Seiko Brings Back Its Denim Collab With A Black Seiko 5 SRPL37; The New Minimatik 39 Might Be The Best Nomos; Traska Shrinks Down The Commuter To 34mm; An Aspen-Themed Hublot; And An F1-Themed GP

Hey friends, welcome back to It’s About Time. It might fly under the radar with all the other releases, but I think that the 34mm Commuter could be a significant watch. I can’t tell you the number of women who reach out to me, asking for watch suggestions that aren’t pink and covered in diamonds. Now I have something to write back.

In this issue:

• Seiko Is Back Working With Amsterdam-Based Denim Shop Denham For Another Jeans Inspired Seiko 5

• The Newly Introduced Minimatik 39 Date Collection Might Be The Best Nomos You Can Buy Today

• Traska Shrinks Down The Ever-Popular Commuter Even Further

• Hublot Tips Its Hat To Rich People In Aspen With The Big Bang MECA-10 Aspen One

• Girard-Perregaux And Aston Martin Work Together On An F1-themed Laureato Absolute

👂What’s new

1/

Seiko Is Back Working With Amsterdam-Based Denim Shop Denham For Another Jeans Inspired Seiko 5

Just a few months ago, Seiko teamed up with Denham, an Amsterdam-based premium denim brand. I found it curious at the time because even though I lived in Amsterdam, I’ve never heard of the shop. It was a curious move from Seiko to start collaborating with lesser known pop-culture moments, something we’ve seen them do a couple of time since like in the case of Mooneyes, but I liked that watch a lot. While that SRPL35 took on a blue denim theme, this new SRPL37 is much darker to match your black jeans.

On the outside, it’s the Seiko 5 collection that we have known for some time now. It’s made out of stainless steel and measures 42.5mm wide, 13.4mm thick and has a 46mm lug-to-lug, just like the previous version. Only this one has a gunmetal grey coating that gives it a bit more scratch resistance. On top is a hardlex crystal surrounded by a black unidirectional rotating bezel with minute graduations for the first 20 minutes of the 60 minute scale. You have the 4 o’clock crown, as well as a exhibition caseback with the words “The truth is in the details”, Denham’s scissors logo printed on the glass and the xxxx/2,000 serial number. Water resistance is 100 meters.

The dial continues the denim theme, just like the previous one, but made to match black denim. It has a black base with a gilt-like dial. The indices are white with gold surrounds, and the triangular index at 12 o’clock features the Denham’s scissors logo. The hour and arrow minute hands have LumiBrite inserts and are gold colored, just like the seconds hand. There’s a white day/date aperture at 3 o’clock and the entire perimeter of the dial gets a dotted yellow track that mimics denim stitching.

Inside is the well known calibre 4R36 which beats at 3Hz and has a 41 hour power reserve. The watch comes on a 22mm wide olive green nylon strap with black hardware.

The new Seiko 5 x Denham SRPL35 is limited, but you know that means something else in the Seiko world — 2,000 pieces will be made and they go on sale in April. Price is the same as the previous edition — €450. See more on the Seiko website.

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The Newly Introduced Minimatik 39 Date Collection Might Be The Best Nomos You Can Buy Today

The claim I make in the title that this new Minimatik 39 Date just might be the best Nomos you can buy today will certainly be a controversial one, but hear me out. Nomos is a brand you will have to make a compromise with, and that’s part of the reason why we like them. You might have to go way smaller than you’re comfortable on the width to get a rational lug-to-lug measurement. But in return you get a cool in-house movement and impeccable minimalist design. The Nomos Minimatik was such a collection, that came only in a tiny size of 35.5mm. But with this new release, it seems that Nomos has made the perfect compromise. You still get the minimalism and the movement, while also getting a larger watch that keeps its signature thickness. This is the new Nomos Minimatik 39 Date collection.

The measurements of this new collection are really interesting. It measures 39.5mm wide with a lug-to-lug of 47mm. Sure, most wrists will be happiest with a 45mm L2L, but 47 is tiny in the Nomos world, especially with a 39.5mm width. But where the Minimatik is perfect is its thickness — just 7.5mm. On top is a domed sapphire crystal and out back you get a flat one. The case is made out of two parts with nicely sculpted lugs and a lot of polished surfaces. Water resistance won’t break records, but at 50 meters for such a dressy watch, it’s adequate.

