On the 1st of March 1965, Omega’s Speedmaster chronograph was “flight-qualified by NASA for all manned space missions.” From that point forward, the Speedmaster became a coveted watch by collectors and watch abusers alike. To put it frank, the Speedmaster is a tool watch with the looks of a highly refined and swiss fashion watch. To me, it’s perfection.

During the closing days of the Vietnam war, a new watch was born. Members of the SEALs, Green Berets, and other Special Forces teams were issued what many consider to be the finest military timepiece ever produced. Today, we call it the Benrus Type I watch. The Type I was a very simple dive watch built to be easily readable and absolutely bulletproof. The 42mm steel watch was powered by a very high quality 17 jewel ETA automatic movement - an extremely robust and very accurate machine. Packaged with the simple exterior, this watch quickly became a favorite amongst military folks and collectors alike.

As you all know, I’m a watch freak. Mostly, I’m into both modern and vintage military watches. The great thing about vintage military watches is the feeling they give on the wrist - you are wearing history. Of course, some of those watches just don’t keep on tickin…

I’m still on vacation, but thought I would drop a quick note… Earlier this week, Hamilton introduced a new watch to the market. Essentially, it’s a retool of the X-Wind and adds such features as a PVD finish, black face, and carbon strap. Somehow, this damned thing measures the mach speed of an aircraft. Just a hair over a grand puts you there.

Another day, another watch… This time, I thought I would review one of my latest - The LUM-TECH Combat B1. The B1 is a military inspired piece with a 17-jewel mechanical movement. It features a bead blasted PVD case that measures 43mm excluding the crown and the absolutely incredible LUM-TECH SuperLum. It’s built like I like my watches to be built - like a tank.