Tudor Heritage Big Crown Ref. 79220R

The return of the Big Crown ... even if it's on a Tudor

One of the few (unofficial or sponsored you decide) leaks for the upcoming BaselWorld 2012 comes to us from no other then Tudor.  I could have just chalked this one up to the prevailing trend of other companies digging into their history coffers for ideas to bring yet another Tribute unless I was so excited to see an old friend coming back. (Again kudos to Jaeger-LeCoultre for starting this trend & always doing it the right way but then again I am biased)

So what's the lowdown on this new Tudor Heritage aka Black Bay Ref. 79220R.  The specs reported are as follows: larger 41mm steel case (I'm fine with slight increase), 8mm Big Crown (anything Big Crown is Godly in my book), Gilt dial(looks lovely on the rendering), Snowflake (not at all period correct as they are from 1970's Tudors and God awful style wise) hands, Convex glass (I hope this means its not sapphire cause Plexi is Sexy), automatic mechanical movement, on bracelet or leather strap with folding clasp, additional fabric strap with buckle.  OK so not everything is executed and as period correct to call it a proper Tribute as I would have liked (namely those garish snowflake hands which would be first to go then that red bezel insert which is unknown in vintage world), but all in all from what I see here it looks OK.  Also compared to Rolex recent re-designs of their staple classics I would say I prefer this exercise in revisiting this old vintage friend (faults and all).  

Comparing this Heritage to a true Vintage (as apples to apples) we simply can't do in all seriousness, especially when considering that last years Tudor Heritage Chrono was a very nice modern update of vintage Monte Carlo all while being priced at extremely affordable 3,000 Euro. I am expecting pretty much the same strategy with this Reference 79220R.

The earliest Submariner found in the Tudor family is the Reference 7922. The 7922 is a special watch as it would seem that both the Tudor Ref. 7922 Submariner and the Rolex Ref 6538 Submariner were introduced at the same time and indicate a simultaneous roll-out of the two models side by side. Also note that the Rolex and Tudor serial # ranges of the mid 1950's are almost identical.

The 7922 sports a 8mm Brevet "+" crown as does the Rolex 6538. The dial layout and hands are similar in styling, fonts and shape, to that of the Rolex 6538. Note the 100m dial vs. 200m dials is a difference between them but most likely the dials started out as 100m dials and in the late 1950's the 200m dials were introduced. The bezels are usually fitted as bi-directional bezels with red triangle - similar to the Rolex variation.  The movement is a cal. 390 Tudor movement. Originally produced by Fleurier.

This all brings us to an excuse to point out that they all are closely related to the vintage legend that is Rolex 6538 aka Big Crown. 

Truly a collectors dream piece.  Today one of the most desired, exclusive & highly valued timepieces of Rolex Submariner fame.  The extreme similarity to Rolex 6538 only helped make Tudor 7922 a legend in its own right and soon we will be able to own a small piece of it in Tribute to that Heritage piece the new Tudor 79220R.       

Vintage Heuer Obsession - well get your fix http://onthedash.com/

What became a chance discovery while scouring the Internets for some vintage Heuer fix I kept coming across this amazing site/forum/blog http://onthedash.com/ & since it has become my go to site for anything related to vintage Heuer. 

An absolute collectors dream for any kind of information & amazing reference on this wonderful vintage gems.  One could only wish we had resources like this for other brands and vintage timepieces.  

Today http://onthedash.com/ is celebrating its 9th Anniversary and I urge you to visit the best vintage Heuer resource in the Internets.   

Rare Jaeger-LeCoultre Timepieces Highlight Antiquorum’s February Hong Kong Sale

Rare Jaeger-LeCoultre Timepieces Highlight Antiquorum’s February Hong Kong Sale

Antiquorum Auctioneers will present its’ auction of “Important Modern & Vintage Timepieces” to be held on February 26th at The Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Hong Kong.  Collectors will have the opportunity to bid on 452 exceptional modern and vintage timepieces including a collection of extremely rare and highly complicated Jaeger LeCoultre masterpieces and a rare Patek Philippe ref. 3939 in pink gold.  Previews will be held in cities across the globe including Shanghai, Beijing, Singapore as well as Hong Kong.

Amongst the highlights of the sale are three outstanding Jaeger LeCoultre timepieces to be sold individually originally sold as a set named “Hybris Mecanique,” the collection, produced in 2009 will be offered at auction for the first time. The trifecta set clad in 18K White Gold and sold exclusively as a package includes the following:

Gyrotourbillon One, No.02/20. The one that started this all a perpetual calendar bi-retrograde date spherical tourbillon wristwatch with equation of time and leap year calendar. It is accompanied by a fitted box and magnifying glass.
Estimate: HKD 1,900,000 – 2,300,000
 

Gyrotourbillon Two, No. 02/20. This extraordinary Reverso (and still my favorite out of all the Gyro's) contain mesmerising spherical tourbillon and is offered with a fitted box, guarantee certificate, instruction booklet and magnifying glass.
Estimate: HKD 1,400,000 – 1,700,000

Last but not least Reverso ‘Triptyque’ Grand Complication No. 02/20. This used to be the most complicated timepiece made by the Grand Maison with perpetual calendar retrograde date, triple-dial reversible tourbillon wristwatch with equation of time, civil time, sidereal time and sky chart also accompanied by the original fitted box, guarantee certificate, instruction booklet and magnifying glass.   

