The Grey NATO – 187 – Watches & Wonders 2022
Published on Thu, 07 Apr 2022 06:42:54 -0400
Synopsis
The podcast discusses the recent Watches and Wonders event in Geneva, where new watch releases from various brands were showcased. Jason, who attended the event, shares his hands-on experiences and impressions of some of the standout pieces, including the Tudor Black Bay Pro, Doxa's white pearl carbon watches with lume dials, and the Oris Pro Pilot X. James, who was in Sri Lanka during the event, offers his thoughts on the releases from afar. They also touch on other notable unveilings from brands like Grand Seiko, IWC, Rolex, and Patek Philippe, among others.
Links
Transcript
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| James Stacey | Hello and welcome to another episode of The Graynado, a loose discussion of travel, diving, driving, gear, and most certainly watches. This is episode 187 and it's proudly brought to you by the recently formed TGN supporter crew. We thank you all so much for your continued support and if you haven't signed up for that and you'd like to support the show, please visit thegraynado.com for more details. James, we're on opposite sides of the world and we've both come back from, or at least you came back from a trip abroad and I'm still abroad. So how's it going over there in Toronto? |
| Jason Heaton | Uh, you know, things are fine. I've, I've, uh, kind of, I'm in the middle phase of losing my voice. Um, it kind of, it turns out I haven't spoke this much in a long time. |
| Unknown | Yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | It was a lot of, um, you know, 18 hour days of, of talking and yelling over loud music and the evenings and all that kind of stuff in Geneva. It was a great trip with the Houdinki team. We got a lot of work done and saw some great watches, which is, you know, a big part of what we'll chat about today. But I promise I might be a little on the tired side and a little on the froggy side as far as my voice goes, but I hope it just adds some gravitas to the ceremony today. How are you doing? You've had an interesting 24 hours? |
| James Stacey | Yeah, yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | I mean, it's been kind of an interesting week for you at this point. |
| James Stacey | Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I, I, I'm in Sri Lanka. Uh, people don't know from, from our last discussion, but, uh, you know, it's funny, we're operating at about, um, I think about 11 and a half hours difference. So for me, it's, uh, what time is it here? It's a little after 5.00 PM and you're operating at a little after like 7.30 AM. So it's, uh, yeah, this is a pretty early for me. Yeah. Right. Yeah. I'm, I'm still fighting some jet lag, so I'm sleepy. You're probably sleepy cause you're just waking up, but, uh, Yeah, we landed here last Friday in the wee hours and we landed in the middle of a curfew because the government, uh, the government I believe is on its way out. The current government here in Sri Lanka, it's been in the news if anybody's been following, but, uh, there's been some mismanagement of the economy and fuel shortages and power cuts and, uh, and the, the public is quite upset. So there've been a lot of street protests which have resulted in, curfews. We had a full curfew over the weekend, so kind of locked down in the apartment here that we're renting, and it's made for some interesting, interesting experiences here. We had a social media blackout, and then, and then with, you know, the power cuts and the fuel shortages, it's just been, it's just been wild, and I feel like I'm kind of witnessing history here. I mean, as we're here, I've only been here, you know, four or five days, and it's been, It's been just nutty. And then to top that off today, today I was out for a very early morning bit of exercise. Uh, there's a kind of a rice paddy field with a jogging path around it. And I was out, um, uh, walking this morning and I got bitten by, by one of the stray dogs that, that is around goodness sakes, which, which pretty put a pretty deep puncture wound in my leg. And I had to go to the hospital and, get a bunch of serum shots in my leg and then a rabies vaccine. And so that I spent most of the day there kind of getting things sorted. Everything takes a little bit longer here. So, you know, day five, I mean, I, I, it's been crazy. I mean, we've got like government overthrow and street protests and power cuts and now a rabies vaccine. So, you know, I don't know what tomorrow brings. I'm, I'm here for a whole month. So yeah, you know, we'll see. |
| Jason Heaton | But, uh, I assumed it wasn't like insanely serious cause you didn't text me about it. Like I just, I was on your, I was just checking in on your Instagram and I see, you know, a bloody leg and I thought, well, that looks like a bite. |
| Unknown | Yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | And then the next picture is this giant lizard, a huge monitor. And I was like, did you get attacked by a frigging Godzilla? I guess a dog's not necessarily much better than, uh, than, than, uh, the, than the monitor. I may be a little bit less jarring. I don't know. |
| James Stacey | Yeah. And it's, it's, it's, there's no way to really tell if the dog, has rabies. So it's funny, you know, while I was at the hospital, they were asking me, could you identify the dog again if you saw it? And if, if you could, can we monitor the dog's behavior to see? And I was like, how am I going to locate this stray dog and then try to figure out if it has rabies and, and then had signs on the wall in the, in the room at the hospital that said, please monitor the dog for 14 days. And if it dies during that time, take its head to an MRI unit. and then bring the resulting scans here so we can determine whether or not indeed it was rabid. I mean, just kind of, kind of a weird experience overall, but yeah, the monitor lizard was, I found that. So my, my leg was kind of pouring blood and I was walking back to the apartment here, getting ready to go to the hospital. And, uh, and I come across this like seven foot long lizard across the sidewalk. And, uh, and I took a picture of it and I posted it on Instagram stories. And then that was right after my, bloody leg picture and I got a flurry of direct messages from people saying, did you get bit by that dragon? I had to quickly clarify like, nope, nope, nope. It was a dog. I mean, which isn't much better, but, uh, no, yeah, that was crazy. I love seeing these monitor lizards. They're just one of my favorite animals around here. They've got the forked tongue and they're, they're just so prehistoric looking. So it's been, uh, for sure. Yeah. It's been, it's been crazy. |
| Jason Heaton | So, yeah. Well, I'm glad you were able to get, um, quick treatment. That's the whole goal with rabies, of course. It's not something you can ignore. And it sounds like you're in an area where they know rabies really well, which is also a big plus. |
| James Stacey | Yeah, for better for worse. I mean, it's a shame. I was sitting there, you know, while they were observing me and there's just the stream of kids coming through getting their rabies shots. I'm like, boy, this is pretty sad that it's kind of a bit of a bit of a problem here. You know, I mean, people just getting bitten. There's a lot of stray dogs around. So, but, uh, you know, kind of switching gears here. I mean, it's been, it's been, so dissonant and strange to like switch from all the political news in the country here and the protests. And then my experience getting bitten by a dog to like switch over and look at the watches and wonders coverage from here. It's been, in some ways it's almost been this like soothing mental break to observe all the kind of the brands and the people that I know, like writing these articles and the brand reps that I'm familiar with and all these great watches. And then, you know, kind of switch gears to what's going on here. It's, uh, it's been both kind of a jarring, uh, contrast, but also a little bit of a soothing escape from, from what's been happening here. So, uh, I'm kind of eager to get your take from the ground in Geneva on some of what you saw there. But, uh, but maybe before we do that, I mean, we've, we've got to talk about, uh, a little bit about our own watches and kind of what's been going on in the past couple of weeks, cause we haven't recorded in a while. The Omega Moon Swatch, which kind of came and went between the last time we recorded and now. I mean, you were gonna... I remember we talked when that was released and you were gonna go to the Toronto swatch dealer and pick out a couple and then that just didn't happen. |
| Jason Heaton | You can tell how much I do watch retail, even as someone who works professionally in the industry, I do know watch retail. Yeah. So when the story came out and I saw, oh, well, they're gonna offer them at the Toronto Boutique, I just thought you could just walk in and get one. And then it took about 24 hours for it to sink in that, like, nobody's walking in anywhere and getting anything. And then when Hodinkee was like, oh, there's a store in Toronto, James, like, go down and take some pictures of the line. And I was just going to kind of show my kids what it was to go, you know, have a fun time at a watch store. You know, we'd pick out one or two and get them. Of course, that's not going to happen. Like, it was just so naive of me to think that they would have thousands. You know, you think of them like a swatch. You're like, well, it's gotta be like when Hodinkee does a swatch launch that we have thousands on hand, right? Sure. Everyone can get one who wants one. Yeah. And, uh, that, that wasn't the case, uh, when it came to the, the moon swatch, it was, it was madness when I went down to the line, uh, that, that Saturday morning, I mean, it was, people were out in the cold in the rain waiting for a watch. And I think they said like, once I got inside and, and stood right next to the security guard that was fielding all the questions for the store, uh, it, they said, you know, we got less than a hundred. We're basically taking like an email, list and the general manager will reach out to you and like, well, that's never going to happen. I wouldn't give them an email. But, um, uh, yeah, so, I mean, there's a lot, there's a lot to unpack here. And I think maybe, maybe we'll do a whole other story someday when maybe we get our own or, or, or something someday down the line. But like, obviously there, even swatch was very clear, almost to the point where it seemed like they were worried about it, that like, these are not limited. This is just the initial launch. Yeah. I got that sense too. You know, we'll, you know, it's my understanding they, probably won't sell them online in the U S I don't know if that means they will here in Canada. Um, but it will be something that like over time you will be able to go to a swatch store and get, and like in Geneva, the mood was, was very specific. The store in the main store in Geneva was getting a thousand units a day, but you still had to queue up for it. Oh yeah. So every night when you, when somebody would hear that fact, they'd go like, Oh, I could just, I could just go there on my way back to my hotel and get the one I want. You go, no, uh, There's a line, even in Geneva, everybody wants one of these watches. And then there's the whole aspect of the flipping culture that's popped up around this and the idea. And then there's the whole conversation of like, why would Omega do this? Take like arguably their biggest, most prestigious IP and attach it to a $250 plastic watch. And I know it's bioceramic, but like also it's mostly plastic. It's a nice word for a specific type of plastic. And And I have nothing against that. I think the price is really fair. I think these are deeply cool watches. I'm not a speedy guy, so I get to come at it from a much less dire angle. But if I was a hardcore Speedmaster guy, I'm not sure how I would think about it. But I saw Robert Jean from Fratello, who's like the speedy guy. And he was thrilled. He had a Mars on his wrist. So I don't know that I'm buying all the dissent in the space about this, about whether maybe it's bad for Omega. I don't know. Maybe they traded something. uh, that took them a long time to get for some incredible press for the next little while. But like, keep in mind, like they got millions and millions, millions and millions and millions of dollars of press off this deal that you could never buy. Yeah. So the watch is almost secondary. I'm sure they make some money on every watch. Why not? But I can see it from a business standpoint, to some extent, I don't fully understand the branding impact of taking something as huge as Omega's name and the moonwatch, the look of a Speedmaster and then turning it into something different, but I have to applaud them for making something accessible, for not making it limited. I understand that I'm sure there's people in our audience that are really pissed they couldn't get one day one, or maybe they did go wait in line and couldn't get it. And all that comes with any of these hype sort of things. But the only difference is, is that they've been very clear that these aren't limited, there'll be more. You just have to be patient. And I can be patient, because this is never a watch that I ever dreamed of wanting or needing. I just thought it looked like a lot of fun. I think for me, like Mars, Jupiter and Neptune are kind of the winners. What did you think? |
