Yema Brings Back The Yachtingraf, A Great Looking, Super Affordable Regatta Timer; Nomos Adds Blue Dial To The Ahoi 38; OW Pays Tribute To Their Diving Legend; Maurice Lacroix's Quartz Chrono

Hey friends, welcome back to It’s About Time. I’ve been stuck in meetings all morning so I’m super late today. Sorry about that. But at least we have the pretty amazing Yema, a must-buy this summer. Also, I don’t bug you that much, so I would love it if you could read what’s framed in red just below, it would mean a lot:

In this issue:

• Yema Brings Back The Yachtingraf, A Great Looking, Super Affordable Take On A Regatta

• The New Nomos Ahoi Neomatik 38 Date Atlantic In Blue Joins The Sand And Sky Editions

• Ollech & Wajs Releases The OW C-1000 A, A Tribute To Their Legendary Caribbean 1000

• Maurice Lacroix Slims Down The Aikon Chrono With A Quartz Movement And New Dials

Today’s reading time: 10 minutes and 31 seconds

👂What’s new

1/

Yema Brings Back The Yachtingraf, A Great Looking, Super Affordable Take On A Regatta

I have an extreme soft spot for maritime watches. And I’m not just talking about divers. I’m talking about lake watches, boating watches, fishing watches, yachting watches, anything that’s water rated, I’m here for it. But I especially love regatta timers. These quirky watches most often employ bright colors to help sailors keep track of the traditional 15 minute countdown that is used to countdown to the start of a race. Many, many brands had their takes on the regatta timer — Heuer, Omega, Rolex, AP, Aquastar, Bremont, Lemania… just to name a few. Among them, back in the 1960s, was the French powerhouse Yema with their Yachtingraf. It was a very cool watch that stood shoulder to shoulder with the likes of Heuer. Now, decades later, we are getting a new take on a regatta timer from Yema with the Yachtingraf Croisière with fantastic looks, simple internals and a great price.

The new Yachtingraf Croisière comes in a pretty attractive package. The stainless steel case measures 38.5mm wide and 10.3mm thick, with a vertical brushing and polished bevel, lugs and bezel. The lugs are twisted. On the side are polished pushers and on top is a 2mm thick hesalite double domed crystal. Water resistance is 100 meters, but it would be awesome to see a bit more considering it should be exposed to some rough waters. From its size to the shape and treatment of the case and use of hesalite crystal, it’s all very much retro.

Much more retro can be found on the dial. One of the defining characteristics of the original Yachtingraf was the asymmetrical setup of the sub-dials, something that is carried on to the new version. You get an oversized minutes counter at 9 o’clock that times down to the start of the race with a special color scheme, while at 6 you’ll find the small seconds and at 3 o’clock you’ll find the unfortunate 24 hour indicator that gives away what movement is inside. I wish Seiko would get rid of that subdial, but at least Yema gave it an interesting design.

Speaking of design, there are two colorways for the new Yachtingraf Croisière - a matte blue or a matte white. The blue gets red, white and light blue highlights on the subdials, while the white gets teal and yellow details. They both carry a incredible vintage look. But, since I mentioned the interesting design of the 24 hour counter, it stems from the original Yachtingraf Croisière which was distinguished from models before it with the inclusion of a 12 hour counter that included a red cross in it with a 24 hour scale which allowed you to time stuff up to 24 hours long. The same cross can be found on these dials, despite that sub-dial not being exactly a 24-hour timer.

Inside, as that sub-dial suggests, is the Seiko’s VK63 mecaquartz movement. The mechaquartz uses a quartz movement to power the hours, minutes and small seconds to keep things on time, and then uses a fully mechanical chronograph mechanism to get that beautiful sweep on the big seconds hand. The watches can be had on either a Milanese mesh bracelet or a leather strap that’s color matched to the dial.

The new Yema Yachtingraf Croisière is not a limited edition, but the brand does say that the first 250 pieces (I assume of each) will ship by August 10th, meaning there will be a staggered release. The best thing about the watch is surely the price — €369 on leather or €399 on the Milanese will get you an amazing vintage-looking yacht timer that’s a perfect all-around watch for this summer. See more on the Yema website.

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The New Nomos Ahoi Neomatik 38 Date Atlantic In Blue Joins The Sand And Sky Editions

It’s very understandable why people love Nomos dress watches. They are simple, elegant and perfectly adaptable to a wide variety of situations. And while I like them too, if I were to get a Nomos now I would certainly go for one of their more contemporary and sporty versions. This means either the Club in a bright color or the way more sporty Ahoi. This is the perfect model for people who live an active life but don’t want to lug a dive watch around. A sort of more refined field watch, one could say, but with 200 meters of water resistance. The Ahoi came in a sometimes too-large 40mm and often too-small 36mm variant, but in 2023 Nomos redesigned the watch to keep the 36mm variant and shrink down the 40mm to a much more manageable 38mm, especially with their famously spindly lugs. Last year we got the Ahoi in a sand and sky color, and now Nomos is adding a classic dark blue dial.

The case of the Ahoi takes the classic cues of dress Nomos watches, including a fully round case and slim bezels, but combines it with very angular and narrow lugs, as well as a prominently angular crown guard. The case actually measures 38.5mm wide, 9.8mm or 9.9mm thick (depending on whether you get the open or closed caseback), but is still plagued with that rather long 49mm lug-to-lug. Being a sporty watch it has a pretty cool red warning ring around the stem of the crown to warn you it’s unscrewed, and like I said, you get a surprising 200 meters of water resistance.

