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Grand Seiko To Donate Auction Proceeds to Charities

Grand Seiko will be donating proceeds from the Phillips New York Watch Auction: SEVEN on December 10-11 to two charities.

Grand Seiko’s Kodo Constant-Force Tourbillon, unique edition (Ref. SLGT001).

The profit from the sale of select modern Grand Seiko timepieces during the auction will be donated to the Fairchild Tropical Botanical Garden in Miami, Florida. Its commitment to the environment perfectly aligns with the brand’s “Nature of Time” philosophy and recognizes the importance of the natural world as a source of inspiration and creativity, according to Grand Seiko.

Funds raised from the auction of special piece-unique Grand Seiko Kodo Constant-force Tourbillon (Ref. SLGT001) will be donated to the Children’s Heart Foundation, a leading organization dedicated to funding congenital heart defect research. 

Unique piece

The Grand Seiko Kodo up for auction is unique in several ways when compared to the global model, reference SLGT003, which is limited to twenty pieces.

First, the multi-component case structure is made entirely of Grand Seiko’s proprietary alloy, Brilliant Hard Titanium. In addition, Grand Seiko colors the bridges, mainplate, and many of the components of the movement in a plated silver color. Finally, on this unique piece Grand Seiko has hand-tempered the screws blue instead of mirror polishing them, as they are on reference SLGT003.

The top bidder will also receive a trip to Japan to meet its creators, the Grand Seiko team, and a visit to Grand Seiko Studio Shizukuishi in the Iwate prefecture.

The Kodo Constant-Force Tourbillon, introduced earlier this year, is Grand Seiko’s first mechanical complication watch. It features an unusual movement that delivers high accuracy by combining a tourbillon and a constant-force mechanism as one unit on a single axis for the very first time in horological history. The watch is named Kodo, the Japanese word for heartbeat. 

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The Watches

Bell & Ross Launches BR-X5

Bell & Ross’s newest collection, the BR-X5, offers a more technical version of its hot BR-05 collection, emphasizing a new multi-layer case, a new custom movement and a redesigned dial.

The black-dial version of the new Bell & Ross BR-X5.

The BR-X5 retains the BR-05’s round dial within a gently rounded square case and its integrated bracelet/strap, but extends the architectural appeal of the design with eye-catching multi-level case construction. The dial also underscores the technical focus of the new collection with its prominent power reserve indicator and an extra large aviation-style date aperture.

At 41mm in diameter, one millimeter larger than its forebear, the new BR-X5 case displays a hollowed-out central layer flanked by the watch’s square bezel and its caseback, both fixed to the two steel plates that form the top and bottom of the case.

Between the caseback and dial Bell & Ross fits a customized automatic Calibre BR-CAL.323 movement made by Kenissi. The Swiss movement maker was founded to create calibers for Tudor and, since 2016, has also supplied movements to Chanel, Breitling and others.

A chronometer 

The new movement is a COSC-certified chronometer that offers an impressive 70-hour power reserve. Also notable is the movement’s rapid date correction device, which allows for a quick date adjustment. Bell & Ross highlights the new movement’s long power reserve with a large power reserve indicator on the dial.

Look for two dial options, black and ice blue, for the steel-cased BR-X5. A third model, the BR-X5 Carbon Orange, is the sportiest of the new collection with its carbon fiber case that holds its automatic movement within a DLC titanium block.

The BR-X5 Carbon Orange is a limited edition of 500.

Bell & Ross has equipped all three models with a rotor designed to recall the shape of a race car wheel rim. The rotor is visible through clear sapphire on the steel BR-X5 and through a smoky sapphire glass on the BR-05 Carbon Orange.

To emphasize the new debut’s technical reliability, Bell & Ross is supporting the entire BR-X5 collection with a five-year warranty, which exceeding the previous Bell & Ross standard warranty of two years.

Prices: $7,400 (with steel bracelet) and $6,900 (rubber strap); $11,800 (BR-05 Carbon Orange, a limited edition of 500.) 

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The Watches

Franck Muller Rallies in Colorado

Franck Muller debuts four new colorful Vanguard watches to commemorate the 1,000-mile vintage car rally known as The Colorado Grand.

One of four new Franck Muller limited Edition Vanguard watches dedicated to the Colorado Grand vintage car rally.

As the event’s exclusive watch sponsor, Franck Muller designed each model to represent an emblematic automobile: pine green for the Bentley; fire red for the Ferrari; French blue for the Bugatti; and stunning silver for the Mercedes. Each is also created using different case material.

These are: polished steel (red dial), rose gold (blue dial), titanium (green dial) and micro-blasted steel (silver dial).

The Colorado Grand, which concluded in September, is an annual charity event during which drivers and crew meet in Vail, Colorado, to drive 1,000 miles during four days.

The New Watches

The watches each feature Franck Muller’s tonneau-shaped Vanguard case measuring 30.65mm by 51.9mm by 8.15mm thick, powered by Franck Muller’s own excellent FM 708 manual-wind movement.

