These Are the Watches We’re Obsessing Over in August 2020

As watch lovers, we spend our afternoons poring over watches both new and vintage. When a new timepiece comes across our radar, one that particularly resonates with our tastes, we can’t help but obsess over it. So, here’s a taste of that process — five timepieces that our watch-loving staff are obsessing over right at this very moment.

Seiko SRP777 “Turtle” (Modded)

Hunter D. Kelley

My newest obsession is my recently acquired Seiko SRP777, otherwise known as the “Turtle”. I’ve always been interested in Seiko modding, but never had the confidence to take tools to a perfectly functioning watch. Pandemic boredom won, and I found myself on reddit looking for used Seiko Turtles, hoping to save some money for parts. The first mod was a bezel and bezel insert from One Second Closer, a small Dutch watch modding shop. I was going for a vintage/retro thing but hoping to keep the OEM look. I also threw it on a Gecko Watch waffle strap. The next mod is a top-hat sapphire crystal, and that requires dropping the movement from the case. Wish me luck. -Hunter D. Kelley, Associate Designer

1968 Rolex Oyster Perpetual ref. 1018

HQ Milton

When folks think of a 36mm vintage Rolex, chances are they’re picturing either a Datejust or an Explorer. The 1018, however, is a little-known 36mm reference from the Oyster Perpetual line (most 1960s models measured 34mm). This one has a gorgeous grey dial, great intact tritium lume, a chronometer-certified automatic movement and a smooth bezel. The hands are newer service replacements, but the watch is just so damn cool — and relatively rare — that it doesn’t matter. -Oren Hartov, Associate Editor

Seiko Astron Giugiaro Design GPS Solar SSE121

Luxury Bazaar

This is a special watch, and I don’t care that its lopsided, 46.3mm titanium case would wear pretty large on my not-so-massive wrist. The 2017 limited edition was made as part of the longstanding Seiko x Giugiaro relationship that’s produced some of the funkiest designs the brand (or any brand) ever made, and this incredibly original watch is its pinnacle, IMO. Seiko’s Astron GPS Solar watches are, further, some of the most overlooked but genuinely practical and thoughtfully conceived horological technology in existence. -Zen Love, Staff Writer

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Zenith Chronomaster Revival El Primero A384

Hodinkee Shop

Clocking in at a small-but-fantastic 37mm wide, the Chronomaster Revival A384 is a fairly faithful recreation of a watch that showed up on the scene in 1969 and was the first to feature Zenith’s now-famous El Primero chronograph movement. We featured the “Shadow” version in the latest Gear Patrol magazine, but it’s hard to say no to that faceted steel case, panda dial and gator strap. -Henry Phillips, Deputy Photo Editor

Instrmnt Applied Design Dive Watch

Instrmnt Applied Design

Glasgow-based Instrmnt Applied Design Dive Watch brought Bauhaus aesthetics to dive watches, and its iteration of the tool watch is a sleek, Sellita SW200-powered timepiece. You could argue the watch is a bit too plain and subtle (Helvetica Neue, pfft) to serve as a dive watch, but I’m not a diver — minimalism over maximalism, baby. Its muted dial is serving Unimatic vibes, swapping the Italian watch’s dots for lines. It costs under $800, and that free shipping is very enticing.” — Tyler Chin, Associate Staff Writer

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