Hamilton Updates The Skeleton Jazzmaster With 36mm Size, The Nude Blue Mido Commander Is The King Of Casual, Marnaut Introduces Affordable Dressy Tool Watch And New Porsche Design And RM Releases

Hey friends, welcome back to It’s About Time. I’m so glad to see the new Marnaut released. I’ve been wearing their Dark Surge 300 for a while now and it’s quickly become my daily driver. Safe Harbour looks to be even better. Even if it’s not 100% your taste, at least you can buy it, unlike the Porsche Design

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In this issue:

• Hamilton Gives The Jazzmaster Skeleton A Major Update With New, Better, Sizes And Wonderful Colors

• The Nude Blue Mido Commander Gradient Gets A Fantastic Transparent Blue Gradient Dial And Casual Denim Strap

• Porsche Design Won’t Let You Buy This New Chronograph 1 911 S/T Unless You First Buy The Newest 911 - Which You Also Can’t Buy

• Marnaut Expands Lineup Of Distinct-Dial Divers With A Dressy Tool Watch At An Unbeatable Price

• Richard Mille Releases New RM 65-01 Grey Quartz TPT Split-Seconds Chronograph

Today’s reading time: 9 minutes and 21 seconds

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👂What’s new

1/

Hamilton Gives The Jazzmaster Skeleton A Major Update With New, Better, Sizes And Wonderful Colors

Inevitably, when I write about a skeletonized watch, I will hear from people asking one thing: is there a more affordable skeletonized watch? They do tend to be on the more expensive side (for two obvious reasons: a skeletonized dial is more expensive to produce and it’s really worth it if you have a nice movement to show off, which is often more expensive to make). I usually have the same answer - there’s the Hamilton Jazzmaster Skeleton. It’s a slightly skeletonized watch that gives you a dip into that world, while still keeping costs low. Now they’re updating it with a new dial designs and colours, as well as a new 36mm size.

The cases look virtually identical in design to the previous editions of the Jazzmaster Skeleton, especially in the familiar 40mm size, but keeps the same look for the reduced 36mm, as well as the familiar sculpted lugs and sapphire crystals front and back. In the 36mm version the watch is 10.05mm thick and the 40 is 11.05mm.

But what’s more interesting are the new colors, some of which are a bold and welcomed. For example, the 36mm model gets a wonderful pink and an even better plum variant. The 40mm is a bit more boring with a dark blue and white. The openworked sections on both sizes are exactly alike, with bevelled edges all around to create an appealing finish. The difference in size between the 36mm and 40mm Jazzmaster Skeleton does mean that the proportions of the dial outside the cutouts are a bit different. This is most noticeable in the index at noon, which touches the opening over the balance wheel in the smaller of the two. Speaking of which, the indices are nickel-plated on all models except for the 40mm white dial, which gets rose-gold coloured indices. The same goes for the hands, which all get Super-LumiNova inserts for the hours and minutes by the way.

Inside the watch is the Calibre H-10-S, which is Hamilton’s skeletonized version of Swatch Group’s widespread Powermatic 80 movement. It has has an anti-magnetic Nivachron balance spring and 80 hours of power reserve.

Both sizes of the new Hamilton Jazzmaster Skeleton come with either a leather strap, plum or pink for the 36mm variant and blue or green for the 40mm size, or a stainless steel bracelet with a folding clasp. Prices range from EUR 1,245 for the smaller one on leather or EUR 1,295 for a steel bracelet to EUR 1,325 for the larger of the two on a leather strap or EUR 1,375 for the bracelet. See more on the Hamilton website.

2/

The Nude Blue Mido Commander Gradient Gets A Fantastic Transparent Blue Gradient Dial And Casual Denim Strap

Omega, Longines, Tissot, Hamilton and Blancpain dominate the Swatch Group lineup. They’re popular, some of them are exclusive and they make up the backbone of the company. However, there’s one brand in the portfolio that gets overlooked, and it’s a shame. Because Mido makes some of the best Swatch Group watches. Sure, they make some unremarkable and boing watches, but their Multifort TV Big Date oozes 70s cool, and the Ocean Star line is incredible. The Tribute is a great diver, the GMT might be the best looking one on the market for the price and the Decompression Worldtimer is just incredible.

Then there’s the Commadner line. It’s been in continuous production since 1959 but in 2020 got it’s best variation yet - a fully smoked acrylic dial that allows you to see inside the watch. This summer, the Commander Gradient reappears with a cool blue gradient dial and a casual denim strap.

Like earlier editions, the 50m water-resistant case measures 40mm wide and has a thickness of 10.84mm. The round stainless steel case has short brushed lugs and a sporty spirit but with moderate dimensions for everyday wear and tear. The applied rectangular diamond-polished indices have white Super-LumiNova inserts. Protected by a domed sapphire crystal, the blue-tinted acrylic dial reveals its gradient effect with a more transparent centre that becomes increasingly opaque as it reaches the perimeter. Peeking out from beneath the blue dial, you can see the brass gears of Mido’s calibre and the entire date wheel.

