I Visited Tudor, Omega, IWC, & Breitling - Here Is What I Learned Switzerland is the epicenter of “watches of espionage.” The relationship to watches is obvious. Based on a watchmaking tradition going back centuries, Switzerland is home to the majority of luxury watch brands from Patek Phillipe and Rolex to Tissot and Hublot. The country’s connections to espionage are less understood. A historically neutral country, Switzerland houses several international organizations including the United Nations in Geneva, and is often the location of high-stakes intergovernmental meetings both overt and clandestine. Traditionally loose banking laws have also made Switzerland a convenient place for individuals to store wealth, regardless of the origin of those financial gains.    Needless to say, Switzerland is a country that I have visited many times and holds a special place in my heart. W.O.E. at Omega SA in Biel/Bienne, Switzerland The intentions for this trip were simple: to learn more about the Swiss watch industry and specifically brands that are closely aligned with our community. While Omega, Tudor, IWC, and Breitling are very different companies, the one thing they have in common is decades-old relationships with our community. Initially producing purpose-built issued military watches in the 20th century, today these brands are the leaders of modern unit watch programs.  IWC’s pilot’s watches, Omega’s Seamasters, Tudor’s extensive dive line, and Breitling's aviation-centric collection are accurately depicted as luxury items today, but they were all once purpose-built tools. “Watches of Espionage” is in the DNA of each of these companies and I would go as far as to say they would not exist or be where they are today without military end users. Breitling manufacturing facility in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland (W.O.E.) I was fortunate to meet with CEOs, watch designers/watchmakers, suits, and most relevant to W.O.E., the individuals that run each brand’s Unit Watch programs. The experience gave me a deeper appreciation and respect for the craftsmanship and resources it takes to build and sustain a leading watch company. I realize how unique it is to be granted access to these closed-off facilities and this level of openness is not something I take for granted. A Geography Lesson Geneva, Switzerland. Switzerland’s watchmaking industry is intriguing in that it spreads across the relatively small country’s varied geography and its many cultural boundaries. While many of the watch industry’s corporate headquarters are located in Geneva, Switzerland's second-most populous city, the majority of actual production including movements takes place in the Jura mountains spanning the country’s northwestern border. Traditionally, watchmakers expanded to this area to take advantage of an agricultural workforce that was dormant during the winter months, creating the “farmer watchmaker” heritage that many brands tout today. Map of Switzerland’s watchmaking centers. (Credit: Federation Of The Swiss Watch Industry) Swiss watchmaking also spans the country’s language barriers. Rolex/Tudor, which is headquartered in Geneva, is staffed primarily by French-speaking Swiss or French workers traveling across the border, but as you head north toward Biel/Bienne, Omega’s headquarters, language and culture shift to a blend of French and German influence. Breitling is also a brand of two cultures, with Swiss-German origins, a headquarters in German-speaking Grenchen, and a production facility in French-speaking La Chaux-de-Fonds. In contrast, IWC is located in Schaffhausen, near Zürich and just across the border from Germany, conducting nearly all of its business in German. Form Follows Function - Purpose-Built Tools Ander Ugarte (left) and Christian Koop are the head designers for Tudor and IWC, respectively. One of the highlights of the trip was meeting with Christian Koop and Ander Ugarte, the heads of design of IWC and Tudor, respectively.  Intensely passionate and masters of their craft, each walked us through the process and attention to detail involved in designing a modern watch for brands steeped in heritage and tradition.  The DNA of iconic watches like the IWC Mark series and Tudor dive watches can be traced back to the divers and soldiers who wore them over half a century ago. While today’s watches trend to luxury items vs real tools, a common phrase I heard was “form follows function.” The watches are still designed with the end user in mind, just as they were a century ago. Automation vs. Hand-Crafted Modern watchmaking is a fascinating blend of cutting-edge technology and centuries-old hand craftsmanship. The two most surprising aspects of visiting the manufacturing facilities of Breitling, Omega, and IWC were the number of robots/automated steps in contrast with the number of steps still requiring human touch. The manufacturing facilities are reliant on technicians and watchmakers from the rural areas of Switzerland, who still work farmers' hours, just as they did centuries ago.  