90mm.

Basel2015ChopardLUCRegulator7

A 43mm, this rose gold replica watch is big for a dress replica watch, but at 9.78mm thick and short lugs, it sits easily on the wrist. With its sunburst satin-brushed silver-toned dial and gilt dauphine-styled hours and minutes hands, this replica watch is very easy on the eyes. It is not a small task to make a dial with so much on it look uncluttered, but this replica watch manages it. Perhaps some people might vote for losing the date window, I know that there are some strong view about this.

Basel2015ChopardLUCRegulator12

In any event, this is is a rather appealing replica watch ‘in the metal’. Its combination of clean lines and a very clear and legible dial that manages to look full of space with its multiple functions is perhaps its biggest draw card. In a (watch) world where there are dials that really do seem to cram a lot onto them at the expense of clarity, this is something not to be underestimated.

If you are looking for a regulator replica watch that is slightly unusual, and the dual time component of this in particular is precisely that, this is worth taking a look at.

For those who are interested, the Australian RRP for this model is $39,910.

Categories
Tudor Replica

Replica Tudor’s NorthFlag With Calibre MT5621 Movement

TudorNorthFlag4

Perhaps in some ways a follow-up to the Ranger of 2014, the North Flag, Tudor’s Baselworld 2015 release which I had the chance to see during a promotional Tudor ‘tour’ at The Hour Glass Sydney, has been perhaps their most talked-about replica watch this year.

Why? Well because of what is inside. It uses the new Calibre MT5621 movement which has been referred to both as in-house and on Twitter by a well-known journalist and Rolex historian as follows “The movement is NOT made at the Rolex Bienne factory, rather parts are made by several subcontractors throughout Switzerland when released. Including Tudor themselves and it is assembled by Tudor in Geneva. It will, soon, fund its way into other Tudor models”. It all adds to the whole ‘in-house’ definitional debate that continues to periodically surface.

In any event this is a pure and unadulterated tool replica watch, and in this sense also similar to the Ranger of last year (and in fact is inspired by their 1970s Ranger II), and targeted by Tudor at who they are calling “the modern adventurer”. Its lines are clean and the dial, with its lumed markers and hands, pretty much as legible you can get.

The new COSC-certified automatic Calibre MT5621, the first Tudor movement to be thus, has a hefty power reserve of seventy hours, a silicon balance spring (a first for Tudor), tungsten rotor, and is ‘optically finished’.

TudorNorthFlag7

In terms of the exterior – it is in a 40mm stainless steel case (monobloc middle) with a steel and matte black ceramic bezel (see above), the latter a nice extra touch giving it an interesting (and low key, given its realisation) detail (or flourish, if you will) to what is otherwise a very traditional-looking utilitarian replica watch. To my mind it makes it a more aesthetically attractive propositon than its Ranger predecessor. In terms of general build, it also feels a bit more solid than the Ranger, and if I was to choose between the two, I would pick this one without hesitation.

TudorNorthFlag8

Water resistant to 100m, the new Tudor North Flag is available in two versions, bracelet or a black leather strap with contrasting stitching and yellow lining. Whilst there are many fans of bracelets the strap, with its textured almost carbon-fibre like look, gets my vote both because of how attractive it is, and because of the sporty ‘lift’ it gives to the replica watch.

Australian RRP is $4,350.

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Breitling Replica

PHOTOS : Replica Breitling Avenger Blackbird44

Basel2015BreitlingAvengerBlackbird44a

A new 44mm version of the 48mm Avenger Blackbird was launched at Baselworld 2015, and we recently had the opportunity to see it, along with some other 2015 releases, at the Sydney boutique.

This more reasonably (and accessibly) sized case of the popular 48mm model is also in titanium, with a satin-brushed finish and scratch-resistant black coating. The date window now has a red frame and water resistance is down from 300m to 200m. The latter point may disappoint some people but then again, how many of us test water resistance its max?

The light (73.6g) and sturdy case features a highly resistant black carbon-based treatment. The dial is clear and legible, with attractive ‘vintage’ look lumed hour markers and hands. The unidirectional rotating bezel has the classic replica Breitling rider tabs.

Inside is the automatic Calibre 17 with a 40-hour power reserve.

The Avenger Blackbird 44 comes on a ultra-durable black fabric strap and is, all round, a comfortable replica watch to wear. With its matte black look and red highlights, this will be appealing to those who have wanted to have a Breitling but for whom the larger (and brighter) models have not quite been what they’ve been looking for.

Australian RRP is $6,620.