transcript

Speaker 1:
[00:00] Hello, and welcome back to Fratello Talks. I'm your host Nacho, and today I'm joined by...

Speaker 2:
[00:04] Daan.

Speaker 1:
[00:05] And for the very first time on the podcast, the man that's usually over there behind the camera, replaced by an absence of man behind the camera, and now man in front of the camera, our photographer, videographer extraordinaire...

Speaker 3:
[00:17] Max. Yes, that's me.

Speaker 1:
[00:20] You almost forgot there. Yeah, that's your cue. Thanks for joining us, Max. You survived tagging along with us for the week of Watches and Wonders. And this is kind of today's sort of the debrief episode, so we're going to get into some favorites, impressions, how we found the show, and all kinds of things. The most delicious lunch object from the press lounge. But before we get into that, let's do a little bit of wrist check. Daan, I see that you're completely ready, so tell us what's on your wrist.

Speaker 2:
[00:52] Yes, I'm wearing my Autodromo Inter Europa with a Nassau blue dial. It's more greenish in my eyes, but that's why I paired it with a green jacket. But it's a good match. Yeah, it's a matching one. And I'm on like an orangey strap. It's a, what do you call it? I was going to say Vapiano, but... Safiano. Safiano, right?

Speaker 1:
[01:16] Yeah.

Speaker 2:
[01:17] Leather strap.

Speaker 1:
[01:18] Vapiano. Something Italian.

Speaker 2:
[01:21] Yeah. And I really like it. I haven't worn it in a long, long time, but actually I should wear it a lot more than I do. It's nice.

Speaker 1:
[01:30] Cool.

Speaker 3:
[01:31] Looks good. Nice orange and teal combo going on.

Speaker 2:
[01:33] Yeah, it's cool.

Speaker 1:
[01:35] Perfect.

Speaker 3:
[01:36] Great.

Speaker 1:
[01:36] Really cool. What about you, Max? What's on your wrist today?

Speaker 3:
[01:38] I'm wearing my Omega Constellation. It's a C shape. I believe it's a 168.029. I've had it for a very long time now. Well, for me at least. So yeah, finally something else after Watches and Wonders. I only brought one watch.

Speaker 1:
[01:55] You're wearing your vintage Rolex.

Speaker 3:
[01:58] That's correct. Great watch. But now something else and it's good to have it on again.

Speaker 1:
[02:03] Cool. Nice. Yeah, the Rolex got a few complements here and there. So it was a solid choice for the week.

Speaker 3:
[02:09] Yeah. People don't really mind it, I guess. It's a vintage piece so I can't really harm anybody with it.

Speaker 1:
[02:15] Exactly.

Speaker 3:
[02:15] It was a great daily wearer. It's nice and small. Perfect. Not flashy and a true bust. So yeah, it was great. There you go.

Speaker 1:
[02:23] Excellent. What are you wearing? Yeah, I am wearing the Tudor Pelagos FXD, and I'm wearing it on a strap from Zulu Alpha straps.

Speaker 2:
[02:31] It looks nice.

Speaker 1:
[02:33] The hardware looks quite comprehensive, but it's a pretty neat solution. It's made out of Marine Nationale parachute bag webbing. And then I believe that the hardware is also sort of either inspired by the original backpack straps, which is why it's also such a sort of chunky thing for a strap. But I was very surprised. I met the gentleman behind Zulu Alpha straps during this Tudor get together, like an after hours thing for where a bunch of vintage Tudor collectors came and showed us some absolutely incredible watches. So I met him there. We got talking and he ended up giving me this strap. So shout out to Zulu Alpha straps. It was very generous of him. And I really dig it. It looks very chunky and sort of encumbering. But I have to say, once you have it on the wrist, it really feels no different to any other strap. And yeah, the fact that it's that sort of vintage or new old stock, Marine National Elastic is nice. Yeah, you sort of... We'll do a little bit of a demo during the wrist check, but you basically slide it through the buckle like this, and then it just slides back, keeps it in place, and then it's nice and secure. So getting it on the FXD is a bit tricky, because you have to remove all of the hardware and then slide it through. So it's a little bit more complicated.

Speaker 2:
[04:03] The guy knew what he gifted.

Speaker 1:
[04:04] It's very, very cleverly done, and yeah, just easier to apply to traditional spring bar watches. But yeah, I dig it. The FXD, after the week with my very heavy Doxa.

Speaker 2:
[04:15] Yeah, you were not wearing your Tudor, actually.

Speaker 1:
[04:18] Yeah, I thought I'd go with something a little more lightweight.

Speaker 3:
[04:21] I am surprised. I figured it might be still the honeymoon with the Doxa.

Speaker 1:
[04:24] Yeah, but sometimes you just have to also take a little bit of a break, and as excited and wanting to wear that as I am, I figured I'm also going to go on holiday at some point in May and be away, and that'll probably be my one watch for that time. So I figured I'm going to put some good days of wear into it back to back there. Yeah. So then for now, going through the collection and wearing a couple of other things. But yeah. So let's get into it. What have been some of our... Now looking back, it's the week after we've gotten home, we've slept it all off this weekend and had some chance to let our thoughts mature.

Speaker 3:
[05:02] A good shower.

Speaker 1:
[05:03] Had a good shower or two. Not that we weren't doing that throughout the week.

Speaker 3:
[05:07] No.

Speaker 1:
[05:07] I think most of us who met us can attest that we were a fine smelling bunch. Anyway, without going down too many side tangents. What were some of the things that really stand out now looking back at last week? Daan, let's start with you. Yeah.

Speaker 2:
[05:25] One of my last meetings was with JLC. And I think they really hit it out of the park. Because, well, first of all, that integrated master control chronometer was really, really nice. Really, really well done. It's modest but still has a lot of character. The bracelet is very nice with great micro adjustments. And yeah, the whole thing looks very JLC, very classy, very, very well done. Well proportioned, 38 or 39 millimeters in diameter. And yeah, the blue dial with a little bit of darker shade toward the edge of the dial. Just really, really well done. And they also had a few new reversos. Also one in white gold with the Milanese bracelet from last year. And now in white gold instead of rose gold. And I really, really, really like that. And some new dial colors and also new guilloche textures.

Speaker 1:
[06:34] Yeah, a bamboo inspired one.

Speaker 2:
[06:35] Yeah, bamboo and also one that looks like a floor, wooden floor or something. But really, really nice, very, very detailed and very nice tropical colors, actually, a little bit like the inter-eropa I'm wearing right now. But, and then there was the master hubris Mechanica Minute Repeater.

Speaker 1:
[07:00] Right.

Speaker 2:
[07:00] Which was just mind-blowing.

Speaker 1:
[07:03] More on the sort of halterology high-end, like crazy.

Speaker 2:
[07:07] Yeah, with a peripheral rotor, with a dial, completely openworked, completely, yeah. You could just, the watch was almost a movement. And yeah, beautiful thing. Very thin.

Speaker 1:
[07:20] Cool.

Speaker 2:
[07:21] And yeah, JLC was, like, towards the end of the week, I was like, hmm, not that many spectacular releases, but then JLC...

Speaker 1:
[07:30] Cool, yeah.

Speaker 2:
[07:31] Came in and shook me.

Speaker 1:
[07:33] Surprised you at the last moment. Yeah, well, you know, it's the watchmaker's watchmaker, right? That's really... Yeah.

Speaker 2:
[07:39] I don't think they used that phrase anymore.

Speaker 1:
[07:42] No, I'm not sure. I don't think officially, but hey, it sticks, right?

Speaker 2:
[07:46] It sticks for a good reason.

Speaker 1:
[07:48] And yeah, I think those were cool. I really enjoyed some of the details of the shapes on the bracelet, of the integrated bracelet, the Master Control. Is it Master Control?

Speaker 2:
[07:58] Yeah.

Speaker 1:
[07:59] Yeah, of those models, I thought that that was really kind of a cool, new design going with something really a little bit different. You know, at the same time, it's a bracelet. So there's only so many things you can do with it, but at the same time, the shape was just, yeah, it looked good.

Speaker 2:
[08:14] Yeah, it's like a combination between an oyster bracelet and then they just like did some engravings in between the links and made a completely new thing out of it, right? It was like, yeah.

