5 Cool Finds – 5 Luxury Watches that look good, in every situation, everywhere…

The “5 Cool Finds” are back, however with a few changes… the biggest one being is that we changed to a new, more reliable partner whom we have a profound trust in: Chronext. We already explained to you all about this London-based online marketplace for buying, selling, and servicing of luxury watches – and here, online goes together with the same security and service as any high-end boutique (for more details – and the possibility to win a 2016 Rolex Explorer – please look here). What about the “5 Cool Finds”? Simple: 5 watches, not new, not vintage, most of the time young-timers (that we believe are the new trend) that we selected for you. Today, we went for the efficient selection: 5 luxury to high-end used watches that will look good now, in 10 years, during weekend of for business and that don’t scream their ‘luxury price’ – so-to-say, classics.

This Patek Philippe Nautilus 5712 (for sale here) will look great in every occasion

When you look for a luxury watch, you have to ask yourself dozens of questions: how will I use my watch? What will I do with it? Where will I go with it? Will it be for sports, for business, for weekends? What do I want to show to others, while wearing this watch? Well, to make it simple, it is far from being simple (except if you are a hardcore or a wealthy collector, and own several watches). However, having the right watch is the finality. Thus, if you have to have one or two watches, your choice must be a watch that will look good both for business and leisure time, and a watch that will look good now and for the coming decades – considering the investment, you probably want to keep it more than a few years. That’s what we call classics and our first Monochrome X Chronext “5 Cool Finds” is all about that.

A. Lange & Söhne Langematik Sax-O-Mat

A Lange & Söhne, oh my dear Lange… We can’t help ourselves here at Monochrome-Watches but we have a huge respect for this beautiful brand. A Lange & Söhne is one of the few German brands that are based in the small town of Glashütte and it is certainly the best ambassador of the German School of Watchmaking. Why do we love Lange? This brand offers one of best ‘packages’ of attention to details, elegance, discretion, technical content and fine craftsmanship on the market today. Since 1994 (not that long ago, compared to the old Swiss Maisons), their watches have become icons and collectors’ grails. However, most of the “entry-level” watches of Lange are elegant and quite dressy watches, combining a gold case with a bright dial, and with a manual movement. This is delightful for sure, however it doesn’t fit the concept of an all-rounder watch, that will look good in all situations. However, we found one, the Langematik Sax-O-Mat, and it doesn’t come with a silver dial.

Why is this Langematik Sax-O-Mat different? First, it benefits from the discretion of white gold. If you don’t want people to know that you are wearing a gold watch, white gold is the solution… You know what you wear, not the others! Besides this, white gold has a more casual look. So does the case, with a reasonable size of 37mm (once again, 37mm is not small, it is elegant and already offers a great presence on the wrist). Furthermore it has a black dial, which we all know will be more versatile, and will be easier to match with your weekend attire. Nevertheless, this watch is still a Lange and comes with the superb finishing and a sumptuous movement. The fact that this Langematik is an automatic makes it extremely comfortable on a daily basis. The Sax-O-Matic has a ¾ rotor, which follows the traditional codes of German watchmaking, and some high-end finishings. This watch combines the beauty of haute-horlogerie with the ease of a discreet white metal / black dial combination. It is listed here and priced at € 18,830 Euros.

Audemars Piguet Millenary Chronograph

For the average person (meaning with ‘limited’ knowledge about watches), Audemars Piguet means Royal Oak. In a way, they are right, because the RO is a real horological icon, and approx. 80% of the brand’s production is RO (Royal Oak) or ROO (Royal Oak Offshore). However, Audemars Piguet shouldn’t be limited to one collection, and luckily the brand has more to offer, including extremely elegant watches with a great mastery of shapes. A perfect example is the Millenary, a watch that is not round, not squared, not tonneau but that features a rather unique oval shape. While this watch is now mainly offered in skeletonized and rather big editions, it used to be manufactured in more elegant, refined and certainly easier to wear on a daily basis versions. And we found one: the Millenary Chronograph, which combines the controlled originality of this oval case with the sporty attitude of the chronograph.

The edition we found is an interesting mix. Its case is 41mm – much more versatile than the current 47mm editions – in stainless steel (always good for the wallet and more resistant to daily wear than gold). While some editions were showing a rather sporty or showy dial, this one features a silver a dial with Roman numerals, making it both sporty and refined. Well, this becomes a watch that won’t look stupid with a suit or a pair of jeans. Inside the case is the calibre 2226, an automatic chronograph (that was also used in the Royal Oak Offshore). It’s a 3-register movement with date. This watch offers some originality, a welcomed discretion and the beauty of the name on its dial, for a very reasonable price of € 5,950 Euros (and it comes with original box). More details to see here.