Breitling watch technician. Each morning, hundreds of watchmakers and technicians arrive at the facilities, don sterile antistatic white coats and clean Crocs or Birkenstocks, and spend hours tightening tiny screws to spec or attaching dials to movements. It is a painstaking process and a truly remarkable juxtaposition of futuristic cutting-edge technology and traditional watchmaking. Trying my hand at watchmaking at IWC Schaffhausen. The result is a watch containing hundreds of components, all working in sync to tell you the time. The watches are then shipped around the world through complex dealer networks and intermediaries for you to purchase. Seeing this process firsthand is a remarkable experience and gives me a greater appreciation for the technical and logistical prowess required in Swiss watchmaking. Military Unit Watch Programs - Omega, Tudor, IWC, & Breitling A “Unit Watch” is a timepiece that is customized by the manufacturer for members of a specific unit or organization. Customizations can include the unit’s insignia on the dial and/or an engraving on the caseback. When it comes to Swiss watches, Tudor, Omega, and IWC are the modern leaders in the space and we have profiled each program in past articles.  An Omega Seamaster “Unit Watch” produced for the US Navy SEALs. (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) A cynical analysis of these programs would conclude they are sophisticated marketing initiatives, meant to garner publicity through leaks on social media. While I would argue they accomplish this goal in certain instances, the reality is the brands are largely hesitant to publicly acknowledge the partnerships. Swiss brands have spent decades carefully curating a specific narrative to position themselves as aspirational luxury goods. “Tudors of Espionage,” “Sketchy dudes wear Breitling”, and an iconic image of Omega Seamaster on the wrist of a Secret Service agent after an assassination attempt run counter to these carefully crafted narratives.  Diplomatic Security Tudor Black Bay 58. Further, in contrast to smaller brands like Bremont which garner significant revenue from military programs, for the large Swiss houses, it is costly to divert resources to customizing a dial or caseback for a relatively small batch of custom watches, which are also often sold at a discount. In short, these programs likely aren't big money makers for brands that measure watch sales in the hundreds of thousands of units. IWC Unit Watch for AH-64 pilots. So why do large luxury watch brands bother with Unit Watches? As far as I can tell, these programs are passion projects for individuals within each company and they are somewhat controversial for some brands. I have spent significant time with the individuals in charge of the unit watch programs and they are fiercely passionate about them. They truly believe that they are serving a greater calling by producing meaningful tools and heirlooms for our community. Not surprisingly, these individuals also appreciate what we are doing at Watches of Espionage. Watch Brands Are Businesses This one is so obvious that it shouldn't have to be said, but it's a simple fact that many watch “enthusiasts” often forget. The purpose of a watch company is not to make watches, it's to make money. Many of the individuals who work at the major brands are suits, marketing professionals, and technicians who could work for any number of companies in the luxury goods space. While some of them are passionate about watches, the majority of them likely do not consume watch content on their personal time and are not “watch nerds.” Swatch Group Headquarters, left is Omega building. (Photo CreditL Stefan Wermuth/Bloomberg) To be clear, while I enjoy making fun of suits as much as the next guy, this is actually a good thing. If you love watches like I do, then you should want watch brands to succeed… at making money. Headwinds for the watch industry are at an all-time high with Apple Watch sales surpassing the entire Swiss watch industry. It’s not a foregone conclusion that the most iconic brands like Rolex, Patek Phillipe, and Audemars Piguet will be around in 2074. For the most part, modern watches are luxury goods, meaning they are unnecessary. If they are not profitable, they will disappear. Watch nerds often shed crocodile tears on internet forums complaining about why brand X doesn't produce a specific watch or “listen to the community,” but the reality is brands generally make decisions based on mass market appeal. It may be a tough pill to swallow, but many brands do not care about enthusiasts, and from a bottom-line perspective, they shouldn’t. Ownership Matters As consumers, we often think of brands as discrete monoliths, independent entities that make design and product decisions in a vacuum. However, industry consolidation has led to four conglomerates owning the majority of the Swiss watch industry; Swatch Group, Richemont, LVMH, and the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation, the parent organization for Rolex and Tudor. Somewhat dated graphic showing ownership in the watch industry (Image Credit: Tony Traina, Rescapement) While in theory, the brands are independent or semi-independent entities, the reality is that Omega's decisions could impact the overall standing and profitability of Swatch Group as a whole, and IWC is just one node of the broader Richemont family. While Tudor often paints itself as an independent entity, when I visited Tudor HQS in Geneva, it