Seiko Updates Cocktail Time With Moody Dials In Two Sizes; Bell & Ross' High-Tech Racing Watch; CWC Updates Their Legendary Chrono; New Ace Jewelers Collab With Ikepod; New AP Carbon Concept

Hey friends, welcome back to It’s About Time. I’m back from vacation and I’ll say that I preferred sitting by the sea sipping icy beers to doing laundry, cooking and running errands. But hey, at least I can write about watches again, which is good.

In this issue:

• Seiko Updates Super Popular Presage Cocktail Time With Tokyo Nightime Drink Inspired Dials And Two Sizes

• Bell & Ross Introduces The Track Ready BR-X5 Racing With Some High-Tech Materials

• CWC Updates The Legendary 6BB-WR Chronograph With 100 Meters Of Water Resistance

• Ikepod Teams Up With Ace Jewelers, Street Artist 3.14 And Designer ABC For A Limited Edition Megapod

• Audemars Piguet Introduces Forged Carbon Royal Oak Concept Split-Seconds Chronograph GMT Large Date

Today’s reading time: 8 minutes and 23 seconds

👂What’s new

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Seiko Updates Super Popular Presage Cocktail Time With Tokyo Nightime Drink Inspired Dials And Two Sizes

There’s a lot of talk about Seiko lately that could be described as not as complimentary. Prices have shot up, and some models seem to be loosing features, which is extremely rare in the watch business. However, despite it’s somewhat clumsy size, the mineral glass and objectionable bracelet, the Seiko Presage Cocktail Time remains one of their best watches, mostly because of the spectacular dials the line comes with. They really shoot way above their price point. Now, they’re expanding the part of the Cocktail Time collection that Seiko is releasing with the Star Bar in the Ginza neighbourhood of Tokyo, with two new references, the SRPK93 and SRE015, in two sizes and with moody dials.

The larger of the two, the SRPK93, comes in the 40.5mm wide, 11.8mm thick and well known polished stainless steel case. It has the oversized crown, the point-ish lugs and the same box-shaped Hardlex crystal on top, with a thin polished bezel. The base of the dial is a dark grey color that receives a heavily scratched texture which seemingly reveals various shades of grey. There’s also a slight gradient to the dial which, in combination with the gold colored hands and indices, creates an illusion of more color than is actually present. Inside the watch is the 4R35 calibre, which beats at 3Hz and has a 41 hour power reserve. The watch comes on a stainless steel bracelet that closes with a folding clasp. The new Presage Cocktail Time is limited, but limited to a whopping 9,000 pieces, goes on sale on October 1st and sells for €560. See more on the Seiko website.

Then, there’s the smaller SRE015. It comes in a much smaller case, one that measures just 30.3mm wide and 10.9mm thick. You get the same polished finish, same crystal and crown, as well as the same bracelet, only a bit smaller. But the bit change comes on the dial — the color and details remain the same — but the edge fooo which has been cut with multiple facets to create the effect of a diamond-like pattern. I’ve seen some people say this looks like a diamond-studded bezel, but I will say that it looks identical to the edge of a bottle cap. Inside, a smaller movement, the 2R05, also beating at 3Hz and with a 40 hour power reserve. This watch is also limited, albeit to 6,000 pieces and priced at €660. See more on the Seiko website.

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Bell & Ross Introduces The Track Ready BR-X5 Racing With Some High-Tech Materials

Despite being best known for their aviation-inspired instrument-like watches, Bell & Ross does have a significant link with racing. After all, they pulled off something that I always found very fascinating for such an objectively small watch brand. They were a significant sponsor for the Alpine Team in the pinnacle of motorsports, Formula 1. A sport in which sponsorships must run at least into the millions, the relatively humble Bell & Ross was front and center on the racing suits and cars of the Alpine team. Things have changed out a bit recently, with H. Moser & Cie. taking over as the watch sponsor for Alpine, but Bell & Ross is not giving up on their racing and motorsports themed watches, the latest of which is the Bell & Ross BR-X5 Racing, with a bunch of advanced materials.

The BR-X5 Racing comes in a three-part case that has two parts of grade 2 micro-blasted titanium on top and bottom and a black DLC titanium monobloc container housing the movement and integrating the crown guards in the middle. The whole case measures 41mm wide and 12.8mm thick, with sapphire crystals on top and bottom. Surrounding the crystal is a rounded square bezel, made out of titanium, and with a woven carbon plate serving as an insert with no markings. Water resistance is 100 meters.

