Patek Philippe Calatrava Pilot Travel Time Ref. 5524 (live photos, specs & price) - Monochrome-Watches
Don’t fall off your chair. This is a real watch and this is a real Patek Philippe. It”s no April’s fool neither one of our crazy predictions. You’re definitely in front Patek Philippe’s own Pilot Watch. Yes, the?Patek Philippe Calatrava Pilot Travel Time Ref. 5524 is a proper surprise and when we saw it on press photos, we’ve been also extremely skeptical. However, we already had it on the wrist and it’s time to explain you why this watch.Obviously, you were certainly expecting Patek Philippe to come at Baselworld 2015 with some dress watches, some new chronographs (and they have some pretty good ones that we’ll show you later) or some new Nautilus (they also have one, also for later this week). However, even the best watchmaking analysts couldn’t be prepared to this: an aviator watch from Patek Philippe. It’s indeed totally unexpected. Ad - Scroll to continue with article

Rado Tradition Captain Cook MKIII Automatic (Specs & Price)
Rado, for the large majority of us, is known for its ceramic watches – and obviously, the brand is good at it. However, Rado also wanted to remind us that there were other watches in its collection before the advent of ceramic cases and that the company has a (much richer) past. To this end, the brand introduced several vintage-inspired dive watches last year named “Captain Cook”. Today, there’s a new chapter in this story, with the presentation of the?Rado Tradition Captain Cook MKIII Automatic – another cool, historical dive watch, this time with a slightly more modern touch.Two models were released in 2017 as part of the Captain Cook homage; the Hyperchrome Captain Cook with a 37.3mm diameter, which perfectly captured the vintage spirit of the original 1962 model, and a less convincing 45mm version in titanium. The new?Captain Cook MKIII plays on a different trend, with an oversized case and a colourful dial. While it retains the?vintage look of the ori

Hands-On - Patek Philippe Annual Calendar 5205G Gradient Blue Dial (Specs & Price)
Blue dials have been popular for some time now. So much so, that they have almost become the rule instead of the exception. To stand out from the crowd with a blue dial nowadays, you are going to have to pull off something special. That's exactly what Patek Philippe has done with the latest iteration of its reference 5205G. Although not a new watch per se, the addition of a mouth-wateringly delicious blue gradient dial has reinvented this model in my eyes, driving its desirability factor through the roof. We spent some time hands-on with this watch recently, and let me tell you, the only thing harder than capturing the gorgeous blue tones was giving it back.If you're a watchmaking devotee, then you no doubt already know that Patek Philippe invented and patented the Annual Calendar complication back in 1996. More functional than a standard calendar, and more accessible than a perpetual calendar, it can automatically account for the difference in the number of days in each month (with th

Christian Gafner, Head of Brand and Design for Ochs & Junior, on Changes and Future Plans for the Brand - Monochrome Watches
Only a few weeks ago, we shared the latest watch by Ochs & Junior, the Calendario Cent’Anni (CCA) with all of you. Once again, it illustrates the simplistic approach to mechanical watchmaking perfected by Ludwig Oechslin and his team. The philosophy in watchmaking displayed by Dr Oechslin is all about simplicity, and it shows in the mechanical side of things. Ochs & Junior offers complex displays using only very few additional parts. One example is the Perpetual Calendar, with only nine new parts and three modified ones. So, after the release of the CCA, we decided to have a chat with Christian Gafner, the new Head of Brand and Design for Ochs & Junior.Robin Nooij, MONOCHROME – What led to your career in the watch industry, and how did you end up working for Ochs &Junior?Christian Gafner, Head of Brand and Design for O&J – My first contact with the industry was after my studies in Industrial and Product Design. The MIHwatch by Ludwig Oechslin was m

Sinn 158 Chronograph, Re-Edition 1550 SG Bundeswehr // Specs & Price
Sinn’s dedication to tool, pilot and military watches is undeniable. The brand is one of the main specialists in this field, with a full range of no-nonsense, robust and effective watches at reasonable prices. References such as the 103, the 140 or the 356 need no introduction anymore. However, if there was only one to keep in mind, this would be the “Bundeswehr Chronograph for Pilots”, known under the references 1550 SG (when it was made by Heuer) or 155 Bw (when manufactured by Sinn). This watch, produced during the 1960s, and later in the 1980s and early 1990s, is a legend among military chronographs… And today, it’s back! Meet the new Sinn 158 Chronograph.1960s-1990s – The Original Bundeswehr 1550 SG and the Sinn Model 155 BwThe Bundeswehr watch was designed for military pilots and created for the West German Federal Defense Force (Bundeswehr). It was initially made by a company called Leonidas, which was later purchased by Heuer. It was driven b