Friday, January 4, 2008

One-Man Watchmakers Challenge the Luxury Brands


Very interesting article from the Herald Tribune about the growing interest of independent watchmakers in the luxury watch market. -->LINK

"Centuries ago, watchmaking was a one-man job, or at most a small workshop process. Then the Industrial Revolution brought economies of scale and production line output, even for high-end timepieces. Modern watch manufacturers coordinate production among numerous specialists in dozens of highly skilled fields, from design to micro-machining and polishing.

Now, a few young master watchmakers are turning back the clock."

And from Harry Tan of WatchingHorology;

"For some obsessive collectors, rather than acquire high complications from big brands where many hands make a single watch, the holy grail of watches is to have a watchmaker who will have had his hands on every single element of the watch,"

"Because the dial, case, movement is made from one pair of hands, it will never be repeated to the same level of unique quality by any team of watchmakers.

"It's almost akin to Leonardo da Vinci drawing his invention and ultimately building it from scratch."


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Wednesday, January 2, 2008

Six Pack Ads - Vintage Watch Advertisements

I love coming across random vintage watch ads of the seventies. For some reason, this simple looking 1970's Precimax watches above allowed you to be on time for key parties and ABBA concerts.

Totally Cubular - 1975 jump hour watches by LGP (Leon Georges Petit) just lounging about in a Verner Panton landscape.

Montremo, a company that built watch components (and still does) made this great looking industry ad in the seventies.

Vintage 1975 Sicura & Hamilton advertisement featuring watches that can walk on water and stand upright. Holy and modern...


Unidentified flying wristwatch by Spatiale Z.R.C.

See also;
All vintage watch ad posts


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Seiko Moving Design Collection - The Discus

More seventies inspired mechanical digital watches keep rotating into modern designs including this "Discus" - from the Seiko Moving Design Collection. Featuring a jumping hour display of spinning discs through a porthole viewer and all under a smoky transparent crystal. Powered by a mechanical automatic movement (Automatic 6R15B 23 Jewels with 6 beats per hour (21,600vph). Selling close to $900 outside the US.

Find out more at the Seiko Moving Design website here-->LINK

A review of the watch by Kong at Watchprosite.

See also;
Seiko Concept Lab - Power Design Project
All Seiko Related Posts
LIP Revival Seventies Mythic Spinning Discs
All Jump Hour Posts




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Sunday, December 23, 2007

Shoot to Kilfitt - 1969 Prototype Camera-Watch Sells for $60,000!

Like a Russian Matrioshka doll, these obscure vintage and antique camera watches keep appearing and gratefully outdo themselves with each layer of the photohorological onion.

The first that caught my attention was the 1950s Steineck ABC wrist camera, which in turn, turned me onto the world of subminiature spy camera watches and the surprising discovery of this 100+ year old secret photographic history starting with this 19th century pocket watch camera.

And just when I thought I've seen them all, this
UKA 659 model by Kilfitt kills them all with a single 1969 prototype that never went into production and recently sold on eBay for nearly $60,000 (US). Update! It seems to have been relisted and is currently at $58,000 --> Auction Link

Kilfitt camera history-->Link


See also;
Subminiature Camera Watches
Steinheil Camera Watch
Victorian Camera Pocket Watch
1950s Minifon Spy Recorder Watch
Victorian Wrist Horn & Prototype Wrist Camera
James Bond Movie Gadget Watches
Satellite Watches of 1979


via Gizmodo (thanks to Felipe!)


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Friday, December 21, 2007

The Firm Hands of Jason Linde's Wenge Clocks

Architect Jason Linde has created a series of clocks with unique display with a single stationary hand and a rotating dial for hours. Some feature double dials for both hours and minutes. On wood veneered blocks and laser engraved dials, they range from $110 - $130.

Double Dial

Double Dial

Available here-->Link

See also;
All Clock Posts

via Yanko Design


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Thursday, December 20, 2007

Rado Ceramica Chronograph - Designed by Jasper Morrison

New from Rado, the 50 year anniversary limited edition Jasper Morrison designed "Ceramica Chronograph". Only ten of each will be made. I like the variation of chrono registers but $6500 for Quartz?


More about the Ceramica at Rado->Link
Available at Moss in New York City or through Rado.

See also;
All Chronograph Posts

via Yanko Design



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Wednesday, December 12, 2007

The Jaeger LeCoultre Wrist Discotheque of 1975

As quickly as the time is displayed on an LED watch is about the same length of time high end Swiss brands produced them in the early seventies. Companies like Omega produced their gold brick of a watch called the "Time Computer" and Jaeger LeCoultre got their groove on in the same way The Rolling Stones toyed with Disco in songs like "Miss You" in 1978.

This 1975 Jaeger LeCoultre Master Quartz Digital features a pretty cool asymmetric red crystal and light emitting diodes displayed on command by button and the original bands were a perfectly pretentious golden mesh.

Jaeger LeCoultre Master Quartz Digital-->Link


See also;
History of LED Calculator Watches
History of Dynamic Scattering LCD
History of Solar LED Watches
LED-LCD Watch Combos
Zenith Analog/Digital Hybrid
Other Analog-Digital Posts
All LED Watch Related Posts

Check out my $100-$100,000 holiday gift guide!-->LINK


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Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Math Watches Part 2.1249 - Vintage 1960s Juvenia Protractor Watch

Not long ago I featured some of the coolest in vintage geek wristwear with my Math Watches post-->here. And thought I'd follow it up with a phenomenally rare opportunity to own this vintage 60's Juvenia. The hour hand is a miniature protractor, the minutes a golden arrow, and the seconds is a double edged blade-propeller. Stainless steel, manual winding, and completely overhauled. $2495

Available from Derek at Watchestobuy.com here-->Link (part of his personal collection for fifteen years and just now for sale)

Slim sideviews

See also;
Math Watches Part 1.4593
Discs Instead of Hands
History of LED Calculator Watches
All Mystery Dial Posts
Collection of Gadget Watch Posts



Check out my $100-$100,000 holiday gift guide!-->LINK


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Friday, December 7, 2007

Time To F#%K - Vintage 1970 Erotic Mystery Message Watches

Two vintage mystery dial watches from the late sixties/early seventies with secret dials revealing a not-so-subtle message from a pair of scantily clad tarts. Each of these mechanical erotic novelty watches had a unique feature of discs that obscure the dial most of the time but slowly unveil the other dastardly dirty time of day.

One for those with highly overactive libidos (hourly display) and the other with a more respectable twelve hour time frame. Although anyone who actually wore these was likely not getting any anyway.

This model featuring the twice daily message

Classy stuff!
One with a transparent disc with floating seconds arrow.

Around the same time, a digital version existed with the same message electronically requested in LED display. If anyone has seen the movie Autofocus about Bob Crane, Willem Dafoe shows his off at a bar to an unsuspecting lady. The filmmakers of Autofocus actually contacted me at the time of production seeking this watch but I could only provide some traditional vintage LED from Hamilton and Compuchron. They did use it for the scene but had to edit the message in.

See also;
1890 Naked Lady Pocket Watch
Debbie Does Switzerland - Antique Erotic Automaton


Check out my $100-$100,000 holiday gift guide!-->LINK


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Vintage 1970s Rotary LED & Seiko Memory Bank Commercials

I'm struggling to find some more interesting vintage watch commercials, here's a few new ones. You can see a collection of the rest at the links below...

1970's Rotary LED watch commercial-->Link



1978 Seiko Memory Bank Calendar Watch Commercial-->Link



Check out my $100-$100,000 holiday gift guide!-->LINK


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