Orient’s Peanuts Collab Might Be The Classiest Snoopy Watches; Yema Brings Back Swiss Sellita; echo/neutra Teams Up With Ace; Elka’s New Watch Sends A Message Of Peace; And A Platinum Parmigiani

Hey friends, welcome back to It’s About Time. I very much like the lineup today, we have a little bit of everything and for every budget. That’s a good watch day. Also, I’m starting this occasional “first look” thing, where I get an early peek at new watches. It’s not a full review, just a more detailed writeup and a couple of exclusive photos. You can see the one for the echo/neutra & Ace Jewelers Averau 39 Moon Phase Noctilum here.

In this issue:

• Orient’s Latest Peanuts Collaboration Results In The Classiest Snoopy Watches

• Yema Brings Back Swiss Sellita Movements For A More Affordable Option

• echo/neutra Teams Up With Ace Jewelers For A Minimalist Take On Their Averau 39 Moon Phase

• Elka’s New Watch Sends A Message Of Peace With An Elvish Inspiration

• Parmigiani Introduces The End-Game Tonda PF In A Platnium Case

👂What’s new

1/

Orient’s Latest Peanuts Collaboration Results In The Classiest Snoopy Watches

The characters from the Peanuts cartoons are perhaps, along with Mickey Mouse, the most popular characters to ever appear on watches. On one side we have brands like Timex, Swatch and Undone that use the popularity of Snoopy to attract new customers. On the other, we have Omega, who has incorporated Snoopy not just for its pop culture appeal, but more for his link to the US space program in which Snoopy has been selected as a mascot. That said, I think what we have new today is perhaps the best execution of Snoopy on a watch — Orient, as part of their 75th anniversary celebration, has implemented the same illustration of Snoopy and Woodstock onto four very cool watches. I should not that for now we only have a Japanese release date and pricing, but people tell me this will be available worldwide.

First is the most obvious, the two Bambino watches. They come in the mid-size Bambino form factor which has a stainless steel case that measures a pretty decent 38.4mm wide, 12.5mm thick and with a 44mm lug-to-lug. On top is a domed crystal and out back you get a flat crystal that has a Orient 75th anniversary text and a drawing of a Peanuts design. There are two versions of the watch, differentiated by the dial color — RA-AC0M16S which gets a white dial and the RA-AC0M17G which gets a cream dial. While the dial features Snoopy snoozing with Woodstock above 6 o’clock, the rest is very much familiar with its sharp hands and applied hour markers. What is unusual and great to see are the old-timey Orient logo, Automatic text under the logo and Water Resistant text under Snoopy. Inside is the familiar in-house Caliber F6724 which beats at 3Hz and has a 40 hour power reserve. The white dial is limited to 7,650 pieces, while the cream dial to 2,900. Price for now is in Yen only, but converts to about €345.

Then, there’s the open-heart-dial model, featuring the same illustration of Snoopy and Woodstock, now positioned into the small seconds sub-dial which is cut into by the open heart piece of the dial. The stainless steel case measures 40.8mm wide, 10.8mm thick and has a lug-to-lug of 48mm. Again, on top is a domed crystal and out back is the Orient 75th anniversary text and a drawing of a Peanuts design. Inside is the caliber F6724 which has a 40 hour power reserve. The RA-AR0011S is limited to 1,800 pieces, priced at approximately €380 and you can see it here.

Last, we have the somewhat unexpected but still very cool. It’s the same Snoopy, but now on a white dial mated to the Mako Diver. The watch comes in a 39.9mm wide, 12.8mm wide case that has a 46.5mm lug-to-lug. This is Orient’s diver, so you also get 200 meters of water resistance. In addition to the same Snoopy and Woodstock illustration, as well as the retro inspired typefaces, you also get another image of Woodstock in the date wheel on the first of the month. Inside is the caliber F6722, also with a 40 hour power reserve. The RA-AC0Q08S is also a limited edition, with only 3,650 pieces made, priced at about €360. See more on the Orient website.

2/

Yema Brings Back Swiss Sellita Movements For A More Affordable Option

The French indie brand Yema had a lot of ups and downs. At one point in the 1960s, they were the bigger exporter in France with more than a 100.000 watches sold. They fell on hard times but have recovered. Well, almost. They also have this nasty reputation following them that they have quality control issues. And while that was certainly the issue probably 10 years ago, there haven’t been many significant reports of things going wrong. I assume that this newfound upswing stems from the fact that that Yema has done a hell of a lot to set up their own movement manufacture in France.

