Inspiration at MB&F comes from all sorts of places, including hypothetical musings like Max Büsser’s question: “What would have happened if I was born in 1867, one hundred years before my actual birth? What watch would I have conceived with the help of my friends?” The answer, as we know, was the motor behind the classical Legacy Machine family inspired by grand master watchmakers of the 19th-century pocket and Büsser’s ‘new old’ friends Jules Verne and Gustav Eiffel. As a nod to one of his historical muses, Büsser entrusted the LM Split Escapement to master engraver Eddy Jaquet in 2020…

Two weeks ago, I had the opportunity to attend an event in London hosted by 289 Consulting. Roughly 25 brands attended, and we were free to sit in a casual, albeit dark, environment to view the newest watches. It was an enjoyable day with many highlights. A standout was the new Krayon Anywhere Arborea. Geneva Watch Days 2024 was so crammed with meetings that I could not make the Krayon appointment with Dave, my partner in crime. The relatively young Swiss brand, established in 2013, produces highly complicated, exclusive watches. Reportedly, Krayon makes 40 watches annually, so I figured I…

—————– The differences between the Tudor BB54 and BB58 If these two watches are closer than expected, what are the main differences to look out for? L-R: Tudor Black Bay 41mm, Black Bay 58 and Black Bay 54 Let’s start with the bezel. This is one of the more obvious changes. Tudor has followed the original ref. 7922 for the BB54, resulting in the minute markers between 12 and 3 o’clock being removed. In following the original, it cleans up the overall aesthetic of the watch, bringing a new sense of symmetry. It does take away some functionality of the…

The year 2024 marks a century since the introduction of the world’s first Citizen watch. To celebrate this significant milestone, Citizen has taken a curated selection of 100 watches, split into 12 design categories, from its over-6,000-watch archive on tour. Its first stop was in Tokyo before moving on to New York, and now the traveling exhibition has made its way to Paris. This is where I had a chance to experience this historical overview of Citizen’s watchmaking over the past century and speak to some of the folks responsible for its ongoing success. But that’s not the only way…

In a previous life, before I plied my trade covering and critiquing the wristwatch industry, I edited, and occasionally wrote, comic books and graphic novels, and my appreciation for that form of visual storytelling goes all the way back to childhood. So it is my natural inclination to take an interest in the relatively few timepieces that take inspiration from that niche and somewhat nerd-oriented world — even if the delicate balance between fan-service homage and watch design excellence is rarely achieved. One of those rare examples, however, just dropped today: the Raymond Weil Millesime Chronograph Tri-Compax Limited Edition Largo…

At the time, EIWA’s primary business involved processing and molding Fiber Reinforced Plastic (FRP), but due to the impact of the Lehman Shock and other factors, the company was seeking new ventures. COBARION® became a turning point for them. Although EIWA had no prior experience in alloy manufacturing, the company successfully began production in 2011, with guidance from Professor Chiba and the support of an advisor with expertise in specialty steel manufacturing. However, there were challenges during the commercialization phase, and COBARION® was ultimately not adopted for medical use.Despite this, EIWA chose not to halt COBARION® production. The company exhibited…