HIT LIST Archives - Page 5 of 7

Hit List: NOMOS Glashütte at Work Metro Rosegold

The notable, the collectible, the just plain cool…

For a no-nonsense take on the modern office watch, consider going German. The NOMOS At Work line (seriously, nonsense is verboten) puts the company’s thinnest, lightest automatic caliber into a larger 38.5 mm case, then adds a super-sleek, mega-minimal face. The collection encompasses more than a dozen pieces, all of them exceptionally sharp. Even in that company, the Metro, now available in brilliant rose gold, is a standout.

PHOTO: NOMOS Glashütte

NOMOS Glashütte at Work Metro Rosegold, $9,700; nomos-glashuette.com

HIT LIST/WATCHES

Hit List: A. Lange & Söhne 1815 Tribute to Walter Lange

by Watch Journal Staff

The notable, the collectible, the just plain cool…

Walter Lange was a horological titan, equal parts technical maestro and visionary businessman. When the Berlin Wall came down, he seized on the opportunity to resurrect his great grandfather’s watch company; within a decade of relaunching, the firm was turning out instant-classic designs and developing superfine mechanicals in-house. The felicitously-named Tribute to Walter Lange celebrates the man, who died last year, by debuting an all-new movement. It’s a hand-wound, 36-jewel beauty, featuring an independent, stoppable seconds function—one of Lange’s favorite complications. The watch is available in pink, yellow, or white gold, limited to 145 pieces total and retailing at $47,000 each. The stainless steel example seen here? It’s a one-off made for charity, set to be auctioned by Phillips in Geneva on May 12.

*** Final Hammer Price: Sold for $852,525. Read more about it here.

A. Lange & Söhne 1815 Tribute to Walter Lange, alange-soehne.com & phillips.com

PHOTO: Courtesy A. Lange & Söhne

HIT LIST/WATCHES

Hit List: Montblanc Timewalker Rally Timer 100 Limited Edition

by Watch Journal Staff

The notable, the collectible, the just plain cool…

The standout piece from Montblanc’s Timewalker collection defies categorization. Fundamentally, it’s a dashboard lap timer. But it’s designed to detach from the mounting bezel, effectively becoming a monopusher stopwatch. There’s also a deployable leather wrist strap, so you can wear it as an oversized chronograph. The kicker? Two legs fold out from the caseback, transforming the Rally Timer 100 into a handsome desk clock.

Montblanc Timewalker Rally Timer 100 Limited Edition (Limited to 100 pieces) $33,600; montblanc.com

HIT LIST/WATCHES

Hit List: Breitling Navitimer

by Watch Journal Staff

The notable, the collectible, the just plain cool…

While the name begs for nostalgia—“eight” translates to huit in French, an allusion to Breitling’s Huit Aviation Department from WWI—the execution here is unsentimental. The latest Navitimer has no slide rule, no winged “B” logo, both breaks from long-standing tradition. (It was also unveiled on Instagram and launched in Shanghai, a decidedly progressive approach for one of Switzerland’s oldest marques.) The familiar in-house automatic chronometer movement does carry over. But consider the B01, the first new watch under Georges Kern, who departed IWC to take over Breitling last year, a harbinger of change for the brand.

$7,710; breitling.com

HIT LIST/WATCHES

Hit List: Rado HyperChrome Bronze Chrono Limited Edition

by Max Prince

Black bezel, bronze details, leather strap. Rado cranks up the contrast.

More than a century after the company was founded, Rado remains synonymous with pioneering use of ceramic. The material is handsome, hypoallergenic, lightweight. It’s also tough as hell, and that means most Rados won’t score and scuff like a comparable steel watch. For those who like a little patina on their wrist, there’s the new HyperChrome Bronze Chrono.

Limited to 999 pieces, special-edition takes the classic 45mm HyperChrome design and introduces bronze elements—the chrono pushers, side inserts, and crown are all hewn from the stuff. The addition of rose gold hands and indexes emphasize the metallic sheen, creating a neat contrast with the high-tech black ceramic. It’ll only get more striking with age, as the bronze continues to wear-in around the rest of the scratch-resistant case.

Inside, there’s a 37-jewel ETA automatic chronograph movement, offering 42 hours power reserve, and Rado says it’s water resistant up to 100 meters. Unique engravings (on the side, “CuSn8,” the code for bronze alloy, plus requisite caseback numbering) and a vintage-look leather strap (instead of the standard HyperChrome bracelet) round out the look.

Like what you see? Keep an eye out, as the Bronze Chrono is set to debut at Baselworld next month. Expect a price tag around $5,000 when it reaches retailers later this year.