Watch Dandy

Editor’s note: Ahh, bezel screws. Along with date windows, nothing riles up the watch-loving populace quite as much as a misaligned, exposed bezel screw. So, in that spirit, here’s an opinion piece we wrote on just that topic a little while ago … “Such a shame they don’t take the time to align their screws. I wouldn’t buy one purely because of this.” Every time we post a picture of a watch with exposed bezel screws (mostly Hublot or Bell & Ross) we get a variation of this comment. And I’m well and truly over it. While many brands use exposed screws on bezels, the most commonly cited example is that of the iconic Royal Oak from Audemars Piguet. It’s certainly what all the commenters on our social feeds reference when they’re lambasting other brands for their inability to align screws. But you know the funny thing? The screws on the AP’s bezels aren’t screws. In fact, they’re threaded nuts that fit neatly and immovably into the perfectly hexagonal holes in the bezel. They’re secured via the screws on the caseback, which —surprise surprise — aren’t neatly aligned. In contrast, the bezel screws on your Bell & Ross or Hublot are…

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The inimitable Niki Lauda died yesterday, and Formula 1 lost one of its most enduring icons. And I don’t know about you, but my own little tribute to this man will take the form of finishing off Formula 1: Drive to Survive (and marvelling at the on and off-track intensity of the sport), and re-watching Rush, the 2013 Ron Howard biopic detailing the professional rivalry between Niki Lauda and James Hunt. Rush is an excellent film, and in addition to being exquisitely played by Daniel Brühl, Niki Lauda served as a technical advisor. Read more about the film, and particularly the role TAG Heuer played in it, in this article by the charming Miguel Seabra over on WorldTempus.

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Mido is one of those strange beasts in modern watchmaking – a largely under-the-radar brand that’s also owned by one of the largest corporations in the business (the Swatch Group). Already this is a good place to start, as the former factor means you can get some unexpected and unusual design choices, paired with the benefits (production quality, parts, etc) that come with being part of the Swatch Group. The Mido Multifort Patrimony is a great example of this. A sweet retro-looking watch at a seriously impressive price.  First of all, the Mido Multifort Patrimony comes in three flavours: steel with a graduated grey dial, gold tone with an anthracite dial, or this steel and blue number. They’re all 40mm across by 11.95mm high, which is pretty perfect proportions for this sort of watch in 2019. The case design is simple but stylish, with a non-fussy, low-profile crown and some decent detail on the lugs. The dial, though, is what will really get people excited. It’s a pretty straight execution from the mid-century watch design playbook, but that’s A-OK. The shimmering, subtly graduated dark blue is very on-trend, and the clearly segmented dial, complete with pulsometer scale and inner minute track,…

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The above question greeted me when I opened my email this morning — it was such a perfect allegory (heck, watches, chocolate and Bacs are amongst the most Swiss things ever) that I had to open it. Eventually, I scrolled through the mailing list, and came to the article, an extensive GQ profile of Phillips’ majordomo of watches, and one of the bolder figures in the world of watches. It’s a long, rollicking narrative that covers off the greatest hits (Newman’s Newman features a fair bit), and a well-researched one too. Here’s a taste: “More than any other individual, Bacs is responsible for the current hysteria in the vintage-watch market. He’s an auctioneer, yes, but like the timepiece-obsessed Flavor Flav before him, he is also a once-in-a-generation hype man—a watch enthusiast who has helped change how timepieces are talked about and sold all over the world.” Good stuff, huh. Read the whole thing over at GQ.

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