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- Tissot's Seastar 1000 Gets First 40mm Automatic Collection; Vulcain Has A Green Chronograph 1970s; ADPT Updates Series 1 With GMT; Girard-Perregaux's New Copper Dial Diamond Bezel 38mm Laureato
Tissot's Seastar 1000 Gets First 40mm Automatic Collection; Vulcain Has A Green Chronograph 1970s; ADPT Updates Series 1 With GMT; Girard-Perregaux's New Copper Dial Diamond Bezel 38mm Laureato
The new Seastar perfectly illustrates how slow and deliberate large watch companies have to move
It's About Time
March 18, 2024
Hey friends, welcome back to It’s About Time. It’s a nice and mellow release day today, with the ADPT really taking the cake for me. I love the colors of the two watches.
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In this issue:
Tissot Releases The Seastar 1000 In 40mm And With The Mechanical Powermatic 80 Movement
Vulcain Updates Their Chronograph 1970s With A Really Beautiful Shade Of Green
ADPT Reveals An Update To The Series 1, Now With More Time Zones And More Colors
Girard-Perregaux Has A New Laureato, The 38mm With A Copper Dial And Diamond Bezel
Today’s reading time: 6 minutes and 56 seconds
👂What’s new
1/
Despite facing a lot of hardships as a small brand, there are a lot of advantages to being a microbrand. The biggest advantage, arguably, would be the possibility of being nimble - see a trend rising, react to it instantly. On the other hand, if you are a huge brand that makes almost 4 million watches per year and part of the largest watch group on the planet, it’s hard to pivot and respond quickly. This is how Tissot operates - they have a clear model roadmap and they are sticking with it. And that might cause some confusion among customers. Take, for example, the Tissot Seastar, the diver model that was reintroduced into the lineup in 2018 as a mechanical watch with a blue dial and a diameter of 43mm. In 2022, they added more colors and a quartz option. In 2023, finally, they started selling a 40mm version of the watch. But it was quartz only. And the entire time, people were asking: can we please get a 40mm automatic? Well, here we are, Tissot just unveiled a quartet of 40mm Seastars powered by the Powermatic 80.
As you might have guessed, the new Seastar 1000 Powermatic 80 comes in a 40mm wide stainless steel case that measures 12.5mm thick and if you’re worried that 40mm is still too wide for you, the good thing is the lugs are spaced at 46mm, which is pretty wearable. Finishing is both brushed and polished, with a domed sapphire crystal on top. On top of all four is a bezel with a black mineral glass insert. Two of the versions come completely untreated, one is a two-tone version with the bezel and bracelet central links finished in a gold PVD and one gets a complete black PVD treatment. Water resistance is 300 meters.
As for the dials, they all have vertical brushing and a fume finish. The two stainless steel versions get either a turquoise or a dark gray dial. The grey dial also appears on the two-tone version, but that one has gold-tone indices, hands, and printing. And lastly, the fully black PVD-coated version features a blue dial. All four have applied circular indices, sword hands and a date window at 6 o’clock.
Inside, as the name suggests, is the Powermatic 80, the slightly controversial workhorse from the Swatch Group. The movement’s controversy comes from some grades of the movement using plastic parts and lacking a traditional regulator. Don’t quote me on this, as it’s not readily offered information, but I believe this Seastar is powered, just like the 43mm version, by the Powermatic 80.111, which does come with plastic parts. However, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as the Powermatic 80 has proven to be a capable movement. It beats at 21,600vph and has an 80 hour power reserve. The watches come on an Oyster-style bracelet with brushed outer links and a polished center link and quick-release spring bars. The steel versions come on a steel bracelet, the two-tone has gold center links and the black PVD version comes on a black tropic rubber strap.
The new 40mm Tissot Seastar 1000 Powermatic 80 are available for purchase now at a price of €795. While divers at that price and size range are plentiful and competition is stiff, it’s good to see Tissot join in with their offering. See more on the Tissot website.
2/
Sure, Vulcain is best known for the watches a number of presidents wore, or for their absolutely fantastic Cricket Nautical, one of the best mechanical alarm watches you can get. But they also currently make a number of interesting dress and chrono watches that shouldn’t be ignored. One such watch line is the Chronograph 1970s collection which Vulcain just updated with a really beautiful green dial.
This watch is as retro as it gets, be it its looks or internals. It comes in a brushed and polished stainless steel case that just oozes 70s style. It’s 38mm wide and while the 12.4mm thickness might seem excessive at first, when compared to other chronographs it could even be considered slim. It’s a round case with very short lugs - it’s a shame that Vulcain doesn’t provide a lug-to-lug measurement, because it seems to be pretty nice - and on the side you’ll find pump pushers. On top is a double-domed sapphire crystal, surrounded by a tiny and highly polished bezel, adding to the retro feel of the watch.
Brand new for this release is a beautiful green dial with a sunray brushed pattern. Perhaps even more beautiful than the color of the dial are the bi-compax silver subdials which get a snailed and stepped finish, just perfect contrast to the green. Around the perimeter of the dial is a tachymeter scale, while the hour makers are applied, faceted and highly polished.
Inside is the Sellita SW510 M BH b-Manual, a Valjoux-based chronograph from Sellita, one of the major suppliers of movements to smaller brands. The SW510 is a reliable movement and it’s manually wound here to help with keeping the slimmer profile. The movement beats at 28,800vph and has a power reserve of 63 hours. The basic strap the watch comes on is plain black leather, but Vulcain is great at offering a multitude of straps so this one is no exception - there are nine options to choose from and some can bump up the price.
