When thinking of Bell & Ross many relate the company to the popular and conspicuous designs of the BR “Instruments.” It is pretty obvious that these square watches were responsible for exploding the manufacturer’s popularity, but Bell & Ross was very active even before the BR timepieces existed. Bell & Ross had built a solid collection of more traditional watches, of which one of the best sellers was the Vintage 123. The Vintage 123, attracted many watch enthusiasts thanks to its palpable high quality, simple and clean design, and great value. These are all reasons why it is still in demand today.

Presently the Vintage 123 is attracting many clients, albeit different from those who are attracted to the BR Instruments. The first aspect about the Vintage 123 that captivates watch enthusiasts is its purity. The watch is well designed. It is simple and clean without any frills and the same is also apparent on the movement’s elements within the case. The stainless steel case is 39mm in diameter. Some may consider this small by today’s standards, but if you can easily picture yourself wearing a Rolex Submariner (39-40mm) or an AP Royal Oak (39mm), then you will not. Vintage is an apt name when considering the watch’s sixties-like, minimalistic, classic style. The dial is also styled in accordance to the name. The hands and hour markers in particular.

Aside from the style, the other aspect that attracts many to the Vintage 123 is the quality of the watch. The best way to appreciate the quality is to take a close look at the details. The brushed finishing on the case is evidently done by hand with visibly unidirectional grooves and well defined corners. The back of the case displays deep, sharp engraving for both the company ampersand logo and the case markings. Through the sapphire crystal window, the same quality engraving and finish can be witnessed on the movement. The crown screws in easily and feels quite solid, and the 100 meter water resistance rating is a testament to the cases durability. Another nice feature is the ‘deployante’ clasp that is fitted to the leather strap. It is comfortable and sturdy and protects the leather from creasing too much.

The Bell & Ross Vintage 123 is not an attention grabber. Unlike its young BR cousins, it is content with looking sharp in a quiet way. When wearing it you are likely to receive the majority of compliments from those who are knowledgeable about watches, and the exhibition window on the case back can be used to impress the others. The Vintage 123 is the definition of “classic” and at the same time demonstrates that to be classic, something must stay fashionable indefinitely.

Written by Marco, a specialist of Bell & Ross watches at Matt Baily.

Part of being a Paneristi is to collect nice and special watch straps. I have written about straps made from vintage ammo pouches and one – not for Panerai in this case – made from the leather interior of a Mercedes SLR 300 (1956) formerly owned by Jean Todt.

Last week, I received an e-mail about DaLuca’s Panerai Straps. The owner, Daniel Luczak, creates one-off straps for Panerai watches made out of ammo pouches and other vintage leather used for (mostly) military purposes. Each strap is individually named and will never be duplicated.

On PaneraiSource.com, you’ll find a well written and documented review of DaLuca straps. As I wrote some time ago, these kind of straps and intiatives makes me want to own a Panerai again. Just a basic Luminor model, or the new 1950 with in-house caliber, PAM312.

One of the vintage Panerai straps from DaLuca is called ‘Bunker Hill Revolt’! Although violent scenes from WWII movies come to mind,the strap at least looks impressive and indeed made from leather that has been in or around bunkers during that time..

Below you’ll see a vintage Panerai strap called ‘flame thrower’. One can only imagine what this leather must have been going through..  The leather goes back to the 1940s and is super soft. Dan’s straps come with a sewn-in buckle (Pre-Vendome style), includes the tubes for attaching them safely to your Panerai and free shipping within the USA (outside, add 10 USD).

Prices for the pictured straps are 290 USD (Bunker Hill Revolt) and 210 USD (Flamethrower). Payments can be made through PayPal or by Credit Card.

Click http://www.dalucastraps.com/categories/Vintage-Watch-Straps/ for their entire collection of interesting Panerai straps. They also now create gorgeous croc handmade panerai watch straps.

Since my Rolex Yacht-Master had to leave my modest collection of watches to make way for an Audemars Piguet Royal Oak, I am left with some typical sporty Rolexes. Although I love my GMT-Master II and Sea-Dweller in stainless steel, the high polish and platinum effect of the Yacht-Master is definately being missed. So, after I finished my work today, I started looking around on the internet for a decent replacement in the (far) future.