Don't know exactly how I feel about breaking up this collectors package.  I heard before of some collectors buying the trio and then splitting them up which actually made sense at the time as they only existed before in platinum LE which was sold out by then. Will the values rise or will they level off with additional units produce aftewards as a part of Hybris Mechanica we shall see.  Lastly this is how the Trifecta package looked during the presentation during the 2009 SIHH.

Watch the Throne

Inspired by the totally awesome Hodinkee post about Jay-Z wearing Jaeger-LeCoultre ReversoTribute to 1931 I decided to get my saritorial swag on so I got totally overdressed for a lunch & decided to rock my JLC Reverso Grand Reserve 8 Jours in Pink Gold.

Polaris forever

Three and a half years later still my favorite & most unique alarm complication - never duplicated, always admired staying a classic forever. So glad it was brought back from the depths back into the rightfully earned spotlight. Pretty much the one that started the whole vintage tribute trend these days seen across the horology industry ... more to come.

JLC MC Alarm Navy SEALs Incursion Editions

Jaeger-LeCoultre delivers the first Master Compressor Diving Alarm Navy SEALs Beverly Hills Boutique Incursion Editions at the Jaeger-LeCoultre Navy SEALs mini BUDs delivery event in Coronado.


Since the announcement of the partnership between the US Navy SEALs and Jaeger-LeCoultre with the unveiling of the Master Compressor Diving Navy SEALs collection in 2008, two US Navy SEALs have been using the Master Compressor Diving Navy SEALs alarm during their deployments and operations around the world, gathering performance information about the watch in an operational and tactical environment.
Last January, Jaeger-LeCoultre had the pleasure to announce the extension of their Navy SEALs line with timepieces exclusively created for its Beverly Hills Boutique. The natural progression for the Master Compressor Diving Navy SEALs line was to create the Incursion Edition for the Jaeger-LeCoultre Beverly Hills flagship. The geographic proximity to the Navy SEALs training base in Coronado has created a particularly strong following for the Master Compressor Navy SEALs collection. Due to this strong US following of the Navy SEALs and Jaeger-LeCoultre partnership, the Beverly Hills Boutique set out to create a penultimate edition for its most passionate enthusiast.


The original Master Compressor Diving Alarm served as the optimal base platform housing a majority of the purposed needs for the Incursion Edition. Jaeger-LeCoultre’s perpetual quest for innovation, further adjustments and improved design details were employed to create subtle yet important changes to further optimize this Edition for its required usage.


Highly symbolical, these very exclusive limited editions pay tribute to the origins of the Navy SEALs as this elite unit was established by President John Fitzgerald Kennedy in 1962. This monumental point in history was a big inspiration to the Incursion Edition theme, with the final number of pieces being a permutation of the numerals “1962”, with 19 pieces for the black titanium version and 62 for the grey pvd version.


Such a dynamic watch deserves nothing short of an explosive delivery. Last week, Jaeger-LeCoultre and CEO Jerome Lambert hosted the first Jaeger-LeCoultre Navy SEALs event in Coronado, California for friends and enthusiasts of the brand. Both Navy SEALs who have tested and evaluated the Master Compressor Diving Navy SEALs timepieces were present to give a brief look into the world of this elite group of men to discuss their experiences with the watches. Guests were given the opportunity to truly see the integrity, strength and pride that goes along with being a SEAL. A lucky few participants were presented the first delivered Incursions by the SEALs to wear with the knowledge that these same qualities were used in making their timepieces.




The SEALs will continue to wear the watches, give feed back, and document their experiences in order to advise Jaeger-LeCoultre on further Master Compressor Diving Navy SEALs editions to come.


Technical characteristics of Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Compressor Diving Alarm Navy SEALs Beverly Hills

Movement: Mechanical automatic Jaeger-LeCoultre Calibre 956, crafted, assembled and decorated by hand; 28,800 vibrations per hour; 45-hour power reserve; 268 parts; 23 jewels; 7.45 mm thick

Case: 44 mm in titanium with black pvd coating or grey pvd coating

Functions: hours, minutes, seconds, date white numerals transferred against a black background, alarm

Dial: Color accents: Orange or yellow on the second hand tip and compressor crown arrows with addition of the same color to inner ring numerical five second interval markings.
- Black outer ring with stamped and luminescent hour-markers and numerals,
- Charcoal grey inner alarm ring with circular finish matching the case

Hands: hours and minutes with trapeze-shaped, open worked, luminescent

Crowns: one black rubber-molded crown at 2 o’clock equipped with a compression key, for winding the alarm, adjusting it and fast date adjustment.
one black rubber-molded crown at 4 o’clock equipped with a compression key, for starting the watch and adjusting the time.

Straps: black leather with matching orange or yellow stitching and PVD buckle. Diving strap in black Cordura.

Accessories: Unique packaging that goes hand in hand with the theme of Incursion Edition.

Halloween weekend & once again I'm pretending ... Hi my name is Bond, James Bond ;-)

Happy Halloween to you all ... now I have to rush as my Aston is double parked ;-)