GEAR PATROL // Timekeeping Icon: Audemars Piguet Royal Oak

TIMEKEEPING ROYALTY

Timekeeping Icon: 

Audemars Piguet 

Royal Oak

By ADAM CRANIOTES on 8.6.13 Photo by AP

http://gearpatrol.com/2013/08/06/timekeeping-icon-audemars-piguet-royal-oak/

To refer to the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak as a mere icon is to almost willfully ignore the importance of the watch, the line it inspired, or, indeed, the genre that it gave birth to. Few, if any, timepieces have so thoroughly altered the industry or impacted our conception of watchmaking as the Royal Oak, and for good reason. This timepiece didn’t just save a company. It single-handedly created an entirely new class of watch.

To understand the importance of the Royal Oak, one must first understand the era that preceded its inception. The ‘70s were a time of tumult in the Swiss horology industry, with many storied manufactures on the brink of bankruptcy; that is, if they hadn’t succumbed already. The reason for this trouble was the advent of the inexpensive quartz watch from Japan, which found favor with the buying public not only for its affordability, but also for its superior accuracy and robustness. This time has been referred to as the “quartz crisis”, and a crisis is exactly what it was. Audemars Piguet was no more immune to its effects than its competitors.

Audemars Piguet was founded in 1875 in the heart of Switzerland’s watchmaking region, La Vallée de Joux, by friends Jules Louis Audemars and Edward Auguste Piguet. By the early 1970s it had risen to the highest tiers of horology through its mastery of complications (complex functions beyond mere timekeeping) and its exquisite craftsmanship. However, none of this was able to prevent the manufacture from edging ever closer towards the precipice of financial ruin. Drastic measures were needed, though their form would take the industry by surprise. In fact, it was an urgent request from an Italian distributor that sparked the flame that would eventually become the Royal Oak.

As the story goes, on the eve of the 1971 Basel Fair, Georges Golay, then Audemars Piguet’s managing director, contacted a watch designer and asked him to design an “unprecedented steel watch” in response to the request from Italy. It was 4 p.m. By the following morning, the Royal Oak was all but born. The quick turn-around time can be attributed to the designer that Golay tasked with this project: the legendary Gérald Genta. By 1972, Genta was well-known in the industry, with several high-visibility projects to his name, like the Universal Genève Polerouter, the Omega Constellation and the Patek Philippe Ellipse. The Royal Oak, however, would prove to be a departure for him, and also his magnum opus. It was unlike any watch conceived before, and it would come to define Genta until his passing in 2011, 40 years after he first sketched out the design.

As conceived, the proposed watch would affect a nautical mien, with an octagonal bezel and exposed retaining screws that were meant to be evocative of a commercial diver’s helmet. The exposed rubber gasket served to reinforce this theme, which also extended to the name, “Royal Oak”, which was a reference to the historical British warships of the same name (which, in turn, were named after the oak tree that provided shelter to King Charles II as was fleeing the Roundheads during the English Civil War in 1651). The meticulously finished and equally slim bracelet was integrated into the case. The latter of which had such a sufficiently generous diameter (39 millimeters) that it would come to be referred to by collectors and fans as the “Jumbo”. 

Per the request of the Italian distributor, the watch would be crafted from steel, something unheard of in a high-end watch. Ironically, doing so made the watch several orders of magnitude more difficult to manufacture than gold, as steel proved to be a much harder material to hand-finish to Audemars Piguet’s exacting standards. In fact, the first prototypes were made from white gold. Imagine that: using gold, because steel was too difficult to finish properly. This would be just one of the conventions that the Royal Oak would upend.

Ultimately, it would be the finishing that would set the price of a then-astronomical $3,000. To put this perspective, that figure was approximately 10 times dearer than the Rolex Submariner of the era. Pundits seized on this as evidence that Audemars Piguet was out of touch and that the watch would be an instant failure, and it seemed that the naysayers would be right, as the Royal Oak proved to be anything but a runaway success. It took almost three years to sell out the first production run of 1,000 pieces.

Nonetheless, the first production Royal Oak, the 5402 A-Series, which made its official debut at the 1972 Basel Fair, stunned the industry with its bold, angular design and impossibly slim case. At a mere seven millimeters, the Royal Oak hugged the wrist and affected an elegance that belied its decidedly masculine lines. This was possible thanks to its movement, the calibre 2121, which to this day remains the thinnest automatic movement with a central rotor. (In fact, Patek Philippe would use this same movement in their initial version of the Nautilus, a watch that was their response to the Royal Oak — and designed by Genta as well.)

