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| Baume & Mercier Hampton |
What to give a father that’s new, different and exciting. To help you out here are a listing of six watches for father’s (or husbands) who are active, whether that activity is done in an urban setting or whether it takes places on land, sea and air. All the watches listed are the latest models of classic pieces made by the watch brands. If by chance the most recent model hasn’t made it to retailers yet, the 2014 model should be in stock and would be welcomed as a gift for any man.
Baume & Mercier Hampton
There are few contemporary watch collections that have become as ionic as the square- or rectangular-shaped case of the Hampton, which is celebrating 20th anniversary this year. Baume & Mercier introduced two new models this year, including the Hampton 10155 (top photo). Simple and sophisticated, the 31 mm x 47 mm rectangular case in satin-finished polished steel contains a Swiss manufacture mechanical automatic caliber visible through the transparent caseback. The curved case measures only 10 mm thick. It’s a timepiece for city dwellers with an off-white dial that displays the hour, minutes and seconds, blued steel tip of the hands, which reinforce the traditional character of the timepiece. The date is shown through a simple window at 6 o'clock, finished off with a black alligator strap and a steel folding security buckle.
Bremont U-22
The new military watch from U.K.-based company is an extension of the U-2 collection, which was originally designed for and inspired by the elite U-2 spy plane squadron flown by the U.S. Air Force. The updated date display reflects the view on an altimeter. There is also a difference with the bi-directional rotating inner bezel, originally designed to measure 60 minutes, and altered in the U-22 to a compass quadrant of a pilot which is often useful in navigation weather mapping. The bronze barrel color was inspired by a number of military watches Bremont has produced in the past based on the anti-reflective coating used on their cockpit canopies. The chronometer uses Bremont’s anti-shock rubberized movement mount. Unlike the original U-2 the U-22 has an exhibition case back showing the automatic movement.
Carl F. Bucherer The Patravi TravelTec II
For the tenth anniversary of the Patravi TravelTec collction, Carl F. Bucherer unveiled a new version of the watch that combines a three-time zone display and chronograph. Chronometer-certified and water resistant to 100 meters, the 47.4 mm case has a side-mounted sapphire glass window (a standard feature of the Patravi TravelTec timepieces) that reveals the built-in complication. The in-house automatic caliber CFB 1901.1 simultaneously displays three time zones in combination with a chronograph. The nine applied hour indices on the dial identify the first time zone. An outer ring on the dial provides the second time zone. The hour digits for the third time zone appear on the bezel. The monopusher enables rapid, user-friendly switching between East and West travel directions. The date display can move forward and also backward when changing the hour setting.
Montblanc Timewalker Urban Speed
The Montblanc Timewalker Urban Speed Date, Montblanc Timewalker Urban Speed UTC, and Montblanc Timewalker Urban Speed chronograph (pictured above), are all designed for the new digitally-enhanced e-strap cerated by the luxury brand. All of the watches are equipped with automatic movements. The 42 or 43-millimetre case include skeletonized horns, a narrow bezel, a large dial with Arabic numerals lancet-shaped hands. The come in “cold grey” micro-blasted steel case or the black DLC (Diamond like carbon) coating.
Nomos Metro 38 Datum
This timepiece from the Glashütte, Germany-based watchmaker, has received several awards for its sleek, urbane design and functionality. It is one of the most affordable watches on the market with an in-house mechanical movement (DUW 4101). As of 2014, this movement also includes an in-house made escapement. The newest version, released this month, comes without the power reserve, making the dial of the watch even more well-proportioned and clean. It’s also slightly larger than the model introduced in 2014. The new dial of Metro 38 Datum was created by Mark Braun, the Berlin-based designer behind Metro, which has now won five major design awards, including the Red Dot award, the German Design Award, the Good Design Award and iF Product Design Award.
Zenith El Primero Sport Chronograph
The 45 mm-diameter steel case houses the 400 B automatic chronograph caliber beating at a rate of 36,000 vibrations per hour. The movement and its Côtes de Genève motif is visible through the sapphire caseback. The dial is available in silver or slate grey (pictured) with a lamé hand finish. The broad faceted hour-markers, rhodium-finished and coated with Super-LumiNova, enable easy readings of the central hours and minutes, swept over by sword-shaped hands. This aesthetic is picked up on the small counter hands. The chronograph sweep-seconds hand, bearing the star emblem, is clad in a deep red echoed by the inscription “36,000 VpH” painted in crimson red in the upper part of the dial. The tachometric scale now appears on the inner bezel ring.
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