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New Rolex Week & Other Fresh Releases

Published on Mon, 7 Sep 2020 10:00:15 +0000

Updated Submariners, colorful Oysters, and lightweight sport watches for summer.

Synopsis

This episode of Hodinkee Radio covers the major Rolex releases of 2020, with host Stephen Pulvirent joined by colleagues Jack Forster and Ben Clymer to discuss the updated Submariner collection, new Oyster Perpetual models, and Sky-Dweller additions. The Submariner received its first complete collection overhaul in years, moving from 40mm to 41mm with refined case proportions, slimmer lugs, and new movements featuring the Chronergy escapement. While the changes are subtle visually, they represent significant technical improvements. The most discussion-worthy releases were the colorful Oyster Perpetual dials in 36mm and 41mm sizes, with turquoise, yellow, coral, and pink options that reference vintage Stella dials and represent a fun, fashion-forward direction for Rolex.

In the second segment, Stephen talks with James Stacey and John Mayer about affordable new releases from other brands. They discuss the Seiko Prospex SPB143, a 40.5mm dive watch with vintage 62MAS styling that has generated significant buzz in the watch community. Other highlights include the Longines Heritage Military Marine Nationale with its beautifully executed vintage military aesthetic, the Breitling Endurance Pro in lightweight resin, Bulgari's aluminum-cased watches, and Omega's Seamaster Diver 300M Nekton Edition with a distinctive titanium bezel. The conversation emphasizes how 2020, despite initial concerns, has turned out to be a surprisingly strong year for interesting and accessible watch releases.

Transcript

Speaker
Jack Forster There was a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth over the loss of the OP thirty nine, but I kind of feel like if you were okay with the thirty nine you would probably be okay with a thirty six. I feel like they scratched the same itch a little bit. Have you met our audience? Yes. Have you read Hodin K?ing
Stephen Pulvirent Are you insane? Yeah. Every half millimeter jack redefines who you are as a human being and what your values are. So how dare you, first of all. Hey everybody, I'm your host Stephen Polveran and this is Hodinky Radio. So we didn't exactly get the trade shows that we usually have this year, so I missed out on the experience of bunking in an Airbnb with my Hodinky colleagues, spending hours and hours every night sitting around a communal table writing about watches, waiting for the press releases to come out, kind of rushing to get the news up. But we got kind of a small approximation of it this past week. Uh, Rolex decided to release their collection of new watches this year all at once. It hit at 6 p.m. uh here in New York City, and we kind of gathered in a I guess virtual Airbnb on our company Slack and cranked out stories on all those new releases. But after that, I was able to sit down with Jack and with Ben to kind of go over the biggest news. So the new Samariner, the new Oyster Perpetuals, the updates to the Sky Dweller, and really hash out what we think it means for those individual watches and for Rolex more broadly. I always learn a ton from those two guys anytime I talk to them, but especially when I talk to them about something like Rolex. So I think you're really going to enjoy that conversation. But those are far from the only new releases to have come out recently, so I got James and John into the virtual studio, and we talked through a whole bunch of other releases from other brands, focusing mostly on things at the more affordable end of the spectrum. So we talk about things from the likes of Longine, from Brightling, and even from Bulgary. A lot of these watches have their own unique perspective or bring something different to the table, and it really underscores just how creative brands are getting, and how this year that we really thought might be kind of dead in the watch industry has turned out to be pretty exciting. So without further ado, let's do this This week's episode is presented by Accutron. To accompany the relaunch of Accutron Watches, the brand has produced an incredible book entitled Accutron: From the Space Age to the Digital Age, chronicling the nearly six decades of Accutron history. Stay tuned later in the show to learn more or visit AccutronWatch.com. Hey guys, how you doing? I'm great, Steven. How are you? I'm good. It's the morning after uh Rolex releases. Of course I'm good. How about you, Jack? Never been
Ben Clymer better. I don't I don't believe that for some reason. I'm not sure why, but I've seen Jack be better. I've witnessed it. It was on a press trip in 2008.
Stephen Pulvirent Yeah. Oh yeah. Yeah that okay. Fair. Guys this is a family show. We uh we can't we can't talk about that. But uh it's good to have you guys on the show. We don't get to chat the three of us too much uh these days since we're not in the office constantly bothering one another. But uh we figured Rolex dropped a pile of new watches kind of unexpectedly, kind of expectedly. Uh and we thought it was a good good excuse to get get the band back together and uh talk through it. That sound okay to you guys? Totally. Sounds great to me. So let's let's start with just the biggest news. So the the big news, Rolex released a whole bunch of new things, but the the big news is they revamped the entire Submariner collection, uh, which is something they don't do too often. Typically, they'd like roll out one model, then kind of update the next, you know, the rest of the collection over a few years. But uh they redid the whole Submariner collection uh and the TLDR of this is the sub is now 41 millimeters instead of 40 millimeters, uh, but the case has slimmer lugs now. Uh the bracelet's a little bit wider and integrates slightly differently with the case. Uh and there's a new, like fully updated movement inside. That's that's pretty much the gist, right? That's pretty much the gist, yeah. Uh so let's let's go hot takes here. What do you what do you guys think? What are your your first impressions of the new sub, having not seen them in the metal? Jack, you want to go first
Jack Forster ? Boy, it's it's tough to say without actually seeing it, but um you know it it's obviously not identical, but virtually identical is the phrase that comes to mind. It's very, very difficult to tell the two apart. I like the redesign case. I think it's a nice tweak. It looks more graceful to me. To me, the big news though is uh is the new movement. And uh you know, getting a movement with a cronergy escapement uh in the sub-mariner, uh it just seems like a really, really logical thing to do. I feel like launching that escapement in a um gold day date was a very Rolex thing to do. But I feel like it's natural home is in the professional watches and seeing it in the submariner is fantastic. That's th to me that's much bigger news than the you know the minor case tweaks
Ben Clymer . I mean you, know, th this is probably the most underwhelming new Rolex in a while from like a collector's standpoint. You know, Jack is completely valid, more than valid. He's spot on with what this movement means to actual watch making and in terms of like industrializing like a very interesting kind of like basically form of of energy transmission. Um however, as we all know, for better or worse, nobody kinda gives a shit about that. Like when we're talking about buying Rolexes, like you buy a Rolex to stunt on your friends. Like I got this and you didn't, you know? Um so from from that perspective, like you know, like you know, I I own the the the 40 millimeter sub. I wear it all the time. It's an amazing watch. Is this one better? Having not seen it, I can't really speak to that. I believe that it looks a little bit better balanced. Uh it reminds me a little bit of when Langa upsized the data graph from 39 to 41. And everyone was like, oh shit, like you know, Langa going bigger, like who needs that? But if you put on the up down versus the standard data graph, like the up down just wears like significantly better. It is just way better balanced on the wrist. I would imagine that you know all the people kind of blocking at the one millimeter upsize here will be quickly quieted when they when they put the new watch on. I I believe this will just wear better. Um in terms of like visuals, like it's it's the same watch. It is the same watch, you know, and I think it it'll be really difficult to tell um the new watch from the old watch, like on the wrist, you know, like when the when the new Daytona came out, however many years ago, five years ago or so, like you could tell right away there was a black bezel that was a new thing, you know. This doesn't have that. Uh, I don't think that there's going to be the weight lists that we're used to. I mean I have no idea how many rolls it was making obviously um but I think like you know if you look back like the the steel 40 millimeter sub has been kind of the one professional watch that you could get from an AD like kind of you know like I'm not saying you just walk in and ask for it but like if you put your name down you probably get a call within a few months you know and you didn't have to be somebody uh I don't I don't know if if that's gonna change like I think I think there's gonna be a run on these in the beginning like with literally any other new watch from any brand, not just Rolex. But I think things are gonna come down. I mean, I think like people have to remember that like it's not in Rolex's interest to not sell watches. Like the Submariner is the core of their entire brand. Like they're gonna wanna sell a fucking lot of these things, you know. Uh so I expect the these watches to be everywhere, but you just not to know it because they look just like the old one
