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  • Longines Gives HydroConquest A GMT In Awesome Colors, Hamilton Releases Four New Titanium Khaki Fields With New Bracelets, Zodiac Plays With Bronze, Union Glashütte Goes Vintage Racing And Blancpain Has Colors

Longines Gives HydroConquest A GMT In Awesome Colors, Hamilton Releases Four New Titanium Khaki Fields With New Bracelets, Zodiac Plays With Bronze, Union Glashütte Goes Vintage Racing And Blancpain Has Colors

Longines is on a tear, there's no denying it

Hey friends, welcome back to It’s About Time. I would love to hear your thoughts on my theory that Swatch is pushing Longines into the space Omega used to occupy?

I also have an ask for my dear readers. If, by chance, you have experience in ad sales and would like to work together, reach out 😀 

Want to win a Longines Spirit Zulu Time? Invite your friends or fill out the survey to enter right now.

In this issue:

  • Longines Redesigns HydroConquest With New GMT Collection, A First For The Watch, And Beautiful Green, Brown, Creamy Colorways

  • Hamilton Releases Four New Khaki Field Titanium Watches With Brand-New Bracelets

  • Zodiac Continues 70th Anniversary Celebration With Limited Edition Super Sea Wolf Skin Diver Made With Huckberry

  • The New Union Glashütte Noramis Chronograph Limited Edition Sachsen Classic 2023 Is A Classic Car Inspired Retro Chronograph

  • Blancpain Expands The Ladybird Collection With A Whole Rainbow Of Colors

Today’s reading time: 7 minutes and 35 seconds

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You people LOVE our giveaways. So here’s a new one - we’re giving away a Longines Spirit Zulu Time! We have a ticketing system, and here are the ways you can enter:

  • You will get a ticker if you are a current subscriber

  • A ticket goes to whoever fills out this poll so I know what you think about the newsletter

  • A ticket will be awarded to whoever refers a new subscriber. So, invite as many friends as you want. Just click this button:

👂What’s new

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I’ll say it again, for the few of you who have not heard it yet - Longines has the most complete affordable lineup of any watchmaker. Whether you want a dress watch or a sports watch, a GMT or chronograph, a diver or a (very different) pilot’s watch and, unlike so many, a whole slew of ladies watches, Longines has you covered. And they do it all by banking on their immense heritage, use of color and relatively low prices. Now they’re expanding their HydroConquest collection, introduced in 2007 as Longines' modern dive watch (as compared to its heritage-inspired models like the Legend Diver or Skin Diver), with a dive-GMT. It's another fantastic addition to Longines' growing selection of solid GMT watches below $3,000.

The new HydroConquest GMT measures 41mm wide and 12.9mm thick. That thickness is particularly interesting since the HydroConquest is a full millimeter thinner than the 42mm Zulu Time, their other popular GMT watch. While Longines doesn’t specify the lug-to-lug on the new HydroConquest GMT, on the regular version it’s 50mm, so expect about the same. The stainless steel case has 300 meters of water resistance and is complete with a unidirectional ceramic bezel.

Longines has gone all out on the colors for this watch (like they do on so many of their pieces). It has four dial options, all with a sunray finish. The four colors are styled to give a more modern feel (blue or black, complete with rubber strap option and silver dial finishing), or a vintage vibe (brown or green, with NATO-style strap and gilt dial finishings). The hour hands are finished with a gilt or silver and Super-LumiNova, and a 24-hour scale sits on the outer track. While the dial color determines whether you can get it on a rubber or NATO strap, you can get all of them on a bracelet. Both the bracelet and rubber strap will feature a micro-adjusting clasp.

Inside is the L844.5, an ETA-based Longines movement with a 72-hour power reserve and silicon balance spring. It's a new movement from Longines, and like the caliber L844.4 in the Spirit Zulu Time, features an independently-adjustable local hour hand, also known as the flyer GMT.

The best thing about the watch, like so many Longines’, is the price. On a stainless steel bracelet or rubber strap it is $2,775, or $2,675 on the NATO-style strap. You get so much watch for the money here. See more on the Longines website.

As I’m typing this, and thinking about a guy I just met who told me about his HydroConquest he bought just six years ago for EUR 1,000, it seems to me that the tactic the Swatch Group is using with Longines is genius for them, less so for users - my theory is that they are pushing Longines upmarket and will start increasing prices with the intention of Longines taking the place of Omega, as Omega moves further upmarket in price. So, we will get amazing watches from Longines, but at an ever increasing price.

