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Citizen adds two models to its hot Series 8 collection of sporty automatic watches, and also launches a limited edition Series 8 model in the same new collection with an unusual ‘pink copper’ dial inspired by cherry blossoms.

The Citizen Series 8 890 Mechanical, one of two new Citizen Series 8 debuts. A third limited-edition new model also available.

The new watches are being launched within an impressive slate of 2024 debuts that also includes new Promaster watches, a new Citizen L Arcly series and a limited-edition, manually wound pocket watch.

A new Citizen Series 8 debut, the Series 8 890 Mechanical, features a gold-hued steel case and bracelet.

Since its entry into the U.S. market three years go, Citizen’s Series 8 has expanded to include a wide-ranging set of mechanical three-hand (with date) and GMT models. The series expanded the watchmaker’s U.S. offerings beyond Citizen’s Eco-Drive-focused collections, exposing U.S. consumers to a broader range of the many mechanical watches made by the Japanese-based watchmaker.

The new watches, called Series 8 890 Mechanical, each feature a 42.6mm steel by 11.7mm case with a sporty octagonal bezel, three-piece case construction and a 200-meter water resistance rating. 

Two of the debuts offer a lively, patterned dial that echo those seen in earlier (880 Series) watches, though the dial has been updated with a bolder interpretation of the pattern. The design is inspired by the skyscraper-lit night sky of Tokyo.

Similarly, Citizen has updated the case of these new watches as compared to the earlier 880 Series, adding a thicker bi-directional inner bezel, enhancing the watch’s sporty appeal. Citizen continues to mirror-finish and brush-finish each case, in keeping with earlier Series 8 designs.

From the back of each watch Citizen allows a view of the automatic  Caliber 9051, which is accurate to an  average of -10 seconds to +20 sec/day and offers a full 42 hours of water resistance. Citizen also equips the watches with extra strong antimagnetic protection.

Prices: $1,595 (steel with blue dial) and $1,695 (gold-hued steel with brown dial).  

Limited edition 

In addition to the two models noted above, Citizen is launching a limited edition model within the same new Series 8 890. This debut offers a special dial made to echo the look of “clouds of cherry blossoms,” a phenomenon created by groups of blooming cherry blossom trees.

Called copper pink, the dial’s unusual pattern is a bit more complex than the ongoing new 890 Series models, but equally eye-catching.

Price: $1,595, a limited edition of 1,700.

We’ll have more details about the other 2024 Citizen debuts in upcoming posts. 

 

By Steve Huyton

Over the last few years, I have written several books about design and horology. This has given me a unique insight into the world of luxury. What fascinates me is overall psychology, which also creates desire, fulfillment and necessity. 

Within the watch industry brands pay millions on complicated marketing campaigns. This is also the age of the brand ambassador that, in my opinion, has been a game changer. 

Ultimately this has had a profound effect on small independents who have found themselves in a David and Goliath type scenario. The positive news is that it has stimulated sole watchmakers to create more adventurous pieces. A great example can be found in Roland Stampfli, the owner of Swiss-based AOS Watches.

Roland Stampfli

I’ve known Roland for nearly a decade and absolutely love his backstory. Essentially the brand was established to honor the legacy of his father, Arthur Oskar Stampfli. Roland’s mission is to create a beautiful range of timepieces.

The AOS Black Wind Roses.

Some of my favorites have been the ‘Black Wind Roses’ and ‘Elements‘ collections made with renowned South Australian artist Timothy John.

Examples from The Cat Edition

Just over a couple of years ago, I wrote an article for IW Magazine called AOS Feline Frenzy featuring a super cool watch called The Cat Edition. This particular model features a cool cat tattoo style illustration that is consistent with Roland Stampfli’s passions. 

New watch

Recently Roland unveiled the Dark Sky 1962 watch, a limited edition of fifteen pieces worldwide. What differentiates this timepiece from other models is the scaled-up case size.

The AOS Dark Sky 1962

Previous AOS editions have had 46mm to 47mm diameters that generally wear smaller. The Dark Sky 1962 is a true 51mm (excluding the crown) which makes a much bolder design statement.

I’m definitely in favor of these increased proportions as a lover of XL watches. Due to the use of anodized aluminum, this watch only weighs 100 grams. Ultimately this means it feels exceptionally comfortable and lightweight on the wrist.

