,

A Finnish version of the Moonphase watch, the K3 Northern Stars.

,
We received this stunning piece for a client yesterday. Having seen a version of it last Basel, I was eager to see this here in CA. The dueling moons are very neat and Stepan Sarpaneva has created one heck of a watch here! His strong design sense is in full view here with this version of the Korona K3 Northern Stars.

The Catalan Diver is here, Pita Barcelona's Oceana 2000m

It has a been a hectic couple of weeks, with my second eldest daughter graduating grade school up in Menlo Park and our annual street event, Fiesta del Sol happening this past 5 days preceded by a PuristsPro dinner up in Santa Monica Memorial Day weekend. I have been waiting patiently, as has a good friend and collector up in the Bay Area, for my Catalan friends from Barcelona to deliver the Oceana...

The latest from my friends in Austria, the Habring² Doppel 2.0

Well, our first production Doppel 2.0 arrived yesterday from Maria & Richard. I was eagerly anticipating the arrival as we had the prototype of the split second chronograph here last year when they visited us at Passion and I loved it then. Fast forward to Basel in March this year, they only showed pictures on a computer, they weren't exhibiting, so our meeting was brief, but productive.

, ,

Check this out, Derek Pratt's superlative tourbillon pocketwatch.

, ,

Possibly my highlight of all of Baselworld 2012, was this sublime pocketwatch by one of the greatest watchmakers of the past 100 years, Derek Pratt. Completed in 1987 for Urban Jurgensen's late owner Peter Baumberger, it is one of if not the best pocketwatch I have ever seen in 25 years of being in this field. 

Made for Urban Jurgensen in 1987, with a remontoir.

,

I am very excited to announce the Authorised Dealership for Paul Gerber

,

My first watches should be heading this way from Zurich in 6 weeks or so. The titanium cased Model 42 both versions, the Synchron and the Aviator both 42mm and sporting the synchronised 18K triple rotor Paul is known for.

Here we have the Model 41 on left with white dial, and the other two are the Model 42 in either dial format.

Thomas Prescher's recent visit to Solana Beach with his "Nemo Sailor"

Last week we had the enormous pleasure of hosting Thomas for a couple of days here in Solana Beach. He arrived via Amtrak, the Pacific Surfliner, late on Friday evening, having flown into LAX earlier in the day. This is not Switzerland unfortunately, where the trains have a station in the two international airports, Zurich and Geneva, which allows for seamless transfers. Here is an article about his trip and the debut of the Nemo Sailor watch.

Thomas Prescher to visit Solana Beach, Feb. 25th

A rare opportunity to meet Thomas, presents itself next month, Saturday February 25th to be exact, when he is making a whirlwind visit to southern CA, to present several of his extra-ordinary timepieces to collectors and aficionados of the world of micro-mechanical horological artistry...

Thomas was the first of a very small group of highly skilled artisan watchmakers who was able to create a triple axis tourbillon wristwatch. He pre-dated Greubel-Forsey, JLC, Aaron Becsei or any of the others. In fact he proposed his design to several of the mainstream big manufacturers, and after the third one, his former employer, turned him down saying it wasn't possible, he decided to do it himself. The technology involved in the final execution is quite amazing, even the relatively simple looking polished Ti ring holding the tourbillon, had to be made in-house, after Thomas figured out how to polish a concave surface...

Come meet Thomas during the day on the Saturday, Feb. 25th and experience some of his extra-ordinary pieces.

, ,

Austrian/Saxon watchmaking invasion...part 1: HABRING²

, ,
For the past two weekends we have had two of the smallest Independent watchmaking companies visit us in southern CA. One could say at either end of the handmade watchmaking spectrum in terms of the level of hand finishing of the movements, but equally passionate are their creators and their contribution to the watchmakers art in terms of pure enjoyment. I have known Maria & Richard for 5 years now, and this recent visit was the best yet. Read on for more information and pictures...

, ,

Gearing up for Basel 2011

, ,

As watch lovers the world over mentally, fiscally and physically prepare themselves for April's bonanza of the Basel Watch & Jewelry Fair, I am most interested in seeing a couple of new developments from the two sibling Independent Watchmaking teams, the Grönefelds and the McGonigles, neither of whom interestingly enough are Swiss, rather Dutch and Irish!

Firstly John & Stephen have been creating their project, the Tuscar for a couple of years now and are on the brink of revealing to the word their version of a time only watch. The initial McGonigle watch was a sublime Tourbillon, which I was fortunate enough to be at it's first delivery in Dublin in 2006. It was well received by collectors and many have asked for something less technical and a bit more simple. Well here we go, and I'm very excited to see it. The Tuscar beckons...

This image is courtesy of McGonigle watches:

 

Meanwhile Tim & Bart have been hard at work over in Oldenzaal, Holland creating their second watch also. This time an amazing technical tour de force, the One Hertz. Sporting an independent gear-train to drive the dead beat seconds mechanism, this watch is wholly conceived by the lads, and has a fascinating finish on the bridges which happen to be made of steel! Unusual material for movements, but promises to be rather neat to look at. They combine a frosted and high polish/black polish finish. The One Hertz has a power reserve under the Jumping seconds hand and tells time over at 2 o'clock.

Video courtesy of Bart Grönefeld:

Additionally, there will be the usual supects to visit to see what they have been up to. One of my big plans is to have these guys come out to CA to visit this year and meet with collectors over a meal and get to spend some time with the people that make their chosen lifes work possible. I think it is key for these artisan watchmakers to meet with the collectors in order for them to gain an understanding and a greater appreciation of why they create these stunning pieces of horological art.

Continuing to build upon years of relationship, gives me pause to think how fortunate I feel to have my passion be a big part of my professional life. The relationships developed doing what I do are one of the main reasons why I do this.

Anyone looking for anything in particular, a wristshot a certain watch or just a real life picture of a watch, just let me know and I'll work at fitting it into my schedule.

Keep the Independent spirit alive, support these watchmakers, as I believe they represent true innovation and artistry in an all too homogenised field of mechanical watchmaking.

Cheers,

Tim