Up to this week, Yema used two levels of movements. We have the proprietary Yema2000 and Yema3000 calibres which were the ones that cause the initial issues but have since been updated and the manufacture made CMM.10, CMM.20 Micro-Rotor, and CMM.30 Tourbillon. Manufacturing your own movements, as it turns out, is not a cheap endeavor. Which is a shame as suddenly Yema models stoped being such great deals they were just a few years ago, with the CMM.10 equipped Superman priced at about €1,800 and the CMM.20 Micro-Rotor Superman at €2,500. Those are serious prices that caused quite a lot of uproar among Yema fans and hopeful future owners. Well, no worries. Yema has decided on a new direction for new watches — the higher end offering will still use the manufacture movements, but they will also offer a more affordable option. And to do that, they are turning to the tried and true Swiss movements from Sellita.

The first collection to get the Swiss movements is the Superman and it’s pretty much exactly what you expect. The stainless steel case, which is curiously polished — not something you see on a tool watch often — can be had in either a small or large size. The small one measures 39mm wide, 13.9mm thick and has a 47mm lug-to-lug. The large one keeps the same thickness but is 41mm wide and has a 49mm lug-to-lug. On top is the familiar unidirectional bezel with Yema’s patented bezel-lock mechanism which is incredibly cool but not really practical if you need to operate it near water. The bezel has an aluminum insert with a 60 minute scale. Water resistance is 300 meters.

There are four dial options — black, white, beige, and blue, with the last one getting a blue bezel insert and the rest having black inserts. The layout is very much familiar, with printed markers, a date window at 3 o’clock with a white background and the familiar hands which have a dramatic arrow tip on the minutes hand and what I’ve seen called a shovel-shaped seconds hadn.

Then, there’s the movement inside. It’s the very familiar, beloved and often used Sellita SW200-1. A continuation of the ETA 2824, it’s robust and easily servicable pretty much anywhere in the world. The movement beats at 4Hz and has a mediocre power reserve of 38 hours. The watches come on a five-link steel bracelet with a brushed and polished finish and a folding clasp with a diver’s extension.

The new Yema Superman Swiss Edition is available now and is not limited. Price is set at €1,190, which about how much you would expect to pay for a SW200 dive watch with 300 meters of water resistance these days. It’s also about €600 less than the manufacture movement equipped version. So, if you want a Superman and don’t care at all about the movement inside, Yema has an option for you as well. I assume more colors and variants/models with Swiss movements are coming soon. See more on the Yema website.

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Echo/neutra Teams Up With Ace Jewelers For A Minimalist Take On Their Averau 39 Moon Phase

I’m trying something new with this release. It’s the collaboration between the Italian indie watch brand echo/neutra and the Amsterdam-based retailer Ace Jewelers and I got a kind of exclusive on the release. While I still followed the embargo, I got a chance to write about it more in depth and you can check out more about the watch and a bunch more photos by clicking here. It’s not a full review, more of a first look writeup. But if you like to keep it brief, here are all the pertinent details of the new echo/neutra & Ace Jewelers Averau 39 Moon Phase Noctilum.

The collaboration hasn’t changed much on the outside. It’s still cuts a field-watch-like silhouette that measures 39mm wide, 13.5mm thick and has a 46mm lug-to-lug. On top is a domed sapphire crystal and it has a combination of brushed flat surfaces with highly polished facets and that shiny bezel on top. On the right side is an oversized screw-down knurled crown. Water resistance is 100 meters.

New is the dial, but you would need a keen eye to notice the differences, despite them being quite plentiful. The Ace collab keeps the black background and the contrasting white details, but rids the dial of everything unnecessary. Gone are the numerals, the illustrations on the two moonphase indicators and a lot of the writing. Even everything that has been filled in white is now just outlined in white, including the now skeletonized hands. I like the new look.

Inside, you’ll find the Sellita SW280-1 in its elaboré grade. That means it beats at 4Hz, has an approximate power reserve of 40 hours and is very well known as a solid movement. The watch comes on a black fabric strap, with an option of a black water buffalo leather strap or a three link steel bracelet.

The new echo/neutra & Ace Jewelers Averau 39 Moon Phase Noctilum is limited to 100 pieces and available now from Ace Jewelers or echo/neutra. Price is set at €890 on the fabric strap, €930 on leather and €960 on bracelet. Also, you can read the slightly longer writeup with more photos here.

4/

Elka’s New Watch Sends A Message Of Peace With An Elvish Inspiration

I’ve written about Elka many times over the past months. Mostly because I really, really like their watches. Elka was an old brand that went under, but was recently revived by the multi-talented Hakim El Kadiri. And I like their watches for their absolutely perfect execution of minimalism. Their watches are not more than a simple round case with short lugs and a very domed crystal, underneath which you will fina a perfectly domed dial and simple hands. However, along with that, Elka has been known to put out watches that send out messages to the world. Like, for example the Diversity collection they made with Ace Jewelers, which was presented as a box set of four watches with four types of numerals on the dial — Arabic, Easter Arabic, Hebrew and Chinese. Their latest release they are calling Timepeace, which includes not just a message of peace, but also reflect El Kadiri’s interest in numerology and, of all things, Elvish culture.