| James Stacey | Yeah. I, I liked, uh, I liked Mars and Neptune personally. I mean, I think, you know, it's funny, there were a couple that leaped out immediately. And then I was like, as I started to look at the others, I was like, yeah, I mean, I think Venus and earth would be the two that I wouldn't want because I mean the, um, the earth, the color, the colors are, are whack. They sort of clashed. And then, well, and then the moon one was just a little bit too close to kind of the, the real deal. Speedy. Yeah. Right. But, uh, Yeah, I don't get the dissent. Well, I shouldn't say I don't get the dissent. I get the dissent that people who are hardcore speedy folks, you know, feel a bit offended by this whole exercise. But for me, it's like it knocks it down a few notches. I mean, it kind of takes the preciousness out of watches. And I think it just has a little bit of fun with it. And I think it was a kind of a smart move from them. I'm thrilled. I'd love to have one on my wrist. I think they'd be just fun, especially since my Speedmaster, which is, you know, from 68, it's, uh, you know, I mean, it's, I don't wear it for a lot because it's, uh, it's kind of a fragile old watch that doesn't have loom and whatever. So I think it'd be a blast to have kind of a red plastic version of it on my wrist. |
| Jason Heaton | Totally. Yeah. The strap is the only part that I can't get behind. Yeah. I got to see the Mars one that cause Robert had it on his wrist. I put a picture on my Instagram. If you haven't seen it, it's cool. It's where it's like a speedy, it doesn't weigh anything. The strap sucks, but it's a $260 watch. Yeah. Yeah. Put, put it on a $20 NATO. It's going to look rad. Put it on a, on your favorite leather strap. It'll also work just fine. I'm sure it wears just like a speedy. Yeah. Uh, just without any weight really. Yeah. But in the world of speedies, you know, I love the Alaska and I love the racing dial. They didn't really do a racing dial in this one, obviously, cause it was all linked to the worlds, the, the celestial bodies, the planets, et cetera. Right. You know, the, the, when, when I posted some photos, from down at the line, I basically got kind of two sides of the coin. One, people were just super excited that there was something to be pumped about, that like even their friends who don't know watches were writing them about. There's just a lot of enthusiasm where like, Oh my goodness, something interesting is coming out at a price point that like anyone can muster. And maybe it's not limited. |
| Unknown | Yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | And, um, and when I say anyone can muster, I mean, anyone who's into buying watches can probably find a way to get to 250 bucks. Like it's, it's a price point that I don't really have a lot of qualms about praising, you know? Right. And then the other side was a lot of very angry people who were super upset about the fact that some of the people in line were flippers and were gonna sell the watch for more money. I said, but... They waited in line for a day and a half. They do whatever they want with the watch. I'm not saying it's good or bad, but I also think if it was all flippers, then the watches wouldn't be worth anything, right? Yeah, true. And if there were no flippers, then we would have a little bit less of an interest cycle. And I think all of this is really good for enthusiasts. I don't know if it's great for Omega, but I don't really buy this huge negativity towards this being another thing like the Tiffany Patek or some other mega hype watch that no one can get. And then it's going to be a flex to have it. I spoke with David Breton from A Blog to Watch, my old friend, and he had the Uranus, which is not one that I would have given two looks at. before. Cause it's kind of baby blue on baby blue with white, but he had it and it's really cool in person. And I kind of, I like his opinion on it. Like if you wait in line, do whatever you want with the watch. Sure. You want it, you want to flip it and move it. And that's what like the market will only hold what it can hold. So in my mind, I see this as a, as a, an interesting touch point that we haven't had in years about the enthusiasm of a watches that's disconnected from something being $50,000 or a hundred thousand dollars. Right. right? Sure. There are people who bought them for 250 and are trying to sell them for five grand. I don't know if they're actually selling that, uh, that part almost doesn't matter. Cause I think it's a small substrate. And I also think it's not that that decision is not based in enthusiasm and like what we do at TGN, the way that I interface with the watch world is just enthusiasm. It exists outside of brands. It's like whatever I can be excited about, I'm excited about. And when I'm getting friends who don't know anything about watches, writing me to say like, Hey, is this cool? Should I get one? And I'm like, this is, this is great. We're bringing this, like we're casting a wide net and not every fish in the net, Some of them are going to be sharks, right? Some of them are going to be half dead. It's not all great catch, but I think this is all something we need in the industry. It's for people to be really excited. And then the other perspective I didn't get until I went down to the line and spoke to a few folks. I spoke to some people who were sitting adjacent to the line, just hanging out. And I said, what are you guys doing here? And they're like, well, we thought we'd get one. I thought it'd be cool to be able to go to a birthday party I have to go to today with what in this moment would be the best gift. And they're like, but now we're just kind of here because these people like watches and we don't, we haven't hung out with anyone who likes watches in a few years because of COVID, right? Like people were just hard up for a hangout and to be around other people who like watches. And I think the energy of that line was really cool. I, you know, I spoke to a few people towards the front and they were buying for them. They, they had a speedy on their wrists or they had a Rolex on their wrist. Like they, they weren't there to flip. I'm sure there, I'm sure there were people there that were for sure. Why not? Right. especially like let's say you're out of work and somebody says, Oh, if you wait in line for 36 hours for a $250 item, you might be able to make a few grand. Yeah. That doesn't bother me either. Really. If someone's willing to pay it, I think this is a fascinating thing that we'll be unpacking for a long time. |
| James Stacey | Yeah. I mean, I think it's kind of one of these cultural touch points within the watch space that, um, I think brings up some interesting questions. And I, I, I sort of sit back from, I guess I wouldn't call it a neutral perspective, but just someone who doesn't take any, you know, any sides in this issue. And I just feel like if you kind of strip away the preciousness of the watch industry, which I like to do, there's nothing wrong with really what they did. You know, I I've seen people that say, Oh, this is Omega really debasing their brand image or whatever. It's like, eh, yeah, but you know, have some fun, you know, just let, let your hair down a little bit. Don't worry about so much about that thing. You know, it's like, are you offended by it? Because you paid a certain amount for your Speedmaster and this kind of degrades what you have? I mean, I don't think so. I think it's just, it's a way to include more people in, in something that's just fun and kind of celebrate watches and the whole kind of Speedmaster image. So yeah, yeah, it's been fun. It's been fun to watch. |
| Jason Heaton | Yeah. I still, I still would like to get one. My kids are super excited about them. They think they're crazy fun. Yeah. So yeah, I could see definitely buying a couple when, when, when it's like easy to get, but I don't wait in line for anything other than I guess, uh, airports and COVID shots. Like that's about it. Right. Right. Otherwise I'm just, I'll just wait. That's okay. Um, but I did, I did get a, it was a real fun chance to see Robert John and David's, um, examples. They were super cool. I didn't, I don't think I might've seen someone with the yellow one, the yellow, yellow, not to my liking, but you can see it from 20 feet away. Yeah. Yeah. So that's moon swatch. If you have any comments, I would love to see what, what, um, What all you thought, if any, you got it. Throw it in the comments on Substack. Let's get into that convo a little lighter, or more so, if you guys have any kind of feelings that differ from Jason and I's, for sure. |
| James Stacey | What did you wear for Watches and Wonders? Did you go ahead with the Seiko? |
| Jason Heaton | Yeah, I took the Seiko and I took the Braymont, and it was perfect. Okay. |
| Unknown | Yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | So I had something that was kind of elegant, but sporty, kind of very me with the 302, and I wore it on literally an Hermes leather strap. |
| Unknown | Yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | which kind of dressed it up. It was this kind of like honey gold. So it kind of works with the coloring really well. And then I took the Dolce as well. And it was great. Everybody gets a little laugh out of it. They're like, most people go, Oh, this is, what do you mean? This is new. Yeah. It's not, it's not vintage. I think most people just assume it's, you know, 40 years old. Yeah. And they don't notice that the little tiny seconds hand ticking carefully away on the dial. But yeah, so it was great. A perfect watch. Cause you don't, like I said, it's so easy to wear on my right wrist. Oh, sure. So I could, I didn't have to be taking it off and putting my watch in my pocket or forgetting it on a table or something like that. So it was perfect. And then I came back, uh, I'm going to do a story about all kind of how with a gold dress watch like this, you can really change the watch by changing the strap. Yeah. So the Honiki shop sent me some straps. I've got a handful of really nice straps, arguably nicer than the watch. And so I think that's going to be a fun story that I'll work on once we get through this, you know, deluge of, uh, watches and wonders coverage, we're still building out. Yeah. Yeah. Oh, and I did get the, um, a while back, Jason, I think we talked about on the show, but you told me, you know, that, that you found this brand, um, hem dollar that made a, um, like a version of the same style mesh that's on the no time to die. Yes. Yeah. Or, or the, the steel mesh that you got from Omega. Right. And I don't remember what I paid for it, $40 or something like that, but it came in. So if you were waiting on that, I'm going to try and wear it for a week or whatever. And I'll chat about it on the next episode. What did you end up bringing to Sri Lanka? |
