Articles
The History of Tudor Black Bay Watches: An Iconic Diver's Collection
The Tudor Heritage Black Bay was introduced in 2012 as part of Tudor’s efforts to relaunch the brand and recapture its glory in the luxury watch market. The Black Bay was not just a new dive watch; it was a tribute to the brand’s rich history and its earlier Submariner models, blending vintage design elements with modern technology.
View morePublished on Monday 7th of October 2024
Tudor METAS Certification
Swiss watchmakers Tudor demand the highest of standards when creating timepieces, multiple tests are carried out to ensure that absolute precision and performance of the brands watch movements is achieved.
View morePublished on Monday 5th of August 2024
History of the Tudor brand
The Tudor brand was founded in 1926 by Hans Wilsdorf, the man that was also responsible for creating the now infamous Rolex watch brand. Wilsdorf had already successfully placed Rolex as a front runner in the watch industry, yet he had the desire to create a ‘sister’ company that would bring his watches to a wider audience that would offer the quality, reliability and craftsmanship for which Rolex had become renowned, but at a more ‘modest’ price.
View morePublished on Friday 12th of July 2024
Omega materials
Omega are masters in their industry, consistently creating luxury timepieces that are capable of performing and serving the wearer in the most extreme conditions. This need to exceed expectations and provide the owner with a watch that will seamlessly transition across all areas of their life is never provided at the cost of the aesthetics and performance. The brand is consistently working to ensure that their watches are performing to the absolute height of their ability, whilst maintaining all the design features and elegance that is typical of the luxury brand. Omega use the highest quality materials including those that have been developed in house, to ensure that their remain at the forefront of the watchmaking industry.
View morePublished on Friday 5th of July 2024
Omega Olympic Watches
Omega has a long and illustrious history with the Olympics having become the official timekeeper for the Olympic games in 1932. These games were held in Los Angeles and was timed by a small Omega team using 30, split timer stopwatches.
View morePublished on Monday 3rd of June 2024
Omega Ambassadors
We are familiar with the term ‘influencer’ in reference to a person that promotes a brand, product, lifestyle, or venue on social media by the means of a partnership, however, this is not entirely unique to social media, and neither is it a recent development in the marketing world.
View morePublished on Friday 31st of May 2024
The ‘Zombie’ Rolex GMT Master II 126713GRNR watch
The GMT Master II has gained a loyal following from watch enthusiasts & collectors who have been responsible for giving models in the GMT collection, witty and catchy nicknames. These nicknames are prompted by the uniquely coloured bezel combinations and are regularly used within the industry to refer to particular models.
View morePublished on Wednesday 28th of February 2024
Rolex Starbucks
The Rolex Submariner 126610LV was released in 2020 and has become known as the ‘Starbucks’ due to its signature green bezel and black dial that are reminiscent of the famous coffee chains logo colours. The 126610LV is not the first Submariner to be adorned with the vivid green bezel, its predecessors, 116610LV, The Hulk and 16610LV Kermit which both had the unique green feature.
View morePublished on Thursday 22nd of February 2024
Rolex Pepsi supply issues?
Rumours have been circulating in the industry for a little while that Rolex are experiencing production issues with the GMT Master II “Pepsi” models, which is resulting in supply issues to their authorised dealers and in turn the preowned market.
View morePublished on Friday 16th of February 2024
How to set the Rolex Sky Dweller
The Rolex Sky-Dweller is one of the most sought-after prestigious watches currently on the market. It also happens to be one of the most unique automatic watches when it comes to setting.
View morePublished on Thursday 26th of January 2023
The History and Development of Omega Speedmaster
Omega have been making chronographs since the late 1800s. In 1957 Omega started producing the Speedmaster range. Since then, Omega have made a number of chronographs under the Speedmaster name. The Speedmaster Professional, or ‘Moonwatch’ is the best known. A Moonwatch was worn during the first spacewalk, and most famously, was the first watch worn by an astronaut walking on the moon during the Apollo 11 mission in 1969.