Stephen Pulvirent . Yeah, I think I think that's a really good point, which is that like from a watch enthusiast standpoint, like you said, like Jack's point is is extremely valid. But the vast majority of people buying the approximately million watches that Rolex produces every year are not watch enthusiasts. Like they're buying them because a Rolex is a nice watch, and when they buy it, everybody who sees them knows that they bought the new Rolex or bought a new Rolex. Yep. And from that perspective, I think you're totally right. Like, there's there's no if you already own the previous generation sub, like if you go out and buy this, like nobody's gonna realize you bought a new watch, which I think for, you know, the vast majority of consumers is is one of the reasons to do it. Um yeah, I think and you know, to to speak to the fact to speak to how much it looks like the old sub, um I'll kind of like out myself here. Uh after I saw it in person to shoot the photos that ran with our story from yesterday, um I went to send the two of you a picture of the new watch to show you what it looked like in person. And uh I was doing it quickly before another meeting. Uh and I accidentally sent you both a picture of the old sub and was like, oh my God, look at the new submariner. Yeah, well, wow, that's just oh wa
Ben Clymer it, it is the old sub. Ye itah, I mean it's really, you know, again, this is like the most it's the most Rolex update ever. A lot of I've seen a lot of people saying, like, hey, the this is similar to like the 9-11, the 9-11 always kind of looks the same. This is far more extreme than like the 992 versus the 991 911 like you can tell the difference between those two cars like from 50 meters away like you can just tell it's bigger it's wider different slope you know whatever like this you really like you really have to stare at these two watches like you know, two in each or one in each hand, uh to really understand the difference. Um it's uh it's it's interesting. It's it's just peak Rolex. Peak peak 2020 and peak peak Rolex
Stephen Pulvirent . Yeah, I completely agree. Uh I think where the where the differences start to feel a little more apparent are in the date subs. So the the non-date sub is only made black dial, black bezel, stainless steel. Like that's it. There's one no date sub. Uh the date sub, there are seven variants. Uh it's what is it? Two steel, two gold, two two tone, and then one white gold. Right. Um, and that's where you start to see a little more variation and and specifically the two models that I think people are gonna get really excited about are are what we could call like the new Kermit and the maybe like you know baby smurf or half smurf or whatever you want to call it. Like there's the steel model that has a a green serochrome bezel and a black dial, and then there's a white gold sub uh with a black dial and a blue serochrome bezel. Um the green has been done in the past, uh, but was not offered immediately before this, uh, and not in Serochrome. You, if you wanted the green sub, it also had to have a green dial. And same with the blue, where if you wanted the white gold sub, it had to have a blue dial and a blue bezel. Personally, I like these versions with the black dials and the colored bezels a whole lot more, just personally. Um, how how do you guys feel about them Jack
Jack Forster go for it. Yeah I mean I think that uh you know to your point Stephen they are cosmetically uh much more noticeably new than the uh than the no date model and uh I mean I think that they're I think that they're all handsome watches um and certainly they give you the uh they give you the added you know pizzazz of having you know obviously on your wrist something that's new rather than something that you have to look at with a magnifying glass in order to see the coronet. Um yeah, I mean you know, I thought that the uh I thought the green bezel sub with a green dial was a great looking watch. I think it's uh a handsome watch with a black dial. And uh I I think that's about it. You know, I mean I'm uh I'm much more focused. I I hate to sound like a broken record if anybody actually remembers what a broken record sounds like. What what does that sound like, Jack? Can you uh make that something more? Like me talking about movements. That's what it's so. Um you know uh uh yeah, it's not it's not something that n that uh ninety nine percent of the people who buy a Rolex are gonna care about, but I think it's kind of fantastic that uh I mean, this is the most technically advanced submariner Rolex has ever produced and uh what a time to be alive.
Stephen Pulvirent Yeah, I mean Ben, you you own a white gold Rolex sports watch, but with a black dial, not the one that kind of like obviously screams, look at me, I'm a white gold sport watch. Yep. Uh how do you feel about the blue sub having a black dial now that's like a little more low key, a little less in your face.
Ben Clymer How do how do I even answer that? You know what I mean? It's like they're both totally fine. Like they're gray watches, it's just like okay. So you know what I mean? It's just like it's these wa these watches are are great. I have a white gold GMT that I that I love and wear all the time. You know, the the beauty of white gold is that it looks like steel, but you get the heft and you get the little gray tones and you know it's it's it's a wonderful thing. Um, you know, the what's funny is the the the white gold sub never really took off the way that I kind of thought it should. Like to me, that's a killer, right? Like it looks steel, but is is far more rare, far more interesting, and that it's in precious metal. Um, it never really took off. I'm sure this one will be hot because you know the last one was was introduced when like nobody kind of cared about sports watches the way that they do now. Um like that watch had been out for probably almost ten years and just like nobody was paying attention to to s to white gold submariners back then in in the modern you know in modern watches. Um it's gonna be hot for a little while for sure. But again I think like, you know, of all the sports watches, the submariner makes up such an important part of Rolex's like actual strategy in terms of like market penetration that I don't think it's gonna be too difficult to get long term. And I think that's a great thing. And I think you know, in you know, again, I have no insight information at all, sincerely. Uh but I think it would be nice if, for example, like all the submariners were were possible to get at retail, you know, maybe within a year, uh, without having to wait a you know an extreme period of time
Stephen Pulvirent . Yeah. I I totally agree with you. I I wonder also because like you said, r this is such a like foundational element of Rolex's collection. Like this is I think you could make a solid argument that this is the foundation of what makes Rolex Rolex, at least for those people. Agree. Um The fact that they chose to do the whole collection at once, just like whole cloth, and the fact that they didn't just like change the case size, they like reshaped the case and re-engineered it and the Samariner case, I mean, in a lot of ways is similar to the GMT case, like it's that that sort of like modern maxi sport watch case. Yep. Um do you guys think we're gonna see then this like more kind of like, I guess elegant, maybe you could call it more refined, kind of like slimmer lug design. Do you think it being introduced in the sub kind of gives us a little bit of insight into like, okay, this is this is where Rolex Head is at, like this is probably going to make its way to other things, or should we just think of this as like just a sub thing for now?
Ben Clymer Yeah, and I I think you're you can it's fair to assume that you will see this kind of rolled out throughout the rest of the family. Uh I mean the Rolex sub got a lot of stuff first. Uh and I mean it is as as we've all said a few times now, like it is the foundation of of this this company. Uh so I would assume we'll see kind of like the the recrafting of the cases of the GMT and the C Dweller and and other things down the road. I don't know when. Um, but I I think it's fair to say. You know, Rolex works very iteratively and like I think this is the first iteration of one thing, then we're gonna see the next one, and like, you know, we've got ten years before we see this kind of fully rolled out to to everything. Um, you know, for example, like we s like the the the the ceramic bezel Daytona came out in two thousand and fourteen, I'm gonna say, maybe two thousand thirteen, I forget, the platinum one. And like we still don't have a gold Daytona on a bracelet with a ceramic bezel. It's two thousand twenty. You know what I mean? It's just like they they they just take their damn time because they can, you know
Stephen Pulvirent . Yeah. That's a good point. Uh all right, let's let's move to some of the other introductions so that we make sure we get some time to chat about them. So uh Jack, I'm I'm gonna gonna want you to tackle this one first, but we we saw a big shakeup in the Oyster Perpetual lineup. So uh there's some big changes, some small changes, but the the biggest news is they did away with the OP thirty nine, uh, and introduced a forty one. Uh and then we also saw a change uh I believe it's the twenty six was changed to twenty-eight millimeters. So we saw both kind of the like the smallest and the largest both got larger. Like they just kind of ratcheted the whole collection up. Um what what are your we we also got some new dials which we'll we'll talk about. But Jack, what are you what are your first impressions on in addition to seeing the sub get a major update, also see some new OPs
Jack Forster ? Oh boy. You know I have actually uh oddly enough, I have a lot more thoughts about the new OPs than I do about uh the new sub. I agree. Give them to me, Jack. The OP36 has been one of my favorite Rolexes for a very, very long time. It's uh a wonderful, wonderful watch in just about every respect. Uh simple as simple could be. And um, you know, just one of those uh watches that really is truly, you know, you can say this about a lot of different watches, but this is really, truly, you know, the only watch that you would ever need in pretty much any iteration. There was a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth over the loss of the OP39, but I kind of feel like if you were, I don't know, I might be wrong about this, but I feel like if you were okay with uh the 39, you would probably be okay with a 36. I feel like they scratched the same itch a little bit. Have you met our audience? Have you read Hodin K are you insane
Stephen Pulvirent ? Every half millimeter jack redefines who you are as a human being and what your values are. So how dare you, first of all.