You also get to see the entire movement which is, to no surprise, Swatch Group’s Powermatic calibre 80. For improved chronometric performance, this version of the calibre 80 is also equipped with a high-tech Nivachron balance spring, making it more resistant to magnetic fields, shocks and variations in temperature. An elaboré grade movement adjusted in three positions, the rotor is decorated with Geneva stripes and the Mido logo.

The watch also comes on a very cool cotton denim strap with white top stitching. The watch is available now for a very nice price of EUR 930. See more on the Mido website. Make sure to also check out their other watches.

3/

Porsche Design Won’t Let You Buy This New Chronograph 1 911 S/T Unless You First Buy The Newest 911 - Which You Also Can’t Buy

Porsche just announced what might be the best modern Porsche of all time. Based on the most recent 992 line of the 911, the new 911 S/T takes the 518 horsepower from the GT3 RS, puts it into a aero-free GT3 Touring body and gives it a manual transmission, as well as a bunch of weight-saving treatments. However, since it’s Porsche, it is rarer than Unobtanium. Just 1,963 pieces, an homage to the debut year of the 911, will be made and, of course, they are all sold out.

Announced right alongside is a new version of the Porsche Design iconic Chronograph 1 called the, of course, 911 S/T. Actually, there will be two variations of the watch - the regular S/T and the S/T Heritage, but more on that later. There’s just one problem. The watch will also be made in 1,963 pieces and will be available for purchase only by owners of the 911 S/T. Despite the fact that none of us will own the watch or the car, it’s fun to check it out.

The watches take specific inspiration from the vintage 911 S/T 2.4, which was a The new Chronograph 1 has a 40.8mm bead-blasted titanium case and bracelet that is 15/15mm thick, and offers a 12-hour flyback chronograph, day and date, a quick-change system for the bracelet and the included leather strap (black for the S/T and brown for the S/T Heritage).

The watch gets a special dial inspired by the green gauges of vintage Porsche racing models and has a red "60" for the anniversary. Likewise, the rotor for the automatic movement looks like the wheel of a 911 S/T and can be customized to have the same finish as your own 911 S/T (again, the car). The "wheel" customization also includes the same center cap as the wheel on your car, be it an "S/T" logo for the S/T version or a historic Porsche logo for the Heritage version of the watch. The case back will also be engraved with the limited edition number for your car and watch.

From the dial side, the only way to tell the difference between an S/T or an S/T Heritage version of this watch is to take a close look at the tiny gear-shift diagram on every dial between the 1 and 2 markers. For the S/T spec, that design is done in silver over the matte black dial, while the S/T Heritage has the same diagram rendered in gold. Even the fonts used for the chronograph registers are pulled from that used for the gear-shift diagram.

Inside the case is Porsche Design's WERK 01.240 automatic and COSC-certified flyback chronograph movement. It's a proprietary movement design that is manufactured by Concepto in a configuration that is exclusive to Porsche Design. It has 48 hours of power reserve, a full 12-hour flyback chronograph, and a rate of 4 Hz.

Like I said, the watch is limited to 1,963 pieces and you can’t have one if you don’t buy the car. The watch will set you back $13,500 while the car starts at almost $300,000. See more on the PD website.

4/ 

Marnaut Expands Lineup Of Distinct-Dial Divers With A Dressy Tool Watch At An Unbeatable Price

A month or two ago I wrote about Marnaut, a microbrand from Croatia. I usually don’t bring up where brands are based, but this one has an interesting story. First of all, It’s About Time is also based in Croatia, so it’s great to see watches being made here. Second, Croatia is best known for it’s tourism, and not manufacturing. So to have a Croatian-based watchmaker is a big deal. However, since we don’t have much of a manufacturing industry, the watches aren’t actually made here. Marnaut watches are designed in Croatia, built with Swiss parts and they are assembled in Pforzheim, a German city nicknamed “Goldstatd”, or “Golden City”, for its history in jewellery and watch production where brands like Laco and Stowa were started. And boy are they great watches.

Marnaut already has two amazing watches - the super capable Dark Surge 300 diver that’s water resistant to 300 meters and the compressor-style Seascape 200. They’re so great that the Dark Surge has become a daily watch for me. I haven’t taken it off in months. A couple of months ago they teased a new model and it’s finally here - the Safe Harbour 100. With the lowest depth rating of the three (still 100 meters), Marnaut positions this watch as a “dress tool watch” which it surely is.

The Safe Harbour 100 has a C-Case shape and measures 39mm wide, 45mm lug to lug and including the domed crystal it’s 13.2mm thick, made out of brushed stainless steel. The softer case features balance out the sportier dial, Double-O ring crown and 100 meters of water resistance. It comes with a black or white dial that have a lacquer finish and shimmer in the light. But you might notice that the dial is not just white or black. You will notice that the dial has 34 dots on it. These are metal indices that are drilled through the dial and serve to mimic the look of a sea urchin exoskeleton which we grew up diving out of the Adriatic. It’s impossible to appreciate how amazing this touch looks just through photos - when you see the sun hitting the indices and creating shadows on the dial, you see that this was an amazing design choice. The dial, like other Marnaut watches, also has coordinates printed at 6 o’clock, this time of Split harbour.