View morePublished on Friday 25th of March 2022
The History and Development of Rolex Explorer
The Rolex Explorer 214270 has always been a little overlooked in the Rolex Professional Watch range. Unlike its bigger brother the Explorer II 216570, with its large case and a chunky, tool-watch aesthetic, the Explorer 214270 is a much smaller more refined design, a design that has remained relatively unchanged since its inception in 1953.
View morePublished on Sunday 20th of March 2022
What is a Watches Mechanical Movement?
The watch movement or calibre is often considered as the heart of a watch, powering all of the functions and movements of the watch including the chronograph, alarms and any complications. The movement is made up of a collection of intertwined springs, coils and gears that work together beautifully to turn energy into precise regulated movements.
View morePublished on Wednesday 16th of March 2022
The History and Development of the Rolex Milgauss
Rolex looked to the scientific community for a market to sell its next watch for professionals to, specifically the scientific researchers at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva, Switzerland. A watch made to be used in such an environment would need to be legible and rugged like the rest of the Rolex Professional watch range, but scientists posed a unique problem for Rolex to solve, when working with electromagnetic fields greater than 100 gauss, conventional watches would be affected greatly, disrupting the time keeping so much that they either had to deal with a dysfunctional timepiece, or simply not wear a watch. To solve this problem, Rolex created the prototype ref 6543, they took the design of the Rolex Submariner, and created a watch that had a 37.5mm steel case, with an inner case surrounding the watch movement made of a soft iron, effectively creating a Faraday cage around the watch movement, making the watch resistant to magnetic fields, and thus the Rolex Milgauss was born.
View morePublished on Saturday 12th of March 2022
Brietling Aerospace
In 1985 Breitling released its latest and most powerful pilots watch to date, with the release of the Aerospace. The Aerospace watch had a innovative multi-function quartz chronograph. It had a double display, both analog and digital displays with two LCD screens.
View morePublished on Monday 7th of March 2022
The History and Development of The Rolex Sea-Dweller
The Rolex Sea-Dweller was developed in the late 1960s, and this first, (reference number 1665) was released to the public in 1967. These first models featured all the hallmarks of a Rolex divers watch, such as would be found on the Submariner, such as a similar black dial and bezel, with the famous ‘mercedes’ hands. It even mentioned its sibling on the dial, with two lines of red writing reading "Sea-Dweller / Submariner 2000", giving It the nickname “double red” before the text changed to white in 1977.
View morePublished on Friday 4th of March 2022
How to set the Rolex GMT Master II
Possibly one of the most iconic Rolex models of all time the GMT Master was initially created for pilots of the Pan American Airways and since then has grown and developed its own following. The GMT Master II has some of the brightest colour schemes available on any models of Rolex, some of the most iconic ones being nicknamed the Coke, Pepsi and Batman / Batgirl. Learn how to set the watch including the GMT 24 hour hand here!
View morePublished on Tuesday 1st of March 2022
Rolex Daytona, everything you need to know
Initially created and designed for the stars during the space race the Rolex Daytona found its home on the race track, being rebranded and becoming the go-to watch for the modern racing driver. The Daytona took its name from the Daytona International Speedway after Rolex became the official timekeeper in 1962. Firstly lets take a look at the Chronograph functions, primarily on the Rolex Daytona ref 116500LN models, although all functions will be the same just dial configurations may look slightly different on some models, such as the Zenith Rolex Daytona ref 16523.
View morePublished on Saturday 26th of February 2022
The History and Development of the Rolex Yacht-Master
In the mid-1980s, Rolex were having great success with their line of sports watches that had remained unchanged for many years. However rumour has it that at some point Rolex were looking at redesigning the iconic Submariner. Thankfully Rolex eventually came to their senses and left the design of the Submariner alone. However, the work that had gone into the redesigned watch was rather good and it seemed a shame to leave it on the design room floor. Therefore, in the years that followed, Rolex used the new design intended for the Submariner to make a brand new line of maritime watches for the luxury market, and so the Rolex Yacht-Master was born.
View morePublished on Tuesday 22nd of February 2022
Quartz Movements, What are they?
