a tough bar ....

why do most watches come with spring bars...??? are they cheaper to use or are the manufactures reluctant to change.......

spring bars present a real headache when owners wish to remove or change the bracelet/strap... !! especially if one did not use a special tool....... try using a toothpick or thin pen-knife and you will surely curse and swear....and very often one will knick or scratch either the case or bracelet or worse still, BOTH !!.....

even technicians at the service centre are not spared the problem....... of course we can reduce the likelihood by taping the case, bracelet and screwdriver tip with masking tape....... but why should we have to do this in the first place.....

anyway i prefer screws...... and of course the various quick-change system introduced by panerai, JLC, IWC.....

really hope to see these being implemented across the entire range..... and also more manufactures to pioneer their own unique system...

another alarm....

firstly we have the polaris re-issue....

then we have the navy seals alarm.....

and now they give us the master control memovox.....

all are mechanical alarm watches so they will buzz and ring ... and they have the same movements in different styles and cases.....

which one is your choice..???

pic from timezone......

more reading.....

i saw the latest issue out at the news stand....

but i resisted buying cos sometimes i can get a free copy.... so i rather be patient and wait till i get it...

for this month, there's a special on JLC's new range of navy seals diving watches.....

and also a very in-depth and refreshing feature on richard mille (the person) and felipe massa..... which makes very good reading......

thank you..!!

arriving very soon......

the world has become much much smaller and very much more connected now that the internet is a part of our lives...... and so we know the JLC NSA is already at dealers in the USA and europe.....

very soon it will be coming to singapore.......... and if you like alarm watches, you probably should not miss your watch to get this....

although it's limited to 1500 pcs, there should be sufficient numbers to meet the worldwide demand......

well from past experience, JLC limited edition watches are not exactly the most sought-after timepieces .... unlike examples like AP offshore limited pieces......

when is too much really too much..??

with the opening of new shopping malls come the following of new watch retail stores and boutiques.....

and after soaking in the euphoria of the "newness" of these well-lit but otherwise mostly soul-less places, have we observed the over-supply of watch retail outlets???...... is there a point of saturation? or can the locals and tourists support even more...??? i have no answers to that....

and what happens to the "older" malls.... and their watch retail outlets........??? fold or continue ...??

for example, on a usual retail weekend the omega boutique at raffles city shopping centre (which is operated by sincere) is hardly the busiest place ...... so will the omega boutique at ion orchard fare any better when the "newness" is gone..???

or have you seen the number of visitors and customers at the blancpain and breguet boutiques at raffles hotel arcade..???? i wouldnt describe the situation as miserable but if you are there, just take a look for yourself......

in the long run, i'll be very interested to see how spanking new mono-brand boutiques at ion orchard will do......

more and more avmox 2 chronographs..????

WHATTTTTT???

another version of the JLC amvox 2 chronograph....?? they are not going to stop, are they?

after the original amvox 2, amvox 2 black titanium, amvox 2 dbs, amvox 2 dbs steel and now the amvox 2 racing............... ohhhhh and the list gets longer.....

i really hope they stop messing with it............. and i am no fan of an unlimited run of limited edition watches.......

the winning choice... button and jaeger

just saw these pics from watchprosite.com..... and surely must share the good stuff with you guys......

ahh..... good taste huh??

jenson button's choice is JLC..... the extreme LAB............

Credit pic: Stefan Ciejka for " La Revue Des Montres ".

excellent pics of an marvellous timepiece.....!

crystalline.....

only if you have loads of spare cash then can you consider to have this as your bedside partner...... if that's not good enough, you could buy two............ and the other one shall be placed on your office desk....

isnt that COOL..... ???

a JLC atmos clock to watch the seconds tick by..............

i wish i have one haha....

wacho choco....

this was a gift from our friends at JLC.......

after so many days i am still munching on it........ 

can you tell what it is? 

ahhh..... it's a ONE piece of glorious black dark chocolate....... with a thin layer of sugar coating........

utterly delicious.... i must say....

thank you JLC....!!

more inspiration..........

hey hey.... here's another inspired watch from nautica.............

and so what's the inspiration of this "new" design...??? hhmmmmmmm ... let the pics do the talking....

black vs black....

which is the more desired black..???

forged carbon or ceramic...??? i wonder which is tougher to manufacture...... and also more costly to make....

for 2009, AP has a forged carbon watch case for their ladies ROO watches.....

and JLC is also quick to offer a ceramic case for their ladies master compressor diving gmt.....

so is 2009 the war of the blacks...???

one thing is definite: carbon is lighter than ceramic  

AHA...... tough SEAL....

here are the pictures for the newly launched:

JLC Master Compressor Diving Chronograph GMT Navy SEALS

very impressive-looking and chocked full of features.....

even though this is only a prototype, i kinda like how it feels on the wrist.......... very very light.....