Over the years, the Royal Oak would spawn an entire line within Audemars Piguet’s portfolio that would come to include perpetual calendars, dual time zones and more. The most impactful departure, however, would be the Royal Oak Offshore, which made its debut in 1993. This watch adopted the octagonal bezel and integrated bracelet of the original, but was super-sized with a much thicker case that housed a magnetically-shielded chronograph movement and was water-resistant to a full 100 meters. 

Designed by Emmanuel Gueit, the original Offshore was a massive affair crafted from stainless steel. It would eventually come to define the luxury sport watch through 2000 and beyond, much as the first Royal Oak defined the genre up to that point. The Offshore found favor with actors, sportsmen, rap artists and well-heeled collectors alike, not in the least part because it hewed so closely to the original formula, though with an added dose of testosterone, which pointed distinctly toward the direction the industry was moving. In fact, one of the Offshore’s most ardent fans was none other than actor cum politician Arnold Schwarzenegger, who owed his fame and popularity in no small part to his personification of the very qualities that made the Offshore so appealing. Schwarzenegger’s input in the design of the now-classic “End Of Days” Offshore — featured prominently on his wrist in the movie of the same name — helped kick off the acceptance of treated black cases on luxury watches.

Today, the Royal Oak line encompasses everything from robust, officially certified diving watches crafted from exotic materials such as titanium, ceramic and forged carbon fiber, to delicate haute horology pieces that can divine the difference between mean time and star time. Yet no matter how different the intent, design or size of a given Royal Oak may be, it’s connected to the rest of the line through the breakthrough design of the original. The “Jumbo” has remained in Audemars Piguet’s repertoire throughout the years, consistently sought after by die-hard collectors and true aficionados of the brand. In 2012, during its 40th anniversary, it received its latest redesign, which brought it back to its roots with a petite tapisserie dial in blue, which hews to the original, and a relocation of the Audemars Piguet logo from the 12 o’clock position back to its original placement at 6 o’clock, just beneath the pinion for the handset. No matter how much things may change, it would seem that ultimately, they remain the same. 

Long live the Royal Oak.

http://gearpatrol.com/2013/08/06/timekeeping-icon-audemars-piguet-royal-oak/

EMAIL :: Acraniotes@gmail.com   

TWITTER :: @Craniotes  

INSTAGRAM :: @Craniotes

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GEAR PATROL // Icon: IWC Portuguese

Icon: IWC Portuguese

By ADAM CRANIOTES on 7.15.14 Photo by IWC

http://gearpatrol.com/2014/07/15/icon-iwc-portuguese/

The contemporary IWC Portuguese is not merely a watch, but rather an entire model line within IWC’s collection, with everything from chronographs to minute repeaters and perpetual calendars counted among its ranks. It is one of the stalwarts of the Schaffhausen brand’s collection and almost universally loved by watch aficionados for the line’s clean, classic aesthetics, purity of design and fascinating history. And it all sprang from a single request from a singular watch market. Actually, make that two requests.

To understand the genesis of a Swiss watch named for an Iberian country, one needs to understand Portugal’s relationship with the sea. Since the dawn of the seafaring age, Portugal has been straining at the shore, ultimately bearing legion upon legion of sons who learned to navigate the cold waters of the Atlantic at the feet of their fathers and grandfathers. (Ever heard of Henry the Navigator or Vasco da Gama?) Among the tools required for successfully navigating a ship is an accurate marine chronometer. While traditionally these were large affairs, mounted in position on a gimbal on the ships bridge, pocketwatches began to take over as they became accurate and robust enough to perform navigation duty on their own. But pocketwatches weren’t exactly in vogue when the clients of two Portuguese retailers — Rodríguez in Lisbon, and Teixeira, in Oporto — requested larger pocketwatch-esque timepieces from IWC.

In the 1930s, smaller, thinner calibers contained within rectangular, art deco-inspired cases were all the rage, perhaps as a reaction to the bulkier pocket watches which they supplanted. But regardless of the rationale behind this preferred aesthetic, smaller equaled better, and yet here were two Portuguese retailers asking for a larger wristwatch to meet the demands of their customers. Given IWC’s well-known history of building sturdy, accurate pocketwatches, the manufacture was ideally situated to tackle this problem.

