the mb&f experience... and other space oddities

'theres a starman waiting in the sky...' ziggy stardust
HM3 Sidewinder and StarCruiser

before I share with you some photos I took at the launch of the mb&f hm3 experience as it toured through singapore ;) just a couple of words…

I like MB&F and their horological machines… I also like what I hear about and from Max Busser and appreciate their philosophy… I like that each person involved in horological machines are given due credit and have their name associated with that part of their contribution and it should logically mean that they do their best work, put to the fore instead of behind a big brand name.. Max also commented that no shortcuts were taken and that the product is supposed to draw the level best from each of the involved parties in these collectives which is very cool and the right way about it in my books... the preview was a nice and tasteful affair and it was a pleasure meeting Max and hearing his views. kudos once again to the team at the hour glass that supported this event and was there and thanks to michael and his team for having me...

"Ground control to major tom... Commencing countdown, engines on..."
received the invite for the mb&f preview of the horological machine 3...


i headed out fully armed with the vianney halter classic on my left wrist...


and this on my right...(and no, i don't wear 2 watches all the time :)


some of my friends and fellow space cowboys were abouts that day as well
commanders vernon, dirk and george


commanders jeff, harry, jim, kc and chee hoong


and there was a new face to me amongst the crowd... perhaps from a distant galaxy? why its maximillian busser ;)


pictured here with rosemary from the hour glass
who manages the independents


max had some fantastic machines for us to view...


timeless futuristic designs mean that these watches won't ever look aged...








and the latest machine just assembled off from the space docks








what are my thoughts of the horological machines then? I like all of them. but as i
had a chance to see all of them in the metal i found that i liked the HM2 the most
followed by the HM3 Starcruiser and then HM1... all in rose gold for me


wrist shot comparos of the hm2 (above) and hm3 starcruiser


hm 3 sidewinder


my vianney halter classic vs the starcruiser in the size stakes...


one issue noted by some is on the difficulty in reading the time...




other space oddities were sighted in this intergalactic zone... a trio of vianney
halter classics... in the 3 metals its offered... white gold, yellow gold and red gold


my favorite opus... opus v... the best thing that urwerk has worked on so far in my
opinion... max involved in its creation when he was at harry winston


my classic and bernard's antiqua... as u know, my grail is the rose gold antiqua


an interesting space mobile from de bethune was spotted too...


the starfleet commander was about, dr. bernard cheong and he brought his horological marvels with him


which leads to the most impressive table shot ever... i love all of them


and a last shot of the starcruiser... flying off into the unknown...


i hope u enjoyed the report ;) till next time, my intergalactic friends... cheers, raph

the rolex milgauss... a classy beauty

the rolex milgauss has some history... in the past when it was first launched, it wasn't the most liked model in the rolex range... and it didn't fare well sales wise. however the prices of vintage milgauss' in the antiquorum rolex revolution were pretty amazing... a 6541 similar as the one pictured below sold for close to US$200k wif buyers premium... and the 1019 white milgausses sold for around the US$40-55k range. thats some serious $$$ for an unappreciated model...

the unique thing about the milgauss is that it can stand up to 1,000 gauss (mil = 1,000), gauss being a measure of magnetism. what it basically means is that the watch is highly resistant to magnetism being protected by a faraday cage...

fast forward to the newer productions and early 2008... the watches just released are HOT HOT HOT!!! and with most hot watches, the prices go crazy... they shoot to more than 100% over the list price for the gv (glass verte... fyi, verte means green) and 30-60% above list for the white and black dial versions...

the 3 variations

but like all hot commodities or stocks, it was a bubble that was built up by perceived high demand and low supply. some folks speculating that the green sapphire was difficult for Rolex to produce... if that was really the case, Rolex seem to have solved those issues and recently more and more have come to the market... this has resulted in a fall in prices.. the white and black dials selling for list or discounted and the gv selling only for a slight premium... although some retailers are still pushing for above 50% premium in some markets...

whatever it is, i think this is a very nice watch. its construction is solid and it has
a strong appeal to me for a modern Rolex. live pics of a piece that i had in my
possession for the briefest of times...

teaser ;) simple enuff yuh?

A Simple Classic Time Piece by A Great Artist

In this watch collecting journey you may come across many, many, many, many timepieces... some are special and some watch makers are special...

the following pictures are of a watch that is truly beautiful and made by a great artist whom i admire and respect... vianney halter has made some wonderful timepieces such as the antiqua, trio, classic... pieces in his futur anterieur collection as well as other masterpieces... a significant amount of work on time pieces bearing his name are done by hand and ably so by himself and watchmakers at his atelier in st. croix. and they are amazing works of art...

more importantly, these are pictures of a watch that has joined my very humble and small collection :) i hope u enjoy these photos of my vh classic and i highly recommend that you take some time to explore his world and the wonderful creations in it if u haven't done so already. check out these links to information and his site... cheers, raphmeister

vianney halter classic in red gold

24 rivets in the winding crown and 12 on the bezel

vianney has stopped production on the classic... all in all i believe there
are less than 300 pieces ever made for all metals...

a mysterious mass winding rotor

hand crafted blued steel hands

reflection of the dial on the rehaut is beautful

the wonderful play of light on this piece is something to behold

the vh100... with roots in the lemania 8100

the dial work is too cool

wonderful finishing...

time pieces as art...