What makes the Dark Sky 1962 so special is the brown and black screen-printed graphic dial. This perfectly complements the matte black case which is punctuated with eleven torque screws (that act as indexes).

Other delightful features include a domed sapphire crystal, skeletonized lugs and screw-down crown. Powering the watch is a Swiss-made automatic movement sourced from ETA. The Caliber 2892-2 comprises 21 jewels and oscillates at a frequency of 28,800 vibrations per hour.

Functionally the Dark Sky 1962 features hours, minutes, seconds and a date indication at 3 o’clock. The watch is also water resistant to a depth of 30 meters and has a power reserve of 42 hours. As a perfect finale, the timepiece is presented on a high-quality black leather strap with a matching buckle.

Steve Huyton is an industrial designer, illustrator and author who publishes Total Design Reviews

 

Girard-Perregaux adds titanium to its Laureato collection with the new Laureato Chronograph Ti49, a 42mm model that echoes the original 1975 Laureato design, complete with its octagonal bezel, round frame and tonneau-shaped case.

The new Girard-Perregaux the new Laureato Chronograph Ti49.

As the first new-generation Laureato Chronograph with a titanium-case, the new watch exhibits its light reflection and refraction with a material that differs in both weight and appearance from the steel models.

The Grade 5 titanium used here is composed of almost 90% titanium, 6% aluminum, 4% vanadium and small traces of iron and oxygen, which means it is lighter than steel while remaining strong, corrosion resistant, non-magnetic and hypoallergenic.

Girard-Perregaux nicely accentuates the grey monochrome of the titanium alloy with contrasting finishes of brushed and polished angles, all of which re-define the chronograph’s look on the wrist when compared with the steel models. Here, Girard-Perregaux polishes the circular plinth beneath the bezel, the case edges, the chronograph pushers and the central bracelet links.

On the dial the watchmaker also perfectly complements the grey platinum tone with a grey dial finished using the deep Clous de Paris pattern well known to fans of the brand. Grey PVD-treated hour and minute hands and matching baton-type indexes (with white luminescent material) top the dial.

In addition to the chronograph counters, the dial also features the GP logo and name, a minute track and white markers that circle the counters.

Inside the watch Girard-Perregaux fits its superb Manufacture Caliber GP03300 (above), an automatic movement nicely decorated with the high-end finishing expected from this high-end watchmaker.

These finishes include Côtes de Genève in circular and straight form, circular graining, satin finish, chamfering, mirror polishing, snailing, engravings, sunray finishing and blued steel screws.

Price: $19,400. 

 

Specifications: Girard-Perregaux Laureato Chronograph Ti49

(Reference 81020-21-3263-1CM) 

Case:

Material: titanium, polished and satin finished

Dimensions: 42.00 mm

Height: 12.00 mm

Glass: anti-reflective sapphire crystal

Case-back: secured by 6 screws

Dial: grey with a ‘Clous de Paris’ pattern, grey PVD-treated GP logo, ‘baton’-type grey PVD-treated indexes with luminescent material (white emission)

Hands: ‘baton’ type grey PVD-treated hands with luminescent material (white emission)

Water resistance: 100 meters

Movement:

Reference: GP03300-0141

Self-winding mechanical movement

Diameter: 25.95 mm (111/2’’’)

Height: 6.50 mm

Frequency: 28,800 Vib/h – (4 Hz)

Number of components: 419

Number of jewels: 63

Power reserve: min. 46 hours

Functions: Chronograph, hours, minutes, small seconds, date

Bracelet: titanium, polished and satin finished

Price: $19,400.

Bulgari artisans illustrate an automatic movement on the dial of the new Octo Finissimo Automatic Sketch, a playful limited edition to be offered in 40mm by 6.4mm steel and rose gold case options.

The new Bulgari Octo Finissimo Automatic Sketch, steel edition.

Inspired by the Italian “schizzo”: sketch, the lacquered dial on the new watch depicts the look of the unusually thin automatic movement (BVL 138 caliber) as seen from the back, complete with an image of the watch’s micro-rotor, escapement, bridges, rubies, and even finishing details like Côtes de Genève and circular graining.

As if sketched in pencil by Bulgari’s master designer and creative director Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani, the dial image features hand-drawn lines, arrows, descriptions and fonts that might appear in a technical brief for the thin movement and its components.