Jack Forster Yeah. Yeah. Fortunately for me, uh, you know, life is essentially without meaning, so I can pretty much say whatever I want about Rolex or an anythingything else. Uh I I I love the new colors in the 36. Um there was uh quite a lot of flack about them in the comments from people who think that uh basically any Rolex should either Rolex is only allowed to have white or black dials. Um but there's a lot there's obviously a lot of historical precedent for those. I think they're absolutely fantastic. Yeah. And uh you know see again seeing the Croner G escapement rolled out in a fifty nine hundred dollar watch um that you could just pick up and wear for the rest of your life. Um you know, you're not going to get better performance in a series-produced watch uh from anybody. And uh, you know, it's arguably the best made time-only watch at this price point as well. It's uh, you know, when we did our three-on-three a while back, three uh simple Swiss automatic watches, you know, one of the things that we said about the uh the OP is that um it really is uh the apotheosis in a way of the fine Swiss automatic daily wear watch. I think that remains true and it's even more so with the new movement in it. Yeah. And uh I you know uh to Ben's point earlier, I'm one of probably about six people on earth who's genuinely emotionally excited about getting the Chrono G escapement in that family of watches. But you know, uh what can I say? It's uh it's what's my book. Ye
Stephen Pulvirent ah. Jack is Jack. Always will be. Jack is Jack. What do you I mean, so you you mentioned Jack, the new dials, just to go in on that a little bit. So so what Rolex did was they rolled out uh across the OP lineup uh some new dials. There's a turquoise, there's a green, there's a yellow, there's like a coral red, and then there's like a bubblegum pink. Um that kind of are like a weird little homage to the stellodyals. Um I don't know, Ben, is that what you thought of when you first saw these? Because it's it's what came to mind for me immediately. Yeah tot
Ben Clymer ally. And I've I've been talking with like some you know big collectors over the past twenty-four hours about it. And like there's no question like the there are two things that this references. Like stellodyals, like first of all like for any of those people who who kind of are saying what Jack is insinuating, which is like Rolex seems to have white, black or or you know big maybe blue or green dials, like Rolex made something called the stellar dial in the 70s, lacquer dials, incredibly bright colors, corals and yellows and oranges and reds. Uh and these watches really kinda took on uh their own meaning in their own life, I would say maybe like 10 to 15 years ago. Uh and John Mayer uh had them and you know Bob Marin was a big seller of them in LA. Uh and then based on those, you know, people, Ken Jacobs at Wanna Buy a Watch and a few other folks would go ahead and color do color dials in Oyster Perpetuals and Date Just and things like that. And you could buy them at Wanna Buy a Watch. You could buy them at Barney's here in New York, you can buy them at Fred Siegel in LA, these very like kind of fashion forward places. And those watches themselves have kind of a cult following. Rolex never made them, to be clear. The Stelladis were made by Rolex. These in the 90s and 2000s were not made by Rolex. Lots of lawsuits, etc. But I mean very, very like immensely popular watches that we saw being sold on like Goop and the Guilt Group back in the day, et cetera. And I think what what Rolex has done here is they've basically taken that idea and taken it back for themselves. Like this is our idea. We made those color dials watches in the 70s and the day days, long before anybody made these kind of like uh aftermarket watches in LA. Uh and they took them back. And I think it it really is going to do incredibly well uh for the brand. I think, you know, as I've said on a previous podcast, like the way that you can buy, I don't know, six different versions of the Royal Oak right now and they wear exactly the same but they're just in different colors basically. Like you know if if you're fabulously wealthy and you love watches, like you collect royal oaks as if they're bracelets, like as if they're jewelry. And I think these watches at this price point, people will collect these as sets. Like I think you gonna you're gonna go around and say, I want the yellow dial, I want the lack the you know, the turquoise dial or whatever. And they're they're reasonably priced enough where a certain set will collect those. And all of a sudden you went from like the average person that wants one of these buying one to buying five. Uh and I think even beyond that, like I think, and I wouldn't be shocked if it's the yellow one based on what I know about stellatials, one of them is gonna be impossible to get. I just know that. Like you just know that Rolex or somebody back there is like, hey, like, let's make one of these the fucking thing to have. And then, you know, somebody famous Ellen or somebody's gonna be seen wearing one, and now the yellow dial uh Oester Perpetual is gonna be the one to have. I think it's brilliant. Like, I think this is like you, know, people like nobody needs this stuff. We're always the first people to say that. Uh, I think Rolex is just finally kind of playing into that and saying, like, hey, you want to be crazy and buy five of the same watches just with different dials? Like, we're gonna give that to you. Uh and the fact that they did it in 36 and 41, like 41 for you know guys today like that totally makes sense. Uh I'm calling it right now. 39 millimeter oyster petrols are gonna pop. Like if they haven't already, we should look at Chrono 24. Uh those are gonna be super desirable watches because 39 is such a great size, if you ask me. I also think it's going to impact the market for the current Rolex Explorer 1, which now remains the only 39mm Oyster Perpetual Watch in the Rolex uh catalog. I think those like those are already kind of hard to get. I think they're gonna be very difficult to get and probably you know really uh jump in price pretty soon. Um you know, lots of lots of fun stuff in in many ways. Like I'm more excited by that those releases then uh then the sub stuff. The sub stuff is great. Like it's benchmark flagship stuff. But this is something unusual. It harkens back to the Stella stuff. It's really interesting for them to kind of again kind of like take back the idea of the color dials from the aftermarket, uh, you know, that was so popular in the 70s and I'm sorry, in the 90s and 2000s. Um jokingly, like we're gonna start calling these the Ken Jacobs because like he was kind of the the the seller in LA that really kind of put those on the wrists of a lot of well known people. So, you know, I I think it's great. And I think it's actually that's probably more exciting to me as a as a collector than uh than the subs
Jack Forster . You know what's gonna happen now. What's that? Everybody's gonna be like, oh Ben Klymer said on Hodinki that the yellow one is going to be super hard to get. And then what? I must I must I must and then it's gonna be super hard to get
Stephen Pulvirent . Oh well, I mean maybe. Who knows? I mean like I'm just gonna load up on them right now, Jack. I'm I'm gonna call a couple A D's, you call a couple A D's, let's buy some yellow uh OPs. Let's complete the the conspiracy
Ben Clymer here, Jack. Like we already have a stockpile of yellow oyster petrols in my safe right now, right? We like we somehow got them before Rolex delivered them. I've got thousands of them. We're just gonna flood the market with them. Exactly. Yep. Yeah, because that's how we operate. Um but yeah, look, I I think it's uh it's it's fun. And I think like that look Rolex is incredible. Like I I think Rolex is is a a brand for which we all have so much admiration. One thing they are not is fun. You know and and like you know, I'm saying that very publicly, I think these are fun. And I think like that is such a nice um it's a just a nice change for the brand and for us as lovers of the brand. Just be like, you know what, like these are kind of silly, like lighthearted watches, and they're fashion wat