| James Stacey | put way too much thought into like which watch to bring here. I mean, arguably, you know, a month away, like if you're kind of a watch nerd, like you start to miss your collection and then there's considerations about where you are and what you're going to be doing. And so I put some thought into it and, you know, given my love for the Seamaster, that was one that I wore for sure. And I wore that on the flight and I wore it for the first few days here, my white dialed Seamaster Pro. Um, but today I'm actually wearing my, my Royal Navy automatic, uh, CWC, which, which I had on for the fateful dog bite and trip to the hospital. Um, which, which turned out to be a, just a fine choice for that. But, uh, but then I also kind of threw in, you know, I had the CWC and one of those, the clamshell vario case that you sent me actually. And, uh, um, that was in my, my carry on bag, but then I had an old Pepsi. I don't know if you remember, I think it was last year I bought a couple of really cheap, like Japan market, Pepsi, uh, Seiko 7002, uh, watches from, from the eighties. And, and I threw in the, the one of them with a kind of a Seiko flat vent strap on it. And, you know, I just thought kind of an appropriate watch for here feels right. Uh, the, the, the, the red and blue bezels like really well faded and, and just kind of felt good. So I wore that yesterday, but, but today I've got the, the CWC on, and I think it's the right trio. I think I can get through a month wearing, kind of a kind of all business M.O.D. spec diver on a NATO strap and then my my swanky Seamaster most of the time and then kind of throw on the the the tropicalized Seiko whenever I kind of feel in that mood. So I think it's I think it was a good trio to bring you know the Omega. It's dressed down a bit because it's on the rubber strap. But I mean this is a watch that you know it It's all a matter of perspective, but, but certainly here in a, in a country like this, I mean, this is like a year's salary for a lot of people. So there is a bit of thought that goes into like where and when you're going to wear something like this, not out of theft, but just out of consideration for, for where I am. And so I think, uh, yeah, almost like appropriateness or yeah, exactly. Yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | So, and there is, there is that kind of, there is that kind of thing where this is a funny thing because I'll, I'll admit how my perspective has changed over time. When I was a little younger, you think of movies like Blood Diamond where Leo's got on a big Breitling in an otherwise very poor place or list a lot of these sorts of things. And when I was younger, I always thought that was kind of like there was a rakish charm to being the guy at the expat bar with the Rolex. |
| Unknown | Yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | Yeah. And, and now it's, it's kind of a different vibe as, as I've gotten older and you start to see the way that like you interface with the world, uh, where I think that CWC probably makes a lot of sense or even just the Omega versus a Rolex. Right. |
| James Stacey | Yeah, yeah, I agree. Yeah, that's exactly how I feel. And as the month progresses, I'll be curious to see kind of how that shakes out in terms of my taste and what seems to work. And I will admit that, you know, I mentioned at the top, like kind of the weird, you know, dissonance of looking at Watches and Wonders coverage while I'm here amidst a country going through an economic crisis and kind of that strange, for sure, Um, you know, how, how does this all fit together? Um, and, and it kind of goes along with the watches and it'll be interesting to see how it shakes out in terms of what I feel like wearing most of the time while I'm here. And I think what will happen is as the month goes on, I'll just care less, you know, I'll just wear what I've got on and just kind of go about my business. Yeah. So, yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | Well, that's the nice thing about a Seiko as well as it, I think you can make the case that a Seiko is never really inappropriate. Yeah, totally. totally just always kind of work. There's a subtlety that works there in a kind of egalitarian quality as well. |
| James Stacey | So yeah. And, and from a, from a purely like comfort standpoint, the strap choice I put on that was wrong. I think the, it's actually an uncle Seiko knockoff of the original. No, it's the, it's the flat vent. It's based on like the GL late 31 or something, you know, that, that one that you see on so many old Seikos and It's just a little stiff and it kind of chafes a little bit in the heat here. And I didn't bring any 22 millimeter NATOs. I could put it on a 20, but that always kind of bugs me. So what do we say first world problems, but you know, I'm not sure if I'll switch it to like a 20 millimeter NATO just for, for comfort sake. Cause I'd like to wear that watch more while I'm here. |
| Jason Heaton | Yeah, for sure. Well, Hey, that's an exciting intro. I think this is going to be a nice long show. You want to get into watches and wonders? |
| James Stacey | Yeah. I mean, I almost feel like it's more like me asking you about your impressions about stuff that I was able to see from a distance because There's some really exciting stuff that came up during the show and you actually got to handle most, if not all of it. So I want to get your take on some of the real, you know, hot commodities that showed up and some of the kind of lesser known kind of ones that maybe flew under the radar a little bit. So, I don't know, where do you want to start? You want to start at the top of the list here? Yeah. I mean, you know, we've got Rolex at the top of the list. That seems to be a good place to start. You know, the lefty GMT seems to be the one that was the real big buzz of the show. What did you think? |
| Jason Heaton | I mean, personally, I don't really get it, but I'm also not a modern GMT guy. If I was gonna spend that kind of money, I want the Pepsi and I'd want it on a Jubilee. Oh yeah. It's so oddball that it almost doesn't seem that Rolex-y. Yeah. Yeah. And it's not that they intend it for left-handed people, it's that they intend it for people who prefer to wear the watch on their other wrist. Yeah. Right. Just for some comfort. Yeah. Um, or, or, and they said, obviously left-handers would be in that group if they wanted to be. Um, but which, which risk you wear your watch on is entirely up to, it's a very personal decision, of course. And sometimes people even change it depending on the watch. It's a good looking watch. I like the black and green. I get it. I like it more than the previous black, all black bezel with the green, just the green hand. I like, I like the, the twin color, but the date at nine, I think is very strange. There's nothing wrong with the watch is the easy thing, but it's not like it's a watch where I think, um, if I hadn't seen it in person, and I'm probably going to say this a lot, but if I hadn't seen these in person, if this has just been something that had come through as a PDF and a webpage, I don't know that I would think about this watch very much. |
| James Stacey | Yeah. I wasn't I wasn't aesthetically offended so much by the left-hand crown as I was by the positioning of the date. I, it really bothered me. I really want the date at three. I mean, it's just put the crown. It's oddly unsettling, isn't it? Put the crown at nine, you know, that's, that's fine. Like, like the Tudor, LHD, whatever, but like keep. Which is, which is one you really enjoy. Yeah, but keep the date at three. I just, I just don't get the movement of the date. And, and if the argument is that you're wearing it on your right wrist and therefore you want the date, date to kind of poke out from, under a sleeve, so it's easier to find. I mean, I don't know. I mean, I'm left-handed. I wear a watch on my right wrist, and I actually prefer the crown on the right side because it's more comfortable. It makes perfect sense, right? Yeah, it does. Yeah. So anyway, we don't need to dwell on that one. I mean, I think it was just, it was an interesting piece. |
| Jason Heaton | I think it's a pretty easy to understand watch. It's the same movement. It's the same bracelet. You can get it on a Jubilee or an Oyster. And I think it's a known quantity. I also think like, I don't, I'm at a point where I have some Rolex fatigue because I know that even the folks in the audience that are listening to us right now and are really jazzed about this watch, they're not gonna be able to get one. And it's a bummer. After several years, it's just starting to be a bummer. And that goes for the Air King, right? Which is the other big new release. I'm on record from the previous Air King. This watch does nothing for me. No, I don't care for it. At all. I don't like the aesthetic. I don't like the color way. I think that it makes sense to bring it into the professional line. Absolutely. So now it has a little bit more of a squared off case. I like the sterile bezel crown guards or not. I'm not that much of a Rolex guy to care. |
| Unknown | Yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | Um, but if it's a, if it's a pro, it makes sense. I wish they had done an entire dial redesign. Yeah, me too. Um, and, and, and maybe brought it back to, uh, you know, Cole had this idea when we did these kind of dream Rolexes. I did a bunch of Photoshop's just before the show started. And he was saying like, what if you, you kind of brought the Air King back into a, um, the OP. So it'd be more like a gray subtle, |
| Unknown | Oh yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | OP in 36 or 40 or whatever. And then it would just have that cool Air King signature on the dial, kind of like the original ones. Right, right. And then I think the other thing I heard is a lot of people were kind of surprised we didn't get a Milgauss. Yeah. A new Milgauss. And I would say that Rolex isn't going to play every card at this show, especially when they weren't sure what the show would be probably. There's probably some risk involved. Right. So maybe that's a later in the year release. I think it would make sense to see another one at some point. Um, other than that, I mean, uh, slight tweaks to the deep sea, um, a new, uh, you know, solid gold, um, and, and a different version dial, a Falcon eyes dial for the, uh, yacht master, not really within our vibe. And then perhaps even less in our vibe, they now do a full 36 and 40 millimeter platinum date, just, or sorry, day date. with an ice blue dial and they figured out how to do the fluted bezel in platinum. Oh, sure. And I know all of the, all of that sounds kind of eye rolly at 80 grand or whatever they cost, but in person that bezel is something else. Huh? Huh. They're, they're not joking that it probably took some work to get there. Oh yeah. I'm not saying I necessarily want one of these, uh, the idea of like a, the sort of full, full platinum day date is maybe a little bit too much for me. Uh, but it is an impressive thing technically for sure. Yeah. Jason, the other thing you would laugh about that I should cover before we get too deep into it is if you saw this, it'd be so, it's so, um, there's some weird, like, like, like the left-hand date or the nine o'clock date on that lefty GMT. There's, it's very weird to see a slice of Baselworld quite literally grafted into SIHH. |
| James Stacey | Yeah. I was wondering about that. I didn't see a lot of like overall photos or video tours of the hall because I'm familiar with the, the Pell Expo from SIHH years, but then. So it's the same. |
| Jason Heaton | That's all the same. Okay. Uh, almost identical, right? The same tables, you know, the same sort of expectations of the food and there's coffee everywhere. And it's kind of like a big fancy mall and you walk into a sort of like a, a big doorway into the kind of brands world. Right. And then you're walking down this one hallway and you can still see the SIHH of it all. But at the end you can see the Rolex booth, the Patek booth, the Chopard booth and the Tudor booth. And they're all the exact same booths from Baselworld. And then you walk into this little mini version of Baselworld's main hall, hall one, there's no escalators and there's none of those weird trees with the zigzag places to sit down. But it's like, there's the same information booth. Sure. Like I swear, if I set it up carefully, I could take the same picture of Patek's booth that I could have taken at hall one a few years ago. So that was a weird thing to see. Like people were just saying like, I'll be over in Baselworld. I'm going back to SIHH, right? Yeah. Yeah. Um, but I think they did the best they could. And obviously those brands spend millions and millions and millions of dollars to make those booths. And until it's time for a refresh, you're going to use them. Sure. It's a huge investment. Right. And my guess is if you're Rolex, you're tutor, you're protected. Also, there's a bit of a flex to just saying like, I'm going to do this my way. Yeah. You're lucky enough to have me. Right. Yeah. The show. Yeah. And, uh, but other than that, I mean, it was all largely similar. It's impossible to find a bathroom. Um, there's no garbage cans anywhere. Talk to the guy who was chewing gum for a lot of the day and had nowhere to put it. So that that's pretty much Rolex. I, you know, I wasn't floored by anything. There's nothing here where I go like, Oh, now, now there's a modern Rolex. I really want, I assume, Jason, you feel largely the same. I do. I do. Yeah. |
