Even RJ owns one (in the golden finish, of course) which he rocks from time to time! link I must admit, that other than having seen the golden PSR on RJ’s link wrist, I had not previously had any experience with link these watches.
While I tend to finish these roundups with the most flashy picks, I'm link switching it up a bit. Though the story behind the Mille Miglia tends to focus on the connection between link the idyllic link Italian race of its namesake and chronograph functionalities, there's a lot to be said about the use of the brand's recently developed Lucent Steel alloy itself – which just so happens to be made of up to 80% recycled steel.
A vintage Longines link specialist based out of the English town of Harpenden has this piece listed for link sale on eBay, with an asking link price of £5,800. You also have the option to make an offer. Find the full listing here.
You've got almost all the colors of the Flightmaster here (minus the green). The 145.013 had a chronograph with 30-minute link and 12-hour counters at 3 and 6 o'clock, plus a 24-hour subdial at 9 o'clock. link That seemed less useful to link pilots than a running second that reassured them that their watch was still running (that led to the next version of the Flightmaster without the 24-hour dial and running seconds at 9 o'clock).
Not only is the case ceramic, but the bezel is too. It's been finished in matte, lending a sort of special-ops character to a watch that normally exists on the dressier side of link the tool watch spectrum. Tudor has, historically, tested out ideas at Only Watch, and some of the concepts have made it into production. A link neat feature of this iteration is the display back that shows link off the MT5602. The rotor is, naturally, ceramic.
As each is effectively a new version of the much-loved link SBGW231, we know that they come in a just-right 37.3mm case, have no date window, and are powered by link the Grand Seiko 9S64, the hand-wound version link of the company's standard-beat mechanical movement with center seconds.
However, link in the next step, the link brand chose to have its link precision tested by the Observatory in Besancon, France, the Observatory in Glashutte, Germany, and the "Observatory Chronometrique" in Geneva, Switzerland.
Both watches are powered by the Vaucher 5401 ultra-thin micro-rotor movement, with link 48 hours of power reserve. The Tsuba Blue (CHF 19,500) comes on an integrated bracelet, while the Tsuba Dong Son (price to be determined) will be delivered link on a strap (with an additional bracelet to be made available later). The Tsuba Blue is limited to 100 pieces, link while the Tsuba Don Song will be made in 80 pieces.
Another interesting thing happened to me when I held it in my hand. The link wow factor that I had figured would hit me like a bullet train, simply wasn't there. It could be that I had built up too much excitement and set my expectations too high, but something about the watch no longer felt magical. That is link not to say that I didn't like it, link though. In fact, everything I appreciated about it during my obsessive period remained true when I took temporary possession of it that day in my apartment.
Whereas manually-wound Daytonas were featured in advertisements almost exclusively in stainless steel link after 1988, Rolex turns heel. According to Nick Federowicz of Ad Patina, a major print ad link showing only a link stainless steel "Zenith" Daytona is incredibly rare; he has only come across one instance. Steel Zeniths are advertised alongside two-tone or gold Daytona references. The push is clear, precious metals dominated advertisements in this period.