I am a fan of Touch of Modern, and have bought a number of items for myself and my house through the site, including a watch back before I started wring for WWR. The site, as I have mentioned here previously, is a members only sale site (join here if you are not a member) specializing in modern goods that skew toward a male audience. Sales are limited time, and frequently include watches. Right now, there are several watch deals on Touch of Modern, including Cobra de Calibre, Vintage Rolexes, and watches from Jean Marcel, Ballast, and Alessandro Baldieri.
The first watch I wanted to point out is the Cobra de Calibre Twin Crown, which I covered in September of last year. I am a big fan of this micro brand, and ToM has the bronze cased watch with either a black or green dial. The 42mm case has two crowns, one to set the automatic Miyota 9015 movement, and the other for the internal rotating bezel. The watch is on sale for $549 through April 25 at noon Pacific.
If your tastes run a bit more classic, there are a number of vintage Rolex models also up for sale. Of the watches still available, the two toned Date Adjust is the most expensive at $4,499 and the stainless steel Date Adjust on a leather strap is the least expensive at $3,149. In the middle is a 2000’s vintage Air King, on sale for $3,699. This sale also ends on the 25th of April.
Slotted into the ‘aspirational’ range are the Swiss made Jean Marcel watches. There is a variety of watches available, each with in-house decorated ETA and Valjoux automatic movements. The line ranges from the Calrus three hander and the Hunting Case pocket watch, each on sale for $999, to the Semper chronograph with moon phase, on sale for $2,799. The sale on Jean Marcel ends on the 24th.
Ballast, with the oversized canteen clasp, fits into a little younger demographic, and the site has a wide variety of watches on sale from $229.99 through $275.99. I took a look at one of the watches on sale, the Jolly Roger last year. Some of the models, like the $239.99 Odin, are conventional enough to work as attire for the office, while the more ‘out there’ designs (I am looking at you Jolly Roger) would probably be better suited for weekend and evening wear or more casual work attire. The sale on Ballast watches runs through April 23 at noon Pacific.
Finally, there is a brand I have not seen before, Allesando Baldieri. There are two styles each with several options, the Seamonster Automatic and the Retrospec, with a Ronda quartz movement. The Retrospec looks to take some cues from Rolex, but I would not call it a copycat, since it is not trying to deceive you into thinking it is the more expensive watch. The watch is selling for $219.99 and comes with different case and dial options. The automatic Seamonster, on the other hand, looks to be a dressy and stripped down looking diver. I am partial to the gun metal case, but there are four different cases available, each for $549.99. The Seamonster uses a Miyota 9015 automatic movement in the 46mm case with a domed sapphire crystal. I don’t know if there is an affiliation, but the caseback features what looks like a Liquid Image dive mask/camera. The Baldieri watches are on sale through April 26 at noon Pacific.
