Posts filed under 'Mechanical'
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Face view.
Here is a watch I saw in Basel at the Eterna/Porsche design section of the show. It is a 46MM Monster! Equipped with a ETA 2897, this big dog would be a shoe-in for multiple sales in the United States, right? NO! As of last spring, no United States distributor. I hope this watch makes it stateside soon either by raft or not. Eterna is another great company with poor American distributorship picks. With virtually no U.S. brand recognition anymore, what are we to do with companies like this? Oddly enough you can get Porsche Design in the states, just not Eterna. Huh? CTWG
For more information about Eterna watches call Chad the Watch Guy at
412-682-0226.
October 5th, 2006
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I just received the NEW limited edition Zinex watch. I love it. A real monster at 47mm, it is put together quite well. The dark dial has a real industrial look and provides great contrast to the logo and markers. Super-lumi dial is beautifully understated to offset the size of the piece. The crown alone is 10.5mm –thats big folks– real big. There are no knocks on this piece, sapphire crystal, 250 grams of 316L stainless, the list goes on. As a watch introduction it is a solid, workhorse watch, ETA 2824 all the fixings, get one of the 100 made in this edition. Two crowns up! CTWG
August 29th, 2006
Three German Posts in a row–sorry Switzerland you’re next. I just could not resist the plump and juicy offering of the Glashutte Sport Evolution for this post. This big beauty is one of the newer offerings by Glashutte with everyone appeal. This watch “sports” the Caliber 39-31 with fifty plus jewels,(G.P. territory I tell ya) hold it next to a 7750 and call it a “girly man”. This chrono does not have a Date function, it stands true to the German design of simplicity. Silver and black dial offerings, with red accents and tachymeter bezel. The bracelet is pure and simple… the best, and I do mean the best,(Words don’t do it justice) Try one on today! Start an Evolution! Sport! CTWG
August 20th, 2006
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Tetra, Oh Tetra, I love it so! The Nomos brand of watches is a steal, I mean downright steal. Check the Square Tetra, it sports the Nomos Movement Alpha (a jazzed up Peseux 7100) with 17 jewels in manual wind format. The steel is a German standard 316L, Sapphire crystal and signature Cordavan strap. A sub-second dial sits at 6:00 with a choice between mid and full size. This is an outrageous value for approx. $1500.00 U.S. dollars. I can think of no other watch company with these qualities at such a price. Contact CTWG personally if you wish to score one of these gems! Auf Wiedersehen! CTWG
August 10th, 2006
Master Blaster listen to the law:
“This law is based on a concept according to which Swiss quality depends on the amount of work actually carried out on a watch in Switzerland, even if some foreign components are used in it. It therefore requires that the assembly work on the movement (the motor of the watch) and on the watch itself (fitting the movement with the dial, hands and the various parts of the case) should be carried out in Switzerland, along with the final testing of the movement. It also requires that at least 50% of the components of the movement should be manufactured in Switzerland.” Hold on a second Charlie, 50% percent of the components can be made in a singapore garage and it still can be called Swiss? Yes! So how do we assure ourselves that we get pure Swiss product. Research the product, the deeper you dive into the manufactoring process the more you will see how work is farmed out to differenet sources. Many companies use a bracelet assembled in China and a Swiss movement, or an all Chinese bracelet/ case set fitted with a Swiss movement. It can be advantageous if some circumstances when a company like Fricker(German) makes the case or any of the fine Italian gold folks make a bracelet. Still, rarely does the outsource scream quality. Swiss Made is a true mark of quality, just make sure that is what you are getting isn’t a “deal” or you may face the wheel. CTWG (a.k.a. Ragedy Man)
July 24th, 2006
Have you purchased a watch with a striking and complicated working bezel, just to have a friend stump you with the question, “How does it work?” Never again my friends! Lets review some standard bezel operations. The famous Uni-Directional Bezel is the most popular and is standard on most dive watches. Simply turn the pointer to the minute hand and count down time, piece of cake, it only goes in one direction for safety (you would surface early rather than risk the bends, or worse, on a dive). Tach or tachymeter bezels measure the rate of speed of an object, units start at 500 and go clockwise to 60. Using a mile marker, as a scenario, start your chrono, when you reach the next marker, stop the function. Look to your bezel for a number that will calculate your miles per hour/kilos etc. Pulsometer chronos can monitor pulse rates for a doctor by a bezel reference. The bezel can be a great tool and it is rarely used by most customer’s, push your sales people to get information on the most complicated pieces and have them teach you about the product. As for the Breitling Navitimer/slide rule style bezels keep the instructions near by for reference untill you can master all the tricks. CTWG
July 11th, 2006
What!!! $150.00 for a battery change!!! It happens daily, people pay absurd prices for a simple and quick procedure. Or is it? Let me demystify what these battery changing folk do when they crack a watch open. A quality watchmaker will perform the following:
1) Remove dust or wrist remnants from your watch back. Why? Because when it is opened particles will drop right into the movement (that’s bad).