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The Hamilton Khaki Field is a daily wearer for hundreds of thousands of people. It’s an iconic watch that has so successfully joined a classic field watch look with a rugged and affordable package. It comes in so many variants of sizes, materials and movements that it’s impossible to keep track of them. Now Hamilton is introducing two new versions of the Khaki Field in two sizes and made out of titanium with brand new titanium bracelets, so let’s check it out.

The watches come in two familiar sizes - 42mm and 38mm, just like previous Field automatics, and are about 11.5mm thick. The first is a version with a fully brushed titanium case and a blue dial. This dial features two shades of blue with a lighter center and a darker perimeter. The hands and arabic numerals get a greenish lume and you get a large minute track and 24 hour scale. The second version is also made out of titanium, but with a black PVD coat. The dial is black with the hour markers printed on a concentrically textured section. The tip of the seconds hand and the numerals in the minute track are painted a pale orange.

Inside the watch is the H-10 caliber, Hamilton’s version of the Swatch Group’s Powermatic 80. Based on the architecture of the ETA 2824, this version comes with a lower beat rate and a higher power reserve of 80 hours. You can see it through the transparent case back, but the movement is not much to look at.

While the watches are an evolution of the Khaki FIeld, the bracelets they come on are brand new. They are very simple three-row bracelets, but they now come with a sleeker look by dripping the two-piece center links of the steel bracelets and have a taper towards the clasp, making them look almost like an oyster-style bracelet. The clasp has milled components and a double push-button release mechanism, as well as three micro-adjustment positions. Unfortunately, they are not adjustable without tools.

The 42mm version in brushed titanium 42mm comes in at CHF 1,145. Its 38mm counterpart is priced at CHF 1,075. For the PVD models, that is CHF 1,240 and CHF 1,170 respectively. I have to say, I love that bracelet, but I’m more surprised as to how much I like the PVD version, as I strongly dislike most black watches. It’s something about that dial that makes it look special. See more for yourself on the Hamilton website.

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Zodiac is the champ of milking a watch platform for whatever it’s worth. And I truly don’t mean this in a bad way. It’s fantastic what they have been able to do with the Sea Wolf and it’s variants - I dare you to find a brand that has better use of color than Zodiac. Now they’re doing it again, all in honor of the 70th anniversary of their skin diver, the Sea Wolf. This new version is done in partnership with Huckberry, the online retailer, and is an homage to the original version of the Sea Wolf from 1953 with subtle bronze accents.

Skin divers are, in the opinion of many, the perfect diver. They still offer you enough toughness to be used everyday, especially near the water, while being smaller, lighter and easier to wear than full-fledged dive watches. And Zodiac is using this advantage to it’s full potential. Falling in line with the historic skin diver, the steel case of the Super Sea Wolf Bronze measures 39mm wide and 12.6mm thick. Water resistance is 200 meters, and the watch is powered by the STP 1-11 automatic caliber with a 44 hour power reserve.

For a second you might think this is a bronze watch. It’s not, but it looks like one because the whole front of the watch is taken by a large bronze rotating dive bezel. I assume this will look amazing as it ages and bronze is very appropriate for a dive watch. The dial is characterized by Zodiac’s triangular, shark tooth hour markers, rendered in white against a matte black backdrop with a subtle texture. The dauphine hands are lume filled and the second hand is orange tipped.

The Super Sea Wolf Bronze comes on a rubber strap, as well as a distressed camel leather strap that looks absolutely gorgeous on it. Sure a diver is not meant to be worn on leather, but just look at it! The watch is still available now despite being limited to just 102 pieces. So if you want one, act fast. It retails for $1,895. See more on the Zodiac website.

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The Sachsen Classic in Saxony is an incredible event. I haven’t had the opportunity to visit, but I have seen many reports from there and the photo/video material you see is incredible. It’s not as famous as a classic rally as some others in Europe that attract multi-million euros worth of cars, but you will see incredibly rare vintage stuff that you didn’t even know existed. And the Sachsen Classic has been linked to Union Glashütte for years now. Now, to mark the 20th anniversary of the rally, Union Glashütte presents the limited edition Noramis Chronograph – a watch that emanates a delightful retro feel.

The Noramis Chronograph Limited Edition Sachsen Classic 2023 has a stainless steel case that’s 42mm wide, 14.45mm thick, and 50.05mm lug-to-lug, with a lug width of 22mm. It’s an all-around vintage affair, with mushroom pushers, a domed sapphire crystal and a brown dial with black and chrome highlights. The black and chrome oblong shape on the dial connects the 30-minute totaliser at 3 o’clock with the small date window at 9 o’clock and looks like a fender vent on a vintage car. The hour and minute hands get Super-Luminova, while the central chronograph hand and the minute counter’s small hand have a white lacquer finish.

