Independents

I know you’ve all been curious about what they were cooking.

Will be interesting to see how this goes for them. A three-hander on a rubber strap for $50,000 with a stainless-steel case (yet no metal bracelet) might be pushing the envelope. i do like the orange version tho  

no date (which to some is ok) watch. I'm out!

Sure, it will get sold out, but for that price there is a lot more to be had even if not so exclusive

Wasn't that 38k ish

Bigger case, waterproof. Buckle is nice. An "upgrade" worth more than 15K? - I don't think so.
It seems that pricing is mostly based on exclusivity, there is multi year wait for principia and they will make only 20 pices per year of the delta works.

This is a ginormous 3 hander at 45mm. Didn't see that.

45mm.  Only 100m water resistance.  They skeletonized the Principia rotor and stuck the movement in a huge case.  Movement looks like it’s swimming in the case.  Maybe that’s the point as it is a divers watch?

Independents have limited resources but I would have loved to see something like : 42mm, bigger movement, steel rotating bezel with finishing similar to the bridges of the movement, 200M water resistance, central seconds ...

I think most purchases will be driven by the secondary market value of the Principia.

As a watch, I have no interest. The diameter is excessive and the value isn’t there. I can’t believe they went with rubber case inserts. I wouldn’t buy the Omega Ti Planet Ocean due to this, let alone something 5x the price.

I do love the crown. It’s outstanding.

i see options such as metal side insert and various colors of rubber. So my question is, and when ordering you can't change color, yet my question is are the side case rubber insert user-changeable like their matching rubber straps? i can't seem to find that info on their site, maybe i missed seeing it?

That's a part of why I love them, they respond almost immediately. Other brands it takes days if not weeks to get an answer

Offer four or more different colors of their rubber bits and include the metal blanks. This is what I love about great independents like Gronefeld, options like changeable side parts brings innovation and great features you don't see elsewhere. 👍

As for the price, I think it's fair. Maybe not a good deal but I think reasonable compared to say the LF Sport Auto where the price went up but some content was taken from the movement. When you take inflation and the long wait time into account the price will probably look really good in 2025 when the first non-vips might be able to get their watches

Clearly independents are jumping on the bandwagon of luxury sports watches. But they are missing the point. Without giving it too much thought, firstly the design is nothing novel (the first was the remontoire). Secondly the price is unpalatable. If I truly wanted a luxury sports watch I would pay up (yes, even premium!) for a Rolex even if I can’t get it at list price, given where AP PP sports are pricing at the moment. If I want a true utilitarian sports watch at an accessible price I would buy Tudor (just think Black Bay 58s, Pelagos 39s). The alternative band of luxury sport watches should be made up of watches that have novelty in terms of design + function, better technical capabilities and some accessibility to price (i.e. affordability). Given what Grönefeld have done in the past, this really doesn’t mean anything to me. The time for irrational exuberance is over, and the bubble for luxury sports watches have burst. If watchmakers think that a few tweaks would do the trick and that consumers would gladly assume the cost of labor + whatever premium they charge, they will be in trouble. Stagflation has given way to inflation and an economic storm is brewing. Good luck.

Best
Gatsby

Gronefeld and DeBethune come to mind.

I was very close to getting a titanhawk or db28, but was warned off considering how close they were to folding....does seem like eons ago