HELSON Blackbeard WHITE

By TLex Same watch as the Blackbeard, but with a white dial; this time HESLON have gone for an even larger skull 'n' cross bones motif in BGW9 blue lume. For furthers details follow the HELSON logo below . . .

The Blogs | SMOKE SUNBURN AND STRETCHED TIRES: ASB4

The run group of these two S13s and the dark silver S15 looked pretty chaotic! They weren't all driving the same line, and not everyone seemed capable of drifting at the same speed, but they still managed to drift together aggressively and safely, while looking cool! Here, we see the black S13 leading with a wide line, while the S15 and the burgundy S13 follow with a tighter line on the inside. It looked real crazy to watch, but they drove pretty safely and nobody crashed, which is what matters!

The Blogs | SMOKE SUNBURN AND STRETCHED TIRES: ASB4

I absolutely loved this dark silver S15 Silvia!!! I'm not quite sure who owned it, but it had a very capable driver and an awesome stance! This S15 was drifting with super low stance and good offset Work XD9 wheels! I loved watching this thing! I think it's from San Diego because of the Drift Circuit sticker on the side window... I should have looked for the owner of this car in the pits, but it was super hot that day, so at the time I was more concerned with finding some cold water to rehydrate myself!

2012 porsche 911

It will not look very different, but the next generation of the iconic rear-engine sports car will be lighter, meaner, cleaner, easier on gas, and more agile. Inevitably, the new 911s cost more too.







What we know about 2012 Porsche 911 Carrera



Next Generation Porsche 911 Carrera Porsche is already in trials, but it is not expected in Europe until the end of 2011 and the United States until early 2012. Why the apparent rush? As much as we can tell, Porsche will be ready for the limits of CO2 emissions much more severe starting ramp in 2011 for all major domestic markets in Germany and other EU countries. And, of course, it never hurts to have something new to talk.



Before speaking, but some guidance is in order. The current 911-line, new in the United States by 2005 and also known as the 997 series, won a series of changes to the 2009 Carrera rear wheel drive and all wheel drive Carrera 4 cups all-glass roof Targa coupes, cabriolets and convertibles. Among them: recasting "flat-6" engine with direct fuel injection and more power, the new Porsche PDK 7-speed automated manual transmission option to replace a conventional automatic lights, LED rear lights and traffic and revised interior with improved ergonomics and better touch screen navigation. A day at the same high performance 911 GT3 reaches dealerships in spring 2009. remaining 997 variants, the GT2 and Turbo Hot, in 2010.



The 2012 Porsche 911 Carrera is the code name 991, which means another complete redesign of the iconic rear-engined sports car. But it is typical of Porsche will be difficult to detect without a 997 parked nearby. Buyers expect classic style 911, and Porsche is not about to risk selling a lot playing with him. However, reports of the magazine Auto Britain and Germany, Auto Bild 991 shows the proportions of the 997 slightly modified because the wheelbase is said to extend about 4 inches while overall length has not changed. These sources also expect wider taxiway, so the new 911 will be the beam front and rear. To add to the hard aspect is a new front fascia with a center of the grill of three major elements.



Several engine changes also mark the 2012 Porsche 911 Carrera. Anchoring one end is a revised base model S pack a reduced version of the 3.4-liter horizontally opposed persistent 6-cylinder engine. Despite the smaller engine would have been 3 .4 350 horsepower, up five from the 3.6-liter Carrera current base unit. Then comes a new Carrera RS, replace today's S-model. It uses the same 3.8-liter engine, but with 15 extra horsepower from 2009 to a nice piece, round, 400th Output torque slip a little, down from eight to 280 lb.-ft. for the 3.4 15 and 295 lb.-ft. for the 3.8. However, a decrease of weight - at least 130 books in our account - should provide slightly better acceleration times, plus better fuel economy and CO2 emissions. While it is too early for exact figures, sources of suspicion RS models will scale of 0 to 60 km / h in about four seconds.







Transmissions will again consist of a standard 6-speed manual and optional PDK (initial reference a German term for "double clutch.")



The reduction of the expected mass for the 2012 Porsche 911 Carrera comes from the wider use of carbon fiber, plastics, composites and other lightweight materials, as a result of lessons learned to the mid-engine V10 Carrera GT supercar . How these things will be used, and where, remains to be seen, however.

KAVENTSMANN Bathyal BRONZE (low-tech meets hi-spec.)

By TLex In German, ‘Kaventsmann’ is a term used colloquially to describe hefty objects. It is also used to describe rogue waves, a natural phenomenon whereby large waves seem to spontaneously occur far out to sea. The name BATHYAL refers to the bathypelagic zone lying between 1000 and 4000 meters.



No two names could be any more apt for a hefty handmade German dive watch, which has been pressure tested to 290 bar. A dive watch made using traditional low-tech artisan methods; from the humble paper and pencil to the lathe. And a dive watch that is not only magnificent to look at, but pretty damn impressive on paper, too . . .







Introducing the Kaventsmann BATHYAL Bronze, entirely handmade in Germany, the work of just one man wanting to hand build a watch for his father’s birthday. Like its namesake the KAVENTSMANN Bathyal Bronze is big and hefty. Its case measures 48mm in diameter with a thickness of 19mm and an overall length of 56mm.



The type of Bronze used for the Bathyal Bronze, CuSn8, also used by Panerai for the latest version of the Luminor Submersible, the PAM 382 ‘Bronzo’. It is favored for its high structural strength and warm-tones that are the result of its natural aging process.