was inside Rolex. It’s naive to think that there is no coordination between the companies. Breitling was purchased from the Schneider family by a private equity company in 2017 and whether we like it or not, the overall decisions of the brand are impacted by this ownership structure. (Photo Credit: Rolex) Conglomerates are a double-edged sword. On one hand, they offer access to capital and resources, Richemont and Swatch Group are multibillion-dollar conglomerates with robust infrastructure and supply chains. On the other hand, the conglomerates must ensure each company works towards the same goal, which likely limits independence and creativity at the brand level. Coopetition - Competitors Or Partners? Further, even between competing brands, there is a level of cooperation and sharing. Historically, the legendary Rolex Daytona utilized a chronograph movement supplied by Zenith. Even today, Breitling and Tudor, theoretically arch rivals, share movements, with Breitling utilizing several of Tudor’s base automatic calibers and Tudor receiving a modified version of the B01 chronograph caliber in return, a level of cooperation you aren’t going to see from Apple and Samsung. Tudor's MT5612 is produced by Tudor and voluntarily shared with Breitling, a rival watchmaker. (Photo Credit: Monochrome Watches) While they’re never going to admit it publicly, many of the biggest brands also look to the same suppliers for specific components from jewels to mainsprings to cases and bracelets to construct their “in-house” movements and complete watches. Third-party certifications like COSC and METAS are also utilized by multiple brands looking for a competitive advantage. Despite being fundamentally in competition, I heard several brand leaders admit the overall health of the Swiss watch industry is always in mind. A rising tide lifts all ships. For the industry to succeed holistically, the brands must balance being fiercely competitive with a measured level of cooperation. While it was created in collaboration with Omega and an impartial third party, Tudor has also started instituting METAS testing and certification for some of its watches. (Photo Credit: Monochrome Watches) Tribalism Exists at Every Level Visit any social media watch page and the tribalism—visceral feelings for or against a specific brand—is evident. There are fewer general “watch guys” and more “Rolex” or “Omega” guys. The passion is real and watch nerds think their brand is the best and everyone else sucks. The individuals I met at each brand were fiercely proud of the product they produce, which is cool to see. While they were professional enough to not bad mouth another company outright, it's clear that they truly believed their brand was the pinnacle of modern watchmaking. While this may sound like a negative, this intense conviction to be the best was inspiring. If I buy a Tudor, Omega, Breitling, or IWC, I like knowing that the people making it in the mountains of Switzerland are true believers. Heritage Matters Omega museum, Biel/Bienne, Switzerland When you buy a watch, you are not just buying the components, you are buying a piece of history. One of the most educational aspects of the trip was visiting the museums of Breitling in Zurich, Omega in Biel/Bienne, and IWC in Schaffhausen. For the brands I visited, the history is rich and compelling, and on full display. Breitling Emergency Prototype (Breilting Museum, Zurich Switzerland) Of course, the brands emphasize certain periods and events to carefully curate a narrative, but they are still compelling because it’s authentic.  Omega’s museum had numerous watches worn by astronauts, soldiers, and spies, both real and contrived (Bond, James Bond). IWC was founded by an American soldier, Florentine Ariosto Jones who fought for the 13th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment during the Civil War and would go on to produce watches for both the Allies and the Germans during World War II, something the museum refreshingly does not gloss over. Breitling’s DNA is rooted in aviation, having provided issued watches during both World Wars decades before becoming a go-to option for those operating on the fringe of sketchiness in the 1990s and 2000s. These museums are open to the public, and I encourage you to visit if you find yourself in Switzerland. The great thing about the country is you can get pretty much anywhere in a few hour train ride. Left is an issued “MN” Tudor MilSub on an original strap, fashioned from parachute webbing. The one on the right was a unit purchase gift for a retiring officer. It was purchased through the MN Rolex-certified watchmaker, Yves Pastre who had a workshop in Toulon. (Photo Credit: Tudor Archives/W.O.E.) Unfortunately, Tudor does not have a museum, but they did provide us access to their extensive archives of military-issued watches and prototypes. This will be the subject of a future Dispatch and the spice level was high. Swiss Watch Marketing is Antiquated I have written in the past about the sophisticated marketing machines behind the Swiss watch industry and this trip confirmed that thesis (Read Here). The major brands, including IWC, Tudor, Omega, and Breitling, have masterfully curated a narrative based on decades-old craftsmanship and history, that makes them leaders in a crowded industry.  