A Technical Perspective - The Peripheral Rotor, A Smart And Stylish Solution
Since 2009 and the introduction of the Carl F. Bucherer Calibre A1000, peripheral rotors are becoming more and more fashionable. With this smart and stylish solution, the winding mass is an annular segment mounted and swinging around the movement, instead of a centrally mounted oscillating weight rotating over the movement. This offers an unobstructed view of the movement along with providing the convenience of automatic winding. In addition, peripheral rotors allow watchmakers to design thinner self-winding watches, without adding to their thickness with an oscillating weight rotating over the movement.The calibre CFB A1000 series by Carl F. Bucherer. In 2009, it was the first movement with a peripheral rotor to be produced on a large scale.The 1950s - First attemptsThe idea of peripheral winding is not exactly new. We can refer to a patent applied in June 1955 by Paul Gosteli of Geneva, (Swiss patent N¡ã 322325 pictured below, filed on June 6th?1955, published on July 31st?1957) descr

Introducing the Breitling Navitimer 01 in 46mm - Monochrome Watches
The Navitimer is Breitling’s most emblematic watch. Presented in 1952 with?the reference 806 as the ultimate pilot chronograph, equipped with a very useful slide rule, it was endorsed as the official timekeeping instrument of the?AOPA – the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. At that time, with its 42mm, it was already huge, especially when you consider that most watches were sized at 35mm. For years now, the Navitimer has shared the same spirit and design, with the same slide rule and its 3-sub-counter panda dial (black dial with white sub-dials). But the 43mm of the actual models are quite average now and an?update was needed, just to keep the?spirit of the original?one: a massive 46mm or 48mm tool-watch to wear over?your?flight jacket.Navitimer 806 – Photo by WatchFredThe Navitimer is one of the few watches that can really claim to be iconic. It even boasts a surprising link between an astronaut (Scott Carpenter), a French singer (Serge Gainsbourg), an American

First Look: The Anoma A1 Slate, The Second Edition of the Oddly-Shaped Watch
About a year ago, a new micro-brand launched on the scene and caused quite some noise due to its oddly shaped, slightly overdesigned but rather appealing triangular watch, the Anoma A1 Watch. The project of a young French-British watch enthusiast, Matteo Violet Vianello, the watch made a sensation with a sculptural case playing on the trend for shaped watches – Cartier Crash or Pebble, to name a few – and the initial limited run of blue watches sold out fast. The brand is back with the second chapter in its adventure, the Anoma A1 Slate – but there’s a bit more than just a new dial colour here.Anoma’s inaugural model, the blue A1 watchViolet Vianello’s passion for watches began in childhood and led him to work at Sotheby's and later at respected indie watch retailer A Collected Man. Last year, he started his own venture, Anoma, which is short for anomaly and does reflect the unconventional shape of his first model. The A1 watch draws inspiration from

5 Questions for Guillaume T¨ºtu, COO of Ralph Lauren Watches
In 2009, a new brand made its debut to the SIHH, the?Ralph Lauren Watch & Jewelry Co, a joint venture between the iconic lifestyle?brand and the Richemont Group, the watchmaking giant. Yet, the path?has not been simple and after several?unclear collections and hesitations in positioning the brand, the?brand was absent from the SIHH 2016. Though,?this was not the end of the story. New?teams,?repositioning of the collections,?appointment of industry?veteran?Guillaume T¨ºtu, first as?Product Development Director and as COO since October, finally a discreet comeback of the brand at the SIHH 2017. It was perfect timing for us to sit down with our long-time friend Guillaume and to understand his vision for the?Ralph Lauren Watch & Jewelry Co.Before we let Guillaume explains his vision and the strategy Ralph Lauren?wants to implement for its Watch and?Jewelry division, the big news (as reported by our colleagues Watchonista here) is that the brand will be officially back at?the SIHH in

Vacheron Constantin Overseas Automatic 4500V - Review (Specs & Price)
Some categories in the watch world are more competitive than others. The “Luxury Sports-Watch” sector certainly is amongst the toughest of all. Narrow, precisely defined, and requiring the highest standards of quality, luxury, and mechanics, it is driven by a few, very strong icons… Entering it is complex. Breaking back into its ranks is close to impossible, but this is what Vacheron Constantin have achieved with the new Overseas collection, first introduced in 2016, and today we look at the “standard” offer, the?Overseas Automatic 4500V.The “Luxury Sports-Watch” CategoryIn the?strictest definition, the “luxury sports-watch” category is extremely narrow. It comprises probably under 10 members, most of them born in the 1970s, under the genius pen of a certain Gerald Genta. What is a?“luxury sports-watch”? Of course, there’s no official definition, so here what we, at Monochrome, would say: a?“luxury sports-wat