At first, IWC’s management was hesitant to take on this challenge since, after all, they had spent significant capital to develop movements and cases that were in keeping with the svelte zeitgeist of the time. But the brand had a history of doing things a little bit differently. IWC was the only manufacture in the German-speaking part of Switzerland and had been founded by an American who brought Boston pocketwatch building know-how to Schaffhausen in 1868. The Portuguese retailers were insistent; IWC gave in; the so-called “Portuguesier” was born. Mind you, it wouldn’t actually be referred to as such until much, much later. In fact, the first version, which was delivered in 1939, was simply called “large wristwatch”, and by the standards of the time, it was positively enormous. This timepiece, rendered in stainless steel, measured in at a whopping 41.5 millimeters, with the movement consuming just over 38 millimeters of space within. 

Even though this watch was precisely what the Portuguese retailers had ordered, it was anything but a runaway success, with only a few hundred manufactured between 1939 and 1944. After 1944, a newly developed pocketwatch movement was employed that would power the watch through to the late ’50s, though not many were produced. Ironically, it wasn’t until the 1970s, in the depths of the so-called “Quartz Crisis”, that the “large wristwatch” would be resurrected.

Sensing that perhaps it wouldn’t hurt to throw some curveballs, IWC took some unused cases from the earlier run and installed an updated pocketwatchmovement within — the calibre 98 — this time with their aim on the German market. Again, due to the prevailing attitude toward mechanical watches at the time, the total number produced was quite low. Yet the watch with the “Portuguese connection” was well received among an important few.

One such impressed individual was IWC sales and marketing director Hannes Pantli. Pantli approached Günter Blümlein, the company’s legendary CEO, with an idea for a watch to help celebrate IWC’s 125th anniversary in 1993. Even though IWC was set to debut the masterfully built, highly complicated Il Destriero Scafusia Grande Complication, Pantil’s idea was to have another, more accessible piece available to fans of the brand who might not be able to plunk down the hefty cost of the Il Destriero. This alternative watch would become the first IWC to officially bear the name “Portuguese”. Ironically, it would be produced in a sell-out series of 1,000 watches, which almost equaled the entire production of the earlier iterations. 

After this point, the Portuguese became a mainstay in IWC’s stable of iconic watches. Going forward, it would host famous IWC watchmaker Kurt Klaus’s vaunted caliber 5000 movement, spawn three distinct chronographs and branch out to the highest rungs of haute horlogerie with the jaw-dropping Portuguese Siderale Scafusia, IWC’s most innovative and complicated watch to date. And yet, if one wishes to experience the essence of the watch that those visionary Portuguese clients desired all those years back, a basic time-only Portuguese Automatic — in stainless steel — is still the way to go.

For years, IWC has used the tagline “Engineered for Men” to sell its rugged sports watches, many of which are highly complicated and make use of cutting-edge materials and technologies. Yet ask most people which watch best represents IWC and, chances are, they’ll say it’s the Portuguese, the simplest, most elegant and traditional of the brand’s offerings. That’s because long before there was a Big Pilot, an Aquatimer, or an Ingenieur, there was the “Portugieser”, a watch that traces 80 years of the company’s illustrious history. Its humble and quirky beginnings as a custom watch for some discerning clients in a country with seawater in its cultural veins only add to the watch’s mystique.

http://gearpatrol.com/2014/07/15/ICON-IWC-PORTUGUESE/

EMAIL :: Acraniotes@gmail.com   

TWITTER :: @Craniotes  

INSTAGRAM :: @Craniotes

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Auctionata Magazine: One to Watch

One to Watch

By Hannah McWilliams

November 30, 2014

https://magazine.auctionata.com/2014/11/30/one-to-watch/

Horology enthusiast Adam Craniotes breaks down the biggest brands in the business.

Many people can say they collect watches, but few can claim to transform their hobby into an 

internationally recognized movement. And yet that’s exactly what Red Bar Crew co-founder 

Adam Craniotes has done within this niche market, cultivating a group as easily sociable 

as it is knowledgeable.

A number of years ago, Craniotes and fellow collector Dr. Jeffrey Jacques began meeting for 

post-work drinks to talk timepieces. Over a period of time – meticulously tracked, no doubt – these 

meetings grew to include other enthusiasts. Eventually, through leveraging social media and 

networking, the group expanded to unofficial cult status, now gathering on a weekly basis in various
locations around New York City. In order to gain a better understanding of the vintage pieces in our 

upcoming auction, we asked Adam Craniotes for just a few minutes of his beautifully chronicled time.

