Christopher Ward Introduces New C60 Trident Pro 300 Bronze Ombré, TheBaltic HMS 003 And Bicompax 003 Shrink To 36.5mm And Get New Dials And New Watches From G-Shock, Carl F. Bucherer And Roger Dubuis

Hey friends, welcome back to It’s About Time. I’m very surprised how much you guys like Christopher Ward. I like them too, but every time I mention them, they get record clicks. I hope you enjoy the new bronze C60!

Also, invite your friends or fill out the survey to enter the giveaway. We’re giving away four Seiko 5 Sports SKX ‘Midi’ in a color of your choice.

In this issue:

• Christopher Ward Introduces New C60 Trident Pro 300 Bronze Ombré Dive Watch

• The New Carl F. Bucherer Patravi ScubaTec In Green Is A Nice Dive Watch, But It Might Be A Bit Outdated

• Casio Gives The DW6900 G-Shock The NASA Treatment

• Baltic Shrinks Down The Cases Of The HMS 003 And Bicompax 003 To 36.5mm, Redesigns The Dials

• Roger Dubuis Introduces Their Fifth Chronograph, The Excalibur Spider Flyback Chronograph

Today’s reading time: 7 minutes and 59 seconds

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👂What’s new

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Christopher Ward Introduces New C60 Trident Pro 300 Bronze Ombré Dive Watch

Amazing watches came out last week. There was the new Zodiac Super Sea Wolf in white ceramic, the Longines Flagship Heritage Moonpahase 38.5mm and the incredible TAG Heuer Skipper. Would you venture a guess as to what you people clicked on the most? By far it was a tiny link, almost a throwaway, in the reviews section that said: “Reviews of the Christopher Ward C65 Dune Automatic And C65 Dune GMT” In fact, it might be the most clicked link in the history of this newsletter (btw, we just passed 100 issues of the letter).

So it’s safe to say that you lot love Cristopher Ward. Well, then I have good news. Christopher Ward just announced a 42mm bronze ombré version of the C60 Trident Pro 300. This is another version of what must be CW’s most popular watch (and with good reason - great lume, awesome design and high(ish) quality for a price that can be under EUR 1,000), and it might be their best one yet.

CW started with the same C60 Trident Pro 300 package people love - a 42mm wide case that’s 49.3mm form lug to lug, 11.5mm thick and with the same 300 water resistance. And that’s pretty much where the similarities stop. The new version gets a bronze case and a brown ombré dial with a lacquered finish. The multifaceted applied hour markers are made out of 18K rose gold. Although Christopher Ward doesn’t specify what the hands are made of, they have the same color as the hour markers. The hour and minute hands feature brushed upper surfaces and polished facets, while the seconds hand has a lumed arrow-shaped tip and the signature trident-shaped counterweight.

They continue with the tradition of putting higher-end movements into bronze case models, so this watch gets a COSC-certified Sellita SW200-1, which beats at 28,800vph and has a 38-hour power reserve that’s visible through a sapphire crystal on the case back.

The C60 Trident Pro 300 model will start at EUR 1,375, and the price will increase a little bit depending on which strap option you go for. You can pre-order the watch through the CW website and deliveries are expected in September.

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The New Carl F. Bucherer Patravi ScubaTec In Green Is A Nice Dive Watch, But It Might Be A Bit Outdated 

Carl F. Bucherer is one of those classic Swiss watchmakers that specialize in elegant and very traditional timepieces that some may have used the words “a bit boring” to describe them. They pushed through, a bit, towards a younger demographic by slapping their watch on John Wick in the movies, but it’s hard to judge how much of an effect this had. Another attempt to address a younger audience is their Patravi ScubaTec diving line and the latest variant, the ScubaTec Verde. It’s a good looking watch, but in a world with hundreds of micro, indie and even mainstream brands offering the same or better specs and designs, at less than half the price, is the Carl F. Bucherer Patravi ScubaTec an outdated watch?

The new Verde model is a color update to the earlier editions of the Patravi ScubaTec. This means you get a stainless steel case that’s 44.6mm wide and 13.45mm thick with brushed surfaces and chunky lugs. The watch has 500 meters of water resistance, which means that it has a screw down crown with very prominent crown guards and a helium escape valve at the 8 o’clock position. It also has a unidirectional rotating dive bezel with a matte green ceramic inlay.

The lacquered green dial has a series of wavy horizontal grooves that emilate the waves of the ocean. Large applied rhodium-plated indices and the hour, minute and central seconds hands are filled with Super-LumiNova to ensure visibility in low-light conditions. There is also a simple date aperture at 3 o’clock. Matching the green on the dial and the bezel is a green rubber strap has a textile inlay and a folding clasp that has a diving extension.