The dials, and there’s three versions, look very much like the smaller originals. A dotted minute track sits on the outside of the dial, followed by even-numbered numerals and dots for the hour markers. At 6 o’clock is a running seconds subdial. All three versions have a gold framed date aperture at 3 o’clock. Your choices range from a white silver-plated dial with either gold-coloured or rhodium-plated hands, a dark blue version with rhodium-plated hands and a matching blue date disc.

Inside, you’ll find the in-house calibre DUW 4601, a relatively new movement for the brand. It’s based on the Peseux 7001 like the Alpha, but thoroughly modernized. You get a skeletonised balance cock, which lets you see the Nomos swing system, a proprietary escapement. Power reserve is updgraded from 43 to 52 hours and it beats at 21,600vph. The watches come on a black or brown Horween Genuine Shell Cordovan strap.

The new Minimatik 39 Date collection is available now, priced at €2,680. See more on the Nomos website.

3/

Traska Shrinks Down The Ever-Popular Commuter Even Further

Now that the watch shrinkage trend has established itself as a constant addition to a well balanced catalogue, there’s no need to be surprised with small watch releases from either side of the watch market spectrum. But an eyebrow will be raised even still if we get a watch that’s smaller than 35mm across. And that’s exactly what we have today from Traska. The indie watchmaker with a cult following and impeccable construction quality just unveiled their simplest watch collection, the Commuter in a very intriguing 34mm size, joining the existing 36mm and 38mm options.

If there’s one thing that Traska is know for in the modern indie world, then it’s the work they’ve done on developing their own proprietary hardening coat. The same applies on this model, as the 316L stainless steel gets a coat that bumps up the hardness rating to 1200HV. The case gets a brushed finish with polished chamfers and drilled lugs. It also comes in at an interesting size — 34mm wide, 8.75mm thick and with a 41.5mm lug-to-lug. It’s rare to see these measurements, but I have a theory they will be well received. But more on that later. On top is a box style sapphire crystal that looks delightfully retro. Water resistance is 100 meters.

The dials all share the same brushed surface, which is much more obvious on two of the colorways. There are four to choose from: Carbon Black, Arctic White, Faded Copper and the very cool Adriatic Blue. The black and white have a flat look, while the copper and blue have quite the shine to them. These are fairly minimalist dials, but what you have there is well done. The hand-applied hour markers are faceted and filled with Grade A BGW9 Super-LumiNova, the same lume you can find on the multi-faceted diamond-cut hands with a brushed finish.

Inside, you’ll find the find the Miyota 9039 automatic which beats at 4Hz and has a 42 hour power reserve. It’s also regulated in four positions for an accuracy of -10 to +20 seconds a day. The watches come on a 19mm wide stainless steel bracelet that tapers down to 15mm, with fully articulating links and a folding claps that features tool-less micro adjust.

The new Traska Commuter 34mm is on sale now at a price of €564 (that’s with my 25% VAT automatically calculated, I assume the number will be slightly different for you). This is as far away as a watch can get for my huge wrist, but I see a huge opportunity for Traska here. While there are certainly men with wrists this will fit perfectly, there’s whole market of women who are looking for well build, nicely designed classic watches that aren’t pink and slathered in diamonds. And this fills that whole in the market perfectly. See more on the Traska website.

4/

Hublot Tips Its Hat To Rich People In Aspen With The Big Bang MECA-10 Aspen One

Not to sound like a socialist-Debbie-downer, but Aspen, which has always been known as the most prestigious mountain resort in Colorado (in the U.S.?), seems to have been gutted of any semblance of spirit, replaced by the soulless simulacra of luxury fueled by venture capital interested only in the wrong things. From what I gather, Aspen has been taken over by Aspen One, the venture-vehicle organization that runs all of the winter sports and associated high-end hospitality in town. And of course, Aspen One has teamed up with Hublot to make an Aspen-themed watch, the Big Bang MECA-10 Aspen One. I’ll just start off saying that I like the watch. Hate the message.

As the name suggests, this is based on the Big Bang MECA-10, which means that it comes in a 45mm wide and 15.96mm thick black ceramic case that has a microblasted finish. On top is the round bezel with six H-shaped screws, made out of white ceramic that gets the same microblasted finish, giving you a much more matte rendition of ceramic. Which is cool. Water resistance is 100 meters.