A watch movement or calibre is often considered the heart of the watch, the engine to the machine. Within all watches there are a complex network of parts that power the hands of the watch and any further instruments that need powering including chronographs, tachymeters etc.
View morePublished on Saturday 19th of February 2022
How to set the Rolex Day Date
The Rolex Day Date is the flagship model of Rolex watches. It is often associated with power and wealth, for many it is the epitome of success. Learn how to set the time and the date for your Rolex Day Date here.
View morePublished on Wednesday 16th of February 2022
The History and Development of the Rolex Oyster Perpetual
The words ‘oyster’ and ‘perpetual’ are synonymous with Rolex. They are terms that appear on the dial of almost every Rolex watch made today, and symbolise the pioneering technological advancements that the horological giants put into the development of the watches made today. The name Oyster Perpetual comes from two key aspects that Rolex put into every watch they make today. Oyster refers to the water resistant properties of the watch case, and Perpetual from the name Rolex have given the automatic winding function of their movements.
View morePublished on Sunday 13th of February 2022
Our Favourite Travelling Watches 2022
There is so much to consider when looking for a watch for your holidays or use when travelling, we have taken some of the stress and research from you, offering our favourite watches that are fit for this purpose.
View morePublished on Tuesday 8th of February 2022
Rolex Nicknames
Within the world of Rolex, collectors and enthusiasts there are a number of nicknames that have been developed throughout the years. Rolex, themselves have never given their watches any such names and have stuck to the model names and numbers, so where have many of these names come from? Some of the nicknames refer to the people that have worn them such as the ‘James Cameron’ or the ‘Pussy Galore’ whilst others refer to the colours of the dials, bezels or both including ‘hulk’ or the ‘batman’. Many of these have then further developed as the watch has changed or other variations have been included and added to the collection.
View morePublished on Saturday 5th of February 2022
Breitling Superocean History
In the 1950s the conquest for sea exploration had risen, through scientific exploration of the seas and professional deep-sea diving meaning the demand for divers watches had increased. The publics interest in water sports had also increased, meaning amateurs too also required instruments that they could use safely. In 1957 Brietling responded to this demand and released two new diving watches: a time only diver (ref 1004) and a chronograph (ref 807). Both of these watches held the name Superocean but had different purposes – the time only watch was aimed at the gentleman who cares about his style whilst at the beach and enjoying water sports, whereas the sportier chronograph model was for the diver who needed performance and reliability.
View morePublished on Wednesday 2nd of February 2022
How to set your Rolex Explorer II
The Rolex Explorer II comes with a 4th hand displaying a second time zone or 24 hour time. This can often be tricky to set, learn how to do it here.
View morePublished on Sunday 30th of January 2022
The Co-Axial Escapement
A watches movement is the beating heart of a watch, being relatively unchanged for centuries, until British watch maker George Daniel’s invented the Co-Axial Escapement. Simply put the escapement of a mechanical watch is the heart of the watch and maintain the oscillations of the balance, which is the watches regulating mechanism. George had a vision of creating and escapement that reduced the amount of friction between the moving parts, meaning that the watch would need less servicing and a increased level of accuracy.
View morePublished on Wednesday 26th of January 2022
The History and Development of Rolex Sea-Dweller Deepsea
In the late 2000s, Rolex had been making waterproof mechanical watches for over 80 years, and had established themselves in the world of divers watches as the industry leader, with the most capable dive watch in the Rolex range being the Rolex Sea-Dweller ref 16600. In 2008 however, Rolex replaced its Sea-Dweller ref 16600 with a new addition to the Sea-Dweller range, the Rolex Sea-Dweller Deepsea ref 116660.
View morePublished on Saturday 22nd of January 2022
Rolex Bracelets and Straps
Whilst certain Rolex watch models have gained a following and are available in an array of models. Differing in size, material and function. Many of the watch bracelets have fans of their own. Most Rolex bracelets have been designed for a specific series, however some models of watches now give the buyer the ability to choose a bracelet for their watch (usually dependent on the material of watch).