(The new watch is the first entry into a Sketch collection. Bulgari is also launching a Octo Finissimo Chronograph GMT Sketch, a 43mm steel watch with an even more complex dial image that mimics the back of the Bulgari BVL 318 caliber, a GMT chronograph movement.

We’ll show you pictures of that watch as soon as they are available. Above is an image of the Chronograph GMT Sketch dial.) 

On the steel Octo Finissimo Automatic Sketch, the dial offers shades of grey on an off-white background and appears a bit more monochromatic when compared to the gold model. Polished and satin finishes on the case and bracelet, along with the Finissimo’s characteristic sunburst-brushed bezel, offer a metallic edge to the design.

In 18-karat 5N rose gold, the Octo Finissimo Automatic Sketch also features a polished and satin-finished case and bracelet, but with a luxurious touch. Here, the richly colored dial is traversed by grey hands to enhance its subtlety.

Bulgari is offering the Octo Finissimo Automatic Sketch series as two limited editions, with 280 pieces in steel and seventy in rose gold. On each clear sapphire caseback, which offers a view of the dial image source, the watchmaker has etched “EDIZIONE LIMITATA” and “1884 – 2024” to commemorate Bulgari’s 140th anniversary.

Prices: 17,800 euro (steel) and 51,000 euro. U.S. pricing is pending. 

 

ONE LOOK AT THE LATEST WILBUR watch tells you quite a bit about its designer, Jason Wilbur. Unorthodox, uncompromising and completely unexpected, Wilbur invaded the world of watch creation with a bang more than a decade ago when one of his earliest wrist-borne designs rocketed to horological orbit with a Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Geneve (GPHG) nomination. 

Now the primary force behind the LEO, the newest watch from California-based WILBUR Watches, Jason Wilbur remains as untraditional as ever with a lineup of technically astute avant- garde timekeepers that enthrall certain collectors and send others running back to velvet-lined showcases.

Jason Wilbur in his California-based design studio.

As WILBUR chief designer, Wilbur doesn’t seek to make a watch built to meet existing expectations. He prefers to create new expectations by designing for the future. And if those designs step outside of current horology, he’s fine with that. 

“I want to innovate in terms of design and architecture,” Wilbur explains. “Innovating within the silo of traditional mechanical watch drive-trains is a far second place for me.” 

Calling himself a ‘forward scout’ for the watch industry, Wilbur designs watches he wants to wear. 

“I want to use the valuable real estate on my wrist to express myself,” explains Wilbur. “I don’t want to put something on my body that is simply a tool or an extension of my phone, or even worse, a boring statement. That’s just me.” (For more details about Jason Wilbur’s design process and his vision for WILBUR Watches, see our in-depth conversation later in this post.)

The WILBUR LEO

The LEO 

There’s nothing boring about the LEO, the latest WILBUR design. While the round-cased LEO rests on the wrist like a traditional watch, its multi-part titanium case does not frame the expected hour, minute and seconds hands. The LEO instead displays the time in an unusual manner on a dial that, as we’ve noted previously, looks like a satellite tumbling its way around Earth’s orbit.

The LEO’s extraterrestrial puzzle shows its wearer the current hour in digital form using a jump-hour display. And while this sort of digital display can be found within a few Swiss watchmaker collections, Wilbur’s unusual method of creating the hour digit is a world premiere, as devised with famed Swiss movement engineering company Concepto. 

Wilbur couldn’t simply add a traditional jump hour to the other- worldly LEO. Instead, he devised a symbolic mash-up to perform the task of displaying the hour.

Whereas standard jump-hour digits are just numerals, the hour digit that appears in the LEO’s central aperture is actually a meeting of two otherwise indecipherable symbols. 

Two sapphire disks, one clear and one brushed black, rotate twice a day on either side of the hour display. When they meet, those ‘alien’ symbols form the correct hour digit at the dial’s center. 

To display the minutes and the seconds, simply note the two fixed bridges, which double as hands. Each points to the respec- tive time, with seconds indicated at the top of the dial and minutes appearing at the 6 o’clock position.

As we’ve noted in our earlier descriptions of the LEO, Wilbur spent seven years finalizing the LEO. The idea for the display however spent decades churning around in Wilbur’s brain. 

“I wanted to create something that sprang from learning in my youth about the Roswell incident with all its alien stuff,” he recalls.

The appearance of cryptic symbols on twisted metal at the New Mexico ‘alien’ site sparked Wilbur to create his own symbols as a sort of WILBUR secret language. 