The dial is completely gone, giving you full view of the movement. Around the peirmeter is a flange that holds the lumed hour markers, as well as the Aspen Leaf logo at 12 o’clock. You get wide skeletonized hands with lumed top halfs, and a small seconds at 9 o’clock. At 6, you’ll find a date function and the rest is all movement. At 3 you’ll see the barrel that gives the watch the logn power reserve, a balance wheel visible at 7 o’clock and the rack and pinion system at 12 o’clock.

Inside, you’ll find the manual-wound in-house HUB1205, which has pretty incredible finishings, including sating brushings on the parallel bridges and hand chamfering. The movement features regular stuff like a silicon escape wheel, and beats at a relatively standard 21,600 vph, but with an impressive 240 hours of power reserve. The watch comes with two straps — one in white calf leather, with black rubber lining, and the other in black rubber.

The new Hublot Big Bang MECA-10 Aspen One is a U.S. exclusive and priced at $27,400. See more on the Hublot website.

5/

Girard-Perregaux And Aston Martin Work Together On An F1-themed Laureato Absolute

The biggest story in the Formula 1 and watch crossover world this year has been the ousting of Rolex as the overall sponsor of the most prestigious race series in the world, replaced by Tag Heuer. But that doesn’t mean that we won’t be getting other F1 watch collaborations. And this latest release from Girard-Perregaux celebrates both the 75th anniversary of Formula 1 and the 50th anniversary of the Laureato with a collaboration with the Aston Martin Formula1 team. This is the new Girard-Perregaux Laureato Absolute Aston Martin F1 Edition

Based on the Absolute, the chunkier version of the already sporty Laureato, this watch comes in a matte sandblasted titanium case that measures 44mm wide and 14.65mm thick. On top is the expected octagonal integrated bezel, but the whole watch has a much more chunkier presence than the regular Laureato. On the side is a screw-down crown with a rubberized green ring for more grip. Water resistance is 300 meters.

The dial comes in Aston Martin’s Racing Green, which is an instantly recognizable color to anyone who follows F1. The dial has a rough texture with a sloping minutes flange on the periphery. The hour markers stand out from that flange pretty high up and are lumed. The hands are partially openworked and inspired by the front grille found on Aston Martin cars. You get bright yellow accents on the tips of the hour and minute hands, as well as on the seconds hand. The date sits at 6.

Inside, you’ll find the automatic GP03300 movement which beats at 4Hz and has a 46 hour power reserve. The watch comes on a green rubber strap with a fabric-like texture and black edges, closed with a titanium folding clasp with micro-adjustment.

The new Girard-Perregaux Laureato Absolute Aston Martin F1 Edition is limited to 88 pieces and available now. Price is set at CHF 13,700. See more on the Girard-Perregaux 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

• My dog Peggy’s DNA was tested: She is a sausage-shaped muddle of basset hound, spaniel, pit bull, and German Shepherd. I had no expectations for Peggy, I knew she was a mutt. But what if you have shelled out thousands for a specific breed? This is what investigative journalist Paul Morgan-Bentley faced with his dog, Eddie. While Eddie was supposedly a cavapoo, Morgan-Bentley’s suspicions grew—until a DNA test finally proved he had been duped.

• Exploiting incarcerated people is lucrative business. For The Lever, Katya Schwenk pulls back the curtain on Smart Communications, a prison technology company that has made millions charging incarcerated people and their families for basic communication. At the center of this story is Jon Logan, the company’s flashy CEO, who is now fighting to keep control of the business after his father’s death. Luxury cars, mansions, a superyacht called Convict, and wined-and-dined sheriffs — a legal war is exposing the big business of extracting profits from prisoners.

• Want to master the art of conversation? Just think of a brass nameplate in front of a white house from whose chimney a yellow work glove extends, holding an airplane with tennis rackets for propellers. No, you didn’t misread that sentence. For Harper’s, Lily Scherlis explores our alleged “soft skills” crisis, from its management-science roots to the $20 billion industry developed to soothe business leaders’ ongoing anxieties over an ill-defined set of abilities.

👀Watch this

One video you have to watch today

I’ve never owned a pair of calipers in my life and I recently came across a couple of incredibly beautiful analogue ones I would love to own. But then I remembered I don’t know how to use a pair, so here’s a great little rundown on how to use a pair of vernier calipers.

Thanks for reading,
Vuk