IWC Portugeiser Chronograph

The Portugieser is certainly the most iconic watch made by IWC, and the Portugieser Chronograph, a watch that is around for almost 2 decades, is probably the most iconic of them all. This watch sums up everything an IWC should be. It’s elegant but not snob, it is discreet but offers a great presence on the wrist, it is iconic but never “screams”, it is balanced, it is well proportioned (large enough but not enormous like most current IWC watches). It has this feeling of a perfect everyday watch, which can be worn discreetly with a suit or more casually during a weekend. The IWC Portugieser Chronograph is the SUV of watches: whatever you’ll do, it will follow you.

The edition we found today is certainly the most elegant option, as combining the 40.9mm steel case with a white dial and gold indices. The beauty of this watch mainly comes from its large dial and its almost absent bezel, and this gives the sensation of wearing a larger watch, without the inconvenience of a massive case. The dial is extremely balanced, with the two registers at 6 and 12 and the absence of date (that could ruin the balance). Inside the case is a modified ETA/Valjoux 7750, a proper workhorse that will never defeat. The present example is almost new, with box, papers and warranty, but for a price much lower than the new retail price – listed for € 5,850 Euros (new it is € 7,600 Euros) All the details about this great watch here.

Jaeger LeCoultre Master Geographic

This watch could be the exception to today’s theme, because of its complication. Many of us often think that more complications mean that it unavoidably becomes more dressy. In the case of the Master Geographic (we reviewed it here for you) it seems to be the opposite. While the 3-hand editions of the JLC Master tend to be very classic in appearance, the edition that we chose today, seems a tad more sporty. And that despite it features no less than 5 complications on the dial, and comes in a pink gold case. Surprising, as it’s not even a chronograph (known be be more sporty/casual), but a complex world-timer. It displays the time (of course), as well as the power reserve, a second time-zone, a indication of the day and night, the date and the location where the second time-zone is adjusted to. The Master Geographic is a complex watch that will become the perfect ally for travellers, whether it is for business or pleasure, but always in style, due to a restrained 39mm diameter.

While the other watches we found are quite easy to imagine for a weekend trip, this one, due to the gold case, stays more on the luxurious side. However, this won’t prevent you to use it all week long, as long as you don’t want to go to the beach. The JLC Master Geographic is powered by an in-house movement, visible through the caseback – and as usual with JLC, with a very nice finishing. The example we’re showing you here is almost new, with all papers and boxes and comes for a price of € 16,490 Euros (vs. € 22,200 Euros when new). A very good option for the stylish traveler hidden in all of us, listed here.

Patek Philippe Nautilus 5712

This watch simply defines the concept of the casual luxury watch, since its inception in 1976. The Nautilus is part of these icons that will never let you down. Whatever you do, wherever you are, whatever the place you visit, or your style, you can’t go wrong with a Nautilus on the wrist. This watch could be the one-collection watch. It combines the relaxed look of a stainless steel case with integrated bracelet together with the beauty of the Patek finishing, a dial that is just superb (that blue, those reflections… it’s just lovely) and, in this ref. 5712 version, a “je-ne-sais-quoi” that makes it so desirable. While some will argue that the dial is unbalanced, messy and irrelevant in the case of the Nautilus, we (and many collectors) will praise this complex display that gives this watch so much charm.

Displayed on the dial of the Nautilus is a date by hand, a moon-phase, a small second, and a power reserve. And that’s rather surprising when you consider the positions of these indications. None of the sub dials has the same size, none is aligned, the dial has strange indices (some full size, some absent, and some cut in half), but whatever, it simply works! Behind this display is an icon, the Patek calibre 240, Patek’s signature movement, with a slim profile and a micro-rotor to bring energy. The movement is finished with great care and is certified by the Patek seal (as this watch is a recent example from 2013). This is a rare occasion to buy this icon, because it’s hard to find on the market – and that must explain a rather hefty price of € 30,900 Euros (however it comes with original box and papers). If you can only have one watch, go for a Nautilus. Listed here.

For more watches for sale, keep an eye on Chronext. Everyday, some new items are listed and offered with great security.