The shade of green used on the lacquered dial, bezel and rubber strap is inspired by the bright green Pacific waters around Isla de La Plata, a small island off the Ecuadorian coasts that hosts 22,000 oceanic mantra rays that gather there between August and September. And this Verde version of the Patravi is in support of the Manta Trust Charity’s pioneering work in Ecuador to protect manta rays.

Inside the watch is the calibre CFB 1950.1, an automatic movement based on the rather simple ETA 2824-2. I couldn’t really find anything online about how they modified the ETA, but the movement is COSC certified. Beating at a 4Hz frequency, the movement has hacking seconds for precision time setting and delivers a limited 38h power reserve.

The Carl F. Bucherer Patravi ScubaTec Verde retails for EUR 6,250 and will be available in August 2023. That’s a lot of money for what the watch offers, especially for a movement that seems to be just an ETA 2824-2 which is used in the much cheaper Longines Legend Diver, Doxa SUB300 and even some Steinharts. If you would like to know more, check out the brand’s website.

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Casio Gives The DW6900 G-Shock The NASA Treatment

One of my favorite collaborations in watches over the years has been the work G-Shock has done with NASA. While space travel has been permanently marked by the likes of the Omega Speedmaster, it’s much more realistic to imagine the nerds at the Houston Space Center (no hate to nerds, I’m right there with them) wearing an array of G-Shock watches. For their fourth collaboration, G-Shock has given the DW6900 a white case, the "NASA" worm logo is on the bottom strap, and the stars and stripes are emblazoned on the strap holder. The backlight, when glowing, displays an image of Earth.

It's a limited edition (Casio doesn't say how many), and if you're interested, you'll have to go to Casio's website to enter the contest for a chance to win the G-Shock DW6900NASA237 for $130. The contest is also open only to US citizens. That’s unfortunate, as this would have been an amazing addition to their regular lineup and I’m betting a lot of people around the world would want to own one. This will only benefit flippers. For example, I really dug their previous collaboration when they created an all orange GWM5610 and looking at eBay, they are selling for at least double their MSRP.

If you would like to enter the contest, you can do so on the G-Shock website.

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Baltic Shrinks Down The Cases Of The HMS 003 And Bicompax 003 To 36.5mm, Redesigns The Dials

Since it’s very start Baltic has had a very simple offering: sell great looking watches, with good quality and inspired by 1940s watches - a decade not very often seen replicated today. It was especially not that popular in 2017 when Baltic was started. Every few year they update these original watch lines, and that time is now - the Baltic HMS and Bicompax get their third versions with updated dials, movements and an even smaller case.

The existing HMS 002 and Bicompax 002 (which will, btw, remain in the collection along the 003 versions), were not huge watches. They measured 38mm and the two new models move more towards their very successful MR01 line with a diameter of 36.5mm. Still using the codes of the past, mostly 1940s watches, the monobloc case (made from a single piece of metal) retains its cool step profile with a flat, raised bezel and a combination of different surfaces; horizontal brushing along the case middle, circular brushing on the lugs and a polished bezel. Both versions have a thickness of 13mm and a lug-to-lug of 46mm.

The new Baltic 003 collection retains a classic sector style dial, with several finishes. A brushed railway surrounds a brushed sector on which polished appliques are positioned. The rest of the dial has a matt sandblasted finish, with two azure counters for the Bicompax or a crosshair for the HMS. The leaf-shaped hour and minute hands are slightly larger than those of previous versions. Both versions come in three colorways - silver with blue appliques, numerals and hands, salmon with silver-toned appliques, numerals and hands or dark blue with gilt appliques, numerals and hands.

Inside the HMS is the Miyota 8315, a robust and reliable movement that watchmakers around the world know how to service it. It beats at 3Hz frequency and the power reserve has been extended to 60 hours. The Bicompax gets the Seagull ST1901 and both versions can be specced with a closed or open back.

Offered with a large choice of straps and bracelets, the new Baltic HMS 003 & Baltic Bicompax 003 watches are now available from the brand’s website. Prices start at EUR 360 (excl. taxes) for HMS and EUR 540 (excl. taxes) for Bicompax. For more details, visit baltic-watches.com.

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Roger Dubuis Introduces Their Fifth Chronograph, The Excalibur Spider Flyback Chronograph

This weekend saw the Goodwood Festival of Speed, one of the best automotive events in the world, where a a bunch of auto enthusiasts drive their cars as fast as possible up a rich man’s driveway. Despite the main event being canceled for the first time ever due to strong winds, there were still cool cars to see all around. And not just cars. To mark the Goodwood Festival of Speed 2023, Roger Dubuis unveiled the Excalibur Spider Flyback Chronograph, a model inspired by supercar engineering and infused with what the brand calls hyper horology: bold, expressive and technical watchmaking.