Speaker 1:
[08:29] Like this extra cutout with a sort of triangular shape kind of thing. Yeah. Yeah, it was cool. Did you manage to see those, Max, during the photoshoot?

Speaker 3:
[08:36] I did, but I was photoshooting with RJ. RJ was my model, but we also had another appointment, and it was quite a quick and busy photoshoot. So it was mainly just in photo mode, just blasting away. So I didn't try one on myself for that meeting. That's what I often tend to forget. You're just shooting, shooting, shooting, finally finished. And then you go away and you look, ah, I should have tried that on. And that's such a shame. And for this one, for 4G, I did not try it on, no.

Speaker 1:
[09:11] Right.

Speaker 3:
[09:12] Yeah, it's really nice from what I saw. Yeah.

Speaker 1:
[09:16] Yeah, that's the feeling that I came away at the very end of our Rolex meeting. I was like, oh yeah, wait, who has the Daytona? Is the Daytona here? No?

Speaker 3:
[09:24] Okay.

Speaker 1:
[09:25] It had already gone back into the little box and into the little cupboard that they have them in. And I thought, okay, well, I guess I won't see that one. And it's gone. Yeah. Hey, fingers crossed. We usually get a little bit of an extra preview or more of an after party. Yeah. A bit of an extra content creation opportunity in Brussels. So fingers crossed, they'll have it there. Who knows? But yeah, I mean, we'll see. And for you, Max, what was something that comes to mind as a highlight? Something maybe you didn't expect, you didn't know about beforehand.

Speaker 2:
[09:56] Something you did try.

Speaker 3:
[09:58] Good question. Porsche 917. No, just joking. That was at the Tech Horry booth, which was super cool to see in real life. But watch wise, I think quite high up there is the Lange, the 36 millimeter annual calendar. I was mainly focused on the luminous one. So I didn't really see it that much, but I saw it for the first time at the photoshoot. To be honest, I didn't even know it existed. But once I saw it, it's really nice. The size 36 millimeter annual calendar, it wears a bit larger than 36, I would say. So it's still, yeah, it's super good. Yeah. So one of the few watches that made me think, maybe I could sell a car and then not doing it, but I thought Nacho had to meet it. Yeah, I really liked that one. That's one I also, I definitely tried on. We had some spare time as well, so that helped.

Speaker 2:
[10:58] Yeah.

Speaker 3:
[10:59] I think that's quite a highlight for me.

Speaker 2:
[11:01] Yeah.

Speaker 3:
[11:01] Cool. That was great. Then besides that, what I also really liked was at Chopin. They had the LUC, the 1816. There was also 36. Maybe it's my size, I don't know, but it was a super nice watch as well. Kiyoshi Dayo. Yeah.

Speaker 2:
[11:20] It's a micro rotor movement.

Speaker 3:
[11:23] Yeah. I think those might be one of the favorites.

Speaker 1:
[11:27] The top contenders. I think the Lange, it's funny, right? The big center of attention was the loomed model. It was the big watch as soon as you entered the booth. But then, yeah, there was something about those Saxonias being such a little sort of understated like, oh, there's also this. And you see them, and especially, I agree with you, I think the white gold version was just, yeah. I mean, some of our colleagues were sort of pointing at it and saying, yeah, it's a little bit predictable. It's a bit classic. But hey, sometimes the classic and understated is just the way to go. Not everybody wants like a sapphire open worked loom covered dial. I mean, I thought that it was certainly very impressive as it always is. I think it works better with the Lange 1, how we've seen it in the past, or the Titework actually. But yeah, I think it was...

Speaker 2:
[12:19] With the hand wound?

Speaker 1:
[12:22] I believe...

Speaker 3:
[12:26] I don't think so. I'm trying to imagine the macros are shot, the movement, but I believe there are automatic. But we'll put a picture up.

Speaker 1:
[12:35] Exactly. Yeah. That's the problem with the week. You're just exposed to so much that sometimes, whether it's just that you don't even get to take a quick wrist shot, or...

Speaker 2:
[12:45] I haven't even been able to read about them. There's just too many releases in one week.

Speaker 1:
[12:50] That's also why we have the big team there, is to really make it out everywhere and make sure that at least most people manage to get some impressions of some of the brands. I mean, I could list a handful of brands that I personally didn't get to visit, and it would be probably some of those that would surprise other people's highlights from the fair, right? I mean, I could say JLC, I could say Parmigiani, I could say, yeah, I didn't make it to Tag Heuer this year. So yeah, there was plenty that I didn't see as well, but that's what comes with there being 66 brands inside.

Speaker 3:
[13:22] There's too much for four or five days.

Speaker 1:
[13:24] Exactly, exactly. Cool.

Speaker 2:
[13:27] And for you?

Speaker 1:
[13:27] Yeah, so for me, I've also made a little bit of a list because yeah, easier than having to memorize it all. People will be already more than tired of hearing me talk about the Vacheron Constantin Overseas Dual Time Cardinal Points, but I have to mention it because that for me was still the highlight of the show. Last that I spoke with it, I believe I was sitting on some rather funky looking chairs with Mike Stockton next to me at the end of day three. And at that point, I actually hadn't seen it in person yet. So between then and now, I managed to have a very last minute meeting, walked in there, managed to talk my way into the photo shoot and managed to put the white dialed one, which is my favorite, on the wrist. And it lived up to expectations. I mean, it's a...

Speaker 2:
[14:14] I saw a picture, it looked great on your wrist.

Speaker 1:
[14:16] Yeah, I really dig it. It's, I mean, you know, I love the Everest and then seeing this now make a comeback in a more sort of like production model, it's really cool. The price breaks my heart every time I think about it, of course, but yeah, it's still just a really cool watch. I'm happy it existed. I'm happy I got to at least try it on. I saw the other colors. There was sort of the big box with all the watches in it. I really dig it also on that orange strap. I think that that looked just fantastic, but yeah, the Vacheron.

Speaker 2:
[14:45] It should be on the bracelet, right?

Speaker 1:
[14:47] The bracelet, for me, give me the bracelet and the orange rubber strap. Those would be the two options that I would play with.

Speaker 3:
[14:52] And the white dial, right?

Speaker 1:
[14:54] White dial or alternatively the brown dial. The green and the blue were not... The blue was too blue. It was very overwhelming. There was a little bit of purple to it that I didn't really love. And then the green was a little too forest green for me. I wish it had been a little bit more on the khaki side.

Speaker 2:
[15:13] Oh, I like the green. The green was my favorite.

Speaker 3:
[15:16] I was expecting you to like it.

Speaker 1:
[15:17] I'm usually a green dial guy, but I have to say, in this case, it was really the... Just the brown. The brown is also just... It's not a usual combination that you see with titanium, but because of its warmer tones, it works well. So I really enjoyed that as well.

Speaker 3:
[15:30] So you can imagine.

Speaker 1:
[15:32] Definitely a highlight. What else do you have, Daan?

Speaker 2:
[15:34] Yeah, your comment about the price of the Vacheron made me think about my favorite Ressence Type 11, because it's 30,000 euros, but yeah, it's a really nice watch. You can really see the evolution of Benoit designing his watches. And this one is really refined. It's 41 millimeters in diameter, but it wears smaller, it wears really nice. And I really like the microbeats that show you the power reserve of the watch. And I hope they'll come out with a multicolor design for this one. I really like the green version that they have right now, but I would love a multicolor reference. But yeah, that watch really, I think that's my favorite of the show, just like your Vacheron. It's, yeah.

Speaker 1:
[16:39] That's the standout one.

Speaker 2:
[16:40] That's the one, yeah, for me. For me, very personally.

Speaker 1:
[16:43] I expected it to maybe be the Parmigiani for you. Me too.

Speaker 2:
[16:47] Yeah, Parmigiani was nice, but yeah, the one, you mean the mysterious chronograph?

Speaker 1:
[16:56] Exactly, yeah.

Speaker 2:
[16:57] It's 40 millimeters. It's a bit, it wears a bit big on my wrist. So the Tonda PF in 36 millimeters still wears better on my wrist. So yeah, I'm still hoping Parmigiani will make a micro rotor movement for that size at some point. But no, Parmigiani was great as well. There were some really nice Torx again with hand hammered dials, of which the texture was almost not even there, but so subtle that it looks so soft and the colors were perfect again.

Speaker 1:
[17:30] Little hammer.