| James Stacey | Yeah. I've never tutor on the other. Tutor is a good place to go next because I think, you know, they obviously, came loaded for bear. I mean, the, the big one, there's some stuff, the big one. I mean, okay, let's, let's not talk about the, the one that's going to appeal to us the most first. Let's, let's quickly just go over the, the root beer, the GMTs, the black Bay GMTs. How did you like those in person? I thought they looked great in the photos. |
| Jason Heaton | Yeah, they do look great. I mean, the honest truth is, is I don't like Brown and I don't like two tone. So they're kind of like for my, if we're going just on my personal taste, It'd be Pepsi all day long and twice on Sunday, whatever that saying is like, I just, um, I don't, um, I don't like, I don't like the root beer from vintage Rolex. I don't like the root beer from modern Rolex. I don't like two-tone and, um, and, and I can put all of that aside. Very nice execution, especially on the bracelet. I think these will be super popular. Um, I think they make a lot of sense because it's a, that's a lot of variety from the, if they just on a black dial, I think you'd go like, well, Why even do I make this there's such a big release, but this is a big enough difference from the Pepsi, right? To bring people in that were maybe waiting or didn't want a blue-red execution for a GMT Yeah, I think it makes a lot of sense a super smart release not one for me, but very very smart. |
| James Stacey | Yeah Yeah, I mean, it's not my personal taste. I think they needed to offer something different from the Pepsi And I'm curious to see what comes next. I mean, they've got me to scads of of possibilities ahead. You know, I mean, they could do a full black dial. They could do a Coke. They could do, I mean, I'm sure they'll, they'll spin this off in countless directions, but, uh, yeah, I'm not, I'm not a two-tone guy. I think two-tone works. If you take it off the bracelet, a two-tone bracelet, I think it works well on, it's a little bit more subtle. |
| Jason Heaton | Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I could see one of these on a bond and you, and yeah, I work for you. |
| James Stacey | Yeah. Yeah. I could too. Yeah. I'm not quite there yet, but you know, I could do it. |
| Jason Heaton | A champagne dial would have been cool. |
| Unknown | Yeah, right. |
| James Stacey | And I think this was kind of the second fiddle of the show for Tudor, but I think the obvious big talking point, especially in the TGN world, is the Black Bay Pro, which I, you know, you wrote a couple of articles about this, you had the hands on, you had a lot of great photos of it. You know, tell me about it. I mean, is this a watch, I guess, you know, This is a watch that clearly, I mean, people, it's no secret, it's going to appeal to both of us, but is this a watch that you would put down your money for? Is this a watch that you want on your wrist or is there something still missing? |
| Jason Heaton | Well, for me, I think, you know, a lot of people wrote me and said, look, it's the two you've been asking for, the two you wanted, like, and I feel like that's a pretty big misrepresentation of some things I've been super clear about. Yeah. And that I want a diver with a GMT. And this is very much a modern expression of say a 1655 or really it's of a 16550. Sure. from a technical standpoint, because it does do two full time zones, just like a Black Bay GMT. It's the same movement. So while it looks a lot like a 1655, you have to remember that was a 24 hour hand. It wasn't an adjustable second time zone. So it's kind of a mix between like a watch. I already have the 16570 with some aesthetic from the, especially the bezel and case, right? Bezel case, a bracelet from the 1655. I could absolutely see buying one of these. The only thing that that would keep me from putting my credit card down on the table is cause it's so similar in function and aesthetic to the 16, five 70 I already have. Right. Yeah. And that's no fault of this watch. I'm looking at this watch for what it is. I think it's a really interesting direction to take the black Bay because it's almost like they took the North flag and a black Bay GMT and blended them. |
| Unknown | Mm. |
| Jason Heaton | And of course, the North flag isn't around anymore, but you've got this sort of steel with yellow accent, a nice matte dial. You've got new ceramic loom, which is very bright and really holds light in an interesting way where it's not quite white. It doesn't look faux, but it's this off white color. Yeah. That's quite distinctive in person. Yeah. I love the bezel, of course, being a huge Explorer II fan. For me, I think this watch will be a godsend for someone who really likes an Explorer II but doesn't want a 42 millimeter one that costs 20 grand on the secondary market. Yeah, that's true. That's a good point. This watch, after a bit of a wait, I think you'll be able to get this watch at retail. It's a little under four grand, it's four grand even US if you want the bracelet. A lot of people are concerned about the thickness, which is 14.6 millimeters, so it's just a hair thinner than a BBGMT. But of course, it's a 39 millimeter case, I was very clear in my article and I still had people DM me saying like, Oh, tell me the real thing that you didn't put in your article, which I find deeply offensive. Yeah. I only put what I think in my articles, you know, it's, it's all good. I just say what I want. It's not that thick in person. It wears nicely. It doesn't wear as thin as, um, as a 16, five 70, but it's double the water resistance. Yeah. I think that if you, I don't think you have to like a big sports watch, which is a caveat I like to throw around. I think you have to like a somewhat bigger sports watch to do the BB GMT on a bracelet that has a lot of weight and it's a lot of side heavy. This I think just works. It's 39 millimeters. It's the right amount of dial. It's the right amount of bezel. It's not a thin watch, but it wears exactly like a sports watch. And I also think if you're really worried about how much it may or may not look like a 1655, the first Explorer II, I'd say, you know, compare some, you know, make yourself a little photo, put them both up on your screen. Uh, the dial is drastically different. It's, it's a black Bay in, in a 1655 sort of case layout. Uh, I'm, I'm a huge fan of this watch. I think if I was going to buy a tutor right now, this is immediately in my top three easily. You know, the Pelagos will forever be a contender because it's so light, it's easy to get away with the dimensions. Yeah. But deep down what I, of course, I feel like, again, I was super clear about this early in the year when I made a Photoshop of it, but for me, the one, the one that would be a no contest would be a Pelagos with a GMT or a BB 58 with a GMT or something where I still had the dive watch. I want the all-in-one. Yeah. Now, if I didn't have a 16, 570 and lots of people don't, this would be a no-brainer credit card would have come out. Yeah. I like it a lot. It's absolutely worth considering. I think on a NATO, it's going to be killer. If you like a bracelet, it's going to be great. And it's everything you want from Tudor. It's nicely made. It's subtle. It looks sporty. I'm absolutely a fan. I think they did. I think this is in the top three watches of the show easily and in the top three watches from Tudor to my eyes, a great job. Yeah. What'd you think of this from afar? |
| James Stacey | I'm not super keen on the strap choices, but that's not a big, you know, that's not a deal breaker. I think, you know, 20 millimeter lugs. Yeah, exactly. So I just put it on any of my own stuff. |
| Unknown | Yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | Yeah. They don't do it to any of them, so I'm not surprised. |
| James Stacey | But that kind of riveted bracelet style is just not, I'm just not a big fan of that. But yeah, I'd just throw it on any number of 20 millimeter straps that I already have. |
| Jason Heaton | I think it'll look great on leather and super flexible. You could wear it on darker colors, you could wear it on brighter colors, you could wear it on yellow. I think a yellow NATO is going to look really fun, like for a summer look or if you're hiking or something like that. |
| James Stacey | And can you imagine, I mean, here's another watch that has so much potential. I mean, they could do a white dial version. They could do a blue dial version eventually. I mean, it could be, it could be just a fun, you know, a fun family of watches and I'm sure they will in the coming years. I mean, this Black Bay family in general has just been such a rich vein for them to mine. It's just incredible for Tudor. |
| Jason Heaton | Kind of interesting because in some ways this is again, Tudor giving us what some people want from Rolex. Yeah, right, right, right. Rolex is making these weird moves with left-hand GMTs and no Milgauss and all that kind of stuff. And like Rolex is Rolex. They do what they want. There's no controlling it or you just kind of exist in the stream as it passes you. But with Tudor, it does feel like they continually look to the audience, look to what people are interested in. And even if it's a little bit of a niche play, like I don't think this is going to be their next 58. Sure. Yeah. I think this is, this is a side, a side player, kind of like the North flag was, but the North flag was a cool watch. Yeah. And, and, and, and a neat design. And I think in this, in this space, they're giving people an alternative to an aesthetic that is understood and well-loved in the Explorer two, but in an execution, it's like deeply black Bay all at the same time. And I think that they've done just a great job with it. Yeah. |
| James Stacey | So you mentioned that it's one of your top three of the show. Um, let's move on to one that I think is probably, I'm guessing is your top of the show. This is from, Our friends at Doxa. Oh my goodness. You want this watch? |
| Jason Heaton | My man. I want this, the 300, the normal. So we're talking about basically what Doxa's done, if you missed it, is they... You remember last year they did the sub 200, their entry level watch, in what they called white pearl. So it was a white dial with some black contrast. Yeah. Perfectly fine, cool looking option, but now they've brought the white pearl look to the entire core line, everything except the chronograph. is now offered in white pearl, and it's such an easy change for them, and they just knocked it right out of the park. But the thing that really killed me was they're offering the sub 300 carbon as a white pearl is a lume dial. |
| James Stacey | Yeah, lume dials. Geez, come on. We need more lume dials. |
| Jason Heaton | A carbon case with a lume dial, you get contrasting lume on the markers, like it's green and blue. Yeah. And then I talked to them and the person I spoke with didn't have the specific details. It's not in their press release, it's not on their website, but it's definitely not C3 Lume. It's something else from Super LumiNova. It's not BGW9 either because it glows green. But look at my photos, they're color balanced to that dial. It's like almost actually white. It's white like an egg shell is white. I don't really know how they did it. It doesn't have that... you know, Jason, years ago, you called that color kind of sickly. And that's how I always think of it. The way that, um, like a loom dial can look in daylight when it's not glowing, it has this kind of off greenish yellow color, almost none of that. It might be there just an ever little tiny bit, but I saw it in daylight. I saw it under the light of my flash. It's, it's like as white as you could expect a loom dial to be as much way more than I could have thought one could be. And it glows really brightly. I wouldn't even, so much a size, the white rubber strap, I think that's terrible. But on a, I think on a black rubber, it would look incredible. I think on a gray NATO, amazing. I think on any, a variety of leather straps, it could look great. Uh, this is the one that has me scheming like, Oh, what do I sell? How do I get one? I love the carbon and, and, and that's the, the 300, the standard 300 in white pearl is also an absolute knockout. It's all monochromatic. The scale on the bezel is in black. And in person, they're just... These two watches are so good. They did it to their whole range, and I think they did a nice job with the 300T, which is a little bit less expensive, a little bit bigger to wear. The 600T, which I think is still... Remains an incredible looking watch, just doesn't suit my wrist that much. And then the 1500T, which is their 45 millimeter kind of... Big boy diver. Yeah, right. Yeah. But for the carbon and for the 300, both are absolute knockouts. The white dial just works so well. And I have to think that as long as you get it off that white rubber, you can fight the sort of storm trooper-y monochromatic thing that's happening with the colorway. I think these are just... I want that loom dial so badly. That might have to happen. I've been on the fence for the carbon for so long, right? |
