What Is a “Super Compressor” Watch?
A simple idea, a stroke of genius In the history of dive watches, the term “super compressor” is no marketing affectation. It refers to a patent developed by Ervin…
What Is the Lifespan of a Mainspring?
A Coiled Heart: Understanding the Mainspring In a mechanical watch, the mainspring is more than just a component. It’s the invisible muscle, curled inside a slim steel drum—the barrel—that releases…
What Is a “High-Frequency” Movement in Watchmaking?
Definition: what do we mean by a “high-frequency” movement? In watchmaking terms, frequency expresses the number of oscillations of the balance per second (measured in Hertz, Hz). The contemporary…
Why Do Some Dials Change Color Over Time?
When time colours time One morning, you wind your old dive watch. The light catches the domed crystal and—surprise: the deep black of its dial has taken on a chocolate…
How to Test a Watch’s Water Resistance Without Equipment?
The Myth of Permanent Water Resistance A watch is never “waterproof forever”. It is—until proven otherwise. And that proof, unfortunately, often arrives at the worst possible moment: by the pool,…
Why Do Mechanical Watches Gain or Lose Time Every Day?
Why does a mechanical watch—sometimes adjusted with the exacting standards of a master watchmaker—lose or gain a few seconds each day? Because behind its flawless dial, a delicate score is…
How Does an Escapement Work in a Mechanical Watch?
Why the escapement is time’s beating heart In a mechanical watch, everything begins with a mainspring housed in the barrel. It unwinds, powers a gear train… and would, unchecked, run…
What’s the Difference Between a Chronograph and a Chronometer?
Two words, two worlds: why we still confuse chronograph and chronometer In everyday language, “chrono” covers everything. We use it to describe both an interval timer and an extremely accurate…
Which watches does Édouard Philippe wear?
In our “Who Wears What?” column, we’ve already dissected the wrists of Sébastien Lecornu, Emmanuel Macron, Sarah Knafo, Jordan Bardella, Éric Zemmour and many others besides. It was time to…
Why Do Some Watches “Vibrate” on the Wrist?
When a watch “lives” on the wrist A slight shiver, a secret rustle, sometimes a genuine buzz that seems to travel through the case. Anyone who wears mechanical watches has…
Which watch is Sébastien Lecornu wearing?
After Emmanuel Macron and his little army of French watches, Sarah Knafo’s Rolex, and Jordan Bardella’s timepieces, it was hard to resist taking a closer look at the wrist of…
Why Are Some Watches Antimagnetic?
The Invisible Enemy of Watches: Magnetism A watch can survive rain, cold, shocks. But when it comes to magnets, its Achilles’ heel is the balance spring. Exposed to a…
What Are Blued Screws Used for in a Watch Movement?
A blue glint that’s anything but accidental Open the sapphire caseback of a well-bred watch and you’ll spot that discreet, almost electric shimmer: blued screws, set like inked punctuation…
How Does an Automatic Movement Really Work?
It’s a silent dance you wear on your wrist. An energy born of your movements, passed from one piece of metal to the next, regulated to the hundredth of a…
What Are Jewels Used for in Watch Movements?
The red secret at the heart of calibres They barely glint, set like cold stars beneath a movement’s bridge. You often catch them through a sapphire caseback, engraved with…
What Is a Field Watch?
There are watches made for showing off, and others that have a purpose. The field watch—or montre de terrain in French—belongs to the latter family: honest pieces, built to be…