Speaker 2:
[17:31] Yeah, exactly. Just a very small hammer maybe. Yeah. But yeah, Parmigiani was really nice as well. And that mysterious chronograph is just one button and you can make the hands appear and use it as a chronograph. It's a really cool complication.

Speaker 3:
[17:51] Super cool.

Speaker 1:
[17:52] Nice.

Speaker 2:
[17:52] And yeah, that was nice.

Speaker 1:
[17:54] Cool. What else do you have on your list, Max?

Speaker 3:
[17:58] Might be a bit obvious, but I quite like the Patek Philippe Calatrava, reference 5227, with the case back that could flip open. I thought it was really nice.

Speaker 1:
[18:10] The Hunter case back, yeah.

Speaker 3:
[18:11] Yeah, yeah, yeah. I felt it were better than the Calatrava from last year.

Speaker 1:
[18:17] I agree.

Speaker 3:
[18:17] They told us the case was slightly different, I believe.

Speaker 1:
[18:22] Yeah, they said it's a different, it's sort of like a, it's a different case reference, or a different case style. It has these sort of like slightly more sloping lugs. Yeah, it's a different shape.

Speaker 3:
[18:33] Yeah.

Speaker 1:
[18:33] I don't know, they kind of use that to sort of avoid answering the question that we posed, which was, is it the same size as last year's model? So we still have to do our research on that. But yeah, I think it's really good. I like it a lot. I think that that sort of coppery dial is great in it.

Speaker 3:
[18:51] Yeah, yeah.

Speaker 1:
[18:52] I like the hunter case back as well. It's like a very old school touch.

Speaker 3:
[18:55] I haven't actually seen that. Also gives you some space for engraving, that's your cup of tea.

Speaker 1:
[18:59] On the inside or the outside?

Speaker 3:
[19:00] Yeah, or both. Or both? Yeah. No, I thought that was really nice and it worked much better, or maybe I grown in the year, I don't know. But yeah, I really liked it. It's part of the diameter police, as RJ would say. Yeah, I thought that was super nice. Something we saw on Monday, which was not really released with Watches and Wonders, was The Singer, the heritage chronograph.

Speaker 1:
[19:27] I thought you were going to say Jacob and Co.

Speaker 3:
[19:29] Yeah, me too. Yes, that's also slightly too big for me, I'm afraid.

Speaker 2:
[19:33] Yeah, it's true.

Speaker 1:
[19:36] It's quite a large watch.

Speaker 3:
[19:38] Yeah, it's definitely an impressive watch. Yeah. The song is great, the sound, good sound to it. It was cool, but no, The Singer, I don't quite remember what movie.

Speaker 1:
[19:49] The Valjoux 32, I think.

Speaker 3:
[19:51] I believe so, yes, which they, yeah, well, basically restored and enhanced in a super cool watch, even though for a modern chronograph, yeah, wears really well. Also probably on the smaller side.

Speaker 1:
[20:06] Yeah, RJ was a big fan of that one. I think he was running around with one on his wrist all week because he liked it so much, he wanted to borrow a prototype and spend some time with it. But yeah, sadly sold out and who knows? I mean, finding those movements is already the kind of thing that you probably get from like a large estate sale where you open up a box somewhere in the back of an old watch brand or manufacturer or something and you find them. But yeah, not something that happens every day. So I wouldn't hold my breath.

Speaker 3:
[20:37] RJ was wearing the black dial. Yes. It was of the first 100 movements they found.

Speaker 1:
[20:42] Exactly.

Speaker 3:
[20:42] And then the one we saw was the golf with the red dial. And they did those later on.

Speaker 1:
[20:49] Exactly.

Speaker 3:
[20:49] They said they found 10 more movements and then they made those. So yeah, it's definitely hard to come by, I guess. But just the overall size and the looks, I think it's really great.

Speaker 1:
[21:00] I like the dual track for Singer. It's big, but because of their sort of case shape and the magic of the proportions, it wears actually fairly well. And I like it though, just the way that it approaches the GMT complication. Really, really cool. I again, of course, have to do it every time I'm there. I put the dive track on my wrist. I love that when you visit Singer, even though it's been, I think almost two years now, it'll be two years in September, since the dive track came out, it's still always there on the tray. I love it. It's so fun to just put it on the wrist. It's tall, it's big, it's this incredibly cool thing, but man, that bezel actually is incredible.

Speaker 2:
[21:40] It's their conversation piece.

Speaker 1:
[21:42] Yeah, I love it. I love the dive track. It's a real soft spot in my heart for that one. So, really cool to see that again. Dual track didn't disappoint, so that was a lot of fun. Nice. Yeah, I guess I should pull a highlight out of my hat here. Let's go to something not expensive or heartbreaking, something actually quite affordable, even for within the brand's catalog. And it's going to be a brand that debuted inside the walls of Palexpo for the first time this year, Zinn, from Frankfurt am Main. And they had a couple of 544 models, the 544 and the 544 RS, which I guess it stands for racing spec, because it has a red seconds hand. Maybe it's RS for red seconds. Who knows? I don't know, I'm just making fun here. But it's a 38.5 millimeter watch with their classic Zinn bracelet, the sort of H-link motif that they have with the bracelet. And those were just great. The size was spot on. I think it's a Salida movement inside. It's nice and slim.

Speaker 2:
[22:47] 38 millimeters, right?

Speaker 1:
[22:48] 38.5. They just look great. They look great. On the rubber strap, the rubber strap's a bit like the Doxo rubber straps, where it's a bit stiff and it sort of flanges out. I'm sure sized, it would be great. Trying it on unsized, it was a bit difficult to kind of extrapolate what that would look like on the wrist. But on the bracelet, it looked fantastic. And I think that those are, on the bracelet, 1700 euros, fully specced, which is pretty cool for a watch like that, with also 200 meters of water resistance. Like again, a watch that could be your one and only and final watch. Like that would survive two lifetimes.

Speaker 3:
[23:26] I did not see it, but it sounds and looks very good.

Speaker 1:
[23:29] Very cool stuff. And then yeah, there were a few other cool things from Zen. There was the hunting watch, which I mean, I don't know, I've never gone hunting. I don't know if you guys have, but no, not even down in Brabant?

Speaker 3:
[23:41] Not even there, no.

Speaker 1:
[23:43] Perfect.

Speaker 3:
[23:44] We also have supermarkets there.

Speaker 1:
[23:45] Oh, excellent. But yeah, so that to me is a bit of a, it's an interesting complication to know, because in Germany you can, I don't know if I should explain this to be honest, but in Germany you can only hunt by the light of the moon. That's the legal requirement. It's, you can't hunt assisted by artificial light. So naturally hunters need to know when you have the brightest moonlight. So full moon. So this has this like moon phase indication, but also assisted by other kinds of metrics on the dial. And then it lets you know when you have the optimal light.

Speaker 2:
[24:21] And a pointer date, right? To hunt.

Speaker 1:
[24:23] Yeah, also. Yeah. So interesting watch, interesting complication.

Speaker 2:
[24:27] And hunter colors.

Speaker 1:
[24:28] I like the look of it. Also the colors are good. I like shades of green and I really liked it. So yeah, that was cool. And then, yeah, I think that that was, but the 544 was the main highlight for me, it's in.

Speaker 3:
[24:41] So yeah, well, it's cool. Nice.

Speaker 1:
[24:43] What else do you have, Daan?

Speaker 2:
[24:44] Yeah, I have another smaller brand. Not that affordable as, not as affordable as Zindo. Christian van der Klau. I ran over there as one of my last appointments before going to the airport. And they had a 38 millimeter watch, a new release with planets on it. So Earth is there, Venus is there, and the sun is there. And it actually all turns around each other.

Speaker 3:
[25:15] In a 38?

Speaker 2:
[25:16] In a 38 millimeter case size. There's an Aventurine version, but there's also a white dial version, which just looked very simple. And Christian van der Klauwen normally is quite like a lot of stuff, a lot of Aventurine, a lot of things. But this was more simple and I really liked it. Okay.

Speaker 1:
[25:41] There was a sort of second, second vibe to it in a strange way.

Speaker 2:
[25:44] Yeah, because it has like arrows on the dial as well, like where the planets are going. But yeah, it also explains you a little bit how it works. But yeah, that's kind of cool.