The dial is as sporty as the case. It is partially skeletonized, covered with a smoked crystal, with a sloping flange that holds the numerals for the checkered-flag themed seconds track. The base crystal gets large Arabic numerals, interrupted at 3 o’clock for the date window that displays three dates, and a power reserve indicator at 9 o’clock.

Inside the watch is the BR-CAL.323, which is the first movement that Bell & Ross developed with Kenissi. It uses the same base as movements from Tudor, meaning that it’s COSC certified, beats at 28,800vph and has a 70 hour power reserve. The watch can be had on a rubber strap or a titanium bracelet.

The Bell & Ross BR-X5 Racing is for sale now, limited to just 500 pieces, and priced quite aggressively at €10,900 on rubber and €11,900 on the titanium bracelet. See more on the Bell & Ross website.

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CWC Updates The Legendary 6BB-WR Chronograph With 100 Meters Of Water Resistance

Very few brands are as tool-oriented as CWC. Look at their catalogue and you’ll find a bunch of rugged and intentional dive, field and pilot’s watches that offer great value for money. They make such ubiquitous watches that there are very few updates to their model lines, with years passing in between changes. And even then, the changes are tiny. So, it took Fratello reviewing the new 6BB-WR for me to noticed that CWC released an update to their Chronograph, not a model they are known from. The watch actually came out in July, but I figure it’s still worth mentioning.

Based on a chronograph first made in the mid 1970s on spec from the Royal Navy, this watch continues in the same vein, changing the look very little, only updating it for more modern times. Sure, it’s grown in size from 39mm to 42mm wide, 14.9mm thick and with a 49mm lug-to-lug, while retaining the asymmetric look that serves as the pusher and crown guards. The original plexiglass is updated for a sapphire crystal, and this latest update, the one that adds the WR signifier to the model name, is all about water resistance. You get a screw-down crown and a screw-in case back, which gets you 100 meters of water resistance, something that was not that common on non-screw-down pusher equipped chronographs a decade or so ago. Especially not in the 1970s when the form of the 6BB was first made.

The dial meshes traditional chronograph and pilot’s watches quire well, with a simple bi-compax setup. You can get the watch with either a black or white dial, with a nod to it’s military heritage in the form of a broad arrow. The dial features the pre-1982 CWC logo, oversized 12 and 6 Arabic numerals and smaller ones on the other hours.

Inside is the very familiar and very well made Sellita SW510 BH b which beats at 4Hz. You get about 60 hours of power reserve out of it and CWC say that they regulate the movement for better precision, but I couldn’t find what their claimed range was. The watch comes on a grey nato strap with 20mm wide lugs, allowing for a lot of straps to be used.

The new CWC 6BB-WR can be ordered now and is priced at £1,875, which would put it in the €2,200 range converted. See more on the CWC website.

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Ikepod Teams Up With Ace Jewelers, Street Artist Laser 3.14 And Designer ABC For A Limited Edition Megapod

Did I every tell you how much I like Ikepod watches? This watch brand was started by briliant designed Marc Newson and entrepreneur Oliver Ike and it came to mark the age of pre-Y2K design, leaving a strong imprint on the likes of Jony Ive and all the work he has done with Apple. I loved their iconic pebble-like design. What I hate about them is the fact that they constantly go out of business. Now, on their third iteration, they seem to be doing good and I hope they live a long and healthy life. What makes me super optimistic is the fact that they have just teamed up with my favourite retailer Ace Jewelers out of Amsterdam who have done some pretty spectacular collaborations already. For this Megapod “This Is Our Time”, Ikepod and Ace have brought in Amsterdam-based street artist Laser 3.14 and designer ABC for a watch that is very different from everything else on the market, but perfect for a very small group of people whose interests will overlap in this collaboration.

Based on the Ikepod Medapod, this watch comes in a hefty 46mm wide stainless steel case with a sapphire crystal that forms a continuous curve with the brushed case. There are no lugs as the strap attaches directly to the case. Despite the crazy look, expect 50 meters of water resistance. This watch stays perfectly true to Newson’s original design and that’s what I like most about it.

The collaboration aspect comes from the dial, which is quite a statement piece. A black base is scribbled on with red paint, reading “This is our time” You might frown on this without much context, but for people from Amsterdam it should be instantly recognisable. It’s the iconic work of never-identified Amsterdam-based street artist that goes under the name Laser 3.14 and is best known for his existential and poetic questions and statements left all over the city. Laser’s tag is also present, but at 12 o’clock on the crystal, overlapping the Ikepod logo.