Stephen Pulvirent ches, and that's okay. Yeah, I totally agree with you about that. I I think like we deal with this all the time, not just with Rolex, but with the idea that like it's it's in our little corner of the internet and of the watch collecting community, like people take this very seriously and that's that's good in a lot of ways but like ultimately if if you're gonna be obsessed with watches and it doesn't put a smile on your face and doesn't make you happy then like why why are you doing this? And I think these these are watches that can get people on that train. Like this is something that somebody who's interested in fashion, somebody who just thinks like maybe I want a nice watch, but I don't want something super serious or or conservative gets into this and then it's it's a gateway and it gets them to realize that like watches can be fun and there's a community around this that can have fun with these things and I think this is like a net positive not just for Rolex but for like watches in general to have a relatively affordably priced, fun collectible Rolex out there is a good thing for everyone. 100%. 100%. And now a word from this week's sponsor. In addition to launching an entirely new collection of watches powered by industry-first technology, Acatron is celebrating its 60th anniversary with the release of a beautiful book that tells the complex and compelling story of this watch brand that's unlike any other. Accutron from the Space Age to the Digital Age has just hit shelves and virtual shelves across the globe, and it's a must-read for anyone interested in the past, present, and future of Accutron. Now, if you need more convincing, the book was actually written by Hodinki editor-in-chief Jack Forrester, along with co-author and editor Aaron Sigmund, and it features a foreword by renowned industrial designer Carl Gustav Magnussen. It tells the story of how the original Acatron space view came to be, as well as how the latest Acutron watches, the Space View 2020 and Space View DNA, draw inspiration from their forebearers while also charting a new course for Accutron in the 21st century. There's also a limited edition version of the book that comes paired with a special version of the Space View 2020 watch that's only available with the book. There are only 300 sets with each pair individually numbered to match. You can find these at Select Accutron retailers, including the Hodinky shop. For more about Accutron, visit AccutronWatch.com and follow at AccutronWatch on Instagram. Alright, let's get back to the show. Alright, so the the last big release, which I do want to chat about. Uh it's again it's a little more incremental. Uh I agree the OPs are are the big news, but uh The Sky Dweller is now available on Oyster Flex, um which you know, as we were all chattering about this in the the hodinky slack last night, doing our little like virtual bossle world together, um Kara said she was shocked that they didn't already come on Oyster Flex. Like, she kind of had it in her mind that like this watch always belonged on an Oyster Flex strap. And it hadn't occurred to me, but I think I think she's absolutely right. Like seeing seeing these, especially in the press photos, those like three quarter views where you can see how the strap meets the case and how it might wear on the wrist. A yellow gold skydweller with a black dial on a black oyster flex is that's that's a mean look. I'm I'm pretty into that. Yeah
Ben Clymer , look, I mean there's this whole other version of the Rolex buyer that like is like not a Hodinky reader. Like they're just guys like want to have like the meanest, baddest Rolex, and like that's kind of where the Sky Dweller lives. And I think this is going to be incredibly, incredibly popular with with that set. You know, like I I have the oyster flex on a on a white gold Daytona. And I just never loved the way that it looked. And then I bought it, and it's amazing. Like it is probably the most comfortable wash that I wear. So pudding the Sky Dweller on this on this strap I think is is gonna do really well. It's gonna be, you know, with the with the Richard Mule set, with the offshore set, etcetera, uh I think it's gonna do very well.
Stephen Pulvirent Yeah, Jack, what are your what are your feelings, not just on the Oyster Flex, but on on the Sky Dweller in general? Like it it kind of sits in a weird spot in Rolex's lineup and has its own sort of mythology around it. I'm I'm kind of curious what your take is. I mean, I admire it very much
Jack Forster technically. It's the most complicated watch Rolex makes. Um everybody always seems to forget that it's an annual calendar as well as a dual time zone watch. Uh with a very cool implementation of the calendar as well. I think the Oysterflex makes a lot of sense. You know, we've had a couple in the office over the years, both for review purposes, and uh, you know, just sometimes uh when somebody comes to visit and they've got one. And you know, it's a large watch, uh even by Rolex standards, but on the heavy side. And uh I agree with Ben about the Oyster Flu braxcelet. I really did not see when that bracelet was announced, I didn't why it would be a big deal. And then uh the first time we had a watch in from Rolex to shoot that was on an Oyster Flux, uh, you know, holy crap, it's uh it's unbelievably comfortable, uh very, very secure on the wrist, very, very durable. Um it's a fantastic, fantastic thing to put on uh a slightly heavier um, you know
Stephen Pulvirent , luxury travel sports watch. I mean, taking these all together, like looking at at the lineup, right? So like obviously updating the movements across the range was was really important this year, and I think now most of Rolex's lineup, I'd have to double check. I should have done this ahead of recording, but most of the lineup now has current generation movements in it. Um, which is great. I mean it's it's kind of again like as we've said multiple times, like Rolex traditionally rolls things out slowly. It's good now that it feels like they've kind of like closed the loop. Like now most, if not all of your of your your sport watches at least have these cronergy escapement equip movements. Uh everything's up to date. And now we're kind of like we've got a new profile for sport watch case, we've got some colorful dials. Um I wonder if you guys think this this kind of tells us anything bigger about the direction Rolex is heading in. I think uh
Jack Forster , you know, Ben said earlier this is the most Rolex uh year ever, these are the most Rolex releases ever. And I really think that's true. You know, the th thing that I've always kind of loved about Rolex is also a thing that sort of um aggravates people about Rolex, which is that they make incremental improvements. They kind of uh don't seem to particularly um I wouldn't say they don't care. Well, maybe they don't care. Uh they don't seem to particularly uh take into account any notions other than their own sort of internal internally articulated philosophy about how to create new Rolex watches and how to make improvements on existing models. New models come along very, very rarely. And typically this is what we get with Rolex. You know, we get in incremental improvements, often which represent uh technically technical improvements to the watches as well. You know, I mean ceramic, for instance, is a much better material than anodized aluminum for a dive watch. It's just simply a technically better material. Um so I think that's this is really just a you know kind of uh I don't think there's anything new here in terms of you know change in philosophy at Rolex. I think that this is exactly what they're uh best known for. It's exactly what people either love or hate about them. And um you know, I think that the uh I think the good ship Rolex is just gonna keep sailing in the direction that's been, you know, uh sailing for the rememberable past, uh for the foreseeable future.