| James Stacey | I agree. And I think, you know, you're... Let's not turn this into our own personal shopping network here. But I do think that you've been circling that carbon doxa for a long time. And I think when I look at your collection and kind of what you're drawn to. I think this is just, it's like that, that outlier, that, that just funky, cool, I think, I think, I think you need this one. And I think, uh, I'm, uh, I'm a little different than you. I, I actually like the white rubber strap and I, you know, I had sourced one for my Seamaster and it's fantastic. I mean, I don't wear it often, but I think like in the summer and like a wrist with a little bit of tan to it, I think, I think it could work. I think you could warm up to that. It would, I don't know, it would probably show dirt if you kind of got a, smudged or dirty or something like that. But, uh, but yeah, on a gray NATO or, or, or on the, on the black DOXA fitted rubber, I think it would look fantastic. You know, DOXA is one of those brands that I was looking at, uh, you know, Unimatic is, you know, they keep churning out release after release of their U1 and, um, in, in different kinds of formats. And DOXA is kind of the same. Like you think, where can they go with the sub 300 that they haven't been before? How can they keep this fresh? How can they keep spinning out new, watches that stay appealing and new. And they, this is another example of that. I mean, a carbon case with a white dial is, it just looks fresh. It doesn't look like, you know, the, the, the 67 reissue that we saw that we were so smitten with back in, in 2017, you know, when, which I thought was like the be all and end all of, of DOCSIS. They continue to kind of spin off new versions of it that, that stay kind of very modern and, and, you know, hats off to them for doing it. I think it's great. |
| Jason Heaton | Yeah. So I have a story that will have been live for a couple of days by the time this comes up, but it goes through every single model. And also for all of you who occasionally write it in, you go, why is the 300T less money when it has more specs than the standard 300? I have a little comparison of the cases. You'll be able to understand why the 300 wears better. It's kind of the modern thin case, whereas the 300Ts still has that HEV and is a little bit thicker on the thickness and just the way it balances the case is different. I think I make that clear in the story, if you want to look at this carbon, it's in there. If you want to look at the standard 300 with a white dial looks incredible, a different vibe than I was. I thought that it would look a lot more like a sea rambler, right? Cause silver is not that far from white, but because all the accents are black, the contrast is super high. Uh, I think they did a great job. Kudos to docs on this one. Cause it is just a color change. Yeah. You know, it's an, it's a line extension is the easiest way of looking at it, but to take that carbon and do the loom dial, really makes it feel extra special. And, uh, yeah, I, um, I'm going to continue scheming and see what I can make, make it happen. |
| James Stacey | Speaking of kind of color. Um, let, let's just briefly talk about IWC because I didn't see much new in the way of watches from them, but they did some interesting things with, with the, uh, the pilot chronograph in, in different colors. They did the, uh, the Tahoe, uh, version, which is a white. And then what's the other one, the green it's called Woodland, I believe. |
| Jason Heaton | Uh, yeah. So yeah, the Woodland, um, is sort of the green one. The Lake Tahoe is a sort of white one. They're both making about a thousand and you're looking at like, you know, about 11 grand for them. |
| Unknown | Yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | You know, these are, these are larger watches. Um, I was happy to see that they decided to make the kind of 41 millimeter chronograph in serratanium. Yeah. Uh, I didn't get to see it with the full serratanium bracelet, which is apparently an option. Uh, they didn't have one to show, but I did see it with the sort of nice textile strap they offer. And don't get me wrong, it's quite expensive. It's a big jump in money over a Spitfire in 41 or the standard chrono, the sort of like the current edition of the 3705, but pretty clever. And I've never been a huge fan, or at least I'm a worrisome fan of the whole like phantom dial trend. You remember that was a big thing eight years ago, 10 years ago, where you'd have a black dial with black markers or even a tinted crystal to kind of give it like this stealth thing. They went like 10% into that. It's like when you get your car tinted, but you're, you're, you're chill about it. It's like works, but it's not like pitch black that the, uh, the legibility was really good on, on the watch. I got to see it in person and shoot some photos, a good looking thing. Uh, you know, we're standing there and, and, or Jack and I are walking through the hall kind of towards IWC and a bunch of people run past us with cameras and like do the, the like paparazzi one 80 and start snapping. |
| Unknown | Yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | And we turn in like about five feet to my right is Lewis Hamilton and a couple people. Oh yeah. Um, so he was there cause he's a big IWC guy. And if you've been following formula one this year, he's been wearing his Mojave a lot. Right. And it looks really good on him. I mean, he was dressed like head to toe and like this weird bright green pattern, very Dan flash. Uh, but he looked, uh, he looked great and, and it's, it's cool to be, to be that close to, uh, to Lewis Hamilton. I've been, I've been, I think I talked about, I think I talked to this on the last episode, but I got the subscription for the year and my wife and I've been really enjoying formula one. So thankfully this weekend, which I lost due to the coming home, um, from Geneva, there wasn't a race. So Australia was going to be great in a few days when this comes out. But yeah, it was cool, cool to see him. And I think the watches look pretty sharp. I mean, IWC always looks really good. Yeah. Yeah. It's just too big, but that's also like the, the whole brand is kind of wrapped up in that. Yeah. |
| James Stacey | Yeah, I thought those look cool. When we did our pre Watches and Wonders episode, I think I talked about, you know, I'd love to see them bring back the Ingenieur, a simplified version of the Aquatimer, which they didn't do. So, uh, you know, hats off to them for, for some interesting colors. They seem to get a lot of buzz out of that from what I saw, but, uh, yeah, maybe not worth dwelling on too much. Um, Grand Seiko. I mean, Grand Seiko. |
| Unknown | Yeah. |
| James Stacey | I really like that GMT spring to spring drive, uh, Evo nine line. I think that's, That's a cool watch. It takes the GS line kind of in a more sporty direction than they've even had before. And I dig it. I love it. |
| Jason Heaton | Yeah. I really like it. You know, there's a new titanium diver as well, but for my money, it's this, it's the sort of, I think it's the SPG E285. It's the kind of silvery dial GMT. This is going to be easier, especially with reference numbers to just hit the show notes. If it's something that you wanted to see and haven't, The thing I'm gutted about is this is one of, I think maybe two that we'll talk about today that I didn't get to see in person just due to, I couldn't make the meeting work. They were crazy. Like they were crazy busy taking meetings. Um, and, and I had to end up missing that meeting, but the Evo nine collection in general, uh, I think is great. They also have like, um, SPG W's that are nonlimited, which is something to look into if you're, if you kind of have my taste for like a casual dressy grand Seiko, which we've talked about before a lot. Yeah. which is awesome. But this Evo 9, I think these GMTs look awesome. Yeah. Yeah. Kind of steely, kind of bulky, but like they're the right size. They're 41 millimeters, awesome movement, you know, good functionality, a great looking dial. I think this is what a lot of people want from them. And they're $8,500 watches. Sure. But that's where luxury watches have gone largely, especially at this level of execution. Yeah. So I don't know that that would surprise a lot of people. But the brand also has, let's be fair, a lot of GMTs that look great. So this is just two more. |
| James Stacey | Yeah. It's not their only two. Yeah. They do GMTs really well. I mean, I think, uh, and, uh, you know, I have a grand Seiko GMT that I very seldom wear because it's, it's just such a dressy looking watch. And, you know, in retrospect, or when I look at watches, like what they're coming out with now with, with these really sporty GMTs, I think that that's definitely more my speed. I think these are really, really a nice direction for them to go. |
| Jason Heaton | If you're wanting to see just what Grand Seiko is really, truly, genuinely capable of, don't skip. I'll put it in the show notes. It's not really the kind of thing we talk about on this show. It's a $400,000, 20 piece limited edition. Yeah. It's the Grand Seiko Kodo constant force tourbillon. That looks incredible. So it's their first, it's the brand's first ever mechanical complication. Yeah. Um, and, and I surprised me, actually to hear that. Absolutely. It's such a flex to come. Oh, with that too, for sure. I mean, they don't count spring drive, right? |
| Unknown | Yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | this is one that it really crushed me that I didn't get a chance to hold in my hand and get a wrist shot. Cause I'll never see one again. That was probably my, probably my option, but it is a, it looks like if grand Seiko made a, a group of four Z, I mean, it's so impressive. Yeah. Super, super cool stuff. Yeah. So don't sleep on that. If you just want to be kind of wowed jaw dropped, it's not in the same vein as what we normally chit chat about, but really, really cool. Yeah. And then yeah, the, uh, the nonlimited SPG W's I think are like deserving of praise, a light blue and sort of a, I think it's a black dial. And these are like really, really pretty 37.3 millimeter watches with a hand wound movement. Uh, you know, it's a nine S 64, 72 hours of power reserve, like $4,800. This is legit, like classic watchmaking for five grand. How could I not get excited about this? The light blue dial is so pretty. Uh, so be sure to check that out. I think I've rambled a lot about SPGWs, especially given that I think the aesthetic carries over into my little Seiko Dolce. Um, And, but they've been one of my favorites for a long time. I love the size. And, you know, I think the last thing that they did that everyone kind of freaked out for was that, um, trio of the U S L E's in the three different greens. And those sold, uh, at least according to grand Seiko, like the immediately, there was no reason to measure it. They were just gone. Um, so the idea that they can, they can do one with, um, with, uh, you know, being non-limited and still be... Even the black dial, I'm not even a black dial guy, just check them out. These are definitely worth checking out. Great watchmaking for the price and I love that it's no longer limited. I think that's something we need to try and do as much as possible in this industry these days to make things that people can at least wait and then get a little while later. |
| James Stacey | Yeah. Oh, that's great. Sorry, we lost power here. I think I didn't... They were at this like side exposition that was called I think something silly that didn't sound like a translator correctly called like time to watch. |