View morePublished on Tuesday 18th of January 2022
How to set your Rolex Datejust
Originally introduced into the Rolex collection in 1945 the Rolex Datejust is one of the most iconic models available on the watch market. It was the first wristwatch to have a date complication that changed itself at midnight, meaning that 'the date is always just' and providing the watch with its name; the Datejust. Later in 1953 the Datejust was given one of its iconic features, the cyclops lens and a small magnifying lens over the date and helping the wearer to see the date better. Learn how to set the Rolex Datejust here.
View morePublished on Sunday 16th of January 2022
Rolex Sky-Dweller Features
As the Rolex Sky-Dweller approaches its 10 year anniversary, having been originally released in 2012 we decided to look at some of its many features. For many Rolex fans this will not be new news however there are many people out there that will not know about these.
View morePublished on Wednesday 12th of January 2022
Rolex Papers, what are they and how do I tell if they are real?
When a new Rolex watch is purchased from an Official Rolex Dealer, the watch will come with what is called Rolex Papers, even though in recent years this is a card. These Rolex papers are used initially to hold warranty information, but once the watch is out of that warranty period, why are the papers still considered to be important?
View morePublished on Saturday 8th of January 2022
Changing Watch Straps
Periodically, throughout the lifetime of a watch, you may wish to change the strap or bracelet. This may be due to the fact that the existing strap is worn or damaged, or simply that you may wish to change the appearance of the watch. What type, and size of strap do I need for my watch?
View morePublished on Monday 3rd of January 2022
The History and Development of the Rolex Day-Date
For many, the words ‘A gold Rolex’ conjure up an image of wealth, success, and of luxury. For over 60 years that image has been of Rolex’s flagship, the Day-Date. The Rolex Day-Date is worn by world leaders, business tycoons, heads of industry and the worlds elite. It is no wonder then, that the Rolex Day-Date is considered the epitome of success, a goal for the many and treasured by those who use them.
View morePublished on Thursday 30th of December 2021
Setting your Rolex Explorer
The Rolex Explorer was born from an extreme exhibition of human achievement, when Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay ascended to Mt Everest's peak. Norgay wore a Rolex Oyster Perpetual on his wrist that would eventually be branded, the Explorer. The Explorer has always been a little over looked in the Professional range from Rolex. It has a small, yet refined design that has remained relatively unchanged since 1953
View morePublished on Sunday 19th of December 2021
Box and Papers, Important or not?
When looking at buying pre-owned watches there are plenty out there that stipulate box and papers. Why is this important? Does it matter?
View morePublished on Tuesday 14th of December 2021
Rolex Bezels
The bezel is the protective ring around the edge of the watch case. Bezels are usually made from metal or precious metals. They sometimes have and insert/inlay which are normally coloured and made from steel or ceramic materials. Some bezels are able to click round in one or both rotations as a timer or time zone function. There is an array of bezels available on many different Rolex watches but what are the differences? What do they actually do? Rolex offer bezels in an array or styles, but the humble bezel has a much more important function. Initially Rolex designed and used the bezel to aid in creating a waterproof seal around the case but has since evolved as new functions have been added to the watches over the years.
View morePublished on Sunday 12th of December 2021
Swiss Made, What does it mean?
Many luxury watches have the mark ‘Swiss-Made’ on the dial of their watch but lots of people do not fully understand or even know what this means. Watches with this mark usually cost more than those that do not have it on.
View morePublished on Wednesday 8th of December 2021
How to set the Rolex Submariner
The Rolex Submariner range is offered by Rolex as part of their ‘Professional Watches' collection. It has a clean and classic design that has remained virtually unchanged since its release in 1954. It is widely considered the staple of the modern tool watch, and is said to be ‘the reference among divers watches’ by Rolex themselves. There are a few differences in the models, with the main one being the Date and Non-Date versions. Setting the time and date on these watches can often be tricky, learn how to do it here.