On the outside, this is the same Elka case we’ve seen before, with a very elegant case that sounds large at 40.8mm wide and 10.80mm thick, but thanks to nifty lug placement it measures just 46.5mm from lug-to-lug and sits very nicely on wrist. The case is made out of steel, but it has a 5N PVD coating which gives it a beautiful shade of bronze. On top is the now signature domed sapphire crystal and almost invisible bezel, making for a watch that’s really all dial. Water resistance is mediocre at best at 30 meters, but trust me, you won’t care.

It’s all about the dial. The base is very familiar, with a very deep blue color that has a gradient from dark on the outside to a lighter inside. However, there’s something obviously new here as well. The dial features an inscription in English in an Elvish calligraphy: "From the mountains to the oceans, may the language of peace echo through every soul." According to Elka, this phrase “poetically reinterprets the core message of human rights, capturing the essence of equality, dignity, and the interconnectedness of humanity” and serves as a constant reminder of values of peace and understanding. You also get gold colored leaf hands filled with lume.

Inside is the La Joux-Perret G100, which has proven to be somewhat loud, mostly due to its fast-turning rotor, but is a really nice alternative to the ETA 2824 clones. It has the same 4Hz beat rate, but offers a much, much better power reserve of 68 hours. The watch comes on a cognac leather strap.

I understand that this will be a niche watch, but from my experience there are not just plenty of people who will appreciate the message and the Elvish calligraphy, but they will also be interested in the numerology behind the watch, since it was released on February 22, or 2/22. I’m just not sure I’m not one of them, and that’s fine. This is a limited edition, only I can’t figure out how many are being built. I assume it will be 25, just like all the other Elka limited editions. Price is set at CHF 1,662. See more on the Elka website.

5/

Parmigiani Introduces The End-Game Tonda PF In A Platnium Case

It has always been the goal of Parmigiani Fleurier to try to make the best luxury sports watches. And they’re really good about it, making simple watches that just drip with cool. And while they make dress watches, I adore their Tonda PF integrated bracelet sports. It’s exactly what a luxury sports watch should be. And now, they released the best of the bunch — the Tonda PF made out of platinum, the Micro-Rotor Platinum Stone Blue.

On the outside, the watch looks exactly the same as the stainless steel version. Only, it’s made out of one of the toughest materials to use that has an incredible shine. The case measures 40mm wide and just 7.8mm thick. You still get the same dramatic knurled bezel and teardrop-shaped lugs. The case has a combination of brushed and polished surfaces, which just look amazing in platinum. Water resistance is 100 meters.

Now, Parmigiani has made platinum watches before. But those went wild with flying tourbillons and skeleton dials. This might be the ultimate sleeper sports watch because of the dial. It comes in a fully sandblasted surface, with a stone blue color. Hands and hour markers are rhodium plated gold and the design is completely familiar from earlier steel versions.

Inside is the caliber PF703, a micro-rotor movement that beats at 3Hz and has a 48 hour power reserve. The watch comes on a full platinum bracelet that has a pretty dramatic taper to the clasp, with the same brushed and polished finishes as the case.

Of course, the Parmigiani Tonda PF Micro-Rotor Platinum Stone Blue is a limited edition of 25 pieces and it is priced at CHF 85,000. See more on the Parmigiani website.

⏲️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

• Ten percent of stolen cars in the United States end up overseas. And one of the most robust pipelines for stolen vehicles is the US-to-western Africa pipeline—supplied, mainly, by teenagers. This is real life Grand Theft Auto.

• The Big Mac was the brainchild of Michael James “Jim” Delligatti, an early McDonald’s franchisee. For two years, he had to fight corporate headquarters to get permission to offer a Big Mac in his Uniondale, Pa. store, which he first did on April 22, 1967. Within a year, the Big Mac was on the menu of every McDonald’s store across America. This is how the Big Mac became the most iconic fast food menu item.

• In this feature for New Lines Magazine, Sean Williams and Kevin Knodell discuss how Mexico’s two largest organized crime organizations—the Sinaloa Cartel and the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generacion—have expanded meth and cocaine operations into New Zealand and Australia, exploiting the same currents and trade winds that Indigenous people across Oceania have sailed for centuries.

👀Watch this

One video you have to watch today

I love Adam Savage because he is obviously a prop nerd and has access to some pretty incredible pieces. Even better, he’s obsessed with Blade Runner. While I wasn’t a fan of BR 2049, there’s no denying that the props were incredibly cool.

Thanks for reading,
Vuk