up size for your JLC??

for those who are waiting for the up-sized master compressor diving gmt in 46 mm, here's the good news......

available at the stores now......... and no longer limited in production......

that will surely bring the prices down abit................

the 1965 polaris re-issue.....

limited and cast in precious and expensive platinum, the 1965 re-issue has so far been over-shadowed by the 1968 version......

during these difficult times, it may be quite a tough act to spend so much on a watch...... 

anyway just enjoy the pics...

oh mighty it's heavy..! JLC Master Compressor Extreme Tourbillon

i wrote about this in may this year........... back then, i criticised the design and rationale for having a tourbillon in a master compressor extreme watch case......

thanks to JLC, i have the privilege of seeing and fondling the first of this watch in singapore.... still piping hot from the factory and only arrived yesterday...........!

first impression:
WOW IT'S HEAVY!!!!........... oh of cos, the watch is made of 950 platinum and titanium.... it feels like a small brick on my palm....

other observations:
the strap is unique to this watch........ very thick, very well made and of extremely high quality.......... and the YELLOW is bright and cheerful..... however, as the strap hugs the lugs tightly, it will not fit the typical wrist of about 7 inches and below.... it cannot bend sufficiently to the contours of a smaller wrist......... so you will need to order a short leather strap....

the compression key works as advertised and the hand winding is very assuring and smoothhhhhh........ as smooth as a baby's backside..... haha...... after operating a compression key, i now find screw-down crowns a bit of a hassle to use....

case back is solid metal and has the engraving of the master control logo.......... sorry no sapphire crystal back here....... every watch is tested for 1000 hrs before being released.......

for the date indication, it uses an ingenious jumping hand to display the date....... i did not adjust the date out of respect to whoever is the new owner..... it will be interesting to see how the hand jumps from 15 to 16.......... how fast and how smooth will it be......

having the gmt complication does make the watch more versatile for frequent travellers...........

last and least, i dun really care too much for tourbillons......... hehe.............

list price is approx S$195,000............

i also managed to see and feel the new master compressor GMT..............

both watches available at the JLC boutique now.......... :)

1st anniversary! jaeger lecoultre boutique!

today richemont singapore is celebrating the 1st anniversary of the JLC boutique ..........

so happy birthday to JLC, management and staff of the boutique....

may the achievements in the 2nd year surpass the one before........

remote control..???? JLC again....

seriously i dun quite understand why they made this............ which is also a transponder for the aston martin dbs.....

yes it is a beautiful car.... and there is a beautiful watch.......... but having to use the watch to operate access to the car? dun think it's necessary............ sure it sounds cool ..... but nah, what if i wish to wear another watch when driving??? should i leave the amvox 2 dbs transponder at home???

and i think the non-transponder version looks better........ haha.......... having that big DBS on the dial is sucky..........

JLC amvox 2 black titanium and amvox 2 DBS titanium......

just more pics ...so less words needed

the amvox 2 in black titanium.... very sleek and mysterious...


side by side... amvox 1 is on the extreme right...








up close to the DBS...

day dream for friday.......

this week's dream watch is the JLC amvox 2 chronograph....................

now i dun really care about the association with aston martin cos i have not that much of a liking for aston martin cars.......... i always prefer the prancing horse ....... and the raging bull..... but of cos aston martin on its own is pretty awesome too........

the watch though is the STAR of the show.......... PURE CLASS it is..... in terms of look, technology, movement and design.....



the DBS version is even more bad-ass.........! especially with that skeleton see-through dial...... i know myself pretty well and i cant live with something that lacks a moving seconds hand....... and this version has a operating indicator to compensate for that.....





titanium is always cool.........and unusually for a sport-watch, the rose gold version is JUST as cool.............




here's a comparison between the amvox 2 and the amvox 2 DBS............ note the differences on the dial............ the DBS is MUCH nicer......

dive we go JLC....

took a closer look at the JLC master compressor diving chronograph and GMT....... cast in grade 5 titanium, they are rated all the way down to 1000 m.....

both are stout and handsome at 44 mm in diameter....and are every wearable pieces..... comfortable and light, they surely make a good daily beater as well....

it certainly makes perfect sense to consider these watches, if u r in the market for one.....

reasons:

they look good...........
prices are reasonable...... (S$13,800 for the gmt with a rubber strap)......
equipped with in-house movements...
high quality materials (grade 5 titanium!)
sufficiently big on the wrist (44 mm)

there are many watches out there selling for MUCH MUCH MORE and yet use a modifited movement........ so why not go for the JLC watches..???

i have no idea why the GMT is a LE though..... at 1500 pcs, u should be able to find one at your nearest dealer....... and behold.....! if u need something bigger, there will be a version of the diving GMT at 46.3 mm......

slated for delivery towards the end of the year....... stay tuned...