What are people looking for in watches right now?

Adam Craniotes: ‘Classic’ is big right now. We’re seeing vintage pieces from Patek Philippe and Rolex perform well in the market, and we’re looking at the provenance more than anything: Has the watch been refinished? Has it been polished? What is the significance of the movement? What’s driving the market is that there are so many knowledgeable collectors now. The amount of vintage pieces that are for sale remain static; we’re not going to make more of these. So, with a more informed client base, collectors are really looking for that one perfect piece with just the right dial, or perfect case lugs, aware that this is something that they only made for a certain amount of time.

Patek Philippe’s Calatrava, Ref. 565, circa 1950

Can we look at some of the big brands? What should a collector know 

about Patek Philippe?

AC: In terms of what collectors should be looking for, it all boils down to the condition of 

the piece. Certain complications will cost more – they’re known for their perpetual calendars 

and minute repeaters – and this is something that the brand has always had expertise 

in. Certain movements are more desirable, and there’s irony in that because some of the more 

valuable vintage Pateks are not what we would consider true in-house movements; many 

of what are now considered their finest pieces were built off movements or kits from outside 

suppliers. As a collector, you do want to be versed in the history of the movement and the 

condition of the piece. A lot of watches have been refinished, a lot of dials have been redone, 

and even if the work has been done by Patek Philippe, what the collectors want now is 

something that’s original, 100 percent.

Let’s talk about Audemars Piguet, what makes that an interesting brand for collectors?

AC: Like Patek Philippe, Audemars is one of a handful of manufacturers that are still privately

owned. Right now, the story for many people starts and ends with the Royal Oak. It was

created in 1972 by a designer named Gérald Genta. This watch not only saved the company, 

but it created an entirely new genre of timepiece: the luxury sport watch. Like Patek Philippe, 

a lot of their expertise comes from their complications. As with any vintage piece, you want to 

know the provenance – that the condition is right, that it hasn’t been modified. But I think a 

savvy collector would be looking beyond the Royal Oak at this point, and there’s definite 

value there.

A Vacheron Constantin Ladies Watch, circa 1920.

What can you tell us about Vacheron Constantin?

AC: Vacheron Constantin is the ‘watch of kings.’ This is a manufacturer that was founded
in 1755, so again, they have amazing history. I think in terms of vintage pieces, it’s more
of a value than Patek Philippe and even Rolex – you don’t have to go in with a million
dollars to walk away with a really exceptional watch. I would be looking for pieces from
the ‘40s or ‘50s, gold case. With them, I wouldn’t even focus so much complications.
Their simple three hand watches are timeless and beautiful.

You mentioned Rolex. For the watch laymen, that’s a brand that most people recognize. What makes it more interesting for a collector?

AC: Rolex is the 800-pound gorilla, always. A lot of that can be attributed to their marketing,
which is exceptional. But it can also be attributed to the fact that these are very reliable,
sturdy watches. For the collector, what makes it interesting is to find that one piece that
nobody else has found – and that hasn’t been altered. People will send their watch for
repairs not even knowing what they have, and Rolex will fix it – ‘Oh , this dial is messed
up and let’s fix these hands for you’ – and then the watch comes back and it’s already
lost half its value [because certain dials or references may be more popular]. Many people
aren’t aware of that, and because so many original owners used these watches as
they were meant to be used – as tools! – they haven’t survived in perfect condition.
But they’re meant to be used under water, and they’re meant to go to the top of
Mt. Everest, and many collectors really relish that.

What about Jaeger-LeCoultre?

AC: Their tagline is ‘the watchmaker’s watch’ and traditionally they were known as a
movement manufacturer, providing for many major brands. Now, they’ve moved on to
tending their own gardens, so to speak. But if you look at historic pieces – Audemars,
Vacheron – they all used movements from JLC. So today, they’ve applied all that to
their own pieces and they’ve demonstrated mastery in everything. In terms of vintage
pieces, as with Vacheron Constantin, I would consider them more of a value. For me,
whether vintage or contemporary, it’s one of my favorite brands.

Omega’s military ‘Naiad Medicus’, circa 1941.

Are there any other brands that collectors should keep an eye out for?