2) Use the right tools! Did you ever get your watch back with a big free form carving on the back?
3) Puff (shoot air around threads of the watch back) and check the movement for dust when it is opened. Check the contacts… clean them if necessary (exactly what it sounds like… where the battery touches)
4) Change gaskets and/or lubricate them to seal the watch properly.
5) And finally, a proper water test… using a tank or tube for appropriate depth testing.
That’s it! How much is this worth? Could be priceless! CTWG
June 29th, 2006
“Have you seen the movement in this wristwatch?” the salesperson inquires, slyly turning the watch over to reveal the inner works. Instantly, the man gene kicks in, our eyes glued to the oscillator, the shiny moving parts mesmerizing us like a high-tech fishing lure. This is a time to be calm, step back, and take a deep breath. The movement is the engine and the glass back will let us peek into what really makes this watch tick. About seven years ago the industry really started to place exhibition backs on everything, even some quartz models have the peek-a-boo back. Countless watches display the same movement with their own custom Oscillator. This is all well and good, but as your collection grows you will appreciate who really can dress a movement. Look for techniques like perlage, a circular grain that resembles a pearl, swirled through the metal. Jewels (movement Jewels) can be surrounded by Chatons-gold rings that help replace jewels and make a decorative bezels on the watch’s wheel bridge as well as other parts. The terms go on and on, Cotes de Geneve, Mirror finishing, Anglage. Learn the terms and make sure your watch is dressed properly. CTWG
More good reading:
Deconstructing the Ideal
The A-B-C’s of Watch Finish
May 25th, 2006
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Yeah, some watch guys don’t seem to take a liken to the quartz movements. They may feel that the traditional approach to watches is the true watch art. I understand this position, but CTWG also feels the evolution of watches is part of the fun. Seeing the Hamilton Electric, Accutrons, and even auto-quartz versions of watches is part of the grand watch story. Without this evolution we could not appreciate what watch makers of the past have truly accomplished, the movement that brought the industry to it’s knees deserves a little attention and respect, in my humble opinion. Check out a few of the new quartz options: Tissot, Omega, Swiss Army and many others do wonderful things with the quartz versions of their watches. Add a Quartz to your collection, and let the quartz be with you. CTWG
Learn more about The History of the Digital Watch.
May 8th, 2006
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Have you ever wondered what makes a watch collector so passionate about his or her hobby? I have a feeling that many people do not. Maybe grandpa left that special Elgin manual wind strap watch to you, sure it did not keep the best time, but it was a “real” watch. Regardless of your reason, “you have the bug” as one customer put it to me not so long ago. It made me think, as a collector, what one timepiece would be the perfect gift of inheritance for my offspring after I get shown across? The watch would have to have style, it would have to be unique, its functions flawless, I was perplexed to say the least. Then it came to me, Glashuette Perpetual Calendar, Brilliant! Maybe four or five watch companies can produce a Perpetual Calendar watch, fewer even can say it was done all in-house with their own movements. The watch would have to be Platinum, of course, oozing richness and class. Still, to set it apart even more, the perfect movement, the Perpetual Calendar. A Master watchmakers Opus is the grand complication Perpetual calendar. Here are the stats on my favorite. Automatic movement with there special caliber 100-02, hour, minute, and second display. Moon phase display, panorama date, croc. strap, the works. This would be the watch they fight over, he loved me best etc. What watch would you pick? CTWG
May 3rd, 2006
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