Speaker 1:
[25:58] Yeah, doing away with the, okay, planets and then the background of space represented by the Aventurine. But then, yeah, in this case, just this like white, almost like schematic looking dial.

Speaker 2:
[26:08] Yeah, it almost looked like a working model or something, but it was really good. Yeah.

Speaker 1:
[26:13] Nice, that's a nice one. That's a nice one.

Speaker 2:
[26:15] And I also tried on the Chanel Boyfriend.

Speaker 1:
[26:19] Oh yeah.

Speaker 2:
[26:19] I think it's a women's watch, but with like a card on it, like a deck of cards, a plain card on it. But I kind of liked it. It was like rectangular and quartz, but still, it was fun.

Speaker 1:
[26:31] Yeah, very cool. I'll step in here just quickly, because it's not one that I think I had on my list, but I really liked the Superleggera, which also had a, I think it had a dual time complication, but tucked away in a very interesting way, sort of at around four or five o'clock with an arrow and just a disc, a 24 hour disc. Really elegant and cool solution to introduce that complication to what is essentially a dive watch. So I really liked that. And I think that it's not something I had seen before off the top of my head, not in a dive watch at least. And I think that it's really sort of my favorite new way of integrating the dual time complication to a dive watch, because often you're competing with either a 24 hour bezel, but then it's not really a dive watch or you have the 24 hour re-out and then you have to just, it doesn't really, yeah, you set it differently and it's a little bit busier. So I thought that having that window there was a really elegant solution for it. And it just looked great, like ceramic, red accents, a little bit of bare metal, I think probably titanium on the bezel. So looked, or aluminum looked really good. And yeah, so shout out there. What about you Max, what else do you have?

Speaker 3:
[27:42] I'll mention something affordable, the Favre Leuba Harpoon.

Speaker 1:
[27:48] Okay.

Speaker 3:
[27:48] Don't know if you guys seen it.

Speaker 1:
[27:49] No, no.

Speaker 3:
[27:50] It's a reissue, or remake, or it's very true to the original.

Speaker 2:
[27:55] Okay.

Speaker 3:
[27:56] It's a 36.8 millimeters watch, and it's really nice.

Speaker 1:
[28:01] Cool.

Speaker 3:
[28:02] Yeah, of course.

Speaker 2:
[28:03] Nice name as well.

Speaker 3:
[28:04] Yeah.

Speaker 2:
[28:05] I like the name Harpoon.

Speaker 3:
[28:06] Harpoon. It sounds very serious and sporty, but it would almost say, yeah, it's quite a classy watch. It was really cool to see. It's a bit of the same idea as Oris had with the star.

Speaker 2:
[28:19] Oh, yeah.

Speaker 1:
[28:19] Oh, okay. Proper reissue. Yeah.

Speaker 3:
[28:21] Exactly. That was super cool. Yeah. Finishing was nice. I haven't really looked at the macros closely, but from what I could see, it was super cool. Yeah. I liked it. It was very true to the original. They had the original there as well. Okay. Yeah. It was great. And it comes in at, I believe, 2,100 euros. Oh, nice. We have quite a solid watch.

Speaker 1:
[28:45] Very cool.

Speaker 3:
[28:46] Very, very cool. Also mentioned something else, which we saw the first day. First day we were still in the city and not in a PoExpo.

Speaker 1:
[28:55] Jacob & Co.

Speaker 3:
[28:56] Yes, Jacob & Co. But we also went to the Boree Vage. And there we saw Holt & Rich with their Lab 1, 1S with the sub-seconds. I really liked it.

Speaker 2:
[29:07] That's also nice.

Speaker 3:
[29:08] It's a super cool watch.

Speaker 1:
[29:10] Sort of oxidized dial, but sort of oxidization that's made on purpose and then frozen in time so that it doesn't further develop. But yeah, we had those in here and it's really impressive, especially for the price point that you still get the titanium, the sort of skeletonized titanium case and everything. I mean, it's cool.

Speaker 3:
[29:31] And subseconds, I thought it really worth for the watch. It's yeah, I like that.

Speaker 2:
[29:36] It's nice.

Speaker 1:
[29:37] Very cool. Yeah, let me have a look at what else I have here. Again, sticking to the theme for me this year, which is the apparently it's titanium dual time watches. I really love the Laurent Ferrier Sport Travel.

Speaker 2:
[29:50] Oh yeah.

Speaker 1:
[29:51] That's probably second favorite this year.

Speaker 2:
[29:54] How does it wear on your wrist?

Speaker 1:
[29:56] It works. For me, it works. I thought somebody said it was 43 when we had it here. And I believe them, but to be honest, I've had the feeling that it wore better than 43. Yeah. Then I think I heard that it's 42.

Speaker 2:
[30:10] One or two. 41.5.

Speaker 1:
[30:12] I think it's even 41.5.

Speaker 3:
[30:14] It would make more sense.

Speaker 1:
[30:15] Which, yeah, it's a good size, I think. Obviously, compared to the Sport Auto, which is 40 mil, which might even be 39 and change, or maybe specific, exactly 40, but I really dig it. I think that the way that they've integrated the complication is supernized these sort of sloping pushers, the way that the openings are done on the dial for the date and then for the second time zone. And then, of course, you get this just titanium pebble case with a bracelet and everything. I mean, there's so many details there that are great.

Speaker 2:
[30:48] Movement is beautifully finished.

Speaker 1:
[30:50] The movement is also just next level. You could give me any movement in there and I'd be happy with it. But of course, with Laurent Ferrier, it's always above and beyond. It's insane. And again, that one has a price point that, yeah, it means that it remains a dream, but a good dream nonetheless.

Speaker 3:
[31:07] So the movement and the hands. And when taking macro shots of it, zero Photoshop needed. It's so good. Yeah, it's really high level.

Speaker 1:
[31:19] Yeah, I loved it. I loved it. So the Laurent Ferrier definitely gets a much deserved shout. And then I'm going to stick to titanium, but I'm going to go with something a little different. And it's going to be the Grand Seiko Evolution 9, Spring Drive UFA, Ushio Divers.

Speaker 2:
[31:34] Oh, yeah.

Speaker 1:
[31:35] Now, I've gone long on the record as saying that I'm not a huge fan of dial side power reserve indicators. I'm softening up a little bit.

Speaker 2:
[31:45] I see.

Speaker 1:
[31:46] But only making that exception for Grand Seiko and their Spring Drive calibers, because I think there it sort of makes sense. It's become a bit of like a charming element that's very distinctive for the Spring Drive. And then I just, they wear so well. The case size is spot on. I think it was closer to 40 millimeters.

Speaker 2:
[32:06] 40.5, right?

Speaker 1:
[32:07] Yeah. And love the green, love the blue. I might have a slight preference for the blue there again, just because of the shade of green. It turns out I like green, but I'm quite particular to the shades of green that I like. Which you find out a lot about yourself roaming the halls of Pal Expo. But yeah, so really love that watch. It has all the distinctive Grand Seiko elements like the case, the polishing, the finishing, the texture dial, really beautiful. And then the clasp has all kinds of stuff packed in there, including the micro adjust, the diver extension. It's just great. I really love it. The titanium dive watch that wears super well from Grand Seiko. I think it's really, for me personally, one of the biggest highlights from Grand Seiko in, I could say probably in the last three or four years. I think that this is really up my alley and really it was a pleasure to get to see those. Lots of impressive stuff from Grand Seiko, of course, including this hand engraved platinum case.

Speaker 3:
[33:12] Didn't see that one.

Speaker 1:
[33:15] I think that they did a bit of a selection. You either got to see that or the gold models. I didn't see the gold models personally, but we had some samples in earlier in the year, so I got to see.

Speaker 3:
[33:24] Yeah, we had those in, so I didn't go to the photo shoot or touch and try. So, yeah, they look nice on photos.

Speaker 1:
[33:31] Yeah, really, really cool. Very impressive. Yeah, all done by hand, so they're all slightly different. It's the same motif, but obviously there's always a little bit of a human error to it, so that's really nice. But yeah, I think just something about the Titanium dive watch that has a stated accuracy of no more than 20 seconds in a year is pretty wild, so yeah, really dig it.

Speaker 2:
[33:59] Talking about Titanium, Hermes came with a Titanium Cape Cod.