Inside the watch is the Sellita caliber SW200, a very familiar movement that is well made and surprisingly accurate from my experience. It has 26 jewels, beats at 28,800bph, has a 41-hour plus reserve and hacking seconds. Marnaut also provides a 2 year warranty, so there should be no worries with reliability. The watch comes on an Italian leather strap.

One of the best parts of the Safe Harbour 100 is the price. For EUR 549, you are unlikely to find many watches that will beat it. See more on the Marnaut website and if you do get one, tell them I sent you. I don’t get a kickback, but it’s nice to know you guys support Croatian watchmaking 😄 

5/ 

Richard Mille Releases New RM 65-01 Grey Quartz TPT Split-Seconds Chronograph

Hey, look who it is! It’s Richard Mille! Despite pushing their way into the top 5 of Swiss watch brands by revenue, ahead the likes of Longines, IWC, Breitling and Vacheron Constantin, it seems like they haven’t been in the spotlight for some time. The last watch I remember them releasing is a ladies RM 07-04 way back in February or March. Alas, now they’re back with the RM 65-01 Grey Quartz TPT Split-Seconds Chronograph in grey, yellow, red and blue.

While the new watch has distinct aesthetic similarities to previous editions of the RM 65-01, there are a few significant differences. Perhaps the most significant difference is the change from a Carbon TPT case to a Quartz TPT case. On a technical level, Quartz TPT is pretty similar to its carbon equivalent, sharing properties such as being light, strong, scratch resistant and durable. However, unlike carbon which is predominantly black or very dark grey, Quartz TPT can be produced in virtually any colour relatively easily. For the RM 65-01 they’ve gone for a very light grey which serves as a great backdrop for all the other bright colors.

Each of the three get’s its own distinct usage. The yellow shows up on the ring of the crown, the peripheral minute track, function selection indicator in the bottom right corner and rapid winding pusher. The blue is on the Arabic hour numerals, small seconds subdial at 6 o’clock, oversize date in the top left corner, a secondary crown ring and the central hour and minute hands. The red shows up as a contrast with black elements. It’s used for the 30-minute timer, 12-hour timer, the tip of the central chronograph seconds hands, a ring around the top of the flange and the lettering on the external pushers.

The watch is powered by RM’s Calibre RMAC4, a skeletonised, automatic movement with a split-seconds chronograph function.

Love them or hate them, you have to admit that Richard Mille is the best at what they do. And what they do are super advanced, extremely wild watches that cost an arm and a let. So does this one. It will set you back $353,000. No wonder they’re in the top 5 manufacturers by revenue. See more on the RM website.

🫳On hand

Our selection of the best reviews we stumble upon

1/

Hands on with the Omega Seamaster Diver 300M 75th anniversary edition Summer Blue

2/

A video review of the Reverse Panda TAG Heuer Carrera Glassbox Chronograph 39mm

3/

Hands-On With The Black Lacquer Cartier Santos-Dumont

⚙️Watch Worthy

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

HYT Moonrunner is really where you’ll see the type of innovation that HYT is known for

Most of the dial is crafted in matte surfaces and a lot of anodized aluminum. Indeed, there is a degree of glare from the crystal, but the mostly non-reflective display of the HYT Moonrunner is a real benefit to its overall design and makes it feel more like a futuristic instrument and less like another luxury wearable that tries too hard to attract attention via shiny surfaces. Viewers tend to like the look of concentric rings, and the Moonrunner’s display does this, perfecting not only using rings within rings to create the dial but also creating a pyramid effect with a high level of depth. This is a dial that your eyes just really like to explore and investigate.

⏲️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

• Last October, the Bolt Creek Fire helped give Seattle the worst air quality in the world. While the fast-moving blaze destroyed thousands of acres, no human lives were lost. But two very nearly were. Matt Bishop and Steve Cooper escaped certain death; this is the story of how.

• As a kid - and I do mean kid, probably six or seven years old - I was weirdly fascinated with The Fugitive. Not the Harrison Ford movie, but rather the 60s TV show. Yeah, I was a strange kid, but so is my dad who introduced me to the show. But as a fan of the show, I also appreciated the Harrison Ford movie, so check out this oral history of how the movie came to be.

• Inconsistent potency makes doing fentanyl—already up to 50 times stronger than heroine—like playing a game of Russian roulette. Will you get the dose you can tolerate or will you take the hit that leads to overdose? For Esquire, Jack Holmes reports from Portland in Oregon, a state which decriminalized drug possession via Measure 110 in an attempt to treat drug abuse as a behavioural-health disorder.

👀Watch this

One video you have to watch today

I just briefly mentioned the new 911 ST in the Porsche Design first look above. this seems to be the ultimate modern Porsche to have, if only you could have bought one, so why not give this video that goes deep on why this car is so special a view.

💵Pre-loved precision

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• 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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