Hands-on: A Personal Take On The Stunning Moritz Grossmann Hamatic
To kick things off, this will be a very personal story, and yes, it is about a mechanical watch. When I first got into watchmaking, I knew very little about the history of the industry or the different regions in the world that dominate it. My knowledge came from magazines, movies and TV shows, billboards and the early days of social media, and that was about it. That is until I joined MONOCHROME in 2012 and started to seriously fall down the proverbial rabbit hole. My knowledge and experience grew, my interests shifted, and a whole world of new and exciting brands opened up, from very small one-man outfits to corporate behemoths. Over the years, my preferences continued to shift, and I have developed a deep love for German watchmaking, specifically from the Glashutte region. There’s just something special about how watches from this part of the world are made. And I’m not arguing if they’re better than Swiss or Japanese-made high-end watches, but the style is very pu

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Chronograph 41mm Frosted Gold 26240
Far from a radical transformation to mark its 50th anniversary, the design evolutions practised on the Royal Oak Selfwinding time-and-date and Selfwinding Chronograph models are subtle, perpetuating the spirit of Gerald Genta's epic 1972 Royal Oak. Its commanding octagonal bezel with eight exposed hexagonal screws, its tonneau-shaped case, integrated bracelet, and tapisserie guilloche dial are so sacrosanct and embedded in the identity of the Royal Oak that nobody in their right mind would think of substituting them. Two 41mm Selfwinding Chronographs join the 50th-anniversary party with attractive frosted gold cases and Audemars Piguet's latest-generation integrated flyback chronograph movement, calibre 4401. From May to July 2022, the Frosted Gold Royal Oak Chronograph 41mm?will be sold exclusively in Japan; in August 2022, they will be available worldwide.Hammered gold casesThe cases of these 41mm Royal Oak Selfwinding Chronographs are crafted in 18k white or yellow gold with a spect

Weekly Watch Photo - IWC Pilot's Watch Chronograph Top Gun Miramar - Monochrome Watches
The subject of this week’s Weekly Watch Photo has a very long name, IWC Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Top Gun Miramar. It was released in January of this year at the SIHH 2012, as part of an entirely revamped Pilot’s collection and it is among the first of this collection to feature IWC’s in-house caliber 89365.?Like last week’s Weekly Watch Photo, the Roger Dubuis Pulsion Skeleton Tourbillon, I had the distinct pleasure of wearing the IWC Pilot Chrono Miramar for several weeks, again with the purpose of writing a review. The review will be online in the following weeks, however I’d love to share some photos of this stunning watch and let’s start with the engraved case back. Ad - Scroll to continue with article Top Gun… these two words reminds me of the hit-movie featuring Tom Cruise and Kelly McGillis, rather then it

Understanding Porsche Design, With the Vintage Titan Chronograph and The Modern Monobloc Actuator - Monochrome Watches
Ferdinand Alexander Porsche was a genius, a visionary. A man not weary of defying odds and venturing into the unknown. Not only is he the driving force behind the legendary Porsche 911 sports car, but he also brought us much, much more. Under the Porsche Design umbrella is a world of luxury items to be found, from travel bags, writing instruments and fashion items to highly technical sports-oriented wristwatches. There's a clear link to the road and race cars by Porsche but that's not all. The brand has a very innovative orientation and today we take a look at a vintage world's first by Porsche Design. We're comparing the then futuristic Titan Chronograph by IWC and its modern derivative, the Monobloc Actuator 24h-Chronotimer.Ferdinand Alexander “Butzen” Porsche next to its most iconic creation, the legendary Porsche 911A few years ago, we already took an in-depth look at Porsche Design and the brand's history with titanium. The longstanding relationship between the design

First Look: The New TAG Heuer Monaco Split-Seconds Chronograph
The anticipation soared when TAG Heuer unveiled a one-of-a-kind Monaco Split-Seconds Chronograph for Only Watch in 2023, sparking hopes for its integration into the permanent collection. While the brand had previously dabbled in split-seconds or rattrapante chronographs during the 1960s, primarily as stopwatches for sporting events, it wasn’t until quartz technology that this functionality found its way into wristwatches. Despite this legacy, the mechanical split-seconds chronograph eluded TAG Heuer’s repertoire until last year. With the introduction of the new calibre TH81-00, TAG Heuer has finally re-entered the realm of rattrapante, marking a significant milestone.For its debut, the new TAG Heuer Monaco Split-Seconds Chronograph arrives in two versions, each distinguished by racing red or classic Monaco-blue accents and echoing the avant-garde design ethos of the Only Watch edition. Encased within a black DLC-coated titanium 41mm square-shaped, 15.2 mm thick case, which