Inside is the Miyota 9039 movement, the Japanese alternative to the ubiquitous Sellita SW200 and the ETA 2824 and it beats at 4Hz and has a 42 hour power reserve, four more than the Sellita and ETA. The watch comes on a black silicone strap.

The Ikepod x Ace Jewelers x Laser 3.14 x ABC Megapod This Is Our Time is limited to just 30 pieces, which makes perfect sense as I assume this will be most bought in the Netherlands, and priced at €1,400, tax included. See more on the Ace Jewelers website.

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Audemars Piguet Introduces Forged Carbon Royal Oak Concept Split-Seconds Chronograph GMT Large Date

Colored carbon fiber is hardly a new thing and yet, every time I see it I remember that carbon can actually look cool. If only people didn’t insist on making it look like cheap AliExpress stickers. The latest use of colored carbon, following brands like Richard Mille and Hublot, comes from Audemars Piguet and their latest Royal Oak Concept Split-Seconds Chronograph GMT Large Date, a part of the Concept line that they have always used to show off what kind of tech they can cram into their watches.

And boy, there’s some interesting tech. The color in carbon fiber usually comes from the resin that’s used to set the fibers. But AP uses Chroma Forged Technology (CFT) Carbon, a technique that uses fibers that have been colored themselves. AP then uses small pieces of carbon cut up and bonded to form the 43mm wide case, but only some pieces are colored. In the end, you get a mostly black watch with pops of color infused deep into the material. It’s a bit gaudy, a bit too much, and I love it! The carbon case is equipped with a black ceramic bezel, crown, pushers and caseback.

The watch has an equally adventurous dial. It’s uses a black PVD-coated nickel plate as a bas, with numerous openings that show off the movement. There are rhodium-plated, polished edges and blue-finished counters. The hands and indexes are made out of white gold and filled with white lume that glows blue, to match the case.

Inside is the calibre 4407, a split-seconds, flyback chronograph that has a 24-hour GMT hand, hours, minutes, seconds and an oversized date window. It beats at 4Hz and has a 70 hour power reserve. The watch comes on a blue rubber strip with a titanium folding clasp and you get an additional black rubber strap.

The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Concept Split-Seconds Chronograph GMT Large Date will be a limited production model, most likely limited just by their production capacity. Of course, price is on request. See more on the AP website.

🫳On hand

Our selection of the best reviews we stumble upon

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A review of the Hamilton Khaki Field Murph White Dial

2/

Hands-On with the Berneron Mirage

3/

A review of the Casio Edifice TOM’S 50th Anniversary Edition 

⚙️Watch Worthy

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

The Fleux FLX003 captures the best aspects of the classic skin diver era in a thoroughly contemporary package

The FLX003 was modeled after the Omega Seamaster 300 watch Ref. 165.024 “big triangle” originally commissioned by the British Ministry of Defense (MoD) in the late ’60s. All the key Seamaster 300 features were retained, like the matte black dial, thick bar markers, and small Arabic numbers at 3/6/9, but with the addition of a big – and, I mean, huge – triangle. It seems the MoD wanted no ambiguity about that 12 o’clock position. You will have no trouble identifying it at a quick glance. Indeed, I suspect you can see it from orbit.

Read the whole review on The Time Bum

⏲️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

• Somewhere in the northeastern United States, video game designer Jason Rohrer has hidden treasure worth $25,000, cast from 10 troy ounces of 24k gold. The creator of game titles including Passage, The Castle Doctrine, and One Hour One Life, Project Skydrop is Rohrer’s first game set in the real world, and as of September 19, 2024, the hunt has just begun—the treasure awaits you.

• Jeff Henry often said that his goal in life was to make customers of his family’s legendary water parks happy—“to put a smile on their faces, to give them a thrill or two.” It was a beautiful vision. Until it went horribly wrong.

• What a hook to an article: “One day, I got a furious email from one of the show’s stars. It only got weirder from there.” How can you not read that?

👀Watch this

One video you have to watch today

I’ve said it before, but it’s worth repeating. Huckberry’s Dirt series is one of the best things you’ll see on YouTube.

💵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: Here’s a crazy request. One of you is looking to buy the Lotēc No. 7.5. Sure, it’s a big ask, but if any of you have one and want to sell, reach out to and I’ll put you in touch

• SOLD: Well, not really new. It’s a great looking mid-90s Tudor Submariner 75090, offered for sale by a member of the It’s About Time reader crew. I love the way it looks and seems to be in great condition. Check it out over on Chrono24.

• 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

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-Vuk