| Jason Heaton | And there were a bunch of brands in there. I went over there with Logan. He had three or four brands he wanted to see. And I really just wanted to see Zen. And sat down and saw a handful of their stuff. And I think, again, they've done a great job. They've got these four colorful iterations of the 556. So there's like a mustardy yellow, a sort of reddish orange, they're calling pernelian red. There's an emerald green, it's matte, an emerald green, and then aquamarine blue. And those all apparently they're entirely distributed. So Zen sold them all to, uh, to their retailers, uh, which is seemed like a theme among these new watches. Uh, I think those are gonna be super popular if you want a five, five, six, which is like a fantastic everyday, great watch now in a kind of a casual sort of in the same expression as like, uh, you know, the colorful OPs and the, um, the new Omega Aqua terrace, it's that kind of trend towards taking somewhat more subtle low key watches and putting kind of warmer bright tones on them, kind of characteristically bright coloring. So that was pretty cool. The one that really wowed me was first they had the ECM 1.1 S, which is a central minutes chronograph. That's the one I love. I love the look of that. You would have loved this watch, man. It's 500 pieces. As soon as I saw this, I was like, oh, I'm gonna shoot some pictures. Jason will freak out on this. It's a little bit on the bigger side, but because it's a black case, I was actually surprised when they told me it was 43 millimeters, because I would have sworn it was 41 and a half maybe. Huh. And it's of left side controls. Yeah. A date at, at sort of three 30 and then all of Zen's technology, but like stark, beautiful. There's just, they just, they just do this sort of thing so well. Yeah. It has a, you know, it's, it's a Zen movement. So you, because it's essentially giving you the same thing as like a Lamania 5100. So they call it the SZ-01 their movement. And, um, and it's been essentially, their movement in for some time. I don't know the history of the movement, but it's likely based in some manner on a 5100, but that one was super cool. They were really excited because it sold immediately again to all of the distributors. So I'm assuming watch buyers will have it. I don't know. I now get to actually eat some crow because the last time we talked about Zen on the show, I mentioned that it can be difficult to get them in Canada. And I slept on the fact that Roald Dorf carries them. Goodness sakes, James, you idiot. So Roldorf carries Zen in Canada, as does a shop in Calgary. So there's at least two options. If you hear of any of these and you're really keen and you're in Canada, give Roldorf a ping, see what they were able to allocate. But that, yeah, that EZM 1.1S, I was like, oh, this is very Jason. |
| James Stacey | Oh, I loved it. I love the look of that thing. I'm not so keen on the leather strap option, and I don't know that I'd go full black Bracelet which I hear they're coming out with but on that black rubber would just be fantastic or just like a blacked-out NATO would be just awesome Absolutely. |
| Jason Heaton | Yeah. No, I think I think there'd be tons of options. You put your own strap on like like like I say with everything I think you know, it's an all-black watch with red accents a great. Yeah, it's gonna look great Yeah, you know there were there were a handful of other ones. They're doing an all-black version of the u50 S called the BS so they already made an all-black But this one has a blue dial then just as you get to the just as you get to the minute markers goes black So it's like this very delayed gradient. Yeah. In person, this was really cool. You can get it on a bracelet, you can get it on rubber, et cetera. To see them can start to really find some iteration with the U50. This is an LE 500 pieces. So kind of special if you're a Zen fan. And of course, I'm a huge U50 fan being kind of a smaller, more wearable take on the U series. So that one's definitely worth checking out if you like the idea of an all black watch with sort of a It's not even a navy blue. It's a little bit of a brighter blue than that. I wouldn't, you know, not sky blue or whatever, but kind of like dark water. And then lastly, the one that really spoke to me, cause this has been a favorite of mine for years, is that they have a second generation now of the EZM 13, which was their sort of dive chronograph with the left-hand controls. And now they've gone from the 30 minute total chronograph to a 60, which is the big change. So it's still 500 meters water resistance. It again, uses the Zen, uh, uh, as said, Oh, two, uh, with a 60 minute chronograph in a sub dial has running seconds on the right controls on the left, uh, kind of glove friendly mission specific that all the other sort of great. Um, that's what EZM is all their kind of mission timer stuff. It has all of their like normal proprietary tech, you know, 41 millimeters. Uh, it's about 15 millimeters thick. You get 20 millimeter lugs. You can put on anything. Uh, as far as a, uh, like a pure dive chronograph goes, I think this is still, I really liked the 13. I remember when it came out thinking this is super cool. And of course, 30 minutes isn't enough to time most dives. Uh, so having it at 60 does make a lot of sense. |
| James Stacey | Yeah. There's such a function first brand. And I just, I love that about them. Every time you see their watches, it's like, you know exactly what it's meant to do. That's just, that's great for sure. |
| Jason Heaton | No, I totally agree. |
| James Stacey | How about Oris? I think they, they kind of got lost in the shuffle this year. I mean, crushed it though. Yeah, but, but they had like kind of one big, piece this year that if you were kind of distracted by the, the tutor stuff and the Rolex stuff, you might've missed it. |
| Jason Heaton | Um, tell me about the, the pro pilot X. It's so good that it does not deserve to be buried. This is in my top three for the show. Easy. |
| Unknown | Wow. |
| Jason Heaton | Uh, you know, it's, it's that, it's that black Bay pro it's the white pearl carbon and it's the 400, uh, pro pilot X. Uh, yeah, I think this is, um, this, this feels a lot like, uh, like, or is giving people what they want. Right. So you're looking at a, um, a 39 millimeter fully titanium watch with a titanium bracelet. I almost think it's kind of like, um, not a poor man's version, but like a, a sporty kind of everyday version of like an Octo from Bulgari. |
| Unknown | Oh yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | It weighs nothing. It has all these facets and chamfers that kind of feel like a, like a fighter plane or a stealth plane. It comes in a gray dial with which, which is more of a black accent with the matching date wheel, or you have an option in, um, sort of a salmon pink dial or a Navy blue dial. And I just think they, um, I think they absolutely crushed it. So it's, it's again, it's using their caliber 400. So, you know, in-house and, uh, and it's a 39 millimeter case, you know, a Sapphire crystal, of course, a display case back. So you can see that movement. Uh, and again, you know, strap is fully titanium and it has that kind of trick fold over class with the, um, like the, the seatbelt style, like lift system that they've had on other stuff. But if you were a fan of the, Pro Pilot X caliber 115 that came out a few years back, but at 44 or 45 millimeters, this is the one where it's 39 millimeters. It's really good looking. It weighs nothing. It's super sporty. It has that great sort of turbine inspired bezel. Yeah, I love that. I'm so, so happy for Oris. I think this is going to be a really popular watch for them that doesn't quite seem like a pilot's watch, but doesn't not. It's really smart in that it just feels super casual and open to a lot of different styles. And I think the three colors are smart. You get kind of the punchy pink, the left of center blue, and then the right down the middle gray. I'm a big fan. |
| James Stacey | Yeah, this watch is such an exercise in restraint. It's just, you look at it, it's very stark. But then the use of color, I think, is what gives it that element of kind of playfulness that is so great. Because it could be a very stark watch with the kind of the sharp angles on the bracelet and then that kind of turbine bezel and the stark dial, but then you, you give this punch of color. I'd have a hard time deciding between the colors. I think the gray is a little bit too sober for me. I think I might, I mean, I, you know, kind of go against my usual. I think I'd go for salmon on this one. I think it's just such an unusual color and some of the photos on their website, some of the wrist shots and things with, you know, kind of a sleeve of a sweater or a jacket or something I think would just, I think it would just pop. |
| Jason Heaton | Yeah, I know. I know Cole and Danny felt the same way, that the interesting, the most cool one, the one that was kind of the biggest splash was the salmon dial. Yeah. And I don't disagree at all. It's just, I really liked the way the gray kind of melted into the rest of the watch. Yeah. And again, with that sort of Octo Finissimo vibe. Oh, sure. With the black markers and the really subtle date at six. Yeah. I would also have a hard time because the blue is quite nice. I don't know that I would do the salmon, but I think these are great. I think that the pricing makes a lot of sense for the brand because you're getting the in-house movement and you're also getting kind of a pretty distinctive thing. There's not other people making a watch just like this, especially if you get a chance to try the bracelet on in person. |
| Unknown | Yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | Uh, this is one where I would be really keen to try it and be able to size the bracelet because my guess is it's like a bit of a jaw dropper once it fits you. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Really, really cool stuff. Um, and, and you know, it's or so they have something, they're not going to do all of it at one at one trade show. Um, they, we were able to see some of the stuff that's coming later in the year and all of that looks really cool as well. There's some cool partnerships and all the normal stuff that you expect from Morris, uh, they're, they're doing this year and, uh, they've got some great people. Obviously, uh, the team is growing and, and, uh, they've added some fantastic people and, um, you and I both missed their, their event in January. It was just, I couldn't travel that easily. And, and, um, it's a treat to reconnect with them and see these pieces, especially this pro pilot X. absolutely one of the watches at the show for me. So, so cool. If, if Cole hadn't claimed it, I would happily write about it. |
| James Stacey | Nice. Yeah. Did you get a chance to see Tag Heuer? I mean, I think they leaned into the dive line, which I've been craving for, for quite some time. Um, I, I, I was quite smitten with a few of the, the, the tags this time around, which, you know, normally I would not look twice at like they've got this, uh, the super diver, this thousand meter thing with the crown protection and it's a giant, you know, 45 millimeter case and the Kinesi chronometer grade movement. I mean, it's, it's like, I feel like TAG needed to play in this space. I think they'd been out of it for a while, like the planet ocean, sea dweller kind of space. And I think they did a nice job with this. |
| Jason Heaton | Yeah. I am. I didn't get to see TAG. It was another meeting I just didn't get to. So I'm, I'm, I'm going off the same sort of coverage on Hodinkee and otherwise that I've seen. I still haven't seen a price yet for the... Oh, yeah. For the Super Diver. Yeah. But I think it looks great. I hope this is a direction that they continue to move in. As I say, with every 45 millimeter watch, I'd love to see the 41 millimeter that you also have in your PowerPoint deck that you just haven't made yet. Yeah. But I think this looks really good. I mean, there's a few details here that stand out for me. It's nice applied movements. It has that sort of long standing Aquaracer kind of garage door dial with the horizontal lines. And then it has this nice minute ring around the outside, which I think elevates the whole look. And of course a solid movement, same sort of movement we're finding in obviously Norcanes and Tudors. I think it could be good. It's just not one that I saw in person. 45 feels a little bit on the large side for me. I do also like the solar powered 40 millimeter Aquaracer. That makes a lot of sense to me. |
