By Harlan Chapman-Green
Today we’re going to take a look back at the winners and the losers of the Clash of the Chronos series, exclusive to WristReview.
Winners
September – Breitling Navitimer 01 vs Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch
The first winner ever of the series was the Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch, probably the most legendary chronograph watch ever made. It accompanied the pioneers of the moon landing and still kept time even when it’s approximately 240,000 miles away. The Omega won out because of this legendary history, the open caseback (which is no longer made for this model) and the under the radar factor that this watch manages to do really well. omegawatches.com
October – Rolex Cosmograph Daytona vs Breguet Chronograph Type XXI
The second winner was one of the most heavy hitting pieces we’ve ever had on the series, the Breguet Type XXI. It went up against the Rolex Daytona which is a brilliant watch nonetheless, however the Breguets most defining features were the split seconds fly-back chronograph, the fact that it’s a Breguet, the date window (which the Daytona lacked) and the lower retail price of USD12,300 as opposed to USD13,000. breguet.com
November – Longines Master Calendar Chronograph vs TAG Heuer Carrera 16 Heritage Chronograph
The Longines Master Calendar Chronograph watch took the crown for the third instalment of Clash of the Chronos. To put why it won very simple, it had a lot more bang for a lot less buck. And by a lot less buck I mean a whole USD1,500 less. The winning features of this watch were the calendar and moonphase complications, the classier bracelet design and, of course, the price. Sometimes we need to conserve our money to use on the house, or a car or family or just for a rainy day. The Longines won’t let you down and it makes for a good looking investment too. longines.com
December – A.Lange & Söhne 1815 Chronograph vs Patek Philippe 5170G-001 Chronograph
Perhaps the only haute horlogerie piece in the entire series that won (unless you count the Breguet, which is up to you), the 1815 Chronograph is a real gob smacker of a watch. It’s also been subjected to Lange’s new design language which removes the train track minute markers around the dial for s more subtle and individualised look. The Lange won out because of its column wheel chronograph, jumping minute indicator and simply it’s classical yet modern looks. alange-soehne.com
No matter how you look at it, the Fifty Fathoms line has an enormous prowess to it. It edged out the Rolex Submariner on becoming the first diving watch which uses the same key technologies that are still in use today. It’s a diving watch with a chronograph and a complete calendar complication too, which means it’s got the day name, day number and month indicator as well as a moonphase and a flyback chronograph as well. It was also the first watch that won out even though it had a higher price than the competition, but for that little bit extra it’s definitely worth it. blancpain.com
Ah Omega, we started with one and we finished with one. Some people might say we’re biased, maybe what they might not realise is that Omegas are just good watches. It brought down the Godzilla of watches (by which I mean the Seiko Ananta, not because it’s ugly as I quite like it, but because it’s Japanese). The Seiko had a lot going for it, a limited edition of 300 pieces, a hand painted dial and a column wheel chronograph, but it lost out to the Omega in some key areas. The first is the bracelet, because Omega works its bracelets very well the Omega really looks the part with some brushed and some polished areas on it, however the Seiko was all brushed which I felt looked a bit cheap. It also had coloured chronograph indicators and, being a dive watch, it was more water resistant. Although the Seiko isn’t a diving watch but is still water resistant to 100m, the Omega’s 300m water resistance and pushers that are operational even under water give the wearer an extra peace of mind. omegawatches.com
Thank you for following Clash of the Chronos on WristReview, we’ll be back soon!
Harlan Chapman-Green – Contributing Writer
First introduced to horology with the Patek Philippe Calibre 89 by his father two years ago, Harlan enjoys his passion for fine horology. He prefers to spend his time in the boutiques of upmarket brands, trying out new pieces constantly. His preferred 3 brands are A. Lange & Söhne, Breguet and Vacheron Constantin. Although not much for the smaller brands, he still finds the complications intriguing and wishes to own one watch from each of his three favourites. Read his articles here.