Inside the watch is the self-winding UNG-27.S2 chronograph movement beating at a frequency of 28,800vph, and a power reserve of approximately 60 hours. Based on a modified Valjoux 7750, this calibre is equipped with a silicon balance spring for enhanced longevity, precision, and resistance to magnetic fields. This limited edition comes with two straps, an elegant cognac-coloured calfskin strap and a sportier black calfskin strap with large holes.

This will be a limited edition release of 350 pieces and priced at EUR 3,600, which is not a horrible price to pay for such a watch. See more on the Union Glashütte website.

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Hi ladies! I know there are a few of you reading and I’m always glad when brands decide to update their female-oriented watches. And by that I don’t mean the great shrinking of watches that is creating fantastic unisex pieces. I mean watches like the Blancpain Ladybird collection. Blancpain is now introducing the Ladybird Colors featuring colorful hour-markers that span the entire spectrum of hues.

The Ladybird Colors comes in a 34.9mm wide and 9.2mm thick white gold case set with 59 diamonds, totaling 2 carats and it’s powered by the Calibre 1162, an automatic movement with a surprisingly long power reserve of 100 hours and a silicon balance spring for enhanced accuracy.

The dial of this feminine model is fashioned from mother-of-pearl which is cool by itself. But if you wanted more glimmer from the dial, Blancpain includes 70 diamonds on it. Positioned asymmetrically in the lower half, the small-seconds subdial visually balances the larger-sized hour markers in the upper half. The rainbow-colored hour markers are printed, which is a difficult task on mother-of-pearl and each of the shades has to be printed at least five times to achieve greater depth.

The colorful palette is complemented by a set of five alligator leather straps, that come in unexpected shades: lemon sorbet yellow, raspberry pink, apple green, midnight blue, and white. Each strap is equipped with a quick-change system and is available with either a pin buckle or folding clasp, depending on the wearer’s preference.

The range of Blancpain Ladybird Colours is available now and priced at EUR 35,950. You can learn more from the Blancpain website.

🫳On hand

Our selection of the best reviews we stumble upon

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⚙️Watch Worthy

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

While the Le Jour Rally Monte-Carlo isn’t a perfect watch, it does sell itself well thanks to a lot of personality and a welcome, bold-wearing experience. Those benefits help make up for the two principal drawbacks of the LJ-RMC collection, which are the top-heavy case and the sharper edges on the steel bracelet links. Even though the polished and brushed steel Rally Monte-Carlo case has a lot of sharp-looking edges, it is actually not as sharp as it looks.

⏲️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

  • As every single imaginable journalism outlet covers hip-hop’s 50-year legacy this week - the culture “officially” kicked off with a Bronx block party on August 11 - Danyel Smith from the New York Times drops the mic with this haunting, sober, even life-affirming elegy for its many casualties.

  • Online reviews are changing the publishing industry. But since it’s the internet, of course it’s not what you would expect. Turns out, authors are at the mercy of anonymous reviewers who often critique books on the popular Goodreads website without ever even seeing the book, let alone reading it. Why? Well, you’ll have to read this piece in the Atlantic to find out.

  • Speaking of things people didn’t see, how about this crazy story about the biggest scam in reality TV. In the 2000s, contestants were asked to leave their jobs, homes and lives behind… for a TV show and prize that didn’t exist

👀Watch this

One video you have to watch today

This video has been out for three days and it’s making waves in the watch world for two reasons. First, it reminds everyone of how great Hodinkee used to be, especially when Ben Clymer was firing on all cylinders with the Talking Watches series. Second, the ubersleuth Perezcope has destroyed Adam Levine on Instagram. Looks like his Paul Newman Daytona Ref. 6263 has a fake bezel, highly likely fake pushers and a suspected relumed dial

💵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 

Want to sell your watch to a community of passionate horologists? Reach out to us and we’ll put your ad up. $15 per listing without photos, $25 with photos. 10 available slots per day, discounts for multiple slots.

You people LOVE our giveaways. So here’s a new one - we’re giving away a Longines Spirit Zulu Time! We have a ticketing system, and here are the ways you can enter:

  • You will get a ticker if you are a current subscriber

  • A ticket goes to whoever fills out this poll so I know what you think about the newsletter

  • A ticket will be awarded to whoever refers a new subscriber. So, invite as many friends as you want. Just click this button:

Winner will be drawn by chance, the only other condition to win is to live somewhere were I can buy the Longines online so we can ship it to you and avoid issues with customs and shipping from Croatia.

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