| James Stacey | the super diver and the solar graph with the, with that solar movement. I think those were two kind of unexpected moves for tag. And I think people kind of liked that they, they, they're taking some steps with the dive line, especially me. I mean, I, I was, I was kind of excited about these watches. I mean, I I'm, I've not made a secret of the fact that I like, I like a big oversized dive watch and I think I would definitely do the, the super diver, you know, it's along the lines of that. Uh, um, what was it? The, the Avenger Seawolf Breitling, that big giant thing that I picked in our Breitling challenge. I mean, this is like one of those watches that's like when you want to throw on like a big colorful watch, big colorful sports watch, and you don't make any bones about it. I mean, this is their version of that. |
| Jason Heaton | I have no doubt they'll have... I mean, this is a brand with an incredible amount of reach, right? Yeah. So they're definitely going to find an audience for these things. I think if you don't know the Solar Graph Aquaracer, check that out even just for the bezel. The bezel's wild on the black one with the black dial. It's this kind of green electric-y sort of bezel. It looks like something like a finish from a guitar almost. |
| Unknown | Yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | Yeah. Yeah. Good for TAG for sure. Them and Grand Seiko, I was pretty bummed. You can only take so many meetings and those two just didn't work out. So those are watches I'll have to see later in the year or at another time, but certainly TAG did a handful of stuff between you know, more, more automotive theme stuff, uh, a new Hoyer Monaco golf, uh, kind of addition, but the, I definitely like, like that they're pushing into the Aquaracer space. I think that makes sense. And especially with stuff on both sides of China, the wearability scale at 40 millimeters and 45. So, um, I think they had a good show. They seem to be doing well. I know that the, the folks from hoodie key that did go and see them, uh, were pretty keen on what they saw. So that's great. |
| James Stacey | All right. I mean, I think that that kind of covers the, the real core TGN stuff. I mean, anything else you want to talk about? I, I was smitten with that Vacheron 222, which, you know, totally not in my wheelhouse, but what a, what an amazing looking watch. |
| Jason Heaton | Yeah. People are upset because it's, it's limited and it's now it's become like a hype thing, which isn't something that Vacheron normally does, but they weren't ever going to make a non-limited version of the 222. You know, it's a historic piece. The cards were all on the table. I got a chance to have it on my wrist for about five minutes and it is Awesome. I'm a huge Vacheron fan. The watch is gorgeous. It doesn't wear like a Royal Oak. It doesn't wear like a Nautilus. It's just, it's its own thing. It's so specific to that era. And I think it's interesting that they started with coming back with not only an LE, which just makes a lot of sense, but also the solid gold, yellow gold instead of rose. And so I don't know if this would become, you know, another line for them where they'll have, you know, this one will sell out. And then in a year they'll show us the steel one or the platinum one or whatever, like maybe, maybe not, who knows. But, uh, you know, huge Vacheron fan. They've always got really interesting stuff. And this watch is like one I would want and, and, and where maybe not as much as the Everest dual time, which, uh, thankfully Zach, uh, Pina had on his wrists and I was able to try on, uh, my dream watch. Uh, it was fantastic. What a thing. Um, but yeah, Vacheron that two, two, two just crushed. |
| James Stacey | It was great. What about some of the other kind of big hitters there? |
| Jason Heaton | I mean, uh, yeah, the others that I would call extras for us quite literally, cause it's way outside the scope of what we normally chit chat about is like Cartier had some incredible stuff. Um, the new, uh, Louis, uh, tank Louis Cartier was, was really beautiful. And if you're in the, if you're in that zone, you know, you know, great movement, nice size, the, the jet black dial without the markers. Uh, I really, I was like weirdly smitten with the Santos Dumont with the lacquer filled case. I put it on my Instagram. You can check it out there. It's, it's, it's looked like a Santos, but it's made a, it almost looks like it's made out of ivory. Oh, okay. Um, it's, it's a, it's incredibly beautiful in person and still somehow feels a little bit sporty. Uh, really, really nicely done. Um, let's see. Oh, I mean, paddock kind of sporty, right? Largely offered to, to, to have the most like TGN options they've ever made. So they've got a nice three hand with a date Calatrava. that kind of has like a smoky matte dial and tan accents. It comes on like a kind of new buck suede sort of strap, syringe hands. I really like this. I understand there's some Patek people, this is like everything they do that are upset about it or don't want the Calatrava to go in this kind of casual direction. I like it. And then, but man, you got to know, I like that. Yeah. 5326, which is the annual calendar with the travel time. And it's all, they've reworked the whole movement has eight patents. pending on it, but they've reworked the movement so you control everything from the crown. Whereas, of course, most of the travel times have pushers on the nine o'clock side of the case to go front and back. I think this is an absolute knockout of a watch. Due to COVID reasons and other stuff, Patek only had only two people could go, so Jack and John went. So I didn't get to see these in person, and sadly, I don't know if I ever will. But among the things that I really wish I had seen and were able to get a wrist shot, and I'm sure I'll see one eventually for a wrist shot, but that 53 26. Read the story on it. It's a, it's a next level piece. It's this like sporty kind of everyday casual sort of vibe in a Cal traffic case, but then just tech coming out every, every corner of the watch. There's like I said, the annual calendar, which is a very protect sort of complication. And then on top of that, you have the travel time and it's still that syringe hands and the sort of Matt gradient texture dial. It's a real blend of casual and kind of complicated Patek in one watch. And I think they, I think it's, I think they made something really, really cool for sure. I mean, 75 grand. Sure. So yeah. Yeah. White gold. I'm not, I'm not getting one, but I think it's really, really cool that it exists. And especially if you go to the main story, the sort of introducing on Hodinkee that the hero image is one where it's on the suede strap. But if you scroll down to the second image, I think the lighting significantly better. And it's on like a, a black kind of charcoal gray textile strap. And I just think this is a knockout of a watch. I love, but I love a dual time Patek as well. I think they're really charming and kind of cool. What else have we got on the tour? Very expensive stuff. Oh yeah. Lange titanium Odysseus. Crazy. |
| James Stacey | I saw this and I can't warm up to the aesthetic of that watch. I mean, of course I love Lange. |
| Jason Heaton | I don't think it's pretty. Yeah. |
| James Stacey | Yeah. It's a bit, it's just too square. It's just too, it's too burly for, I don't know, just doesn't, doesn't suit my eyes, but you know, they always do such amazing stuff. |
| Jason Heaton | beautiful execution. I think unbelievably interesting dial colorway in this sort of light steely blue at different angles. It's dark and then it's light and there's no color and there's a lot of blue. I really like that. The finishing on the titanium is like nothing I've ever seen. So every little facet, all the bevels are hand finished, but the base finish for a lot of elements of the case and the bracelet are this form of bead blasting. It's media blasting and they They said what the media was that they used, but I think it was the French or the German term for it. It has this incredible ability to absorb light and just appear very matte. And then when you combine that with the kind of finishing of the dial furniture, the markers and such, and then this hand polishing on the bracelet links, the effect is not like anything I've ever seen. And it screams like high end, even though it is kind of the most casual execution of this watch being titanium. and that sort of thing. And they said that the goal here was their customers are saying, you've made us all these great watches, but none I can take on vacation. Sure. So the goal here is the one you can take for a swim and not really worry about it and that sort of thing. So if you're a big Lange head, I totally get the appeal of a watch like this. I think for Jason and I who have yet to own our first Lange and that a condition may hold for some time, I think. But I would be pulled towards an 1815 Lange 1. I know you're a big Ricard Lange fan. Yeah. Yeah. And so there's definitely the brand does so much, so well. Right. And it's also a brand that like, I don't get to see them unless I go to a watch show. You know what I mean? Yeah. It's like, you don't, you don't, I don't spend a lot of time around long otherwise, sadly, but a really, really good stuff for sure. I got to sit down quickly with the guys from Serica. Oh, okay. This is a little bit more in our wheelhouse and they have some really, I can't talk about any of it. None of it's out yet, but get excited if you've been on the list for a Serica or if you haven't been able to get something because they've been out of stock. know, they're cursed by their success. They've sold through everything. But they have some interesting stuff coming up. So don't forget about Serica. Really, really cool stuff and great to see those guys. Such lovely guys, for sure. And then the other thing that came out while we were there is a new Aquastar. Yeah, that came out. |
| James Stacey | Did you get a peek at this? Out of left field. Yeah. No, I just got the email like everybody else that said... Yeah. Aquastar has listened to its customers and we've come out with a mid-sized Deepstar, which, you know, is something, it was the one quibble that everyone had with the original Deepstar reissue from a couple of years ago, is that it was just simply didn't wear as well on kind of smaller or medium-sized wrists. And lo and behold, it's the mid-sized version, which isn't quite the original dimensions of the 1960s Aquastar, but I think that this is a smart move for them to go with a 39 millimeter case. I think it'll, I think it'll wear tremendously. |
| Jason Heaton | Uh, yeah, no, I absolutely agree. This is one, um, uh, Rick was kind enough to send me an email, so I should be able to, uh, take a look at one shortly and, and I'm excited this, you know, I think I'm, I'm long on record saying that one of my favorite vintage dive watches is the original deep star as much as I absolutely adore. And I do, and I'm, I'm, it's one of my favorite summer watches, the 41 millimeter execution, uh, Jason, which is a gift from you. And I absolutely love. And then now we have this new version. So I really like where the brand's going. Obviously you and our huge fans. kind of wall-to-wall of what Rick gets up to with his variety of brands and such, and the Aquastar stuff is no exception. So I wanted to make sure we mentioned it because it came out kind of like two or three days into Watches & Wonder, a kind of stealthy launch of an option from Aquastar, but a very cool thing. So now's the part where I worry that we've forgotten something. That's everything that I think that I was able to see in person when I was there, but there was a lot, right? There's a lot of brands and some stuff that I didn't see. And what stands out for you? What's your stuff that you were most excited about? |
| James Stacey | Yeah, I mean, part of me was jealous not to go. I mean, I felt very nostalgic for Geneva and kind of the vibe we used to have in January. I did my fondue, buddy. Yeah, fondue and kind of that gray windblown rain that you get in Geneva in January. I hope the weather was a little better for you this time. |
| Jason Heaton | It was, yeah. It was a little rainy, but it was fine. It snowed a bunch as well. |