View morePublished on Saturday 4th of December 2021
The History and Development of the Rolex GMT Master II
The modern Steel Sports Rolex is one of the most desirable and difficult to obtain watches in 2021. Playing on the psychology of people who, when told they can’t have something, makes them want it more, Rolex restrict the amount of steel sports watches that are available for sale, fuelling ever growing waiting lists from authorised dealers. This results in an increased demand, which then develops in ever growing waiting lists. Arguably the watch that has the most attention for being subject to this vicious circle of lowering supply to increase demand is the Rolex GMT Master II. With its loud and vivid (for Rolex) colour schemes, and iconic design with a cult following, it's one of the most recognisable Rolex models of all time.
View morePublished on Saturday 27th of November 2021
Aquanaut by Patek Philippe
When the Aquanaut watch was launched, back in 1997, it created a tremendous amount o interest because of its unexpected design and younger modern look. The Aquanaut timepiece started off with only two models, with a run of only 1000 pieces of each design. The stainless model 5060A and the 18ct yellow gold model 5060J were the two watches that created this interest in the beginning. The main difference on the Aquanaut styling was the introduction of a rubber strap to their watch range, which was a first for Patek Philippe.
View morePublished on Thursday 25th of November 2021
Daily Watch Care
As they are the only technical instrument that we wear directly on our bodies, wristwatches have a unique and emotional bond with us. Therefore, it is important that we give our watches a little regular TLC to help keep them in pristine condition.
View morePublished on Monday 22nd of November 2021
The History and Development of the Rolex Datejust
A lot of attention is given to the professional watch range. It would sometimes seem that the whole world paying attention to every update or new addition to the Submariner range or GMT Master II etc, but one collection that is often overlooked is also one of the best-selling, most successful watch models ever made, the humble Rolex Datejust.
View morePublished on Saturday 20th of November 2021
Watch Winders, What are they and do I need one?
A watch winder is a box (small or large) that inside has a place for your watch and gently rotates so that the watches movement is wound and running ensuring that all the wheels, springs and levers are kept lubricated so that the watch runs as it should
View morePublished on Tuesday 16th of November 2021
The Rolex Submariner Range
For many people, when you think of a Rolex watch, the Rolex Oyster Perpetual Submariner 126610, (or simply the Rolex Submariner as it is almost exclusively referred to), is what you will think of. The clean and classic design has remained virtually unchanged since its release in 1954. It is widely considered the staple of the modern tool watch, and is said to be ‘the reference point among divers watches’ by Rolex themselves.
View morePublished on Sunday 14th of November 2021
The History and Development of the Omega Seamaster
Of all the many quality watches made by the high-end watchmaker Omega, the best known is the ‘Seamaster’ series. Seamasters are the longest running watch model made by Omega, having been in production since 1948, and have been made in manual winding, automatic and quartz (battery) versions. The name Seamaster stems from the fact that the watch design was based on watches made by Omega for the Royal Navy during the Second World War.
View morePublished on Wednesday 10th of November 2021
The History and Development of the Rolex Yacht Master II
The Rolex Yacht-Master sits well in the Rolex Professional Watch line up. A watch with all the capabilities as the truly rugged working watches like the Rolex Submariner, or the Rolex Sea-Dweller, but with more of a luxury feel, and a more affluent target market than some of the other watches in the range. In 2007, 15 years after the birth of the Rolex Yacht-Master, Rolex announced it would be making a new watch that would share the Yacht-Master name, the Yacht-Master II. At first glance it looked like this watch would be the missing link between the luxurious Yacht-Master, and the bulkier function orientated watches that it shares a catalogue with.
View morePublished on Saturday 6th of November 2021
Rolex Chromalight vs Superluminova
An integral component to a Rolex watch is how well it works in little or no light. Look at any Rolex divers watch for instance; if it didn’t glow in the dark it would be useless as a dive watch. A diver depends on how legible that watch is in murky waters. The same goes for watches worn for other adventures, such as mountaineering or cave exploring. A big selling point of the first Explorer watch was its ability to tell the time in the dark.