Ben Clymer Yeah. I mean look, I mean why mess with success, right? Like they're doing just fine. Let 'em keep on trucking like would you change that much? You know
Stephen Pulvirent ? No. Yeah, no. That's entirely fair. Uh all right. So last last thing I want to ask you guys. We've we've given some hints to it along the way, but of the new releases, if you guys could have one on your wrist today, which one would you want on your wrist right now? Jack, how about you go first? Uh coral thirty six. It's a good call. Ben? I think probably yellow thirty six. Interesting. I was gonna go coral or yellow thirty-six. Uh the yellow one, that's that's the one that's gonna be hard to get, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Let's quote that. Let's make that a thing. Uh I was gonna go coral or yellow thirty-six, but just to shake things up, uh I'll go white gold sub. Yeah. Blue gold. White gold sub for sure. So all right, cool. Well we're we're gonna link up in the show notes all the coverage uh provided by a bunch of our team members. There's gonna be a ton more coming. Uh we're gonna be going hands-on with these watches over the next couple of weeks and months. Uh so if you want your your yearly fix of Rolex news, Rolex hands-on, uh, Rolex analysis. Uh we're we're gonna be bringing it. So don't don't don't fear and uh maybe we'll we'll get Ben back on in a couple of weeks once he's had a chance to check some of these watches out in the metal. Yeah, and after I've sold all those yellow uh thirty six or I better get my cut here. That's right. Awesome guys. Thanks so much for doing this. Thanks, Steven. Thanks for having us on the show, Steven. Thanks. And up next, I sit down with James and John to talk about some of the best affordable new watches out there. Hey guys, how's it going? Going well, how are you? Yeah, good. Good. It's uh it's felt kinda the last couple weeks, it's felt like an extended Baza world, hasn't it? I can I can tell uh not just in terms of new watches coming out, but uh staying up late writing things up spur of the moment. I think I think you guys are feeling the burn uh just like I am, right
James Stacey ? Yeah, certainly there's there's a lot on a lot on the go these days between you know quick stuff and and long stuff and and the rest of it and it's a different sort of a different I'm sure John you'll agree, it's sort of a different energy to produce these sorts of things in a vacuum at home sitting on your couch than it is, you know, at a at a shared table in some Airbnb in Switzerland where you've got you kind of have like the the camp vibe, you're with your crew and and you're and you're working, it's it's uh it's a whole different thing this year to to try and keep up with something like a Geneva watch days. Yeah, I I would agree with
John Mayer that. And then also with uh yeah, I mean it's it's a it's a it's a totally different way to kind of uh jam out stories uh you know late at night by yourself as opposed to fe
Stephen Pulvirent eding off each other's energy. And in importantly, there's no kebab shop. I I don't know about you, James. I'm I'm really feeling the lack
James Stacey of shorma uh these days. Yeah, I think I think I unless unless I actively have a shorma in my hands, that's a feeling that I'm I'm I think it's always there. That's just a burden that I carry. Um but definitely these days, yeah, when not not having some of this uh the uh regional, you know, basel delicacy of uh of the Schwarmaspot, uh it's uh it's a different thing for sure. Yeah. You d there's no uh yeah, no no whiskey and and street food at two in the morning. So I I find that the kebab like weighs me down and holds me back. I felt like I was able to persevere a little bit more without the kebab, to be honest. Yeah, you gotta know which side of the line your physiology falls on for that one. Because for me, if you if I thread the If you wait too long, uh
Stephen Pulvirent yeah, Joe has to come like tuck you into bed and say he'll see you in the morning. Yep. Nice kiss on the forehead and start again in the morning. Well, we're we're recording this the day after uh Rolex dropped all of their stuff, which uh people are gonna hear about as well, but that's not what we're here to discuss. Uh the three of us are gonna chat about kind of everything else that has come out recently. So that's uh the Geneva Watch Days stuff, the watches that have kind of trickled in over the summer, and even some pieces that came out earlier in the year but are only sort of like hitting the market now, and we're only kind of getting our hands on them now. And that's actually kind of where I I want want to start. So one of the things I've noticed is there's been a lot of affordable watches recently. And I think it would be easy to read that as, oh, you know, the world's kind of chaotic right now. You know, maybe people are spending less money, but you know, I think Jack mentioned this on last week's show. It's it's important to remember that like watches don't get spun up in six months, you know, like n there's basically no products coming out now that like were dreamed up since February, March when everything went into lockdown. So uh I think it might be a coincidence, it might not be, but uh the watch I want to start out with is actually something James, you went you went pretty deep on, and this is the only like really deep review we're gonna talk about today, but uh you wrote a review a full week on the wrist of the Seiko Prospects uh SPB143. Um can you kind of give us a quick rundown of what what that watch is and why you wanted to review it?
James Stacey Yeah, so uh back a uh a few months ago, Seiko Tease, or not Tease, they launched this kind of uh four model new range into the SPB and and for those who didn't read my posts and didn't catch uh you know a solid hour of SPB chat on uh previous gray NATO, it it's basically um uh the SPB line usually sits above or not usually but does sit uh kind of between something like the SRPs, the five and six hundred dollar stuff, and then the stuff that that kind of exists only in the limited edition, the SLA line and such. So it's it's a it's their br their their point where they kind of tease between eight hundred and twelve hundred dollars. So it's that that four figure uh price point for a lot of people. And it's something where I think that they've kind of been finding their way for the last uh five years or so um because they have such strong success at two and three and four and five hundred dollars, especially with in the past just a couple years, we had things like the SRP 777, which has been huge for the brand, um, and and their more value uh level, but those are a four series movement. Um, and and with the SPB, you move up to a 6R series movement, which is now a 70 hour power reserve. And you typically get like a a better refined dial, maybe better case finishing, maybe just a different size or a different aesthetic. And what's key with these spbs is they kind of they're kind of a a branch on the design train from the original uh 62 mass um which is you know seiko's earliest dive watch and and of course there's there's a big difference in sort of the way they did the proportions on these two watches. And if you want the exact watch from the 62 mass in 2017 they launched the uh SLA 017 which is almost a carbon copy of that watch and that's probably the one to go for but, of course that's more like four grand and very limited and probably not that easy to find right now. These are between a thousand and twelve hundred bucks. The one that we're talking about specifically, the SPB143, is also known as the SBDC101 in Japan. They're identical watches. They just, you know, there's a Jap, there's a JDM reference number, and there's kind of a rest of the world reference number. So that's can be a little bit confusing. But these uh this one's a you know black bezel, gray dial, uh steel dive watch with sort of a 60 skin diver shape, drilled lugs. Um it it definitely takes a lot of elements from the original 62 mass. I think that of the four of them, the one that I like the most, which is this one four three, it's what I have on my wrist as we're recording this, uh, is probably the most bland or or lack like it's just kind of a it's one unit of dark dial dive watch uh but the big thing for me with these is the size you know they're they're 40.5 millimeters wide uh a little over 13 and a half millimeters thick but that includes a domed crystal they just wear better than an SKX or an SRP. And as someone who, you know, this is what I talk about a little bit in the in the review, but it, you know, with somebody who's been maybe been through two dozen, maybe even more like three dozen Seiko watches in the past 10 years, ones that I really liked on paper, and then maybe they didn't wrist or or or for whatever reason just didn't have a lot of staying power for me. Uh, this one feels like that sort of perfect mix of the Seiko, the elements that I like of Seiko design, but in a size that they just don't commonly produce watches
Stephen Pulvirent at that's pretty good synopsis there. I mean I think if if people want to go much deeper in terms of your your sort of like nitty-gritty thoughts on the watch, well obviously linked to the review, but um uh for me one of the interesting things about this watch and John I'm curious what you think here is like every year there's a handful of watches that just generate like tons and tons of chatter uh and this seems to be one of them. L ifike you look around the watch internet, like since the moment these were released, it just it just seems to me like this is a watch everybody's talking about. Yeah. Yeah
John Mayer . Watch that people have been chatting about. It's uh it's generated a lot of buzz. It's uh I think it's just it mainly comes down to how good it looks, right? It's uh if you just look at the pictures in James's story, it's like an incredibly photogenic watch. And um it seems like there's just a lot of value there. And uh and it's just that, you know, we were talking earlier about, you know, our watches are are many of these uh more affordably priced watches being timed for for now, their release. This one probably not, right? Did did this one come out pre-COVID? I I think it I think it did, yeah. So that's not the case with this one, but I mean it's definitely like the right time for a watch like this. And so maybe maybe people would have moved on to the next thing and talked about other watches. Uh uh more in this one wouldn't have gotten as much attention uh as it seems to have this year, uh, in a different uh situation or in different times. Um but it's I mean it's just a beautiful watch. It's like really well priced. I think James did a really good job of laying out like, you know, the aspects of its design and its construction are uh are appealing to him. Um and you know, I mean I guess you know, there are a couple little things that you could you could maybe you could maybe uh judge a little bit harshly about it. Like uh the movement is not you know the highest end uh seiko movement for example and as James mentioned mid-range for sure. Yeah and as James mentioned the the the bezel doesn't like totally uh align with uh with the with the um uh minutes track uh precisely but it's like uh it's it's still really really