The BATHYAL’s large bronze crown system was developed by Kaventsmann; a rundle nut is fixed on tubes and the crown is then screwed into the nut. The crown system has then been sealed 4 times. It features an 8mm thick Plexiglass acrylic crystal of the type used for the windows of the U.S. Navy Bathyscaphe Trieste, the first and only manned submersible to venture to the bottom of the Mariana Trench.







The watch features a 5mm thick caseback fixed with 4 specialized screws. At the moment the prototype caseback is made of bronze, but Titanium or 316L stainless steel are possibilities. Personally I favor titanium for its hypoallergenic properties and light weight, which will make the Bathyal Bronze a far more comfortable wear against the wrist.







Further features and specifications of the Bathyal Bronze include: certified water-resistance up to 290 bar/ 2900 meters (below: destroyed crystal / K.U.M certificate), a Swiss ETA 2824-2 mechanical movement, Super-LumiNova applied hands and markers, a 24mm x 5mm thick leather strap. The buckle is yet to be confirmed, but it will possibly also be handmade and in bronze.







KAVENTSMANN will offer 3 finishes for the Bathyal Bronze: polished, blasted or brushed. A further option for a left-handed crown position is also available. Production of a Limited Edition of just 20 pieces will start in September. The Kaventsmann BATHYAL Bronze is priced at 1199 €uro / ≈ 1734USD



For the latest Bathyal Bronze developments log onto the KAVENTSMANN Facebook page or simply follow the logo below to the Kaventsmann website (currently under construction) . . .

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JOHN ISAAC Rough Sea (chocolate fantasy)

By TLex The JOHN ISAAC, Rough Sea is a wristwatch with a bit of an identity crisis; it thinks it’s a dive watch! Why am I blogging about it then? Firstly I couldn’t help myself, but also because despite its fantasy about being a diver it’s a pretty decent looking sports watch. This might come as surprise, when you consider all the influences it has drawn from and then thrown together . . .



INFLUENCES Starting with the case; there’s some Patek Philippe going on here, notes of the Nautilus and the Aquanaut. Then what John Isaac call ‘two diametrically opposed crowns' à la JeanRichard DIVERSCOPE. The hour hand is also quite reminiscent of the Bell & Ross BR02’s minute hand. But, shouldn’t it have been the minute hand in orange not the hour hand? That’s the one that’s supposed to be the prominent one, so that a diver can check his dive time at a glance. Finally as if to say ‘Why the heck not?’; the quirky Franck Muller-esque font used for 12 hour index on the dial.







I WANT TO BE A DIVER WHEN I GROW UP John Isaac say: ‘To guarantee the water-tightness of your watch we place it in a specially designed hypobaric chamber to stimulate the pressure 50 meters below sea level. At this level the pressure exerted on the sapphire glass and the case back is equal to 5 tons.’ All that talk of hyperbaric chambers and tons per square foot almost had me fooled for a minute. Only 50 meters though! Even the Patek Philippe Aquanaut has a water-resistance of 120 meters.



Then, when talking about the lume, which has been thoughtfully applied to the hands (including the prominent hour hand!) and markers John Isaac say: ‘This invention was critical for divers to be able to see how much breathing mix they had left in their tanks. It gets pretty light deprived 100 meters under the sea!’ I thought they said the Rough Sea was only good for 50 meters; what are they going on about!?



Nevertheless they go on to say about the Rough Sea, that it’s ‘ideal for those with a habit of riding waves, or diving below them.’ I think the Rough Sea would be more ideally suited for those with a habit of riding the waves of their paddling pools, or those that would dive below their desks!







SIZE MATTERS Although I actually quite enjoy wearing larger watches of 47mm and upwards, I think it would be fair to say that these days 45mm is an optimal size for any sport or divers watch. John Isaac wouldn’t agree, though. The Rough Sea measures a mere 35.5mm in diameter, when a Patek Philippe Aquanaut measures 40mm!



CHOCOLATE Feeling hungry? John Isaac say: ‘The dial is decorated with a fine engraving called ‘Tablette Chocolat’. This involves the cutting of an intricate pattern in the dial’s surface with a lathe-like machine called a ‘Rose Engine’. The resulting decoration gives a sense of a slab of chocolate ready to be broken in to tasty square chunks’. Yummy! Is this an industry term that I haven’t come across? Who else is using ‘Tablette Chocolat’? Do you see what I mean about an identity crisis? The Rough Sea isn't quite sure what it is!







ILLUMINATION OK, comedy hour is over, something interesting. The Rough Sea’s hands and markers have been treated with LumiNova®. That’s not Swiss Super-LumiNova®, but Japanese developed phosphorescent pigments, which are based on Strontium Oxide Aluminate chemistry. This is drastically different from more conventional phosphorescent pigments, which are either based on Zinc Sulfide or on radioisotopes for their self-luminous properties. I have no idea how it compares to the Super-LumiNova.



SPECIFICATIONS Further specification include: An ETA 2824 Self-winding mechanical movement with deluxe finishing, which can be viewed through a sapphire crystal exhibition caseback. The Rough Sea comes on a black water buffalo bracelet with three part fold-over clasp (with threaded length adjustment feature). It is supplied with a second black rubber strap and is available from the John Isaac store priced at 1990CHF.







DEDICATION I dedicate this post to all those old farts, who whine and moan about over-sized dive watches with unnecessarily high depth ratings, you know who you are. I think the 35.5mm Rough Sea with its 50 meter depth rating might be just what you were looking for . . .