Speaker 1:
[34:04] Yeah.

Speaker 2:
[34:04] And I think they call it 41 millimeters or a large size, maybe.

Speaker 1:
[34:10] Yeah.

Speaker 2:
[34:11] Large size.

Speaker 1:
[34:12] Yeah, since it's kind of square.

Speaker 2:
[34:13] Yeah, it's kind of square. But it was cool. It looked nice with like a flat front, and then yeah, you see the classic Cape Cod shape. It's a bit big for my wrist, but it's a cool thing on bright orange, yellow, blue straps, rubber straps. It made it look very playful. And yeah, I really dig that.

Speaker 1:
[34:37] Yeah, it was cool. Do you know, I don't know it myself, but do you know the inspiration behind the Cape Cod?

Speaker 2:
[34:45] It's like a chain.

Speaker 1:
[34:49] A chain, okay. I wasn't sure if it was a buckle or a chain or something.

Speaker 2:
[34:52] I think it's a chain.

Speaker 1:
[34:53] Okay, okay, cool. Yeah, I know that Hermes often draws on, they draw on sort of inspiration from their leather working and saddle re history. So it's one of those things.

Speaker 2:
[35:03] And also, of course, the numerals are inspired by the same shape as the case, just like on the H08 and their other models. Yeah, very nice.

Speaker 3:
[35:13] Yeah.

Speaker 1:
[35:15] Great biscuits and chocolate at Hermes.

Speaker 3:
[35:16] Yeah, that was really good.

Speaker 1:
[35:18] And horse head shaped cookies, which made up for the disappointing lack of sequel to Licky the Horse.

Speaker 3:
[35:25] Yes.

Speaker 1:
[35:26] Favorite from last year.

Speaker 2:
[35:26] Well, there was a lion.

Speaker 1:
[35:28] Yeah, true.

Speaker 3:
[35:30] A wooden lion.

Speaker 2:
[35:31] A wooden lion.

Speaker 1:
[35:32] There was a lion made of... Was it wood or...

Speaker 3:
[35:34] It was wood.

Speaker 2:
[35:35] It was wood.

Speaker 1:
[35:35] Okay. It didn't stick its tongue out, so...

Speaker 2:
[35:38] No, true.

Speaker 3:
[35:39] It didn't roar.

Speaker 2:
[35:40] It was roaring, but it was roaring.

Speaker 1:
[35:42] That would have been nice. That would have been nice if it roared. Very impressive craftsmanship, as always, at Hermes.

Speaker 3:
[35:49] But, yeah.

Speaker 1:
[35:51] Cool.

Speaker 2:
[35:51] And a shout out to... I went on the last day to Barrens.

Speaker 1:
[35:55] Oh, yeah.

Speaker 2:
[35:55] That's cool. With super flat, super light, like ultra light watches with open worked movements and just... Yeah, you're just in awe the whole meeting because on one, there's like a snake kind of thing going around the dial for the hours and the minutes and it's just, yeah.

Speaker 3:
[36:17] Yeah, that one is cool.

Speaker 2:
[36:18] It's very impressive what they're able to do with their watches. And I don't even know the names of the watches anymore. Dave and Mike were also there and they were more into it than I am, but they're very impressive.

Speaker 1:
[36:32] Yeah. I think technically what they do is incredible. I remember we had this, I think the 11G model. Yeah, 11G because it weighs 11 grams.

Speaker 3:
[36:41] Yes, the purple one.

Speaker 1:
[36:42] Yeah.

Speaker 2:
[36:42] But now there was one that was 9G or like 6G. I don't even know. So there was one.

Speaker 3:
[36:50] Imagine what they do in 10 years.

Speaker 2:
[36:51] Yeah, because they made the 11G, but now they made a version a little bit smaller and made out of graphene, which is even lighter than the already very light case that the 11G had.

Speaker 3:
[37:03] So impressive stuff.

Speaker 2:
[37:05] Spare me the details or I'm not informed enough to tell you all about them, but they're really, really nice. Wow. Certainly. In very cool color combinations as well.

Speaker 1:
[37:15] On the more technical side of things, but still very impressive.

Speaker 2:
[37:18] Yeah.

Speaker 3:
[37:18] Yeah, cool.

Speaker 1:
[37:19] Nice. Anything else you got there, Max?

Speaker 3:
[37:21] Yes, definitely. I would say the Cartier Santos Dumont in gold. Oh, yes. The gold bracelet. For me, I would pick the silver dial.

Speaker 1:
[37:33] Okay.

Speaker 3:
[37:33] Yeah.

Speaker 1:
[37:34] Me too. Really?

Speaker 3:
[37:35] Yeah.

Speaker 2:
[37:35] Me too. I would go for the stone dial.

Speaker 3:
[37:37] Yeah.

Speaker 2:
[37:38] Maybe the grayish stone dial.

Speaker 3:
[37:41] It was great. Yeah. But it's harder to photograph, so I'm picking silver.

Speaker 1:
[37:45] There you go. That's what happens.

Speaker 3:
[37:47] That's good. I thought it was just so nice. The bracelet is really good. Yeah. So that and also talking about gold watches. I saw the Polo 79. I saw the novelty. But also for me, the first time that I ever held one was the yellow gold Polo 79.

Speaker 1:
[38:09] Okay. The original release one.

Speaker 3:
[38:12] Yeah. They were both super nice, but in yellow gold, it's something.

Speaker 2:
[38:20] I had a vintage session with the Piaget, and they showed a 34 millimeter original Polo from 79.

Speaker 3:
[38:28] Yeah.

Speaker 2:
[38:29] Or I'm not sure if it's exactly from that year, but from that era. And it was so thin. It was diamond set, so a bit over the top, but still is very thin, 34 millimeters.

Speaker 3:
[38:40] Wow.

Speaker 2:
[38:41] The 38 millimeter re-edition is nice, but it's a bit bulky.

Speaker 3:
[38:46] Yeah.

Speaker 2:
[38:47] Like a bit flat.

Speaker 3:
[38:48] I get it. Yeah.

Speaker 2:
[38:50] But the 34 vintage one was really, really nice.

Speaker 3:
[38:53] Yeah. Should have tried that. Yeah.

Speaker 1:
[38:57] Nice. Yeah. Let me dig up some more stuff here. Yeah. For me, it's coming to the end of the list, but still plenty to talk about. I'll do some rapid fire with Patek because I really like the 6105 Celestial Sunrise and Sunset. I think mostly there was maybe a slight contrarian aspect because most people are saying like, this is silly, it's 46.5 millimeters, and it's so not Patek. And I'm like, yeah, but it's spaceship themed and looks incredible. And it doesn't look anything like what you would potentially want or associate with Patek typically, but it was just such an impressive thing that I really liked it.

Speaker 2:
[39:39] I have no idea what you're talking about, but I'm going to look it up.

Speaker 1:
[39:41] It's this sort of hockey puck with an integrated strap. And it has just like the starry sky, but it has a sunrise and sunset indication. Just a cool looking watch. The case side is inspired as well as the strap are inspired by like spaceship architecture.

Speaker 3:
[40:00] I did not expect Patek to ever do a spaceship inspired watch.

Speaker 1:
[40:04] Me neither, no, IWC maybe. And they delivered there, but yeah.

Speaker 2:
[40:09] That was nice, the Venture. Yeah, Venture.

Speaker 1:
[40:11] Venture Vertical Drive is really cool. I saw somebody who I met when they did a preview in California, one of the vast astronauts, former NASA astronaut, I think somebody who's been in space three times, Andrew Feustel. And it was really nice to talk to him again. We spoke about him taking a Nacho Libre DVD up to the ISS when he went there. Obviously, that was the first association when I introduced myself. Hey, my name is Nacho. He's like, oh, like Nacho Libre. I'm like, yes. I've heard that before many times.

Speaker 2:
[40:44] I actually thought that watch was heavier than I thought, like, than I expected.

Speaker 1:
[40:49] Yeah, but there's no gravity.

Speaker 2:
[40:50] Yeah, yeah.

Speaker 1:
[40:50] It's all good.

Speaker 2:
[40:51] Yes, it's all good.

Speaker 1:
[40:52] No, it is.

Speaker 2:
[40:53] But it's heavier.