Stephen Pulvirent good yeah I think you know something we we haven't mentioned yet that I think is worth mentioning is kind of the place Seiko occupies in the minds of a lot of a lot of collectors. Like Seiko, because they produce watches at literally every price point, like you can buy a Seiko for fifty bucks, you can buy a Seiko for over a hundred thousand dollars. Um Seiko occupies this this place in sort of the imaginations of of a lot of watch collectors and it it's it's a foothold for a lot of people. So I think to me, one of the things that stands out about this watch is that it's still affordably priced, but I think it might like kind of strike a chord with collectors who think maybe they've moved on from Seiko, like somebody who bought an SKX and has moved on to maybe something you know more in the three to five thousand dollar price range might look at this and go, oh, like not only does this present great value, you know, it's it's objectively a good watch. But also like it it reminds me of my early days of watch collecting. It's kind of nostalgic in that way, but it's a product they can still be proud to wear today and they're not like, oh yeah, this is my, you know, old beat up SKX that I got, you know, twenty years ago or whatever. Um so yeah, I I think I think with Seiko you can't ever count out the fact that they are for a lot of people like the the entry point into mechanical watches and and they've got that kind of like pull at your heart strings nostalgia factor. Yeah, I mean I f
John Mayer I definitely got I feel like with this watch you in I I would interest I think James would agree but you feel like you're getting a lot more than uh than the spend. Um and this is a watch that I would have quite possibly entertained buying myself. But you know what's funny, when I when I the closer I looked at it, I thought, you know what, I see this as like competition for my Black Bay fifty eight, which I already own. I feel like they're almost in some ways, too similar
James Stacey . I think this is definitely Seiko's Black Bay 58. You know, it's it's a watch that references some design elements from their past and comes in a little bit smaller than other models they already offer. Um while still you know striking a balance. I'm not gonna sit here and say that a Blackway 58 is cheap, but if you go against its competition, it is properly priced. And I'm not also going to say that this is necessarily a cheap watch. Seiko makes cheaper, less expensive, more accessible models by and absolutely if you haven't been through the SKXs, uh, the SRP, there's now seven or eight versions of SRP, or even the new Seiko fives, those are all worth experiencing on your path to spending a thousand dollars on a Seiko dive watch. And uh and and I think that's nice because there there is a road, there's kind of a journey that you can have with Seiko that that gets you to a watch like this. Whereas with so many other um you know enthusiast minded brands, could be Tutor, could be, you know, 30 other brands, you've got to pony up a lot to just get your first taste. You know, like a tutor's gonna start at a few grand, a couple grand, a gnomos is gonna start at a couple grand, grand seco is gonna start at a few grand, right? And and to get your first taste, I think that that you can start so you can start at 60 bucks with Seiko and get like a a great watch that's gonna run for years uh with like no fuss, no must, take it in the pool, whatever. Um and I think all that this is is just they take the the same sort of enthusiast, you know, buzz creating sort of fun part of that watch, and they just take it to a more expensive level. And the the price doesn't bother me uh one bit. Um I I can understand why people who maybe haven't tried a bunch of them on on their kind of way up that ladder uh wouldn't would say like there's no way I'm spending twelve hundred dollars on a Seiko dive watch. Like it's just not gonna happen. Um but I I think that there there's' nots n other things at twelve hundred that are offering what this is offering. So I think they've done a good job pricing it. Ye
Stephen Pulvirent ah. Cool. Well I I I agree with all of that and I think, you know, we could probably do a full episode on on this as you you did, James, um, or or the majority of an episode on uh the Green Ado. Um so I would we'll link up to that so people can can get a little more if they want. Um but this is far from the only like well priced and interesting watch we've seen. And in fact, you know, it's probably the one we've been ruminating on the longest. So to kind of move move along, there's another watch I saw this week that James, you also wrote up, actually, uh, which is this new longing heritage military marine nationale um and like longing has been on a tear the last couple years uh and like they're a manufacturer that I think doesn't get enough credit a lot of the time and some of that's down to the fact that for for a period there was a period of time there like maybe five to ten years ago where a lot of what they were producing was it was more consumer focused. It wasn't I think the most interesting maybe to the three of us. Um, but they've kind of like come back with a vengeance. Uh and this is this is just yet another example of that
John Mayer . Yeah, no, this is a this is a great looking watch. Uh I'd be interested to hear kind of you know James's thoughts since he since he wrote it up. But I I guess just like two kind of quick things about it that I noticed that I had never even seen before uh were brown superluminova on the hands. And well I guess that's really just the only thing. But um it's I mean it's a it's a killer looking watch and it's uh kind of like the unexpected MN this year, huh
James Stacey ? Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I I think uh I agree with John and with Steven. I think this is a great looking watch. It's priced really well at about two grand for a Swiss watch with a a uh you know, a quote like at least in the family sort of movement. This is an EDA-based movement, the L eighty-eight, but it's the fifth generation or fifth stage of the L uh triple eight, um, which means you're getting 64 hour power reserve in an automatic movement. It runs at uh 25,200. So that's probably where they massage their way up to the 60-hour power reserve. But I'm not sure rate is all that essential, you know, assuming the watch is regulated and made correctly, which we all know long jeans can do, you know, without breaking a sweat. Uh, where this one really hits uh for me is like I said, the two grand, I think that's a pretty reasonable price point. 38.5 millimeters, uh, the 19 millimeter lugs is a bit of a bummer, but with a watch that's based on a forties military design, I'll just wear it on a smaller, I'll wear it on an eighteen like like that kind of looks right. The the run the the the yeah the the mismatch fit would I don't think it would bother me on this watch or other watches that have uh uh you know uneven numbers as their uh their lug sizes can be a bummer because I I'm obsessed I change straps constantly on my watches. Uh but I do really like the way this one looks. I love I love that they went with um drilled lugs. So you can change your straps really well. And it also, again, it's an older kind of vintage style. The other thing that I like, and and Steven, you were saying that the brand doesn't always get the credit they deserve. I would say even more specifically, they don't get the credit they deserve for how well they've been doing vintage kind of uh new vintage style and for so long. You think of the Heritage Diver agreed, one of the first ones out there predates things like uh like an Aura 65 and and the rest. And and that, you know, they took a design that worked and was interesting and and went with it. And I think they've been really following someone there has good taste in in the watches' history and and what they invest their money in. And and sometimes they go a little bit harder in the paint. They had the the a pr a previous heritage military version that kind of had like more defined speckles on the dial. And I think that they're kind of military watch, yeah. Yeah, they kind of go back and forth between that. This one has what looks to be a a finish of some sort on the dial, and then as John mentioned, the numerals in the hands, I mean in the photos it looks black, but it's listed as uh superluminava in brown. And I know that they make a black compound as well, which is called shadow. I I can't remember the the reference code for the the luminos, uh for the the superluminova material, but you they've definitely made something that looks like a new watch that has aged or like an old watch that hasn't aged but is in a new case if that makes sense. But I if you know if they did it wrong, I would be hard on them, but like execution is a huge part of this. And I think they executed really well on it. It's gorgeous. The blued hands look really good. It's one that I would l just love to see in person
Stephen Pulvirent . Yeah, I I agree. And I I I think to me also it's about balance, right? And like that that dial, or this dial, and those the brown luminova, if not paired with other quality details, they could feel weird and out of place. Like if this case was too shiny and had like a badge strap on it and felt like it was like kind of like cobbled together from new parts and you slap that like vintagey dial in it, it'd feel terrible. But like this case has drilled lugs, it has a beautiful signed crown. Like I actually the crown might be my favorite part of this watch. It's got a back that has the like really deep uh engravings in it for the the case back tool. It almost reminds me of like the old traitake longing case backs. Like they they really nailed it. Like the bezel's amazing actually the bezel's another like real highlight here. So I I think not only did they have a good idea, but like you said, James, like somebody there has good taste and made sure that they they nailed it. Um, and and overall, I think this is this is a real winner. Yeah, for me, it oh please go ahead, John