In addition to co-opting watch media, they spend millions of dollars a year sponsoring sporting events, recruiting celebrity ambassadors, and producing slick marketing material. Watches and Wonders, an international watch and jewelry industry organized by the Watches and Wonders Geneva Foundation. (Photo Credit: Wikicommons) While I am by no means a marketing expert, I am intimately familiar with human nature. I get the feeling that the brands are reliant on what has worked in the past and not focused on the future, or for that matter the present. Celebrity ambassadors, event sponsorship, film product placement, and heavily-curated “new releases” are masterclasses in Marketing 101 but the modern consumer is savvy and the media landscape has changed. Legacy watch publications have declined in recent years and have been replaced by a plethora of dispersed voices. There are TikTokers, Youtubers, and podcast hosts who are more influential than Tom Brady and even James Bond. The Swiss watch industry appears slow to adapt to the new landscape and continues to fall back on tried and true methods. Given its age, watchmaking as a whole is steeped in tradition and slow to adapt, especially when it comes to reaching the younger consumers the industry so desperately needs to continue. W.O.E. in Schaffhausen, wearing the same IWC Mark XVII I wore while operational at CIA. Does visiting a facility impact how I will cover them? To date, we have kept the traditional watch industry at arm's length distance, something that frankly much of the industry is okay with. That said, as we have grown our audience we owe it to our community to present thoughtful and unbiased commentary on the watches and brands that are aligned with our ethos. I made some great friends and contacts on this trip and am grateful for the level of access I was granted. It will continue to be a balance between nurturing these relationships and remaining unswayed by the influence of the brands on content. Despite some of the critiques above, my appreciation for the Swiss watch industry in general and these legendary brands in particular could not be higher. I am grateful for those individuals who made this trip possible and thankful for the time and effort of the teams in Switzerland. There are several threads to pull on from this trip and we plan to write additional stories on IWC’s “Top Gun” unit watch program, recent developments in Omega’s unit watch offerings, and the real story behind the Tudor FXD. Thank you all for the support, more to come. -W.O.E. *Note, as with all of our content, this is not sponsored by Tudor, Omega, IWC, Breitling, or any other brand. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: W.O.E. 2024 Holiday Gift Guide - Top Picks From Other Brands

The Watches Of Die Hard, Home Alone, & Lethal Weapon As we move into the holiday season, we have a special treat for you: a look at Christmas movies and tactical watches. This is a fun one and a clear sign that we don’t take ourselves too seriously. Tradition matters at Watches of Espionage. It’s what builds culture and forms the pillars of our community. During the holiday season, tradition means appreciating the cinematic masterpiece that is Die Hard as well as Home Alone and other Christmas classics. As always, watches are the lens through which we view everything from historical events to films. As it happens, some of our favorite holiday films also prominently feature watches that are significant in our community. In our new video on the W.O.E. YouTube Channel, we stay true to our roots, exploring these iconic holiday films in the way we know best, through the lens of national security and—of course—the watches worn on screen. Enjoy episode nine of W.O.E. TV. Happy Hunting, -W.O.E.

Our Favorite Tools & Accessories From The Community To help you get the most out of your holiday shopping this year, we are back with another list of our top picks from a wide range of brands close to our community. As always, we do not offer any special discounts or codes, which is not to say the brands aren’t running any of their own discounts. We are highlighting these tools because we believe in them and use them ourselves. Nothing you see here is sponsored. If you’re shopping for the watch enthusiast or gear nerd in your life, this list is a great place to start, representing a wide variety of categories and price points. For a curated list of great options from the W.O.E. Shop, click HERE. *As a reminder, we will be closing up shop on Saturday 14 December at 2000 EST this year for our holiday break. Please be sure to get your orders in before then.* If we missed anything, please be sure to share any other great gift ideas in the comments down below. We are always in the market for new tools and specifically love to support small businesses, people, and brands doing innovative things. Happy holidays from W.O.E. We appreciate the support and genuinely couldn’t do any of this without all of you. Watches: For a full list of watch recommendations at every price point, see The Best Military Watches For Land, Sea, & Air. Arabic Seiko SNKP21 - $134 (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) A staple in our community, the so-called Seik-W.O.E. is one watch that is both incredibly affordable and close to our hearts. To read more about a CIA Officer’s love affair with the Arabic Seiko, click HERE. The best part about it?  