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The Fall and Rise of Zenith, 1969-1988

March 3, 2021 By Stephen Leave a Comment

Zenith was “the first manufacture”, one of the greatest watch companies in Switzerland, and the economic force behind Le Locle. Then it was purchased by an American electronics company and ordered to destroy its mechanical watchmaking assets. This is the story of the mighty Zenith, brought low, and returning thanks to a machine tools baron, a humble watchmaker, and two other famous brands.

Filed Under: Commentary, The Watch Files Tagged With: Charles Vermot, Chronomatic, Dixi, Ebel, El Primero, Georges Favre-Jacot, H. Moser & Cie., Le Locle, LVMH, Martel, Movado, Paul Buhré, Paul Castella, quartz, Rolex, Rolex Daytona, Tissot, Zenith, Zenith Defy, Zenith El Primero

Hebdomas: The True Story of the 8-Day Pocket Watch

November 29, 2020 By Stephen Leave a Comment

Spend some time looking at old watches and you’re bound to stumble across an unusual watch with an off-center dial, fancy exposed balance, and 8-day power reserve. The dial will likely say “Hebdomas” and “8 Jours” and not much more. Is this some exotic high-end watch or a mass-market pretender? That’s the story I’m telling today!

Filed Under: Commentary, Grails Tagged With: 8-day, Aerowatch, Arthur Graizely, Baladin, Bienne, Hebdomas, Kolber, La Chaux-de-Fonds, Otto Schild, Schild & Co, Vincent Calabrese, Xantia

The History of the IWC Da Vinci via Europa Star

June 5, 2020 By Stephen Leave a Comment

Regular Grail Watch readers might have noticed that I have begun using the archives of Europa Star rather heavily in my research. The editors noticed as well, and have invited me to be a contributing writer to that fine journal. My first piece was published today, and delves into the history of an iconic model, IWC’s Da Vinci. The archive brought me fantastic information and illustrations, as we will discuss today.

Filed Under: Commentary Tagged With: Beta 21, CEH, Chronograph, Europa Star, IWC, IWC Da Vinci, IWC Da Vinci Perpetual Calendar, Mechaquartz, perpetual calendar, quartz

More Movements, One Case

June 4, 2020 By Stephen Leave a Comment

I’ve recently written about the odd but surprisingly frequent practice of casing two movements into a single watch. From Nappey to Ardath to respected brands like Hermes and Cartier, many companies have used twin movements in a single watch. But what about squeezing in three, four, or more movements? The development of compact and inexpensive quartz movements made that possible in the 1980s, and this has lead to the creation of many novel oddballs.

Filed Under: Commentary Tagged With: Colani, Colani Apogee, Delaneau, Façonnable, Glycine, Glycine Airman, Glycine Airman 7, IceLink, Jean d'Eve, Raymond Weil, Raymond Weil Trianon

Two Movements, One Case: Ardath Long Distance

April 23, 2020 By Stephen Leave a Comment

Yesterday I talked about the Nappey Jumelles Times, the first dual timezone watch to use two separate movements in a single case. Although that model was quite obscure, today’s watch is much more famous. Ardath took Nappey’s formula and made it famous, producing a line of Long Distance watches that lasted a decade, including special models for Muslims and homemakers, and a cool sports model that reappeared in the 1990s!

Filed Under: Commentary Tagged With: Ardath, Ardath Hostess Long Distance, Ardath Long Distance, Ardath Super Long Distance, Ardath Wisdom, dual timezone, ETA 2551, ETA 2651, FEF 430, Islam, Nappey Jumelles Times, Royce Twin

The Nadir of Jaeger-LeCoultre and the Reverso

April 15, 2020 By Stephen Leave a Comment

Most enthusiasts could instantly name the watches pictured below, but they’d be wrong: This isn’t a Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso, its an Eska Sesame! By the 1980s, Jaeger-LeCoultre’s signature model was forgotten and the company was struggling to survive. Yet just a decade later, the Reverso would lead the entire industry back from the brink. This is the story of the fall of Jaeger-LeCoultre and the resurrection of the Reverso.