Approximately 4500 euro will buy me a slightly used Yacht-Master ref.16622 again, however, this money also gives some nice alternatives that also might do the trick for me.

A steel/gold combination for a sports watch is considered not-done by many, but I don’t care and I think it can look wonderful in both casual and more formal occasions. I borrowed a gold/steel Rolex Submariner ref.16613 for a while, and the blue dial was coming on too strong for me. Another option I just found at SubGMT’s website, is a gold/steel GMT-Master. This vintage (1983) time piece has a 4400 euro price tag, but comes complete with box, booklets and papers.

During the 1980s, these gold/steel Rolex sports watches were the domain of shady types, doing questionable business in strange places. Miami Vice, white loafers and Mercedes S-class cars come to mind as I think of shady 1980 type of people.

Photo by www.mercedes-addict.co.uk

This sharp edged GMT-Master 16753 model has (ofcourse) a plexy crystal and the so called nipple dial. The ref.16753 is nowadays a respected vintage wrist watch that can be seen on wrists again, without being referred to as a crime suspect. This particular model has a gold/steel Jubilee bracelet, which is a matter of liking, but one can’t deny that this is the most comfortable bracelet Rolex has ever made. Perhaps I would opt for a gold/steel Oyster bracelet or even a brown leather alligator strap, but this Jubilee certainly ‘finishes the job’.

Photo by SubGMT.com

Like I said, the edges on the lugs are still in tact, and even though this watch has been serviced a few times during its lifetime (as it should), it is still looking sharp.

Photo by SubGMT.com

I really like the gold printing on the bezel and the relatively large numbers on it. Also notice the ‘open’ 9 on the date-wheel and the fact that the date-wheel is gold colored instead of white.

What do you think? Am I right about the gold/steel sports watch? Please leave your thoughts by clicking ‘comments’ below.

My fourth WorldTempus article has been publish today. It is about buying vintage watches (or not), something you really should give a good though before doing so. Otherwise, and unfortunately this is out of experience, it can easily get out of hand (financially).

Let me know what you think. Please use the comments button below to do so.

For 8 long years (2001-2009), Thierry Nataf (ex-CEO of Zenith) did a great job in destroying a brand that was one of the few well respected chronograph manufacturers. With flamboyant designs, parties and ditto prices, Nataf knew how to step on the toes of watch lovers and collectors. Zenith wasn’t Zenith anymore. Although the use of certain high-tech materials were welcome, he succeeded in ruining designs. The Zenith Defy and Defy Xtreme watches really make me wonder what people are thinking when buying this watch. Terrible. Ariel Adams of aBlogToRead once did a nice article on the resemblence between Nataf and that other ‘Precious’ Lover.

Anyway, since I started using Twitter recently, I stumbled upon the website of Honolulu Time Services, a watch dealer based on Hawaii. After browsing the inventory for a while, I clicked ‘Zenith‘ in the hope that at least it wasn’t one of Nataf’s creations. I was happily surprised to see this vintage Zenith El Primero Chronograph!

This vintage beauty is a 18kt gold early Zenith chronograph with the well known El Primero movement. The hour markers and large chronograph second hand give away something about the era of the watch. I suspect that a caliber 3019 PHC movement ticks inside, which later on became the famous caliber 400 El Primero movement. I found a picture of caliber 3019 PHC movement of a similar Zenith chronograph from that era (1969/early 1970s) on Nick Hacko’s website (photo credits go to him):

This fast ticking (36000 beats per hour, instead of the regular 21600 or 18000 bph in those days) movement has a column wheel for the operation of the chronograph. This movement was also base caliber for the El Primero Moonphase, with its caliber 410. The El Primero movement was also sold to other watch brands, like Movado (Datron), Ebel (1911 Chronograph) and ofcourse the famous Rolex Daytona Chronograph that used the Zenith movement in the 1990s. Rolex did downtune the number of beats per hour to 28800. There is no official statement for this, but I suspect it has something to do with their own quality policies.

Anyhows, if you are looking for one of the ‘cult chronographs’ in precious gold, take this vintage Zenith Automatic El Primero Chronograph into consideration. You can do a price inquiry at Honolulu Time Services company for this particular stunner.

Aloha!