AC: Omega, another very famous, storied brand. The Speedmaster chronograph is 

arguably one of the most famous chronographs; it’s the watch that went to space and

is still certified for every mission that NASA runs. It’s the only watch that’s been on the 

moon. I would say if you’re a collector and you don’t feel like spending that much, but 

you want a piece that’s significant, a pre-moon Speedmaster is a safe bet. These are 

the watches that were manufactured before NASA’s program, and I think that in the 

coming year, we’re going to start to see their value go up.

What’s the one piece of advice you would give a beginning collector?

AC: You’ve got to know what you like. I’m a firm believer that you buy what you like, 

and you wear what you buy. Some people might argue that you want it to be an 

investment, but part of the enjoyment of a watch is to have it on your wrist. We’re not

necessarily buying these things to tell time; you’re buying it for the story, and you’re

buying it for that visceral emotion you feel when you look at it. So decide: Do you like

dress watches? Sport watches? What type of complications are you into? I would just

say to buy something that makes you smile.

This interview has been edited and condensed.

https://magazine.auctionata.com/2014/11/30/one-to-watch/

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Wound for Life // OPINION: THE RED BAR EFFECT

BY ISAAC WINGOLD  OPINION MAY 26, 2014

Photographs by Jaygraphy.com

OPINION: THE RED BAR EFFECT

http://www.woundforlife.com/2014/05/26/opinion-red-bar-effect/

         (Read full article on Wound For Life) 
          http://www.woundforlife.com/2014/05/26/opinion-red-bar-effect/

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http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/09/fashion/for-luxury-watch-buyers-one-just-isnt-enough.html

OCT. 8, 2014

By GUY TREBAY

Photographs By Christian Hansen for the NY Times

NY Times: For Luxury Watch Buyers, One Just Isn’t Enough

Truth to tell, the Top Gun Big Pilot perpetual calendar watch is no thing of great beauty. Produced by the prestigious Swiss manufacturer IWC, it is a formidable hunk of matte-black ceramic casing roughly the diameter of a cocktail coaster.

The true merit of this ominous device is to be found on the inside, where its mechanical marvels reside. As its name may suggest, the Top Gun is a wonder of precision engineering, whose exquisitely calibrated gears and flywheels are capable of dissecting fragments of elapsed time with an elegance that lulls a wearer into forgetting the truth behind every timepiece ever manufactured. That is, with each advance of a sweeping second hand, the thing it is designed to measure is running out.

Two years ago, Adam Craniotes, a former copywriter, was determined to have the watch, even if its $38,600 price urged him toward painful Solomonic sacrifice. (continue to the full article)

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/09/fashion/for-luxury-watch-buyers-one-just-isnt-enough.html

Starting with his grandfather’s 1930s Longines watch, a gift from an aunt when he graduated from high school, Hampton Carney has gone on to amass a collection of nearly three dozen timepieces. 

At a collectors’ gathering, Adam Craniotes, third from left, whose 

determination to have a $38,600 watch led to a Solomonic sacrifice.

A display of high-end watches.

Credit

At left, the collector Hampton Carney, at right, he holds his 

first watch, a 1930s Longines, which was his grandfather’s.

A 36-millimeter Patek Philippe Grand Complications watch.

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To say that I love watches would be an understatement.  To say that I’m fanatical about watches, would be closer to the truth, but regardless of how I try to spin it, the end result is the same

I love watches.

This love — obsession, really — began at the age of 8 with the gift of my first watch, and has grown exponentially with each passing year.  Some folks burn out and move on when they reach a critical mass in their given hobby; not me.  In my case the fire just grows hotter, burns higher and consumes more and more of my time.  To this end, I write (for iW Magazine, Gear Patrol, Supercompressor and more), I consult (for several companies who I’d prefer to keep under my hat for the time being) and most importantly, I founded Red Bar Group, LLC.  

That latter bit is important, given that it has helped me bring the gospel to the streets, so to speak.  As wonderful as the internet has been to the world of horology, for me there’s nothing better than being able to sit down with my fellow watch idiot savants and talk turkey over a drink.  It seems that I’m not alone in this thought, which is why Red Bar is now nationwide, as well as in Canada, Switzerland (natch) and Dubai.

EMAIL :: Acraniotes@gmail.com   
TWITTER :: @Craniotes  
INSTAGRAM :: @Craniotes
WEBSITE :: www.redbargroup.com

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