Filed Under: Commentary Tagged With: Eska, Eska Sesame, Günter Blümlein, IWC, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso, Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Grande Complication à Triptyque, LMH, Royce, Royce Mexico

Beuchat Envers ACW, Juvenia Contresens, and Klokers: The History of the Anti-Clockwise Watch

April 13, 2020 By Stephen Leave a Comment

Almost all clocks turn “clockwise”, with the hands moving from the top of the dial to the right. But for the last few decades a few oddball watches have used hands moving in the other direction! This corner of horology is not well understood, so I decided to take a stab at documenting this revolution. It begins conceptually with the digital mechanical watches of the 1970s. Then Beuchat, a fashionable French brand of the 1980s, produces the first such watch. Swiss quartz behemoth Ronda pitches in, bringing forth an odd watch from the venerable house of Juvenia before today’s Klokers gets it right.

Filed Under: Commentary Tagged With: Alain Silberstein, anti-clockwise, AS 2072, Beuchat, Beuchat Envers, clockwise, digital, France Ebauches, Japanese clocks, jumping hours, Juvenia, Juvenia Contresens, Klokers, Ronda

Retrograde Retrospective: A History of the Le Phare Sectora and Quarta

April 8, 2020 By Stephen Leave a Comment

Although unconventional time displays are popular today, very few watches had so-called retrograde hands to display the time until the 1990s. Sector displays first appeared in pocket watches as early as 1650 and were wildly popular in the early 1900s thanks to the Sector pocket watch from Record. But it was not until the Le Phare Sectora, LIP Secteur, and Wittnauer Futurama of the 1970s that this complication appeared on the wrist. These watches are rarely seen or discussed today, but were truly groundbreaking even as the quartz revolution challenged watchmaking.

Filed Under: Commentary, Grails Tagged With: Jean d'Eve, Le Phare, LIP, LIP Secteur, Record, Record Sector, retrograde, Sector, Wittnauer, Wittnauer Futurama

The History of the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Chronograph

April 12, 2019 By Stephen Leave a Comment

The Royal Oak Chronograph was a latecomer to this celebrated line and has remained remarkably consistent throughout its two-decade life. All share the same movement and a single lineage passes from the original Ref. 25860 to the subtly-redesigned Ref. 26300, the up-sized Ref. 26320, and the new Ref. 26331. It was only this year that a second model, the 38 mm Ref. 26315, was added. Yet on closer examination, a world of differences emerges, from the City of Sails to the Leo Messi, to the new 41 mm dial. Through it all, the Royal Oak Chronograph remains one of the classiest and most comfortable watches available.

Filed Under: Commentary Tagged With: Audemars Piguet, Audemars Piguet Royal Oak, Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Chronograph, Chronograph, FP 1185

Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Gran’Sport: The First “Beefcake” Reverso

January 23, 2019 By Stephen 1 Comment

Given the clever retrograde chronograph movement, the Gran’Sport Chronograph is the pick of the Gran’Sport lineup today. It’s really too bad that gorgeous Reverso Chronographe Rétrograde is out of the price range for most people.

Filed Under: Grails Tagged With: 829, 859, Chronograph, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso, Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Chronograph Retrograde, Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Gran'Sport, Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Gran'Sport Chronograph, retrograde

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Latest Posts

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The Fall and Rise of Zenith, 1969-1988

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In Praise of the Rolex Cellini Prince

The Thin Watch War | The Watch Files: January 12, 1979

The Day Gérald Genta Challenged the Watch Industry | The Watch Files: November 7, 1984

No Joke: H. Moser & Cie. Swiss Alp is the Smartest Watch

Inventing the Solar-Powered Watch: Patek Philippe, Synchronar, and Uranus

Hebdomas: The True Story of the 8-Day Pocket Watch

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