Franck Muller says that its artisans were inspired by high-end automakers when designing the watches. Each dial includes a  “bochonné” decoration at its center while each watch’s seconds hand mimics a vintage car speedometer with its similar typography, hand design and “assuré circulaire” decoration.

The four models will be made in limited editions of thirty-three to honor the 33rd running of the Colorado Grand. Prices: $23,500 (rose gold case), $16,500 (micro-blasted steel case), $14,500 (titanium and polished steel case). 

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The Watches

Hermès Celebrates New York Re-Opening With Two Limited Editions

Hermès celebrates the reopening of its Madison Avenue store in New York with two special edition watches.

The new Hermès H08 Madison.

One, the H08 Madison, includes a refashioned dial of the acclaimed cushion-shaped Hermès H08. On this special edition Hermès replaces the traditional 12 at the top of the dial with a 0 and also colors the numbers 6, 7 and 0 in yellow to form the address of the new Hermès boutique at 706 Madison Avenue. The same hue is echoed by the crystal seal, the minutes track and the varnished seconds hand. Hermès explains that it chose the yellow color to pay tribute to New York ‘yellow’ cabs.

The Hermès H08, you may recall, was designed in 2021 by Philippe Delhotal, creative director of Hermès Horloger, with a 39mm by 39mm cushion-shaped case, round dial and a contemporary time/date dial display.

For this model, Hermès uses the satin-brushed titanium case edition of the H08, topped by a black ceramic bezel and secured with a screw-lock crown. Inside you’ll find the Manufacture Hermès H1837 mechanical self-winding movement.

Hermès will deliver the new watch, a 185-piece limited edition, on a yellow or grey rubber strap.  Price: $7,450. 

Gene Kelly

The second celebratory model is the Gene Kelly, a 38mm rose gold, round-cased Arceau model with an unusual leather marquetry dial decorated with jazz dancers in action, a theme based on the Hermès ‘Tribute to Gene Kelly’ silk scarf designed by Canadian artist Geoff McFetridge.

The new Hermès Gene Kelly.

The rare leather dial is composed using micro-leather leather marquetry. As Hermès explains, its artisans select a dozen colorful full-grain calf leathers that are then trimmed to a thickness of 0.5 mm. 

The artisans then cut out the design elements and remove the leather fragments and assemble the scene on the dial. The design references Gene Kelly, a Hollywood musical legend, using bright colors, nine letters of his name, and dancers in moccasins and white socks.

Finally, Hermès sets eighty-two diamonds into the bezel and powers the hands with the automatic Manufacture Hermès H1912 movement.

Only twelve watches will be made, each fitted with a white Hermès calfskin strap. Price: $35,000. 

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The Watches

Ochs und Junior Adds Blue PVD to Mesa

With the new Mese 2.22, boasting an unusual, minimalist analog date display, independent Swiss watchmaker Ochs und Junior launches its first watch with a PVD dial. 

On the watch’s unusual blue PVD dial (and module) you’ll see white indexes, white hands and a white date indicator dot, which cleverly replaces the traditional date display window style.

The new Ochs und Junior Ochs Line Mese 2.22.

Each dot is actually a hole exposing a white SuperLuminova disc below. The viewer determines the date simply by noting which dot around the dial perimeter is white. Using the ten-minute markers as easy reference points, the full 30-day month is indicated via the 31 dots.

Designer Ludwig Oechslin created the indicator by arranging the holes in a gentle spiral, with the 31st hole overlapping the first. A curved dash on the disk below the dial ensures that only one of the two holes will indicate the date at the start of the month (either the 1st or the 31st), but not both at the same time.

The dial and module for the Ochs und Junior Ochs Line Mese 2.22.

The time is read in the traditional manner. The exact minute and seconds  can be read by the ring of holes spaced at two-minute intervals. These perforations mark even-numbered minutes while the adjoining spaces denote odd-numbered minutes. (Check out this video of Oechslin explaining the date spiral for his perpetual calendar, which is also relevant for this Mese model.)

La Chaux-de-Fonds-based Ochs und Junior was founded in 2006 by renowned scholar and watchmaker Ludwig Oechslin, alongside Kurt König, managing director of Swiss watch retailer Embassy, and Beat Weinmann.

The Ochs und Junior Mese 1.22 debuted this past April.

This newest Ochs und Junior Ochs Line Mese 2.22, a 39mm titanium watch, follows the earlier Mese 1.22 debut in April. It highlights a new ‘Yves-Klein blue’ in PVD made by Positive Coating, La Chaux-de-Fonds. Ochs und Junior pairs the bright new color with blue-black Ecopell Enzian Nappa leather strap, handmade by Berne-based designer Sabina Brägger. 

Inside, Oechslin’s module is paired with an automatic ETA 2824-2, and both are fit within the two-part titanium case designed by Ludwig Oechslin with visible machining marks. Price: CHF 3,500. 

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