“No one on Earth who saw those pieces would know what the symbols mean. So I created my own code. On the watch the hours come together with those coded symbols,” Wilbur explains.

The newest LEO, the LEO JW1.3 Firefly (above), teams DLC gunmetal titanium with silver and black dial components and ‘toxic yellow’ numerals. The limited edition of twenty-five watches ($36,500) joins the two existing LEO models.

These include the LEO JW1.2, with titanium and silver, gray and black components with white numerals ($36,500) and the blue-tinted debut model, JW.1.1 ($32,500). 

The EXP 

Wilbur notes that the LEO series is WILBUR’s primary High Concept model. To complement the LEO, Wilbur has created a deep selection of eight-sided EXP models, which he calls Daily Drivers.

The WILBUR EXP

Like the LEO, the EXP also offer collectors an unusually open- worked, architectural design, but with a movement based on an existing Swiss automatic caliber that WILBUR customizes and finishes to a higher standard.

The EXP echoes an automotive chassis, with what appears to be an engine suspended in air. Here, chapter rings float above a semi- transparent dial to create a true three-dimensional time sculpture for the wrist.

The 41.5mm open-worked, three-hand watch (with date) is available in a wide selection of case metals and colors, including ceramic and titanium, ceramic and anthracite DLC, ceramic and a gold alloy with black DLC. Prices start at $4,500. 

Each option can be paired with an equally broad selection of colorful silicone straps, all of which can be quickly changed by the wearer.

The WILBUR EXP C-1

One model, the EXP C-1, adds a bit of luxury to the series with a black ceramic case and a customized gold alloy lugs and bezel. 

“We fell in love with a set of champagne gold wheels on a Porsche GT2 and set out to replicate the color,” explains Wilbur. “We wanted a modern and futuristic gold not a traditional gold, so we developed our own.” 

 

iW Interview: 

Jason Wilbur, Founder WILBUR Watches 

How does your approach to watchmaking differ when compared to traditional watchmakers? 

I’m an industrial designer, not a watchmaker. I am even part engineer, artist, explorer and risk taker. 

Traditional watchmakers are craftspeople. They are often limited by the tools they use because of the traditional rules of watchmaking, or they focus on making everything by hand. Therefore, creativity and advanced manufacturing techniques or design tools take second place to making everything by hand. 

That’s fine, but that is craft, not design, not art, and not WILBUR. Creating a machine with character is more important to me than inventing a new type of escapement. I touch every part of the watch just like a watchmaker, but I will use any advanced manufacturing technique or material to achieve my design. I will not let the tools define the outcome. I have only two limits I put on myself that I share with traditional watchmakers: My pieces must be mechanical and they must tell time. 

I want to innovate in terms of design and architecture. This is more important to me than innovating within the silo of traditional mechanical watch drive-trains. 

How does WILBUR fit in with the expanding group of U.S.-based watch companies? 

I look at myself as the forward scout of the industry. I don’t mind wandering into uncharted territory for the sake of futuristic exploration. Most American watch brands are the opposite of this. 

WILBUR is advanced American design meets Swiss watch- making. We don’t really feel like we “fit in” anywhere. U.S.-based watch companies are growing and I am excited for them, but they tend to focus on fairly traditional design with many of the products competing on price. When you do that, there’s not a lot of room for innovation. We want to be THE luxury American watch brand.

 

Is it difficult to source components in the United States? 

No. It’s easy to source components. But, they are expensive and the manufacturers are spread out all over the country. It is much easier, cheaper, faster to do everything in Switzerland. 

Our LEO is built 100% in Switzerland. The EXP is made with Swiss and U.S. parts and assembled in United States. The Launch Edition is sold out and since it was a limited edition we will not be continuing that line. 

Making watches in the U.S. is not our brand focus; designing them and inventing them in the U.S. is our focus. All our watches in the future will be made through our partners in Switzerland. 

Nobody cared that we made the watches in the U.S. They actually shunned us for it. I actually had retailers here tell me they weren’t interested in the watches because they were made in the U.S. and not in Switzerland. 

Funny, they are happy to do business in this country, but they won’t support things made here. 

Is it also hard to find the watchmakers you need? 

No. There are plenty of talented watchmakers here in the United States, but they are used to simpler watches. However, once they get used to WILBUR watches they do amazingly well with them. 

 

How do you first consider creating a new WILBUR watch design? What is your own design process? 

