MeisterSinger Benjamin Franklin Watch
Ol' Ben Franklin has been having a big month. Not only has the founding father been revealed as secondary mascot of the Philadelphia 76ers basketball team, MeisterSinger have released a watch honoring his life. It may seem strange to US citizens that a German brand would create a watch in homage to a famous American, but Benjamin Franklin is highly thought of in Europe as well as in his native New World. The release of the MeisterSinger Benjamin Franklin watch remembers the man who made such good use of the time he had on this Earth.A frequent visitor to England, Franklin was friends with some very important people in the London area. He was reputedly a member of Sir Francis Dashwood's Hell-fire Club that met in the chalk caves of West Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. There, they discussed politics, pretty girls, and where to find the best pint of English ale. Franklin had an interest for horology, which was further stoked by a 1770 visit to England, where he happened upon famous horologist J

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Diver Watch On A Boat
AP is on a boat! (by the way, the video below is the censored version - I realize that - erring on the side of caution here as our friends in Switzerland in the watch brand marketing departments sometimes have weaker constitutions than we do. The uncensored version of the video is here). Often times a watch doesn't assert itself well until it is in its "natural environment." That is not the case with the new AP ROO Diver (Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Diver) because it looks good pretty much everywhere. But if you want to see what the design is really all about, and meant for - then you will take it on a boat. The Royal Oak collection as a whole began with influence from boats. You have no idea how many watches began with boat windows or portholes. Hublot is basically an entire brand that started around this concept. The porthole is a cornerstone design element of so many luxury sport watches!Audemars Piguet invited me to join them in visiting l'Hydroptere - the fastest sailboat i

Stowa Marine Review
If you're into German watches, you're likely already very familiar with Stowa. If not, here's the super abbreviated history. Stowa was founded in 1927 by Walter Storz, (Stowa being an abbreviation of his name STOrz WAlter). In the 30��s they designed and released Bauhaus watches, which informed their very popular Antea line available today. Famously, of infamously as it might be, they were one of the original manufacturers of Flieger watches during WWII. Their original factory was also blown up during said war. They moved to another area in Germany and continued to make watches for many decades. In 1996 J?rg Schauer, a renowned German watch maker,?took over the brand and all trademark rights. By introducing watches closely based on the brand's history as well as new, modern watches, such as the Seatime Prodiver, all while maintaining accessible prices, Schauer has reestablished Stowa as a popular brand.One of their historical lines that has always intrigued us is their Marine line. Base

Chrono question
Some will probably think this is a stupid question and that the answer is obvious, but I am absolutely not an expert in watches, just a guy who likes watches and learns new things all the time. So here's the question, why a chrono like the 5370 which is platinum and enamel dial costs only, if I can say so, 250K when a 5950 which is in steel and IMO not as good looking, but others might disagree just personal taste, costs 400K? Is it because one has 3 pushers and the most expensive only 2? Is that an extra complication? Also I am surprised that a 2 pusher split second chrono with no other complication is considered a grand complication, while a 3 pusher split chrono is considered complication, not grand, is that usual or just with Patek? Is one so much harder to make than the other?I must say the question has been turning in my head since there has been a lot of talk about the 5370, and can't find a logical explanation to justify the 150K difference. In no way would I buy, even if I co

Sub Date caseback openned by hand
Has anyone experienced this before? Today I accidentally managed to open the caseback of my Sub Date by hand. Not sure how long it had not been tightly screwed down. I was frightened. Fortunately to my eye the movement looks still clean. The watch has been my daily beater since 2003, though recently other Rolexes get more wrist. Since it has never been serviced I now intend to bring it to the RSC.