The Breitling Watch Source Forums

SO I went for a walk at lunchtime to this other store that Bell & Ross' website said carried their line. Place called Louis Black, that I had never heard of.

Holy cow!!!

These guys could cost me a fortune (and a wife).

The have some serious players - Antoine Preziuso, including specially commissioned LE of 8 pieces for Louis Black, Corum, Alain Silberstein, de Grisogono, Jaquet Droz, Franck Muller, Roger Dubuis, Urwerk, Krieger, DeWitt

Of course they also had the Bell & Ross, but not much choice, and also U Boat (I still want to like them), Omega, Sinn and Kobold

Tried on my first Preziuso - damn they're nice, and fell in love with about 20 watches. Have the de Grisogono and Corum catalogues to drool over, and may be making a few return trips.

Be careful with your home budget.

Wow! Most of those I've only seen in magazines. Sounds like a great (but potentially expensive) way to spend a lunch break.

Preziuso's watches are nothing short of ART for the Wrist. I can only imagine the cost of his tourbillons.
Urwerk are the most distinctive watch I've ever seen. I wonder how the Uwerk 103 would feel after the novelty wears off, it looks impressive, and I'd bet the ranch that it feels the same. I don't care for the back of the Urwerk, with the wheel, and chrono functions. But it IS a cool watch.

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Terry

To be honest the Urwerk looked understated laying in the case next to the Silbersteins, although I can see myself wearing an Urwerk long before I strap a Silberstein on - they're just 'odd'. The Preziusos were gorgeous. If I had one money no object purchase it would be the 3volution - about $3mln if you can get one. The limited edition was amazing - had the dealer name on the rotor and the number on the dial, and was actually reasonably priced (for what it was). I'm going to do some more research and we'll see - I never thought I'd own a Preziuso, and I'm really feeling a little odd to think that it might be achievable without too much sacrifice. Now I just need to be sure that I would be buying the watch and not the concept.

The only Corums they had there were the yachting ones and while the shape is cool, the flags don't do it for me - I'd rather have a Romulus, though the Golden Bridge is cool. It was worth it just for the catalogue though (if you've seen one you know what I mean). Jaquet Droz were classy, just not for the money. De Grisogono were 'interesting', but not really for me. Muller, Dubuis, well - enough said, just incredible.

$3 mill eh? pocket change I see

This is sad

Sorry Gert - had to edit, no links to replicas please!!!

Roff

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Alright I spent some time last night researching Preziuso watches as I am not very familiar with the brand. He is certainly one of the masters watch makers and his watches are beautiful. The 3volution is an amazing tourbillion, what a concept! My taste in watches is expanding and I decided that I have to have a tourbillion someday.

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He is indeed one of the finest watchmakers of today. Beyond just being an artist though, he is truly innovative - the 3volution maybe being the pinnacle of that. He also has a great appreciation for history and holds true to his ideals, even when they may appear at odds with modern sensitivities - those familiar with the brand will know what I'm referring to.

At the same time, he makes watches that can play a role as a classic dress watch within a collection. At this point I'm just not sure if I would be buying that classic dress watch or simply buying in to a name that (for me) represents the pinnacle of modern watchmaking.

I guess either is OK, but I don't want to buy a name or an investment, I want to buy a timepiece that I can enjoy for what it is, not just what it represents. As you can probably all tell, this one has really knocked me off balance!

If you sell me a Navi from your collection very cheaply, it will help fund the timepiece that has knocked you off balance

I think I'm clearly in the minority here, but none of those do anything for me on an aesthetic level. I was familiar with Urwerk and Silberstein before now, and yes Silbersteins are just too odd - Picasso for the wrist...... and I've never liked Picasso!

I think we discussed Urwerk on here about a year ago, and I still agree that in terms of design they are very unique...... but as with all things that are supposed to be beautiful, "unique" is not necessarily a good thing! (The next time someone says your wife or g/f is very unique looking, I'd like to see your reaction! ) I certainly don't hate them, and a really admire the engineering and ingenuity, but I don't think I could wear one. I'd feel like people were looking at me liked I'd just stepped off of a Buck Roger's set!

Until this post, Antoine Preziuso was no more than name to me as I'd never bothered to check out the collection before. I agree that the 3volution is a great work of art and a great piece of engineering, but do I actually like it? No. The only one I kind of like is the B-Side....... but even then I'd much rather have a Roger Dubuis Excalibur instead.

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Driver8

Site Moderator

That's the joy of this hobby of ours - the same watch that makes me go weak at the knees doesn't do more than cause you to shrug. Sure we all like different things, but watches maybe more than anything else cause such wide ranging reactions - I mean we may not agree on who is the most beautiful woman, car, etc, but there will likely be consensus on whether they are beautiful or not. For watches, that just isn't the case for anything approaching mainstream looks (you have to exclude Silberstein and Urwerk).

The Dubuis pieces they had yesterday were amazing, but my heart just didn't flutter the way it did with a Preziuso strapped to my wrist.

Bottom line, I guess we are all lucky to be able to have this conversation, and whether I buy a Preziuso now, ten years from now, or not at all, the fact that I'm even thinking about it is worth a lot.

Absolutely - I agree 100%. To me watches are like art - they either do something and move you in some way, or they don't. But this takes us back to the comment that we make to people asking "which watch should I buy" - the answer being, buy the one YOU like the most. There's no right or wrong per se..... just opinions.

How much are those Preziuso's coming in at Roff? You said the 3volution was $3mill(ish), but what about the "entry" level models?

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Driver8

Site Moderator

Cost of an entry level Antoine Preziuso is a tough question to answer, but I'll try. First off you have to understand the way that he works. He runs the company with his wife, son and daughter, plus about 12 - 15 people. They will only produce around 500 - 1,000 watches a year - the number varying depending on the complexity of the pieces. Right now he has a big Russian commission for tourbillons that is preventing anything else from coming out.

So, even though he has a 'collection' this isn't a watch where you can walk in and say I want a x model. Everything is produced in very small numbers and you may need to be prepared to buy a watch carrying the name rather than the specific model that you want. Many of those watches on his site are one off creations (or close to it).

All that said, if you want to wear a Preziuso then you probably need to be prepared to pay in the $30,000 range. Not cheap by any means, but as you so rightly say, this is a work of art, not a watch - in fact he is really starting to move towards making the movement a piece of jewellery and the time telling function is becoming almost secondary - the B side is a perfect example - it's designed to be worn showing the reverse of the watch.

For the amount of watch that you are getting I think that it's a bargain - I mean this guy bought in his own CNC machines to make parts because he didn't want to rely on suppliers of parts who were late on orders and couldn't meet his exacting standards.

Wow I didn't know that. As I say, until this thread Antoine Preziuso was just a watch name to me, and I'd never looked at his work. I guess you are correct in saying that at the end of the day you have to be prepared to be paying for a wrist mounted piece of art that also just happens to tell the time, rather than a watch that also just happens to be a work of art..... if that makes sense.

Personally I'm not sure I could cross that divide yet. I still prefer a watch to be a watch first and foremost, but there is no denying they are fabulously constructed pieces. Hope you get one Roff if that's what you're after.

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Driver8

Site Moderator