View morePublished on Tuesday 2nd of November 2021
The History and Development of the Rolex Daytona
Rolex in the 1950s had been busy working hard to cement the brand as a maker of watches for professionals, with the Rolex Submariner released in 1954, targeting professional divers. Rolex also partnered with Pan American Airways a year later to produce the Rolex GMT, the epitome of pilots watches, and worked to meet the needs of the scientific community working around electromagnetic fields, when Rolex introduced the Milgauss in 1956. Despite the relative success of these models, Rolex set their sights even higher and aimed for the stars. When US president Kennedy gave his speech in 1962 promising to put man on the moon, Rolex saw an opportunity to complete the set, and add astronauts to the list of professions they catered for.
View morePublished on Saturday 30th of October 2021
Roger W. Smith OBE - Watchmaker
Roger Smith was born in 1970, in Bolton, near Manchester, England. From a very early age was interested in machinery rather than the normal subjects at school. He showed more of a practical side at school than an academic side and at the age of 16, after advice from his father, he enrolled in the Manchester School of Horology. On the first day he was hooked and progressed so well he received the British Horology Institute’s Bronze medal for obtaining the highest mark of the year, also finishing the top his class.
View morePublished on Wednesday 27th of October 2021
The History and Development of the Omega Planet Ocean
Omega produce a number of watch styles under the umbrella ‘Seamaster’ range. A variety of styles from solid sports watches to slimmer, elegant dress watches. One of the more specific, distinct ranges has been the ‘Planet Ocean’.
View morePublished on Sunday 24th of October 2021
British Made Watch Brands
Great Britain has always been heavily involved in the invention and development of timepieces from the very first days dating back over two hundred years. Starting with Robert Hooke’s balance spring from 1664 and Thomas Mudge’s lever escapement from 1755, then all the way to John Harwood’s automatic winding mechanism from 1924 and George Daniels coaxial escapement being the latest improvement.
View morePublished on Thursday 21st of October 2021
The History and Development of Rolex Explorer II
Ever since Rolex made their first waterproof watch in 1927, they have been making watches for specific groups of professionals and sports people. From the Rolex Submariner, made to be used by professional divers, to the GMT Master II made for transatlantic airline pilots, to the Rolex Daytona for race-car drivers, it's safe to say that Rolex caters for very specific needs to sell watches to the masses. One of the more unknown professions that Rolex caters to however is with their Explorer range. Now it's pretty obvious that their watches are made to be used by, well, explorers. Whilst this is true, many people just think of the 1953 Everest climb by Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, where Norgay famously wore a Rolex Oyster Perpetual on his wrist that would eventually be branded the Explorer. But almost 20 years after that, Rolex released another watch to complement the Explorer, the Rolex Explorer II. Whereas the Rolex Explorer was created for people climbing to the top of some of the highest peaks on earth, the Explorer II was created for people going under them, cavers. As is obvious, a caver (or spelunker) is someone who explores caves, thus presenting a whole different set of criteria for Rolex to cater for when compared with the standard Explorer.
View morePublished on Saturday 16th of October 2021
Omega and James Bond
One of the most significant aspects in the history of the Seamaster has been its connection with fictional super spy James Bond. Up until 1993 Bond actors Connery, Lazenby, Moore and Dalton wore a Rolex Submariner. In 1995, with a new actor in the role, Pierce Brosnan, and a new film in the pipeline, Goldeneye, Bond producers decided they wanted a new ‘Euro’ look for the character. One of the prime movers in this switchover was Lindy Hemming, who was in charge of costume and wardrobe for the film. She felt the appearance of the Omega Seamaster Diver 300m had the look of a watch that would be worn by a rogue spy who also had to ‘dress up’ from time to time
View morePublished on Friday 15th of October 2021
John Harwood (Watchmaker)
John Harwood was born in Bolton, Greater Manchester, in July 1893. During World War 1 he served as an armoury staff sergeant and showed his technical skills in developing an automatic pistol and an impact-turning screwdriver.
