Horological Meandering

So, five guys go into a restaurant... (lots of pics)

 

Greetings to all!

I was back home for the past week, and to celebrate (and in observance of my recent addition of a Lange Datograph to my set of watches) we were able to gather five of the "NorCal Gang of 6" for a luncheon on Friday.  The sixth member was sorely missed, primarily for his good cheer but also for the pieces he would have contributed to the occasion!

The theme started as a "Dato lunch" but at the suggestion of one of the members turned into a "chrono lunch."  There were some pieces that I failed to photograph (a pretty JLC Reverso flyback chrono, a fabulous vintage Minerva, and my own VC Overseas chrono that has received plenty of coverage previously, among others) and some pieces that the attendees didn't bring due to space limitations (e.g., a great VC chrono).  That said, I think we did pretty well!  As usual I brought the most modest selection, and was blown away by the other pieces on display. 

Apologies in advance for the quality of the photos: as we've all learned time and time again, restaurants tend to be terrible places for watch photography, and in this case there were some odd reddish lights that made things tough (in addition to the usual overhead halogens).  Enough excuses -- let's get started:

A very nice early Roger Dubuis piece:

Already a classic, the JLC Duometre, this time in YG:

Kari, anyone?  Number 1 in a series of 11 Chronographs -- this one with a unique 45-minute register (as opposed to the standard 30 minutes)

My hack photography doesn't come close to revealing the beauty of this movement:

Perhaps the surprise of the day: the GO split seconds chrono -- great pusher action, clean functioning, and relatively affordable vs. the ALS Double Split

Movement side of the GO.  Maybe not as awe-inspiring as the Dato or DS, but very pretty in its own right

A very early DeBethune piece with a Venus movement.  Another wonderful surpise to see.  The owner related that at the time, DeBethune didn't even have their own boxes!  He also persuaded DeBethune to add a deployant buckle later.  The central guilloche on this watch later inspired some conversations with Kari on what became the production version of the Observatoire:

Ho Hum, a couple of Pateks -- gorgeous!  See the large group shot later for a third example as well...

On to the main attractions: the ALS chronos.  First, the 1815

Dato time: one of 10 Pisa Datos -- I for one wish that this had been the "standard" look for the PT Datograph, as it's gorgeous

Pisa Dato and 1815, side by side:

Time for the heavy artillery: the all-conquering Double Split.  I had never seen or handled this watch before in PT, and it's absolutely awesome!  I was delighted to be able to wear it for a bit, and didn't find the weight a problem.  In fact, it almost made my Dato seem dinky by comparison.  Definitely very high on my list of wants!

Some different views of the movement, which one attendee likened to "a city under glass:"

One last solo look before moving on (can you tell that I loved this watch?)

PT DS and Dato side by side -- quite the combo...

The three Datos in attendance, as modeled by Tahoeblue, my favorite wrist model:

On to the group shots -- the five Lange chronos in attendance:

Most of the chronos present (some were already being put away by the time of these final photos -- note the third PP)

And the display sides!

Hope you enjoyed this a fraction as much as I did -- great friends, great discussions, and great watches made for a wonderful time. 

Best,

Gary G