Time and Tide Watches

Australian Watch Authority

  • Home
  • Shop
  • Reviews
  • Watch Fairs
    • Baselworld 2019
    • SIHH 2019
    • Baselworld 2018
    • SIHH 2018
    • Baselworld 2017
    • SIHH 2017
  • Club
  • Partners

22.04.2017
Andy Green

SPOTTED! BY AG: Dispatch 7, April 2017

Last month’s dispatch was written in an airport lounge as I waited to fly out to Basel, via London, for my very first Baselworld experience. Now to report back on what was a big month, to say the least.

Ted’s Autodromo Group B Evoluzione / 1977 Porsche 911 3.0 Carrera

My trip to Baselworld started in London, where I shook the jetlag and spent a few days catching up with friends and family. The stars aligned and Ted Gushue, Editorial Director of Petrolicious, happened to be in town. We spent the morning driving round London in a lovely Porsche 911 Carrera 3.0 (thanks to the London City Car Club). On Ted’s wrist was an Autodromo Group B Evoluzione – Ted’s watch of choice when globetrotting, and one that’s always a big hit with the car guys.

Paul’s Rolex Datejust and kit

Next on my London itinerary was a visit to the Phillips auction house, where I caught up with their watch specialist, Paul David Maudsley. Paul started the conversation by apologising that he didn’t have too much to show me. He then proceeded to unveil the entire Crosthwaite & Gavin Collection, which is going up for auction in November. Paul also happened to have with him a piece from his personal collection, a 1954 Rolex Datejust ref. 6309 Thunderbird, as well as the original kit it came with (box, papers, swing tags – the lot!).

Before I knew it, it was time to leave for Basel

The new Tudor Heritage Black Bay S&G and the Tudor Heritage Black Bay Steel

Day one of Baselworld is press day, which means the fair is relatively quiet and you have free reign. Full of energy, Team T+T charged through the entrance with overwhelming excitement. The influx of watches began, starting with one of my favourite brands, Tudor. My personal picks – the Black Bay Steel and Black Bay S&G.

Carson’s Discommon ‘Discautavia’

As the week progressed, I managed to squeeze in a lunch with Carson Chan, Head of Mission at Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie. Carson happened to be wearing his Discommon ‘Discautavia’, one of only five made. A true veteran of the fair, he gave me some rock solid tips on surviving the week, mostly involving copious amounts of whiskey.

Neil’s Heuer Autavia (ref. 11063) before, and restored.

When you’re in Basel you realise just how small the watch world is. The next day I caught up with Neil Ferrier, founder of Discommon and the man behind Carson’s watch. Over what was possibly the world’s most expensive Nespresso ($16 for two pods), Neil showed me the Heuer Autavia ref. 11063 he had just collected, freshly restored by renowned Heuer restorer Abel Court – the man commissioned for the ‘Discautavia’. Neil’s piece had been purchased from the original owner, who had actually used it as a dive watch in the navy.

Once Team T+T had ticked off all the major brands, it was time to check out the independents. There was no better place to start than Nomos Glashütte – we are big fans here at T+T. With @WatchesOfInstagram along for the ride, we saw some of the new colourways on the Club and Ahoi models, as well as the new Club Campus ‘Graduates’ series. I’m a big fan of colourful dials and good value, so these got two thumbs up from me.

The H. Moser & Cie Pioneer Centre Seconds Steel.

After that I ventured on to see the guys at H. Moser & Cie – mostly for the watches, but also to see the Swiss Mad Watch in person. It was there that I was introduced to the Pioneer Centre Seconds in Steel. Yes, steel – a first for H. Moser, who until now have only ever made watches in precious metals. For me, it was love at first sight, and this piece is my pick of the fair.

The Urwerk x Macallan ‘Flask 2’ and the UR-T8 / The UR-110

Next on the list was Urwerk, a brand I was excited to see in person for the first time. Luckily for me, they had on hand one of their extremely popular (and sold out) ‘Flask 2’ units, a collaboration with whiskey maker Macallan. This meant that they also had a ludicrous amount of whiskey (I hear that’s how some invoices were paid), which was swiftly consumed come 5pm.

The MB&F HMX Black Badger

It was also at the Urwerk booth that I (finally) met James Thompson, also known as ‘the Black Badger’, who was rocking an MB&F x BB – for obvious reasons. It’s not everyday you see an MB&F in person, let alone on the wrist of one of the men behind the collaboration.

That’s all for now – catch next month’s dispatch to hear about the second half of my trip.

Till then,

Andy.

Tweet
Share
Share
Pin
Email
53 Shares

BECOME A SUBSCRIBER

Don't miss any of the action! Join the community to get access to our weekly news round-up, behind the scenes stories, and entrance into exclusive competitions.


SIGN UP NOW
BRANDS
A
A. Lange & Sohne
Aegir Instruments
Akrivia
Alpina
Angelus
Apple
Aquadive
Archimede
Audemars Piguet
Australian Brands
Autodromo
B
Ball Watch Co
Bamford Watch Department
Baume et Mercier
Bausele
Bell & Ross
Blancpain
Breguet
Breitling
Bremont
Briston
Bulgari
Bulova
C
Cartier
Casio
Chanel
Chopard
Christopher Ward
Corum
Creux Automatiq
CT Scuderia
Cvstos
D
Dan Henry
Dior
Doxa
E
Edox
Erroyl
Eterna
F
Farer
Filson
Franck Muller
Frederique Constant
G
Gavox
Girard-Perregaux
Glashütte Original
Glycine
Gorilla
Grand Seiko
Gucci
H
H. Moser & Cie.
Haigh & Hastings
Halios
Hermes
Hublot
HYT
I
Ianos
IWC
J
Jaeger-LeCoultre
Jaquet Droz
K
Kurono
L
Linde Werdelin
Longines
Louis Vuitton
Luminox
M
Martenero
Maurice Lacroix
MB&F - Maximilian Büsser & Friends
Melbourne Watch Company
Mido
Ming
Monta
Montblanc
N
Nodus
Nomos
O
Oak & Oscar
Omega
Oris
P
Panerai
Parmigiani Fleurier
Patek Philippe
Perrelet
Piaget
R
Rado
Ralph Lauren
Raymond Weil
Ressence
Richard Mille
Roger Dubuis
Rolex
S
Seals
Seiko
Sevenfriday
Sinn
Spinnaker
Stowa
Swatch
T
TAG Heuer
Tangramatic
Tiffany & Co
Tissot
Tudor
U
Ulysse Nardin
Undone
Unimatic
Urwerk
V
Vacheron Constantin
Van Cleef & Arpels
Victorinox
Z
Zenith
Zodiac
  • Company
  • The Team
  • Contact
  • Latest
  • Archive
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Refund and Exchange Policy
  • Twitter
  • Instagram

The original content on Time and Tide Watches is copyright protected. Please email us before re-posting our content elsewhere. When sharing our images on Pinterest or Instagram please use the credit ‘via Time+Tide' THANK  YOU

TIME+TIDE | MELBOURNE | AUSTRALIA | INFO@TIMEANDTIDEWATCHES.COM

© COPYRIGHT 2019 TIME+TIDE

  • Home
  • Shop
  • Subscribe Now!
  • Reviews
  • Video
  • Club
  • Partners
This site uses cookies as outlined in our cookie policy. Find out more.