John Mayer . No, I was just gonna say between this and the uh do you guys recall the uh tuxedo models that all that also didn't come outo long to ago. There was like a thirteen Z N style chronograph as well. Beautiful. I mean just I would say those la last three releases have been like fantastic. I think uh including this MN. And um yeah you're right somebody definitely has good taste but they also have like in it they have an incredible um I mean their museum they have an incredible uh back catalog you know I mean long jean just made so many different styles of watches and they have a really good museum and heritage department. So it's like they I I think it's just a lot of like you know, factors converging in their favor. Um and yeah, they like their heritage um based watches are really among the best being m
James Stacey ade today. Yeah, I'm I'm a huge fan. I early on in my time writing for Hodinki, I reviewed their big eye chronograph. And and I think that thing is killer. It's one of the few chronographs where I wore it and it wears with the like general fun of a dive watch. Like it just has these giant markers and a ton of loom and it feels like an old watch. And I think that they nailed the same sort of thing here. And I think the easiest way to think about this, if you're listening to this in your car or whatever and you you can't look up a picture of it is just imagine that like a a light dialed longines expression kind of like an elevated uh Hamilton uh khaki field mechanical uh it's just a really beautiful simple case it's gonna look insanely good on a NATO. You know, it comes on sort of a two-stitch style strap, and I think it looks it looks okay on that. Like why not? But with that dial color, you're gonna be able to put it on literally any strap. The weirder the strap, the better, probably. And then on a green NATO it'll just look ridiculous
Stephen Pulvirent . Agreed. Yeah. I I I wanna I want to actually move on though because I think now is now is a good way to transition over to this other watch I wanted to talk about. Uh, which is the Brightling Endurance Pro, which is maybe the exact opposite of this launching. I think setting these two watches side by side, you get sort of like two completely different approaches to like what you know 2020 watchmaking can be. Um Cole wrote this up, but it's you know the the TLDR version is it's a resin case, like it's a super lightweight resin case with one of uh Brightling's super quartz movements, so that's a a thermocompensated, like extremely, extremely precise quartz chronograph movement. Um and like I can count on, you know, one, maybe two hands, the number of quartz watches we write about each year. Uh but this is one like when this press release landed in our inbox, like there was no question that this was something worth worth covering. I don't know what your your sort of initial reactions to these watches are. Feel free
John Mayer , John. Uh yeah, I mean I think uh the design you know strikes me as uh almost something that has been like in the Brightland catalog probably since like the nineties. Just like this basic kind of look, you know, when I when when I look at these first my my initial thought is like emergency watch, you know. So it's very it's it's uh it it's not exactly what I think we have seen much uh from from Brightling in like the george current era. I think they've focused more on like the the heritage design stuff as opposed to this. So I mean I understand the the I think they call it bright bright white right is their uh is the their proprietary name for this uh this polymer uh case. Um I may be mistaken, but I think this I think this is sort certainly one of the first uh times that uh we've seen uh this uh material used in the current era, although I think it dates back to like 2016, maybe. Um yeah, I mean I just think it's uh I mean it's highly technical watch. Um a lot of people are gonna look at it and and judge it and say that it's that it's plastic. Um but I think it's a little bit more sophisticated than that. I think you know plastic is a pretty is a pretty simplistic term in terms of uh uh you know describing the substance. Um but I I I don't know. I mean I it's not necessarily a watch that I would that I would reach for uh and want to wear, but I think it's uh it's kind of a kind of a neat des
James Stacey ign. Yeah, and from where I stand, I mean it's it's I think it's the first time we've seen bright light at this price point. It's three grand. Um they're forty-four millimeters. They're a little little uh twelve and a half millimeters thick, which is fine. Hundred meters waters isn't it's I think it's a pure like modern sports watch. Um if you if you don't want to go the route of using a a smartwatch or a uh you know Casio Pro Trek or something like that. You want something that that's from a brand that you know, maybe you're either a Brightling guy or you remember Brightling from when you were younger and you want to see what the brand's up to. I mean the watch is going to weigh nothing, it comes in a handful of colors rubber strap that looks awesome and I I can I can see people who are into um other you know other low what would be the West you know kind of it more expensive adventure sports like mountain biking's very expensive to get into and you kind of are used to your gear breaking when you fall or hit a jump wrong or something like that. And may maybe the same for uh for other sorts of sports, but I could see these being very popular among um you know, people who who have you, know, may maybe had their had their time with uh with less expensive sort of adventure stuff and want something that feels pretty modern. Uh I find the design to be busy, but I don't think that would ever bother me while I was using it. It bothers me when I see it on a website with other with you know next to something like the longines, which is kind of a classically handsome three-hand watch with no date, and this thing is just there's numbers and dials and and everything everywhere. What I would say is imagine if you will, they take this, they go down to forty or forty one millimeter and just make a bright light version of like a steel fish. So just a dive watch that would weigh nothing. It would be like the greatest uh weekend slash uh like vacation watch ever. It would be quartz so you'd never have to change the time on it. Uh you could pick it up and do anything with it. It would weigh nothing. It would look pretty good. I think they could I think they should take basically the style they've developed here and go in a couple other ways with it. Uh, because I think it could be it could be great. And we and you remember a lot of times with the bright light stuff, it was on like 47, 48 millimeter, you know, those like yeah, really like the things you've never seen in the wild. I've never seen someone wear some of those uh really huge dive watches, but I I always look at them and go like, Hey, this would be pretty sweet at like forty or forty one. Yeah. Uh and no, I I agree
Stephen Pulvirent with you and I agree. I agree with you James that like this it's interesting to look at this next to some of the more heritage stuff that that's been the focus the last couple years. I think Brightling you know is undergoing a lot of changes right now, and I I think so far they're they seem to be doing a really good job and it's it's interesting to watch them sort of reshape their image while not alienating the customers who made them tremendously successful for for decades. And so it's it's fascinating. I mean it's hard thing. It's like if it ain't broke, but at the same time they've kind of made like a decision to still move in a different direction. So it's it's products like this that show us that like okay they're not they're not totally abandoning what we might say is like the old Brightling or the you know one generation ago of Brightling but they're evolving it you know that these have like you know eco-friendly straps, which feels like a sort of like play toward a more contemporary audience. I I don't know, but it's uh it's certainly interesting to watch. Um you know, these these also aren't the only non-traditional case metal watches or case material watches we've seen. And I wrote a story about this trio of aluminum bulgeri watches, uh which Bulgari is just calling the Bulgari aluminium and aluminium chronograph. Um and, you know, in a in a similar way, like you pick these up and they're on rubber straps, they have aluminum cases, they have rubber bezels, uh, and they just feel like such like fun get up and go watches for right now. And like I I don't know how you guys feel, but like with everything going on in the world, like if a watch can put a smile on my face and make me think like, Oh, maybe I can like go to the beach with this or like go have fun and get out a little bit. Like that's a that's a valuable proposition from a wristwatch these days
James Stacey . Yeah, I would agree. I think they're really great looking things. They they feel to me like they like something that's been around for a while. It doesn't feel like a new watch. Yeah. Um I guess that that would change if maybe I you were I was there to pick one up and feel how light they are. But this aesthetic is something that I instantly like connect back to the nineties in some ways, especially because like uh um uh Pacino in Heat is wearing uh a a similar sort of case style. I I believe it's a steel one. Yeah. Uh but he has a really uh you know a great um uh Diagano chronograph uh in that movie. And whenever I see that, he's got a bunch of bracelets on, he's shooting guns and you see in the the watch and that kind of thing. It's uh that one always stands out in my head as as as like a signature sort of look for Bulgari and and I I think that they've stuck with it. Uh I like uh the especially the the light dial uh three-hander. I think is is a pretty fun-looking watch
Stephen Pulvirent . I agree. Should we should we insert some uh Vincent Hannah uh audio. Just shouting, so much shouting. Just screaming, yeah. Throwing TVs, just yeah. Um yeah, when we do the uh official Hodinki Radio Heat cast, we'll uh we'll both get some bulgaries to uh to wear for that. Yeah, go guns and bulberries. Yeah, I think I think putting these next to the Brightlings though is is kind of fascinating because they're they're two they're two very different uses of alternative case materials. Um they have two totally different vibes. They're trying to be two very different things, yet they kind of employ some of the same some of the same methods. We've got like a unique sort of rubber strap situation. We've got a lightweight material. You know, it's it's the watches are meant to be kind of like punchy and graphic in a certain way. It's uh these are not watches that I I had originally like thought of as birds of a feather, but seeing them sort of side by side, I I don't know. I'm not convinced that they're not sort of related to one an
