This Week in Watches: January 4, 2020
Happy New Year and Welcome to This Week in Watches for January 4, 2020. We’re glad to be back for our second decade and to bring you some news that just might help you break that New Year’s resolution to stop buying watches. Ha, good luck with that!
Oris Big Crown Bronze Pointer Date
First up on This Week in Watches is a piece that actually came to us a few weeks back. But, it’s been a busy time since then and we figured it was a fun watch to kick off the new year. Oris sent us news of a new hue for its 40mm Big Crown Bronze Pointer Date. Up until now, we’ve had the dark green version that’s called the 80th Anniversary piece and one doofus (that’s me) who threw an oxblood dial on his to make something a bit unique. Well, now we have a new 40mm Bronze Big Crown with a chemically treated bronze dial, so we have the warm look throughout the watch. Now, Oris tells us that the bronze dial has been chemically treated, which will keep it from changing over time (honestly, if air were to get in there aside from during servicing, that wouldn’t be so good anyhow) and should give each a slightly unique hue. The watch will come on a lovely brown leather strap (Oris is really killing it with their straps as of late) and a bronze pin buckle. At 1,800 Euros , this latest rendition of the Big Crown Pointer Date in Bronze is a real looker. For more information, head to the official Oris site.
Alsta Nautoscaph Superautomatic
Duh duh…duh duh…duhduhduhduhDUH!!!! Ok, that’s my typing impression of the Jaws theme music. Folks, Jaws is undoubtedly my favorite movie…always has been and likely always will be. But This Week in Watches isn’t a film review…we’re here to talk watches. But, if you’re as big a fan of the movie as I am, you probably saw Richard Dreyfuss’ character “Hooper” wearing a steel diver while aboard the Orca. That watch was an Alsta Nautoscaph Superautomatic, a watch made by a smaller brand that was very much in keeping with a lot of other dive watches during the period. Nowadays, they’re hard to find and pretty expensive. But…the brand resurfaced in 2016 and has been releasing a steady diet of retro pieces. Now, they’ve finally come out with the watch that everyone has been waiting for…the Jaws watch. The stainless piece has been upsized slightly to 38mm (43mm lug to lug, 20mm lugs) and features domed sapphire instead of acrylic to help it deal with the rigors of daily life. Note the 999 feet of water resistance as well. Inside sits the Seiko NH35A with date and the watch is fitted to a black Tropic rubber strap. Alsta will produce 1975 pieces of this watch (the year of the film) and they will retail for a relatively approachable 795 GBP/$1,035/950 Euros (I do wish that a Swiss movement found its way in there at this price). You can find out more on this re-edition of the Nautoscaph Superautomatic on the Alsta site and how to order yours. I like this…it’s tempting.
Tutima Saxon One Chronograph
Next up on This Week in Watches is a bright chronograph from Tutima in the Saxon One. While this isn’t a new watch, the bold red seems to be new as it is not yet on the Tutima website. Available with either a steel bracelet or alligator strap, the chrono comes in at 43mm in diameter and 15.7mm thick. Inside the chrono is the venerable 7750 that’s been decorated by Tutima in Saxony and modified to show a 60-second counter, 60-minute counter and 12-hour counter plus sweep second and minute counters. Finally, there’s a 24-hour display. In Germany, the Saxon One retails for 4,600 Euros and you can find out more on the official Tutima site.
Laco Flieger Limited “Topper Edition”
Last but not least on This Week in Watches is the eighth limited edition piece from California-based jeweler, Topper. This time, they’ve worked with German watchmaker Laco to create a 100-piece edition of a pilot’s watch. This 42mm stainless piece contains a white lacquer dial with heat-blued steel hands and hour markers – the former application is a very cool detail that looks lovely on the watch. Inside, we have the ETA 6498 hand-wound movement that’s been decorated and is visible via the case back. Pricing is set at $1,895. You can pre-order your individually numbered piece on the Topper site and watches should begin shipping in early 2020.
And folks, that’s it for our first edition of the year. Again, we wish you a great start to 2020 and we look forward to bringing you more This Week in Watches during the year!