View morePublished on Tuesday 12th of October 2021
An Overview of Breitling
The Breitling watch company (officially known as ‘Breitling SA’) are based in the city of Grenchen, Switzerland, and have been making luxury watches since 1884. Founded by Leon Breitling in the nearby town of Saint-Imier, the company was passed to Leons son, Gaston, in 1914, upon Leon’s death. The company remained in the ownership of the Breitling family until 1979. The company is now owned by CVC Capital Partners.
View morePublished on Friday 8th of October 2021
British School of Watchmaking - Manchester
Horology is the study of the measurement of time and this can be learnt at the British School of Watchmaking in Sale, Manchester.Nick Towndrow and Gordon Bryan set up the school, in 2004, after seeing there was a shortage of watchmakers in the UK to service the increasing number of complex mechanical watches out there.
View morePublished on Wednesday 6th of October 2021
One Watch is Not Enough - James Bond Watches
All good spy movies come with their quota of fancy gizmos and gadgets to assist our hero in his mission. The James Bond movie franchise stands head and shoulders above all others in this genre. Each Bond film brings new input from Q Branch to ensure success in the field. The cars, the aircraft and the weaponry have all become synonymous with Bond and made him the legendary figure that he is. The most iconic piece of his customized equipment has always been his wristwatch. Each Bond, each film, has been accompanied by a new model, all of which have passed into movie folklore. All of these watches, (and many of the watches worn by Bonds foes) have their uniqueness, and are certainly worthy of discussion.
View morePublished on Tuesday 28th of September 2021
Using your watch in water.
Many watches are able to be used in water but do we understand what type of water we can use our watches in? Then to add to the confusion, some watches are referred to being waterproof whilst some say water resistant, what is the difference? Well waterproof means that it is 100% sealed and water cannot get in to the mechanism in anyway; whereas water resistant means that the watch is able to resist the penetration of water to some degree. Many watches now have ATM engraved on the back and this refers to the pressure a watch can withstand, it may seem a little strange but ATM stands for atmosphere. 1 atmosphere is the normal atmospheric pressure a watch would be under when static at sea level and the pressure goes up (as does the rating) depending how much pressure the watch can be put under before it may break.
View morePublished on Tuesday 21st of September 2021
History and Development of Rolex Air King
During and immediately after World War II, Rolex made a line of watches commemorating the brave efforts of the British Royal Air Force by creating a line of ‘Air’ watches for the pilots arriving home once the war was over. The line of watches consisted of four models: The Air-Lion with a round dial in a rounded square shaped case, the Air-Tiger, with a sub seconds hand at 6 o’clock, the Air-Giant with a larger case often seen in gold, and the Air-King with the largest case size of the four at 34mm, a large watch in its day. As the other models in the Air range were eventually discontinued, the Air-King, launched in 1945, would be the only one of the four to go on to still be made today.
View morePublished on Saturday 11th of September 2021
Updated Breitling Box Review
We recently received one of the updated Breitling Boxes, and although these were introduced in 2020 they are an optional swap when purchasing your Breitling watch from any main dealer, and this would appear to be why we are receiving watches with the alternative and more traditional Breitling box.
View morePublished on Monday 6th of September 2021
Rolex Submariner Date 'Starbucks' History
In 1953, Rolex started production of a new watch, after a man by the name of René-Paul Jeanneret, who sat on the board of directors at Rolex, came up with the idea to make a divers watch. The sleek yet sporty design used the Oyster case technology to make an everyday watch that had a rotating bezel, allowing divers to keep track of how much time had passed. The watch was unveiled at the Basel Watch Fair in 1954, and today is regarded as the staple of the modern tool watch. It is said to be ‘the reference among divers' watches’ by Rolex themselves.
View morePublished on Sunday 5th of September 2021
Rolex Swing Tags
If you have recently been looking to buy a Rolex watch, (or you are already the owner of one) you may have noticed that the swing tags (also known as hang tags) that come with Rolex watches have changed colour over the past few years. Up until 2015, Rolex swing tags were red in colour. Since 2015 these tags have changed colour and are now green. What do these tags actually mean? Why have they changed colour?
View morePublished on Wednesday 1st of September 2021