James Stacey other in a certain way. Yes. That's for the. I'm not sure if you went into a store which you know case would be more prominently in in terms of their line. Uh but they make a lot more watches than I think the normal enthusiast uh you know scrolling hoodinky or other sites would be aware of. Uh it's not just the Octo and adding a couple Octos a year. Uh but yeah, I I th think with these as as kind of modern interpretations of designs that they they that they were kind of highly keyed into a decade ago or or you know somewhere along that line, I I think there is some similarity between them. The the Borgries aren't vastly more expensive either. The the three hands starts at uh three grand and it looks like yeah forty two fifty for the chronograph. Yeah. I I really love these bracelets
Stephen Pulvirent . Yeah, I have I have mixed feelings about these good. Is it rubber on the bracelet, Steven? It's it's rubber. The the actual pieces are rubber and then they have these uh like little aluminum joints between them. Uh I think they're aluminum. They might be steel, but I'm pretty sure they're aluminum. Um yeah, it's so I got to see these watches in person to shoot some pictures before uh before they launched and when I saw the press photos I kind of had no feelings about them. I was like, oh, this is Bulgari doing a thing that Bulgari's done before. Like they're reviving it. Okay, fine. I saw the watches in person and was like, holy shit, these are fun. Like I I put one on my wrist, walk walked out into the sunlight in Soho in in New York and uh Tiffany, our our photographer on staff, uh was taking wrist shots for me and like I was like, you know what, I could I c I'm kind of vibing with this right now. Um they're they're a lot of fun to wear. They really do weigh nothing. They're super slim. Um and and John, to answer your question, like the or or to address the the thing you mentioned with the bracelet is I like it in theory. I think you have to have I think they work better for certain wrist sizes than they do for others because they like a bracelet create sort of like structure, like hard structure within it. Uh so for me personally, like that first link kind of like hangs off my wrist a little bit in a way I didn't love. Like I think I personally would enjoy them more on just a plain black rubber strap. Uh that said, if it fits your wrist right, I think it's a super cool look. Uh I think it would be really comfortable. Um and I think it would alleviate one of the main downsides of a rubber strap, which is that like when you get really sweaty, it gets kind of sticky and it sticks to your wrist and it like it's not the most comfortable thing when it's really hot out. Um whereas this will give you like that little bit of bracelet feel where the watch can kind of slide a little bit, which I I think is it's an elegant solution to a problem that I think like most people don't acknowledge is an actual problem. If that makes any sense. All right, so I got I got one last watch I want to chat with you guys about. Um I wanted to talk about a new Omega, the the Seamaster Diver 300 meter necton edition. Um James, this feels right up your alley. Uh it's C Master with a m
James Stacey all-metal bezel. Yeah, I think it's uh I think well one, I think it's gorgeous. Uh I think you know it's based on the 42mm model and it's kind of um the finishing on the bezel is interesting because it's a relief style engraving and then the plate, the base, the background, if you will, it has sort of a frosted finish to it. And it just doesn't on a rubber strap, it doesn't look like so much of Omega now has the some sort of ceramic around the the dial. Chronographs, uh dive watches, of course. You know, they they have the these super high-tech, lovely, uh, often very colorful and and beautifully made bezels, but there's something just like classic seamaster about a metal bezel. And uh it's certainly not you know back in the the you know several previous generations, even before the um planet ocean they they had models that had uh bezels like this as you know usually in in more of a special edition or limited edition sense. And uh and yeah with this on on the the black rubber you see that picture with the like it's underwater. It's got some droplets or bubbles around it, whew, looks real good. I like it
Stephen Pulvirent . Yeah, I agree. I think the the finish on that bezel, which by the way, the the insert is titanium, which is super cool. Uh, and I can only imagine how difficult it is to engrave and finish titanium like that. Um you know, for people who may not may not realize, uh machining titanium is an absolute nightmare. Uh it requires different tools, the machining steel, uh, and if it gets too hot, it combusts like uh like magnesium or something would. Uh, and you can't really put it out very easily. Uh it's extremely dangerous. Um, so I can only imagine what omega had to do uh at their manufacturer with their supplier to make make these bezels. Um it's kind of like a low key flex here that that I'm really into. Um and I I think you're totally right, James. Like so much of Omega's current generation is about that kind of like gloss and that shine and the really rich colors. And this is this is kind of a throwback in that way. Like it's got the frosted finish, the black wave dial is pretty low-key, the rubber strap is matte. Like this is this is a more understated, but still thoroughly modern and like badass Seamaster.
James Stacey Yeah, and and you know it's tied, it's tied to uh a not for profit research foundation, you know, supporting the oceans of you know via Peter Blake's work. Uh he's a New Zealand uh sailor and explorer and and uh an excellent uh Wikipedia read if you have a few minutes uh but he runs a boat now called uh the Sea Mas or yeah the Seamaster and it's uh it's in support of of that so you get a a pretty cool uh on on the the case back is solid which, isn't that common for Omega these days either. You know, they always are showing off those movements. And uh and the case back on this has uh the engraving of the uh submarine uh from Nectar c andalled the sea master two and uh the submarine's cool it's one of those it's kind of like two pontoons with a bubble in the middle it's like kind of classic modern exploring subur uh submarine and uh I yeah I think it looks great. Uh I think it could be super popular. You know, I think they're making oh, it's not limited edition. I thought it was. Oh, that's cool. So yeah. Uh I would do it on the rubber strap, but I understand a lot of people want the bracelets. So you're looking at like fifty, eight hundred bucks up to sixty, two hundred bucks. Yeah. Typical speedmaster price point, but I think it's it's just it's that much different just because of the bezel
John Mayer . Yeah, I agree with with pretty much everything all uh both of you guys have said. Uh I really love the finish on the bezel. Uh the use of titanium is nice. Um, but for me, I feel I feel like the real news here is just the fact that you know this watch, uh, the long gene that we talked about before, a brigade that we didn't talk about, um, all these watches from the swatch group, you know, kind of dropped uh you know, right uh in the midst of uh like you know, the Geneva Watch Days. So we I don't think anyone expected that we would be covering a bunch of Swatch group releases uh during that time. You know, so like they's just been a ton of releases, expected and unexpected in uh uh in August
Stephen Pulvirent . Yeah, I agree. And like honestly, I'm I'm kind of excited for it. Like I know we we've done a lot of hand wringing over the last couple months, but I think it was pretty warranted. I mean when everything started to shut down in March, including, you know, a lot of watch manufacturers in Switzerland, which we've all covered and and we've all, you know, everybody listening is probably read our stories about that. It looked like this might be a year with no new watches. The trade shows were canceled, factories were shut down, you know, marketing budgets were slashed in a lot of cases, which affects how how brands choose to launch products. Like this this was this looked like it might be a dead year for the watch industry. And instead, it seems by this point, like I'm, I'm hard pressed to think of a major brand that hasn't released at least a couple interesting things. And it's been a different cadence for us as as journalists kind of working in this space and reporting on it. It's probably different for customers in terms of, you know, not knowing like, okay, this week in March, April, I'm gonna call my AD and have a list of stuff I want. But I think we're we're getting a lot of good stuff. And I think that weirdly 2020 is shaping up to be like a pretty good year for product for like actual watches. How it is for the industry and for collectors and for people more broadly is a totally, totally different conversation. But I don't know about you guys. Like I I feel pretty good about the new watches that are out on the market
John Mayer this year. Yeah, I do too. I feel like, you know, it's it's the the the circumstances have been kind of extraordinary, but the uh the watches have been have been awesome. It's been fun kind of watching them come out. Uh it's been a different way to to cover them for sure, but it's uh
James Stacey Yeah, I would agree. Uh great year so far for enthusiast product and uh and for brands kind of understanding where they can bring some heat to their lineup and fill in some holes and that sort of thing. And I think especially if you're in for dive watches, uh, you got a lot of choices these days for sure. Yeah. More by the minute, it seem
Stephen Pulvirent s. Yeah. So, you know, with that in mind, like I'm sure I will have you guys back on very soon to talk about more because you know there are no signs uh to indicate that this is slowing down. Like I think we're really everybody's gonna keep sprinting to the end of the year and hopefully uh hopefully we'll have some more fun stuff to talk about. Absolutely. Awesome. Thanks for coming on, guys. Really appreciate it. Thanks, man. Thank you.