Interview - Talking To Remi Maillat, The Man Behind Krayon Watches
Independent watchmaker Krayon was created a few years ago by Remi Maillat. Besides his developments behind the scene for other brands, Krayon made a remarkable debut with the mindbogglingly complex Everywhere, the first mechanical watch able to compute the sunrise and sunset times everywhere on the globe. This impressive world-first earned Krayon a well-deserved accolade at the GPHG 2018 with the Innovation Prize. Maillat sits at an interesting intersection at watchmaking. His watches are classic and, at the same time, profoundly modern and innovative. On the occasion of a visit to Krayon's new facilities in Neuchatel, we sat for a talk with the independent watchmaker to better understand his work.Xavier Markl, MONOCHROME – How did you become hooked on watchmaking? Ad - Scroll to continue with article Remi Maillat, Krayon Watches – I was always inter

The Collector Series - A Man & His Breitling Premier Split-Seconds
We're back today with a new instalment of our Collector's Series column, where we leave the stage to an owner and his beloved watch. For a relatively unknown reason, Breitling has rarely been seen in the series, but we're about to change this And with a pretty impressive model. Today, we'll be talking with Timerider27, as this 54yo watch collector is known on Instagram. He is a true Breitling fan. He thought it was time to explain why his Breitling Duograph Premier Split-Seconds chronograph is his favourite one. And to ask people to stop complaining so muchFrank Geelen, MONOCHROME – How did you personally get to know the brand in the first place??Timerider27 – I started collecting in 2004. Reading various magazines and forums, the first Breitling that caught my interest was a variation of the Transocean Unitime without a chronograph. I also liked the ubiquitous Navitimer but thought I would never use the calculator bezel and I still hold to that. I also enjoy 24-hour dials

IWC Pilots Watch UTC Spitfire Edition MJ271 ref. IW327101 - SIHH 2019 (Specs & Price)
As part of its thematic focus on Pilot’s Watches for the SIHH 2019,? IWC resurrects one of its signature complications, a device that was used in the past on pilot’s watches, the UTC for “Universal Time Coordinated” – a watch also known as the TZC for “Time Zone Corrector”. A practical?dual-time watch, which is easy to use and fitted with clever features, makes?a lot of sense in the context of a pilot’s watch. We are very pleased to see the return of this complication with the?IWC Pilot's Watch UTC Spitfire Edition MJ271.The UTC Watch by IWCBack in 1998, as part of the prolific Pilot’s Watch collection, IWC launched a new watch named the?UTC Pilot's Watch ref. 3251 (which you can see below). While the design was not surprising – clearly in the vein of the rest of the collection – the complication included in the watch was an interesting development. And don’t be fooled by the simple look of this piece, it is in fac

Patek Philippe Tourbillon Minute Repeater fetches 1.4 millon at Only Watch 2011 Auction - Monochrome Watches
Patek Philippe did it again. They made a stainless steel version of reference 3939, which was only available in precious metals before, and it was auctioned for a record price of € 1,400,000 Euro!?Unique for Patek Philippe is that stainless steel complicated watches, often sell for an incredibly high price. Often for much more than their siblings in gold. Why you might wonder? Well, the stainless steel version is probably more rare and more sought after. This model, reference 3939A, features a tourbillon and minute repeater in small stainless steel case measuring only 33.3 mm. Or is this an indication that small watches are gaining popularity? Ad - Scroll to continue with article The estimate for this Patek van between € 450,000 and € 650,000 Euro and it sold for more than double the highest estimate, for € 1,400,000 Euro. Our friends over at Hodinkee already su

Hands-On - HYT Watches is back With the New Hastroid Green Nebula
If you’re following the independent watchmaking scene, you were certainly aware of the difficulties encountered by HYT Watches, the UFO of the watchmaking industry, creating watches with fluidic indications. After a dormant period of about one year, we can now say it loud and clear: HYT is back in action with new partners to back the business (Kairos Technology Switzerland SA) and a new CEO, Davide Cerrato… A name that should certainly ring a bell. And today, the brand presents the first watch of its new era, the HYT Hastroid. And we were able to spend some time with the Green Nebula edition.?HYT – from concept to rebirthBehind HYT is a concept, a vision of displaying time in an unprecedented and clearly unnatural manner. Instead of using traditional hands revolving around a dial, HYT Watches, created in 2012, uses an entirely novel display based on fluids… Liquids in a watch (along with magnetism, the worst enemy of a mechanical movement)? Yes, that was the who