Speaker 1:
[40:54] Because it's quite a, I think the construction lends itself to being a little bit thicker since it's all operated via the bezel. And then ceramic, you know, it is, I think, ever so slightly lighter than steel.

Speaker 2:
[41:06] Yeah, it's not serratanium, of course. The bezel is serratanium, but not the case.

Speaker 1:
[41:09] Exactly.

Speaker 2:
[41:10] Exactly.

Speaker 1:
[41:10] But still very impressive, a really cool watch. And then, yeah, going back to Patek, I also think one of the favorites for me there, and this is kind of me tapping into the sort of my classier side. It doesn't come out often, but sometimes you see something and you go, this is not like everyday me, but this could be like weekend me having nice dinner somewhere where you dress up a little bit. Like you and your think. Exactly. Yeah, exactly. Like my Cardiotech. So this was the 5396 annual calendar mood phase. I mentioned it before, but it's just a great looking watch. It's so nice. Yeah, I don't know. Just you put it on the wrist, it works. Would I wish it was just a little bit smaller? Sure, maybe, but it still worked. And yeah, really enjoyed that from Patek. But a lot of good stuff there in general, I have to say. There was also the inline calendar, perpetual calendar, which was beautiful. Also the new, sort of the trio of anniversary nautilus models were really impressive. Especially the larger size one that was ultra thin, was just incredible on the wrist. So those were a lot of fun to see in person. But yeah, a decent year for Patek, I have to say.

Speaker 3:
[42:30] I would still go for the smaller size, but still, both were really nice.

Speaker 1:
[42:34] Yeah, definitely.

Speaker 3:
[42:35] I agree.

Speaker 1:
[42:35] Smaller size for me as well. I think it was really cool. And also, just to mention it, smaller size, we also got something flat and in a smaller size from Bulgari, which was the Octo Finissimo in 37 millimeters. I didn't get to see that one either, but I've heard from you guys that it was a thing to behold.

Speaker 2:
[42:55] Yeah, it wears well. Because the 40 millimeter can become kind of like a pancake on your wrist, and the 37 becomes more like a watch. It's a bit more ergonomic and yeah.

Speaker 1:
[43:07] I like this pancake too, but...

Speaker 2:
[43:09] Yeah, no, but this was nicer, yeah.

Speaker 3:
[43:11] Cool. Talking about a tin, you know, yeah, well, could be. Talking about a tin and a lightweight watch, it's the Vacheron Constantin Ultra Tin in Platinum.

Speaker 2:
[43:22] Yes, heavy, but very thin.

Speaker 3:
[43:25] No, yeah, it was nice and tin, very heavy, but it was such a nice watch. Yeah, it was super cool.

Speaker 1:
[43:33] I didn't see it. I probably shoved someone aside, holding it while getting into the...

Speaker 2:
[43:38] I thought it was a bit big, like it was 39 millimeters, I think.

Speaker 3:
[43:43] Okay. I think it was also one I did not try on. Oh, I only looked at it when RJ was wearing it.

Speaker 2:
[43:49] I tried it on and I was like, it's a bit big, but I will never own this watch.

Speaker 3:
[43:54] No, maybe not.

Speaker 2:
[43:54] For 120,000 euros, I think that it costs.

Speaker 3:
[43:58] That's a different tax bracket for me.

Speaker 2:
[44:03] It was nice, yeah, for sure. I also liked the Rolex, what Rolex did to their Oyster collection, like for the 100th anniversary of the Oyster case. I liked the two-tone one, yeah. There was also a Jubilee version with a Jubilee pattern on the dial. Very colorful. That was not really my thing, but I liked the two-tone one with a very dark, I think it was Sunburst, right? Sunburst, dark green dial, and gold bezel green accents. Very Rolex, very modest, but good. Cool.

Speaker 1:
[44:41] What did we think of the Yacht-Master II?

Speaker 3:
[44:45] Bit too small. No, yeah.

Speaker 1:
[44:49] Yeah, it's quite a thing. I mean, I don't know about you guys, but I was never a fan of the original.

Speaker 2:
[44:55] Me neither, but I like the same as with the IWC, with their perpetual calendar. I like how brands are thinking about their end user, like the end wearer, like making things less complicated.

Speaker 1:
[45:07] Exactly.

Speaker 2:
[45:07] Making it easier to set everything with one crown. You still need instructions because you need to turn the crown the right way to make sure that the thing that you want to happen is going to happen. But still, I think also the perpetual calendar on the, I think they call it a pro at IWC.

Speaker 1:
[45:29] Pro set.

Speaker 2:
[45:30] Like a pro set.

Speaker 1:
[45:31] Pro set, yeah.

Speaker 2:
[45:32] It's so smooth, and you can set it forward, backward. You can, yeah, it feels really well. Like really nice to use. And yeah, same with Rolex, I think, as they just try to make things easier.

Speaker 1:
[45:47] And it's an improvement over the previous one, I feel. It doesn't say Yacht Master II in big letters on the bezel, which I think is, yeah, objectively an improvement. And you know, it is what it is. People will love it. People will hate it. But it's, yeah, I mean, it's, I don't know, I don't think it'll ever be the most in-demand Rolex out there, but yeah, another iteration.

Speaker 3:
[46:08] It's a good improvement, I think.

Speaker 1:
[46:10] Exactly.

Speaker 3:
[46:10] Yeah, I mean, yes.

Speaker 1:
[46:12] What did you guys think about Tag Heuer? Did you guys make it to Tag Heuer?

Speaker 2:
[46:15] I went to Tag Heuer, and I saw like the regular new Monaco's.

Speaker 1:
[46:20] The Titanium.

Speaker 2:
[46:24] Yeah, they looked nice. Then there was a new Monaco with a new movement, which they also had models of, and they work with like spring elements.

Speaker 1:
[46:38] Right.

Speaker 2:
[46:39] It was really cool to see that. But yeah, we'll have to see. It was also a split-second chronograph, I think. Yeah. It was a cool design.

Speaker 1:
[46:50] Nice. Nice. Yeah, I kind of liked the just the original blue in the titanium case. But there's also something, I kind of wish I'd seen it because I look at pictures and I go, yeah, it could be kind of cool. The two-tone. Yeah, I also, that's another kind of hidden away part of myself, but I quite enjoy two-tone when done with titanium.

Speaker 3:
[47:13] Okay. Yeah.

Speaker 1:
[47:14] I think it's kind of cool. Golden titanium.

Speaker 3:
[47:16] Because it's a bit darker.

Speaker 1:
[47:17] Yeah. It contrasts nicely and it's kind of a cool thing. Oh, you also don't see it every day.

Speaker 3:
[47:23] Yeah. I thought they were super nice. RJ tried them on and apparently they are a bit more wearable now.

Speaker 1:
[47:30] Okay.

Speaker 3:
[47:31] So that's good. It's also one of the few titanium watches he really likes. I guess. But for me, they're still just slightly too big and small wrist. So I'm a bit picky about sizes. Yeah. I do really like the classic blue colorway.

Speaker 1:
[47:51] Yeah, of course.

Speaker 3:
[47:51] It's just so nice.

Speaker 1:
[47:52] You were just looking at the Porsche outside, weren't you? This is nothing else.

Speaker 3:
[47:56] I was.

Speaker 1:
[47:57] Did you see that there was Max Verstappen's car part next to it?

Speaker 3:
[48:01] Yes. Yeah. I noticed that later when I was reviewing the footage.

Speaker 1:
[48:04] Oh, yeah. You're like, oh wow, that was also there.

Speaker 3:
[48:07] Yeah. No, I was really distracted by the nice car. I was really cold that it managed to put it there, and I can really appreciate it. Yeah.

Speaker 1:
[48:15] Beautiful.

Speaker 2:
[48:16] I felt like Tag Heuer had a really big year last year because they came back to the Formula One and they introduced some Formula One watches. This year was a bit, they were a bit more quiet, I guess.

Speaker 3:
[48:28] Yeah. But still, I did miss the F1 simulator in the booth.

Speaker 2:
[48:32] Oh, yeah.

Speaker 1:
[48:32] There you go.

Speaker 3:
[48:33] That was good.

Speaker 2:
[48:34] Too bad.

Speaker 1:
[48:35] So if you're listening, Tag Heuer, bring back the Formula One simulator for Max Beasley's.

Speaker 2:
[48:39] It was great for our own Max.

