Friday Watches - January 2024
Well 2024 started with a bang (and that wasn't just the fireworks) but, as ever, you will have to wait to find out what caused the year to start so violently but, as I am feeling kind I'll give you a multiple choice of what it could be:
1) Omega became only the third brand to top the monthly table
2) Timefactors beat both Rolex and Omega in the weekly count
3) IWC recorded its highest ever weekly score
New Year's fireworks weren't just reserved for big cities or back gardens, we had plenty of our own on the Forum. Nor were they all watch related or confined to the Bear Pit. Who would have thought photography would be such a hot topic?
Right, lets crack on. January 2024, a four Friday month with a total of 504 watches shown from 124 brands which works out at a brand to watch ratio of 0.246 which is a new monthly high. Get in! The weekly average worked out at exactly 126.
The year started on the 5th with heavy hitters from AP, Lange and Dornblueth. There was also an unusually large number of Lemania 5100 powered chronos. The first new brand of the year was Depth Charge. The Three Stooges were not quite in their usual positions with Omega making one of its regular forays into second place. It topped the table on the two subsequent weeks (strangely the top three had exactly the same numbers both weeks , Omega fourteen, Rolex twelve and Seiko eight). The last week saw Seiko top the table with twelve (the first time this year they broke into double figures), then we had Timefactors on ten, beating both Omega (eight) and Rolex (seven). Although the house brand has tied with Rolex a couple of times (coming joint first on the first of October) and even beat them ought right back on the seventeenth of December 2021, they have never before beaten both Swiss brands.
It is a little early to have formed an idea of where brands are heading but Fortis have started strongly with a healthy six, as have Sinn with twenty. Conversely Zenith only scored five, a number which would have been their lowest score last year, but still three better than their worst ever. But this month's shining stars are IWC, not only with a new weekly record of eight but they have already matched their monthly best of twenty which they set in November last year. Perhaps this year we'll see them as the twelfth brand to achieve more than ten in a week.
Throughout January 124 brands were represented. Seven of these were making their first, tentative steps on the stage that is our Friday threads. These were: Depth Charge, Fears, Horage, J Springs, Laventure, Peren and Tempus.
If ever there was a watch that defined the term "beater" it would be UncleAlec's J Springs. A watch more battered and scratched I have yet to see. Another watch that had been more sympathetically personalised was PreacherCain's Darth Tuna which was sporting a rather natty stripey shroud. There was a veritable smorgasbord of gorgeous vintage watches including 50kopek's Enicar Sherpa Super Divette, EBB21's lovely Art Deco Lanco and, the almond in the risgrynsgrot, was Omegary's Omega Seamaster "Deep Blue". Exceptional.
Right, that is enough from me. I need to jump into February. Until next time. (Oh, as you will see, Omega won too!)
1Omega47
2Rolex45
3Seiko37
4Timefactors27
5Tudor22
6IWC20
7Sinn20
8Panerai19
9CWC15
10Grand Seiko10
11G Shock10
12Heuer9
13Christopher Ward8
14Hamilton7
15Citizen7
16Blancpain6
17Glycine6
18Fortis6
19Zenith5
20Damasko5
21Cartier5
22Universal Geneve5
23Apple5
24Breitling5
25Longines5
26Bulova4
27San Martin4
28KMK4
29HGP4
30Pulsar4
31Orient4
32Steinhart4
33Nomos3
34Yema3
35Oris3
36Draken3
37Casio3
38Depth Charge2
39Squale2
40Rdunae2
41Stowa2
42Jaeger-LeCoultre2
43Tactical Frog2
44Moser2
45Tutima2
46Steeldive2
47Anonimo2
48Borealis2
49Lemania2
50Ulysse Nardin2
51Glaschutte Original2
52Swatch2
53Tag Heuer2
54Timex2
55Beuchat1
56Boschett1
57Cortebert1
58Fears1
59Garmin1
60J Springs1
61Kurono Tokyo1
62Montblanc1
63Newmark (Modern)1
64Peren1
65RLT1
66Rotary1
67Seizenn1
68Smiths1
69Vostok1
70Wenger1
71West End Watch Co1
72ZRC1
73A. Lange & Sohne1
74Alpina1
75Audemars Piguet1
76Baume et Mercier1
77Dornbluth & Sohn1
78Ebel1
79Eterna1
80Fit Bit1
81Gruppo Gamma1
82Linde Werdelin1
83Nodus1
84Pagani Design1
85Seaholm1
86Unidentifiable1
87Victorinox1
88Wolbrook1
89Angelus1
90Archimede1
91Bell & Ross1
92Bertucci1
93Bremont1
94Di Milano1
95Doxa (modern)1
96Dubey and Schaldenbrand1
97Enicar1
98Formex1
99Helm1
100Horage1
101Lanco1
102Laventure1
103Le Jour1
104Le Monde1
105Mido1
106Ocean71
107Patek Philippe1
108Sekonda1
109Signum1
110Stocker and Yale1
111Suunto1
112Tempus1
113Airain1
114Bedat + Co.1
115Chronoswiss1
116Farer1
117Girard Perregeaux1
118Junghans1
119Marathon1
120Meraud1
121Porsche Design1
122Prima1
123Scubapro1
124Senraw1
125Talis1