I am sketching all the time. I am always coming up with new ideas for time displays or general watch architecture. Sometimes they come to me in dreams. That’s why I say WILBUR is “Dreams of machines.” 

Once I have sketched the basic concept I will start to build the watch in CAD / Solidworks. This way I can start to implement the real-world engineering of the watch and set the stage for the serious engineering to take place. 

During this phase I do a lot of 3-D printing of the case and straps to make adjustments to size and ergonomics and overall proportions. I create a lot of concepts, but most don’t see the light of day. I think exploration is the key to creative innovation. So I make a lot of concepts before I decide what to produce. 

“We are not Tiffany & Co, we are NASA with an attitude.”

How has your own history as a designer in other areas influenced your watch work at WILBUR? 

I’ve spent a majority of my life making things that people told me at first were impossible. So I know that when someone says some- thing can’t happen, it’s all the more reason for me to do it. I’m motivated by challenges, not by guarantees. 

For example, during my time in Advanced Design for Honda, the purpose was to seek out new ideas, not refine old ones. So I do that now with the WILBUR watch brand. I also use a lot of the same advanced CAD and research and development techniques and methods that I used to create concept cars and vehicles. 

Everything from modern racing chassis architecture to futuristic drone flight systems inspire the design language of the WILBUR brand. We are not gold and diamonds, we are carbon and titanium nitrate. We are not Tiffany & Co, we are NASA with an attitude. 

Are you creating art or a piece of high-technology? 

I spent my whole career on high-tech programs. This is my art. This is mechanical expression. 

WILBUR is mechanical sculpture that happens to tell time. It’s sculpture with attitude and a soul. 

Merging advanced design with old-school mechanical time- keeping technology is what this is all about for me. I’m more concerned with emotional value than with high-tech features. 

WILBUR is frankly an escape from certain technologies. Analog will set you free.

Another note regarding this: I believe I want to use the valuable real estate on my wrist to express myself. I don’t want to put something on my body that is simply a tool or an extension of my phone, or even worse a boring statement. That’s just me. 

How does the more complex LEO series differ from the ongoing EXP? 

The WILBUR brand has two product focal points: We have “Daily Drivers” like the EXP, and then we have the “High-Concept” watches like the LEO. 

The LEO is the first in our lineup that has an in-house movement, which we call the WILBUR Engine One. The High Concept line focuses on unique time displays and requires serious research and development to get to production. 

Our Daily Drivers currently have in-house modified and regulated movements that have stock movement gear trains and retain most of their architecture in order to make a highly reliable watch with the spirit of our high concept watches, but more for daily wear. And while these are also limited edition watches, production is such that the Daily Drivers are priced at more of an entry level. 

 

Why should a collector look to purchasing a LEO or another Wilbur watch instead of a watch from a high-profile Swiss or German watch with a similar price? 

My customers are leaders. They are trendsetters and people who trust themselves and typically have a progressive mindset when it comes to timepieces. They love my watches and the design first – before they care about anything else. They respect the fact that I design my timepieces myself and I have old-school values when it comes to customer service. 

My watches are derived from nothing but my own ideas and I don’t do focus groups. I built this company from nothing but pure will and grit, which means that my products are made with love and an unmatched attention to creativity and design.

But it also means that my customers understand that by buying into the WILBUR brand, they are buying into a journey that will be unlike anything else. 

My brand is me. I design everything from the retail watch stands and displays to the shipping box stickers. I’m not a huge Swiss corporation, so I personally thank every single person who buys my watches. I also do all the WILBUR retailer training in person. Someone who heavily values the brand profile of being Swiss or German is not going to be buying a WILBUR watch and I wouldn’t want them to. 

I don’t want people buying my watch simply because that’s what someone else told them to do. The WILBUR brand has staying power and I’m here to build a legacy, not a project. Real collectors that take the time to get to know me and the brand understand this and become supporters.

 

Do you plan to build new versions of the LEO model in the near future? 

We have several new projects in development at the moment, one may be another version of the LEO or it could be something entirely new altogether. You never know! The R&D machine never sleeps! 

 

Will WILBUR look beyond watches at some point, venturing into other products? 

Possibly. But for the time being I’m focused on watches. I don’t understand my fascination with making watches. 

I am obsessed and cannot stop. If I one day finally understand it, it means I am no longer creating things with soul, and that’s the day I’ll quit…and do something else.