Speaker 1:
[48:41] There you go. He still wants to beat that lap record. Yeah. Cool. And then and then I want to. Oh, before. No, before leaving Pellexpo, let me do just a shout out to one more that it was kind of an unexpected and sort of a good pleasant surprise, let's say. It was the Alpina Star Timer Pilot in 40 millimeters. I thought that it was quite a good, quite a good new take on that watch. Put it on the wrist. It's nice and wearable. It's a pilot's watch, but with just like good proportions, solid lume markers, you know, a little bit of like a, like a vertex thing going on, but in a really good way. And I think they're, they're around like 1.2 or something like this. I didn't write it down, but like 1.2 case, 1,200 euros. And yeah, just a good looking watch. So yeah, that was one that I wanted to give a shout out to. And then if we had outside of Palexpo.

Speaker 3:
[49:35] Can I do one shout out before we leave?

Speaker 1:
[49:37] Yeah, sure.

Speaker 3:
[49:37] Sorry to interrupt. That's going to Zenith with their new clasp. Yeah, Zenith.

Speaker 2:
[49:43] It was good.

Speaker 3:
[49:44] Of the most satisfying things I felt in a while. The action on it, it's really nice.

Speaker 1:
[49:50] There was this crazy thing where when you close it, the little flip lock thing automatically flips down. It took them three years to design it, but it was well worth it.

Speaker 3:
[49:59] You can explain it now, but it's really something you have to feel and experience and try. And that was super nice. That was quite a surprise for me. I didn't even know they did that. And when we got there and put it on the wrist, closed it, I was, oh, wait a minute.

Speaker 2:
[50:15] It wasn't even too bulky, because sometimes you have these features and then the clasp becomes very bulky. But this actually looks nice. Yeah, nicely integrated.

Speaker 3:
[50:24] Yeah, it was really well done.

Speaker 1:
[50:26] And the GFJs were just very impressive. Those are just wild. I mean, they're really out there. I think I probably mentioned it in the highlights already last week, but yeah, the finishing on the movement being a little more classical is very good. The Tantalum model specifically really surprised me. I thought that that was really cool. A little bit more understated than the green and gold.

Speaker 2:
[50:48] I'll take the green and gold.

Speaker 3:
[50:49] Me too.

Speaker 1:
[50:49] Yeah, perfect.

Speaker 3:
[50:51] We saw it on the leather strap. RJ showed me a photo. He got to see it on the gold bracelet.

Speaker 1:
[50:58] Oh, okay.

Speaker 3:
[50:59] With the, what is it? Bloodstone dial?

Speaker 1:
[51:02] Yep. Yeah, hematite bloodstone.

Speaker 3:
[51:04] Yeah, it's on a gold bracelet and that's all.

Speaker 2:
[51:07] They only make it if you ask for it.

Speaker 3:
[51:09] Yes.

Speaker 1:
[51:10] They fire up the foundry.

Speaker 2:
[51:12] Exactly.

Speaker 1:
[51:12] Perfect.

Speaker 3:
[51:12] Yeah, but that's an extremely nice combo.

Speaker 1:
[51:15] So I like that. Do you have anything else from Palexpo? Any other honorable mentions?

Speaker 2:
[51:19] Well, I was thinking about Van Cleef.

Speaker 1:
[51:22] Oh, yeah.

Speaker 2:
[51:23] Van Cleef was also nice.

Speaker 3:
[51:24] I know that they do.

Speaker 2:
[51:25] There was one, I think, a 38 millimeter white gold case with a dark brown reddish.

Speaker 1:
[51:33] Rose gold case, yeah.

Speaker 2:
[51:34] Oh, rose gold case?

Speaker 1:
[51:35] It was rose gold, yeah.

Speaker 2:
[51:36] But like, dual time.

Speaker 1:
[51:40] Yeah.

Speaker 2:
[51:41] Retrograde. And enamel dial.

Speaker 1:
[51:45] Yep.

Speaker 2:
[51:46] With guilloche. Yes. I keep asking questions, but...

Speaker 1:
[51:50] I don't think it was... I think it was stamped. They stamped the hot enamel.

Speaker 2:
[51:55] Yeah.

Speaker 1:
[51:55] Something like that. It was a crazy process.

Speaker 2:
[51:57] Like, really, really, really, really nice watch.

Speaker 3:
[52:00] What was it? Like a copper layer underneath?

Speaker 1:
[52:02] Underneath, so then it would just completely catch the light in this beautiful way. Yeah, really impressive. Nice and slim, too, on the wrist. That was just beautiful.

Speaker 2:
[52:12] Two jump hour complications, right?

Speaker 1:
[52:15] So, yeah, you have two windows for heure d'ici, the time here, and heure d'ailleurs, time over there, somewhere else, in French. And then it would tell you the local time, and then the home time. And then they would both, as soon as you hit the 60, the retrograde minute hand just springs back. And then the two windows change all at the same time.

Speaker 3:
[52:40] Great.

Speaker 2:
[52:40] It was really nice. It was very Hermes-y.

Speaker 1:
[52:43] Yeah, definitely.

Speaker 3:
[52:43] I agree.

Speaker 2:
[52:43] But very nice.

Speaker 3:
[52:45] Yeah, the dial, it was just black. If you put that in the shade or whatever.

Speaker 2:
[52:50] And you play with it.

Speaker 3:
[52:50] If you turn it a bit and the spotlight was on it, it was glowing a really large red.

Speaker 2:
[52:56] Brown, yeah, very nice.

Speaker 3:
[52:57] Combining that with the rose gold case, it's super wearable at 38 mil.

Speaker 2:
[53:02] And they also had a day night moon phase, sun phase.

Speaker 1:
[53:07] With the on-demand animation.

Speaker 2:
[53:09] Yeah, very nice.

Speaker 3:
[53:11] Oh, we'll play with that all day and it will be worn out in a few weeks, I guess.

Speaker 2:
[53:15] Yeah, but the good thing was that the complication gets its energy from the push you give the pusher. So you can play with it all day.

Speaker 1:
[53:25] But it's nice because, and you also don't have to push it super hard because with some of these, with some minute repeaters, I've activated some minute repeaters where you really, it feels like you're starting a chainsaw, you know.

Speaker 2:
[53:34] Yeah, you have to go and then click. And getting to the click is quite difficult.

Speaker 1:
[53:39] But this one is just, it goes around, it shows you the moon, you see the moon phase, and then yeah, it's good. An extremely sensual. I feel like it's a very useful watch for werewolves.

Speaker 2:
[53:48] Okay, yeah.

Speaker 1:
[53:49] Because during the day, you can check what the moon is going to be and if it's going to be a full moon, then you know too. So it's a perfect werewolf watch.

Speaker 2:
[53:56] Yes.

Speaker 1:
[53:57] And I just realized that now. So anyway, let's get out of Palaeco. We've overstayed our welcome.

Speaker 2:
[54:03] I actually didn't see anything out of Palaeco. You did.

Speaker 1:
[54:06] You did. And I'm going to tell you what it was. But first, I'm going to talk about something else. I saw a very cool Formex reef with a forged carbon dial and bezel. That was really cool. And then I also saw some things that are still under embargo from Cerica, Studio Underdog and Baltic, but worth being excited for. People will have to wait until the end of May, more or less, for that. So sorry. But it's cool stuff. It'll be well worth the wait. But Daan, you saw some stuff from Universal Genève.

Speaker 2:
[54:36] Oh yes, I did. Yes, I did. Yeah. On Thursday night, I went to what is going to be the new boutique along the water side in Geneva. And I saw the whole, yeah, I think it's the whole new collection with the new pole router and a new cabriolet. There are some disco volantes there as well. Very nice. They look very good. And very nice micro-router movements. Not in the cabriolet. It's a hand-wound movement. But for the rest, I think almost all the watches have a micro-router movement. And yeah, most of them come, especially the pole router comes with really nice finishes on the dial. They make the middle, the center of the dial, they make four quadrants and have a different finish on each of the quadrants. And they also do different stones on the center of the dial. Yeah, very cool. It was a very quick meeting with a lot of watches, but as a first impression, it was very positive.

Speaker 1:
[55:44] Nice, nice. Was there anything else outside the fair that was a highlight to you? Jacob and Co?