| James Stacey | It must have been fun to see such a weird mix of brands in kind of the same space. I mean, to have Tudor and IWC in the same hall with Oris and Tag Heuer. You know, for me, it was kind of oddball stuff. It was like the Evo 9 GMT from Grand Seiko stood out. Good stuff, yeah. There was an Orange Dial Aquaracer that I kind of kept scrolling back to and kind of looking at, which I thought was really cool. The ProPilot X400 from Oris. And you know, Zyn, although Zyn wasn't technically part of the show, that, I don't know, that EZM 1.1 was like, yeah, I think, I think of all of them. Super cool. It's like that kind of came late into kind of my awareness. I just like stumbled upon it yesterday, I think it was. And I was like, wow, that is, I'd love to have that thing on my wrist. That is just such a cool watch. It's killer. Yeah. Yeah. And, and for you, it's gotta be the Doxa, right? |
| Jason Heaton | It's, I mean, yeah, it's, it's the tutor BB pro it's the docks of white pearl and carbon. And it's that a pro pilot 400. Yeah. That's a great pro pilot X 400. I think those are the three that like they're all right around four grand, which I think is currently kind of the sweet spot. If you want something well-made and interesting with docks, you don't have to spend that much to get the docs as normal level of quality. Uh, you know, obviously, uh, uh, the 300 is, you know, $2,400, something like that. So you're paying a lot for the carbon and for the loom dial. And honestly, at this point, I'm okay with that. I have other, I have, you know, I still have my Sea Rambler. It's not going anywhere. I love that watch. Uh, so I'm a little spoiled that way, but those would be the three that, that for me, I'm not going to stop thinking about that. I have plans to make kind of larger full-scale stories, especially for that BB pro. I think that that one, that watch needs an adventure that needs some storytelling, that sort of thing. So I think there's some fun in there. And, uh, those are the ones that kind of, I fell in love with immediately could easily see spending. my own money on. Um, and, uh, and I'm looking forward to Cole's right up on the, on the pro pilot for sure, to go a little deeper because he has a nice context when it comes to these sorts of things as well. Yeah. And then as a show, as a show at large, I mean, the, the big thing that struck me was just, everyone was so happy to have this happen again. Yeah, I'm sure. You know, like, like the watches could have been worse. We could have had less to talk about and everybody just would have been happy seeing their camp friends and reconnecting. And, you know, I, I got to hang out with Matt Heranek a bunch and he says, hi, of course. And we just got to see a ton of people that we haven't seen in a long time. And it felt largely safe. You know, there's lots of testing and, and, uh, you know, like for example, everyone from hooding, he was able to make it home despite the fact that, you know, going back in the States, you need to test. So all of that worked out. It was nice and safe. It didn't feel too crazy. It didn't feel too uncomfortable. You were, there was no frowning upon if you decided to wear a mask, um, and that sort of thing. Um, so I think, I think it was good and it just felt kind of healthy to, to have, it back. If those words make any sense, like, I don't know that I want to do another one. Like if this was SIHH and I knew I had Basel in eight weeks or something, seven weeks, I'd be stressed about that. But to do the one and to have gone full out and seen a lot of people and covered a lot of watches and missed a lot of sleep, I think we did it. And it felt good. It felt better than I expected, for sure. That's great. That's awesome. And huge kudos to the, you know, to the team at Hodinkee. One, a big thank you for taking me and getting me the show and then to the leadership just for kind of keeping everything together. It's a brand new show, largely. It's a lot of new folks on the team. And I think they pulled off the majority of what we sought to do at the show and at a high level for the most part. So it's always a treat to see those people in person rather than just on Zoom calls and their name on Slack. So for the most part, aside from some scratchy throat, it was great. |
| James Stacey | Yeah. Well, cool. Congrats. And, uh, yeah, I hope you can get some rest now. I mean, you were crushing it on the, uh, the daily podcast as well, as well as the writing stuff and the, and the photography. So, yeah, I forgot about the pod. |
| Jason Heaton | Yeah, we did four. Uh, and yeah, we're, we're recording another one today for next week. So it's, it's a busy schedule. It'll remain busy, I'm sure. But I'm going to put my work in now so I can take some time off this summer and you know, work on the cabin and that sort of stuff. But yeah, I hope this kind of covers the majority of what people wanted to see. Obviously, if we miss something major, which I'm sure maybe we did, uh, you know, the days, uh, D A Z E, uh, have, have really set in when it comes to kind of remembering everything, uh, but put it in the show notes, let us know we can, we can rectify it. I can drop you a little message. If there's something you think that we missed or that we got wrong, but this is the stuff that really stuck out in my kind of, um, soft memory these days. and the stuff that I enjoyed and that kind of stuff. So I think that probably puts a wrap on the show. You want to get into some final notes? |
| James Stacey | Yeah, mine ties into a previous episode of TGN. We had Becky Kagan shot on as a guest a couple of months ago, chatting about her work as an underwater photographer. And Becky's been working with Seiko and their Prospex series of ice diver watches for a little over a year. And I stumbled upon this video that she did with Seiko. It's about a six minute video, I think, on YouTube. put on Seiko's channel. And it's called Becky Kagan Shot Explores Alaska's Glacier Moulins Underwater. And it's a cool video. I mean, there's some watch content, a little bit of kind of blatant kind of wrist, you know, wrists held out and that sort of thing. But it's really a fascinating look at something that a little project that Becky did where she was up in Alaska this past winter. Diving in some very cold conditions inside these kind of washes that that flow between the the glaciers there and the crevasses and You know, I had done some ice diving this past winter and we chatted about that this is this takes us to a whole new level and and Becky's great and she did a nice kind of presentation about that. So Yeah, this the check out this video I mean if you know can't beat it it's watches and it's it's a co and it's diving and |
| Jason Heaton | Oh, it's helicopters. Becky looking like a complete boss in a helicopter. |
| Unknown | Yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | No, this is super cool. And the, um, the level of, um, of like quality, the quality and the production is really high. It's very, it's very, which I, which I really appreciate. Cause there's a lot of times where brands will phone this part in or the, the, the team they get to make these videos don't know watches well enough, or they don't know adventures well enough for like, it's a hard thing to blend someone who's good at shooting a watch, but also good at shooting out in a, you know, an icy tundra. Oh yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I would love a much longer version as I'm sure many people are asking for in the comments, but super happy for Becky. And yeah, I watched this this morning and it's cool. You know, I'm watching a guy with a chainsaw and he's got an SPB on his wrist. I love it. This is rad. Yeah. Yeah. Super, super cool stuff. Yeah. Good for them. |
| James Stacey | All right. Yeah. So that was my, uh, my kind of final note, uh, James, what do you have this week? |
| Jason Heaton | Yeah. Mine's actually a video actually. I like it for very similar reasons to the video that, uh, you presented from from Becky. It's a it's this guy, Drew Sims, who have been following on YouTube for a while. He drives a Jeep around and does these kind of beautiful videos about hiking and living out of the Jeep and and that sort of thing. But this one I offer up because it's the production value and the lighting and just the execution of this video. It's about him hiking in Zion National Park, a hike called Angels Landing, which is known to be one of the most dangerous hikes in the US. And he does it in the snow. And I don't think I've ever seen Zion in the snow. Oh yeah. Shown like this. It's jaw droppingly beautiful. His execution. It's like you, you would swear you're watching, um, planet earth or, uh, you know, some sort of a screensaver made to show off a great television. Like it's just pixel perfect, beautifully graded. Uh, I'm a big fan of drew and, and sort of his, um, his ethos and temperament and, and sort of excitement for, uh, for life and life on the road and experiencing new things. And he's saying that he's done angels landing several times and he's done it in the snow before, but he had always wanted to make a video. And you kind of watch the day go through this kind of it's snowing when he starts and through parts of it. And then there's these parts where the sun kind of comes through and it's scenery like it's very hard to describe, but it's really, really gorgeous. He does a lovely job. I, if you're not subscribed to drew Sims channel, it's definitely a must subscribe from a TGN standpoint, young guy kicking around in energy, looking at all sorts of beautiful stuff. And, and he does a lot of great drone work and he does a lot of great, the videography, the quality of the videography is very high. I don't know that it can get a lot higher in many ways, especially if you watch this. I'm sure, I'm sure he got lucky with some lighting, but even when the conditions are bad, you can tell that he knows exactly how to capture it. |
| Unknown | Yeah. |
| Jason Heaton | And I really like this. I watched this from someone who's produced some video before and has been in videos, obviously. And you watch and you go like, well, to get that, you had to, obviously, this is like what we said with Venture Forward with Chris Schantz channel, like every time that you watch him drive towards the camera, it means he drove there, set the camera up, set the focus, everything, drove out of frame and then came back in. And imagine doing that on a very dangerous hike in the snow. So he, you know, when he finishes it, at some point he tells you how long it took him. And he's like, I think, you know, I spent a good 50% of that, uh, setting up cameras and rewalking paths and stuff like that. Yeah. Yeah. I can't, uh, I can't suggest this one enough. You know, he put it up April 1st, it's got 80,000 views already. I hope we can, we can throw a chunk more at them. It's, it's an incredible piece of, um, like hike vlogging. Uh, this is, this is like among the peak of the genre for sure. Wow. Drew's doing a great job. I highly recommend. |
| James Stacey | Wow. That sounds, that sounds awesome. And, uh, given that it's about 90 degrees and 90% humidity here, I think a little bit of, Wintery hiking would be welcome to watch. So yeah, that's awesome. |
| Jason Heaton | Yeah. It makes me want to go grab Cole. He's in Salt Lake and get to Zion as soon as possible. That's an area I've never been to. |
| James Stacey | Yeah, same here. |
| Jason Heaton | And obviously I think I'm used to only seeing images from like the summer. Right. And I think when he gets to the very top of this hike, I think the viewpoint, I've seen that before in photos, but never like 50% covered in snow. the colors and the rock and the white and the rest of it. It's jaw dropping. I watched this and I couldn't believe what I was seeing on my screen. It's so beautiful. Really, really nice work. |
| James Stacey | Cool. Well, that was a fun episode. I'm starting to fade here from jet lag. It's coming up on... I don't know what time it is, but I actually I skipped the nap this afternoon, so I'm starting to work my way out of jet lag, but I'm getting a little sleepy, but it was great to catch up from opposite sides of the world and kind of do the download from Watches and Wonders for sure. And I hope everyone enjoyed it. And as you mentioned earlier, I mean, if we missed anything, certainly drop it in the comments, but as always, thanks so much for listening. If you want to subscribe to the show notes, get into the comments for each episode or consider supporting the show directly, and you could even grab a new TGN signed NATO, please visit TheGreyNATO.com. |
| Jason Heaton | And we leave you with this quote from Mae West who said, too much of a good thing can be wonderful. |