The new Vulcain Chronograph 1970s Green is a limited edition and only 100 will be made. I’ve always had an issue with Vulcain prices and believe they could sell so much more if they just lowered it a tiny bit. This one is no different. Price is set at €2,500. But hey, what do I know, they seem to be doing just fine without me. See more on the Vulcain website.
3/
If you haven’t heard of ADPT before, chances are you might try googling it. And then you’ll run into the issue of ADPT not really having a website of their own. You see them popping up on Worn and Wound, you see their Instagram profile, but no website. So, what gives? Well, technically, ADPT is not a standalone watch brand. It was started by the people behind Worn & Wound to sell American-made nylon watch straps but as time went on they saw the potenital for a watch to be developed under the same brand. Worn & Wound teamed up with Boldr to create the ADPT Series 1 watches, rather affordable and colorful field watches. Now, we’re getting the Series 1 Dual-Time, the same thing but with a GMT function.
The watches come in a titanium case that measures 38mm wide, 13.6mm thick and has a lug-to-lug of 44mm. On top is a sapphire crystal, the crown is positioned at 4 o’clock and water resistance is rated at 200 meters. The case has an interesting design, with a perfectly circular bezel surrounding the dial, that’s positioned a squared-off case that has strong facets and almost no lugs, as the nylon strap extends into the case.
There are two watches, both with their own name and color scheme. Starting with Aqua Berry, you get a blue dial with an etched waffle pattern, surrounded by a magenta outer ring where the 24-hour GTM scale is printed in yellow and a color matched crosshairs. The markers are applied and filled with white lume. The hour and minute hands are half magenta and half blue colored, while the GMT hand is yellow. Surrounding the dial is a bezel that has a dark and light blue insert, with each corresponding with day and night hours.
The other watch is called Mossy Shale. The dial is rendered in a woodsy green with the same etched waffle patern, surrounded by a gray outer ring and color-matched crosshair. The 24-hour scale gets a light blue color. The markers at the poles are light pink and correspond with the tip of the seconds hand. The hour and minute hand feature three shades of green and gray, with the tips corresponding to the indices’ rings. The GMT hand is light blue and the bezel is a combination of green and grey.
Inside is the Seiko NH34, which beats at 21,600vph and has a 41 hour power reserve. It’s a caller-style GMT movement, meaning you independently adjust the 24-hour GMT hand. The Aqua Berry comes on a blue nylon strap, while the Mossy Shale gets a greeb one.
The ADPT Series 1 Dual-Time watches are available right now, and there’s no word on whether they are limited in production. I assume they will sell out at one point and won’t get remade, like the Series 1 before it. Price is set at $499. See more on the Worn & Wound website.
4/
While we might not get detailed numbers from Girard-Perregaux, the 38mm Laureato should be their best selling model. It’s the midsize version of their integrated bracelet model, one that should be all the rage right now. However, GP only makes it in two variants now - with a copper dial or in the infinite green of the Aston Martin LE. While the model could use a bit more range, Girard-Perregaux is now updating it in the slightest of ways possible, by adding a diamond bezel to the existing copper dial.
The case of the new Girard-Perregaux Laureato 38mm Copper Diamond Bezel is made out of stainless steel and measures 38mm wide and 10mm thick. On top of the dial is an octagonal integrated bezel, while the finishing is a combination of brushed surfaces and polished ones. Water resistance is set at 100 meters.
The dial is the same as the existing model, rendered in a copper tone with the Clous de Paris pattern. The applied GP logo and seconds hand are rendered in gold. What’s new is the bezel, which is now set with 56 diamonds totaling around .90ct. Unlike the original model, the diamonds continue all the way around the bezel instead of being interrupted.
Inside is the same movement you could also find in the older 38mm Laureatos. It’s the in-house automatic caliber GP03300-2034 that beats at 28,800vph and has a 46 hour power reserve. Of course, it’s a pretty movement, with striping, perlage, and blued screws, along with an 18k pink-gold rotor. The watch comes in the very familiar steel integrated bracelet with polished center links.
The Girard-Perregaux Laureato 38mm Copper Diamond Bezel is priced at $20,100 and available now. See more on the GP website.
🫳On hand
Our selection of the best reviews we stumble upon
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⚙️Watch Worthy
A look at an off beat, less known watch you might actually like
When you see two dials in a single case, you might naturally assume that there are two quartz movements running in there. After all, quartz movements are generally small enough to do the trick, and if you omit the second hand, there is little to give away the game. It’s a sound assumption unless you know Vesuviate, in which case, you might have guessed that the brand did not take the conventional path. The Attivo-Duplex uses two mechanical units, and to up the ante even further, they are automatics.
⏲️Wait a minute
A bunch of links that might or might not have something to do with watches. One thing’s for sure - they’re interesting
In 2020, a star physicist claimed an incredible advance: a room temperature superconductor. An investigation by Nature’s news team reveals new details about what happened — and how institutions missed red flags. This is the inside story of deception in a rising star’s physics lab.
Wonders emerge in the ocean’s deepest trenches: corals, crustaceans, a multitude of bizarre fish. But also radioactive waste, baby bottles and Spam, as the deep ocean has become a dumping ground.
I have something to admit. I haven’t seen Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part One until the other day. Partially it’s because I didn’t have the time. Partially it’s because I am really not a huge Villeneuve fan. Boy, was that a mistake. That was a fantastic watch. And since everybody is already watching Part Two, Wired magazine published a profile of Javier Bardem who plays Stilgar in both movies. I love a good profile, and this one is really good.
👀Watch this
One video you have to watch today
There’s a very narrow age range that has unironically grown up on Justin Timberlake’s music. I’m one of them. He’s not someone I often go back and listen to, but when his Tiny Desk Concert popped up on my feed, I had to give it a listen. And I’ll tell you, it’s not bad.
💵Pre-loved precision
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-Vuk