Speaker 3:
[55:48] Of course, we went to Jacob and Co. Yes. First, we had a little shoot, and we saw the Godfather watch there, which was really oppressive, well made. For what it is, surprisingly slim or wearable. Yeah. But then they also showed us some extra pieces. And then we saw the roulette, which is-

Speaker 1:
[56:11] Oh yeah, you really like the roulette. I forgot about that.

Speaker 3:
[56:13] Extremely fun to play with. But we also saw the Millionaire's watch, I believe it's called, right?

Speaker 1:
[56:19] Yeah, I think so.

Speaker 3:
[56:21] And I didn't expect much of that at first.

Speaker 1:
[56:25] I would just- Is the Millionaire Angel cut or something like that?

Speaker 3:
[56:28] I believe so, yeah. I think so, yeah. But at first you would say, ah, just a watch full of diamonds. But apparently they're very specific of how they grind the diamonds and whatever. Yeah, good story about it. I did not really-

Speaker 1:
[56:43] Technical, the way that the diamonds are set in the watch, it's like some invisible setting. There's some- Yeah.

Speaker 3:
[56:50] Everything. But all of that makes it extremely reflective. The way it plays with the light, you don't see many diamonds doing that. And I found that quite impressive in the flesh. And it surprised me.

Speaker 1:
[57:03] 3.7 million euros. Swiss francs.

Speaker 3:
[57:06] Yeah, it was 4.3 dollars, I believe.

Speaker 1:
[57:10] Okay. Yeah, true. All the prices are in dollars.

Speaker 3:
[57:12] Yes. Yeah.

Speaker 1:
[57:13] Then that's probably the right price.

Speaker 3:
[57:15] That was, yeah, really surprising.

Speaker 1:
[57:17] Yeah. Yeah. And very, very cool stuff there. Like it's also just genuinely super impressive, the craftsmanship that goes into it. And yeah, it's all a little bit bonkers, a little bit out there. And yeah, but it's again, happy that that exists.

Speaker 3:
[57:32] And it was cool to see for me. The first time really seeing all those pieces and it's, yeah.

Speaker 1:
[57:38] It's always, yeah, super impressive. What about as we wrap up here, as we cross the one hour, just about cross the one hour threshold. Oh wow.

Speaker 2:
[57:47] Running out of battery here.

Speaker 1:
[57:48] What were some of the, we're good, we got two notches left.

Speaker 3:
[57:52] It's on the charger. Oh no, he's here.

Speaker 2:
[57:54] I was talking about myself.

Speaker 1:
[57:56] But what, okay. So what were some general impressions? What were some, you know, things that stood out, maybe, I hate the word, but I'm going to use it again, trends. What were just some impressions from the year, the way that it felt walking around, talking to people, things that were top of mind.

Speaker 2:
[58:15] Yeah. Also something that RJ mentioned this morning. In the beginning of the week, it was a bit like, we all felt a bit like, oh, these releases are not like the biggest announcements or craziest releases. But along the week, I think there were definitely some nice releases to be found in Pellexpo. Yeah, the JLCs we mentioned, Chopin, very, very nice releases all around. Maybe not the craziest year in terms of releases in general, but definitely some nice ones in there. And a lot of skeletonized watches.

Speaker 1:
[58:56] Yeah, a lot of skeletonization, a lot of openworked. And yeah, I think we'll discuss that. We'll discuss that at another time and more extensively, because that's really something that was, I think, a big part of what we saw this year.

Speaker 2:
[59:10] Yeah.

Speaker 1:
[59:11] Yeah. I thought it was also cool to see AP there for the first time, not really exhibiting new watches. I mean, to some people, it would be the first time that they see the novelties released earlier this year, I believe at the end of February or something like that. But yeah, the exhibit was great. Apparently, it was very similar to what they had at Dubai Watch Week last year. But I think it's a great way to experience the brand. And it's not something that people get to do very often. I mean, there's not AP houses in every city. I mean, we have one up in Amsterdam where we occasionally get to interface with the brand. And it's always a very pleasant experience. But I think that really walking through the brand's history, walking through the brand's technical aspects, and getting to see some pieces from the archives was really very cool. Like, you could really immerse yourself in the AP of it all and come out of it thinking, yeah, this is seriously impressive. And find some sort of new or reawoken appreciation for the brand, which is really cool.

Speaker 2:
[60:18] I was cool because the booth looked almost completely closed. And then there was a whole world within. I didn't go in, but I heard it was impressive.

Speaker 1:
[60:29] Yeah, cool. Well, I think we can leave it there. We're going to wrap up. We have a question.

Speaker 2:
[60:37] Do we have a question? Yeah, we have a question. Oh, wow, we have one more hour to go.

Speaker 1:
[60:41] We have one more hour. And the question comes from Rafi Likes Watches. He says, thanks for answering my question. I have another one. So here's another one.

Speaker 2:
[60:49] Let's hear it.

Speaker 3:
[60:49] There's one, I guess, now.

Speaker 1:
[60:50] Yeah, I think so, a second or third. He said, 2025 was a mind-blowing year for watch releases. There were hundreds of them, making it hard to keep track. It genuinely felt more intense than recent years. Do you think constantly releasing new watches every year has actually become counterproductive for the industry? Could brands survive and maybe even thrive by slowing down, releasing fewer, but more meaningful pieces only when they are truly ready and risking a quieter year? Or is the annual Nuna cycle now non-negotiable for survival, even if it means ignoring backlash and growing watch enthusiast fatigue?

Speaker 2:
[61:22] Wow.

Speaker 1:
[61:24] But I feel that it's the right time to answer that kind of question, because we were just exposed to so many new watches. And that is a bit of a sentiment that comes to mind sometimes, is did we really need all of these new watches all at once, right?

Speaker 2:
[61:39] Yeah, but I do feel that, as I said, like Tag Heuer, for example, took it a little bit easier this year. I think Rolex, there were a lot of references, but like six main references maybe that they introduced. I think it was a bit quieter this year in terms of releases.

Speaker 1:
[61:59] I think so.

Speaker 2:
[61:59] But of course, brands have to make money and they have to come up with new references because a lot of people just want the new watches. So they have to come up with new releases, and it is hard to keep up. You can already see it with us. We went there for a week and we haven't been able to see everything.

Speaker 1:
[62:19] Definitely not.

Speaker 2:
[62:20] Yeah. But yeah.

Speaker 1:
[62:24] It's part of it. It's part of the way that the game that brands have to play. I think that in today's world of fast moving information, I think that you have to work hard to remain top of mind and I think that it's just the way to do it. I mean, you know, taking part in these events is part of it. And you know, plenty of brands, namely every single one from the swatch group, don't take place, don't take part in Watches and Wonders. So there you already have like a giant slice of the watch industry that doesn't participate. So, you know, it's also, and they'll do plenty of releases throughout the year. Don't get it wrong. But yeah, I think that there has to be some releases coming from brands. It also keeps our job interesting, because I think that if we just had a year where like Rolex didn't do anything and a lot of the other major brands didn't do anything, it would be a little bit, you know, maybe it would allow for focus on smaller brands or independence or stuff like that. But hey, in the end, it's a big, big industry with a lot of niches also still carved away. So as a collector, I think it's good to, or as a collector, as an enthusiast, it's good to find your niche. It's good to find the area where you feel comfortable at home and interested and just really stick to it. There's no point in having that massive overview. We have to do it professionally, of course, to bring the news because we'll cover everything from the smallest to the biggest to everything in between. But I think at the same time, there is, you know, if I wasn't doing what I do, I would certainly only be looking at a much smaller selection. I think that the way to keep yourself sane and happy and entertained in such a wide-ranging onslaught of releases is just to focus on what you genuinely care about and not feel that you have to look at every single thing. Yeah, for sure. I think that's the way to do it.

Speaker 3:
[64:16] Cool. Well said.

Speaker 1:
[64:17] Thank you. Thank you. I've had some practice. I don't know what number episode this is, but it's been a few and we've been going for over an hour, so I think we'll call it one there. Thank you very much again for the question. Remember to leave your questions in the comments below, whether about Watches and Wonders or any other watch-related thoughts that come to mind.

Speaker 2:
[64:37] Or comments.

Speaker 1:
[64:38] Or comments as well about what you thought about Watches and Wonders. And as always, tune in next week for another episode of Fratello Talks. See you then.