The dial continues the minimalism Nomos is known for. The dial color, which Nomos says is inspired by the blue of the Atlantic Ocean, has appeared on other Nomos models before. You get lumed rectangular hour markers with a light green frame, and the Arabic numerals and baton markers are also lumed. There’s a date window at 3 o’clock, color matched to the dial, and at 6 o’clock is a small seconds indicator with a red hand.

Inside, no surprises, as you’ll find the in-house Neomatik DUW 6101 automatic movement. It beats at 21,600vph and has a 42 hour power reserve. It might be a good idea to get an open caseback, as the movement features the classic 3/4 Glashütte plate decorated with ribbing. The openworked rotor also features Glashütte ribbing, and there is perlage on the baseplate, blued screws and machined bevels. The watch comes on a blue textile strap.

There will be no restrictions to the new Nomos Ahoi Neomatik 38 Date Atlantic, so you can get one whenever you feel like it. The closed caseback version will set you back €3,520, while the open one is slightly more expensive at €3,820. See more on the Nomos website.

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Ollech & Wajs Releases The OW C-1000 A, A Tribute To Their Legendary Caribbean 1000

Historians — and brand enthusiasts alike — will continue to argue who came out with the first proper dive watch, was it Blancpain or Rolex (it was Rolex). However, there will be no doubt who made the first dive watch that can go down to 1,000 meters. It was Ollech & Wajs. While the brand has undergone a transformation, it still holds near and dear everything that made it an absolute hit among pilots, soldiers and divers. One of these things was the fact that in 1964 the brand released the Caribbean 1000, the most capable dive watch of its time created for deep sea exploration. A couple of years ago OW brought it back, but now, on the 60th anniversary of the model, they’re redoing the whole thing with a strong vintage vibe. This is the C-1000A.

Despite not being hugely wide, this is still a rugged watch. The stainless steel case measures 39.5mm wide and a chunky 15.8mm thick. I couldn’t find the lug-to-lug, but seeing as how it has the OW signature short triangular lugs, it shouldn’t be too long. On top is a 12-hour bi-directional bezel with a deeply serrated edge and a black mineral glass insert with orange markings and white numerals and a 20-minute dive scale. That surrounds the domed sapphire crystal. Water resistance is, of course, 1,000 meters.

The dial also keeps in line with the original - it’s black with triangular indices at 3, 9 and 12 o’clock, filled with cream-coloured Super-LumiNova. The rest of the hours get baton markers painted on with white lume, and the date window has been relocated from the original position of 3 o’clock to 6 o’clock. The hands have the same sword shape as the original and are also filled with cream lume.

Inside is a very special movement, but only for some. The ETA 2824-2 has played an important role in Ollech & Wajs’s history, so the first 56 pieces (to mark the launch year of 1956) will get a numbered case and will be fitted with a fully overhauled ETA 2824-2 automatic movement, the last of OW’s remaining stock. After the first 56 are sold, the rest will get a Soprod Newton Precision P092 automatic movement, which beats at 4Hz and has a 44 hour power reserve. The watch comes on a cadmium yellow nylon RAF strap in reference to the yellow trim wetsuits worn by scuba divers in the 60s, and can be had with OW’s M-Heritage steel mesh bracelet.

The Ollech & Wajs C-1000 A goes on sale in late August with deliveries scheduled for early October 2024. If you want one of the 56 numbered editions, you’ll have to email them, and both the numbered and regular versions will set you back CHF 1,856. You can check out the instruction on how to get one on the Ollech & Wajs website.

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Maurice Lacroix Slims Down The Aikon Chrono With A Quartz Movement And New Dials

In the 1990s Maurice Lacroix made the Calypso line of watches. It was an extremely 90s line in every sense. So, the fact that the Aikon is based on the Calypso makes a lot of sense as the new line is very much giving me vibes that it could have been made sometimes in the 1990s. And their latest release, the Aikon Quartz Chronograph, just fits perfectly into the ethos of the decade, with its quartz movement, chronograph layout and 90s size.

The Aikon Chronograph is not a small watch in a world in which everyone is sliming down. Although, I should be perfectly fair - this is the slimmed down version. While the previous model measured in at 44mm, the new Aikon Quartz Chronograph is 42mm wide and 11mm thick. On top is a flat sapphire crystal and water resistance is rated at 100 meters, with a screw-down crown.

There are three setups of the dial - black, blue or silver with blue sub-dials. All three versions get a sunbrushed finish, applied baton markers and a 6-9-12 sub-dial orientation, with the ML logo sitting at the 3 o’clock position. The chronograph has a central seconds hand, a 30-minute counter at 9 o’clock and a 1/10th second counter at 12 o’clock. The 6 o’clock sub-dial is dedicated to the small seconds display and a date aperture.

Inside is an unnamed quartz movement, which is never a good look, especially when ML doesn’t give any stats, but it does the job just fine. I assume. The watch comes on a stainless steel bracelet with Maurice Lacroix’s proprietary Easy Strap Exchange system, making for easy changes.

The Maurice Lacroix Aikon Quartz Chronograph is priced at €1,250. See more on the Maurice Lacroix.

🫳On hand

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✍️Chrono Critique

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💵Pre-loved precision

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• 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.

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