If we start from the perspective of wrist watches basically being functional jewelry (and yeah, if you…
If you recall, back in August of 2016, we brought you a hands-on look at the Tempest…
Forged carbon fiber is, in many ways, a material that you need to see and feel in…
While we here at WWR are all about the affordable end of the spectrum, there are…
Do you want a carbon fiber watch, but don’t want to spend a ton of cash to get one, well, the Ventus Black Kite on kickstarter may be just the ticket. I covered the brand previously with the Caspian models, which were very successful and well received, with the exception of some issues with the lume. With carbon fiber, you can layer the material or you can shred it, melt it and mold it. This latter technique was used for the Tempest Carbon One, but the Ventus Black Kite is using the layering style.
I don’t see a lot of watches with tritium gas tubes for illumination, so I was pretty interested in checking out the two Chronologia Dive Watches, the R004 and R004 Chronograph. I was also a tad skeptical, since I do have an automatic preference for automatics, but I found that I really enjoyed wearing both of these watches (though the 3-hander is more my style).
When it comes to American (or at least American-designed) watches, Xetum is one of the first brands that I recall coming across. They designed the watches in California, and then had them built in Switzerland. So, you had that Swiss reliability and accuracy, with a sort of American influence on the design. Xetum is now owned by the same folks that own Torgoen, but the designs have not been meddled with. Today, we are going hands-on with a new iteration of the Xetum Stinson.
I have had quite a few different case materials cross my desk over the last three years, though most of them tend to be a metal of some sort. I have also had a handful of watches with carbon fiber dials, so I’m not unfamiliar with the material. That all said, I have not spent any time with a carbon fiber monocoque case – that is, until the ITAnano Phanton Carbon 43 Quartz came in for review.
So, remember when we brought you word of Xetum’s newest model (well, it was a teaser,…
I’ve been following the folks over at Schofield for awhile now, including our review of their…