Over the years Roger Dubuis has taken a lot of inspiration from the car world. And cars go hand in hand with chronographs, of which Roger Dubuis has had four variations so far - from the early Lemania-based ones to the more recent calibre RD580 and RD680. But for a while now RD has not offered a chronograph, making the new RD780 somewhat of a big deal if you are a fan of the brand. Especially since this is their first flyback chrono.

But but this is roger Dubuis we’re talking about, so of course the watch is way over the top, with completely exposed internals that become the design of the watch. The RD780 is a rare example of a dial-side chronograph mechanism. Its compelling, tri-dimensional and symmetric architecture reveals its intricacies to the wearer, in particular its column wheel or slightly tilted balance wheel. Reminding of strut bars, the centre bridge forms an additional automotive-inspired visual signature.

The Excalibur Spider is an even bolder version of the Excalibur case. The design has been slightly reworked for this new chronograph. The 45mm case is made of lightweight carbon with a ceramic bezel with red markings. It is extensively openworked starting with the trademark triple lugs. The large black DLC titanium crown features a red lacquered ring.

It’s also a very technical watch, with a column wheel and a vertical friction clutch that prevents the chronograph second hand jumping if cog teeth are engaged or disengaged. They also have two patents. The first is a system they call Second Braking System that aims at bringing extra stability to the chronograph seconds hand and decreasing flicker and the other is their minute display which uses three satellite hands bearing the 0,1and 2 ten digits rotate to allow you to read the units.

At the periphery of the movement, the two-level flange allows to read the different time indications. The first inner ring features the minute track and tachymeter. The second ring has screw-like hour markers rhodium plated and filled with SLN. The hour and minute hands’ tips are also filled with luminescent material while the chronograph second hand is red. It comes on a black notched rubber strap with a pattern inspired by tyre marks.

It’s a Roger Dubuis, so it’s definitely not a watch for everyone. But if you do like it, know that it will set you back CHF 91,200 (excl. taxes).

🫳On hand

Our selection of the best reviews we stumble upon

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Hands-on with the Ressence Type 1° Round in titanium

2/

A review of the new Tissot Sideral 

⚙️Watch Worthy

A look at an off beat, less known watch you might actually like

The Initium Kairos watchmaking kit makes a watch we assemble ourselves

The number of color, finishing, and style options for the case, dial, hands, straps, bracelets and even the movement (the latter can be black, anthracite, pink, golden rose, golden yellow, or rhodium-plated, meaning all the bridges and plates) is hardly matched by others. There is well and truly is an abundance of options and a very high chance that your configured watch will be a unique piece. Initium, again, provides some good examples of how others have used the configurator to create tasteful and exciting watches but otherwise leaves us completely to ourselves to create something that we like

⏲️Wait a minute

A bunch of links that might or might not have something to do with watches. One thing’s for sure - they’re interesting

• Mysterious flying objects. Claims of crashed alien spacecrafts. The U.S. has spent decades inquiring into the unknown—here's what they've learned.

• An excerpt from veteran game designer Greg Costikyan's book "Uncertainty in Games" focuses on one fascinating thing - the psychology of rock-paper-scisor and how you play it.

• You know I’m a sucker for a good opening line to an article. How’s this for one: “I’m sitting alone in a booth at an empty Pizza Hut just south of the Paoli town square. It’s 1:30 p.m. The “Nazis” are 30 minutes late.”

👀Watch this

One video you have to watch today

I’ve had this open in a tab for weeks now, so I’m not sure if already posted it. Even if I had, go watch it again. In October 2004, two cave divers and long-time friends, Don and Dave, dive in Boesmansgat, a mythical cave in South Africa. Dave was breaking a world record for depth. It would take them 15 minutes to reach the bottom, but 12 hours to surface. Once he touched bottom, against all odds, Dave finds a body. The two friends decide to come back and retrieve it. They call the parents, enroll 8 support divers, and hire a cameraman to document the historic dive in its entirety – from the preparation on the surface to the operation at the bottom of the cave. Little did they know that, from that dive, Dave would not be coming back.

💵Pre-loved precision

Buy and sell your watches. Think of this section like old school classifieds - i don’t guarantee anything except that a bunch of people will see your ad and I’ll put the buyer and seller in touch. Want to advertise your watch? Contact us 

• LOOKING TO BUY: One of our readers is looking to purchase three very specific watches: an Islander ISL-133 Mother of Pearl, a Sinn 556 Mother of Pearl or a Zelos 300m GMT Mosaic Mother of Pearl. If you’re selling any of these, reach out to us and we’ll put you in touch

• FOR SALE: Longines Heritage Skin Diver, box and papers. €1400. Reach out to us and we’ll put you in touch

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