You can order it on Amazon and it will be at your door tomorrow. CWC SBS Divers Issue - $775 (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) Backed by some of the most legitimate military connections in the tool dive watch game, the CWC SBS Divers Issue is a staple Swiss-made military diver offering fixed lugs and a blacked-out PVD case. Tudor Pelagos FXD GMT - $4,625 Released back in October, the Tudor Pelagos FXD GMT is the next chapter in the brand’s decades-long history working with the Marine Nationale or French Navy and the first time we’ve seen a GMT caliber inside a Pelagos. EDC Tools: Prometheus Design Werx SPD Ti-BarT - $69 Built to the standard you’d expect from a quality blade, the SPD Ti-BarT from our friends at PDW is a highly capable, elegant, precision machined, multifunctional pocket pry bar tool for many of the everyday tasks and chores that your pocket knife can't do. Leather Works Minnesota No. 9 Wallet - $110 Our friends at Leather Works Minnesota produce many of the leather goods you see on the W.O.E. Shop including our Travel Pouches while also offering an impressive array of items under their brand name. We’ve been using one of their No. 9 Wallets for years and have always been impressed by the American craftsmanship and quality. Tactile Turn Buccaneer Pen - $149 Made largely by hand in Texas by our pals at Tactile Turn, the Buccaneer is the brand’s pen designed for Davy Jones or Captain Blackbeard, produced from titanium with a real 24kt gold plated bolt, a custom Cerakote paint job, and laser engravings on both the deep-carry clip and top. Whiskey Leatherworks The Rocks Glass - $55 If you’re like us and overspend on quality whiskey, why not also get bougie with your glasses? The Rocks Glass from Whiskey Leatherworks provides a set of two US-made glasses with leather wraps made from full-grain Brown English Bridle leather from Wickett & Craig. OffGrid Faraday Bag Mobile - $32 If security is at the top of your list, a Faraday Bag from OffGrid protects invasive signals while also giving you a great place to store (and shield) your device and other EDC items. We have talked at length about the risks of Ubiquitous Technical Surveillance and this is a great tool to mitigate some of that risk. Sandstorm Kenya Canvas Sylvester Work Bag - $289 A bag I use every time I travel, the Sandstorm Kenya Canvas Sylvester is manufactured in Kenya from recycled safari tent canvas and premium leather. This particular bag is big enough for a laptop, documents, and accessories. Bergeon 7825 Spring Bar Tweezers - $169 (Photo Credit: Orion Watches) If you’ve ever struggled to remove a bracelet from a watch without scratching the back of the lugs (we’re looking at you, Tudor), these Bergeon Spring Bar Tweezers are a lifesaver, making a challenging process much easier albeit at a cost. They aren’t cheap, but this is a buy once, cry once kind of thing. Other Stuff: TGN Supporter Subscription - $100 TGN is a community of like-minded individuals who believe in using their tools. Our friends and hosts Jason Heaton and James Stacey break down their love for adventure and shared addiction to watches while also (loosely) discussing travel, diving, driving, and gear. A subscription to TGN includes a grey TGN strap (of course), stickers, and access to additional content. Ad Patina - Prices Vary The best in the business when it comes to sourcing, curating, and framing advertisements both vintage and modern, Ad Patina is a great option for a watch enthusiast looking to complement their collection with something for the wall. Bad Art Nice Watch - Prices Vary ​​If you want something completely custom, why not commission a piece on your favorite watch from Bad Art Nice Watch? North Carolina artist, Bryan Braddy, combines his passion for watches with his love for art. What started as a doodle at his kitchen table with his daughters has blossomed from a hobby into a business. The concepts of wabi-sabi as well as the acceptance and contemplation of imperfection guide the principles of his style. Books: For a more in-depth reading list, check out our previous dispatch article, W.O.E. CIA Reading List Part 1 - The Global War On Terror HERE. G-SHOCK, Ariel Adams - $37 G-Shock chronicles 40 years of history for an almost indestructible, affordable, resin-cased digital watch that has risen to prominence in our community. From 1983’s DW5000C to the brand’s current position as a favorite among hype beasts and the military alike, this is a great one for anyone who appreciates Digital Tool Watches (D.T.W.). If you haven’t watched our video on G-Shock, check it out HERE. The Main Enemy: The Inside Story of the CIA's Final Showdown with the KGB,  Milt Bearden & James Risen - $14 In Milt Bearden and James Risen’s The Main Enemy: The Inside Story of the CIA's Final Showdown with the KGB, the authors, a 30-year Agency veteran, and a journalist, share stories of espionage from the Cold War from an insider’s perspective. Marine Nationale: Vintage Military Watches of the French Navy, Scott Heileson - $100 One of the most celebrated partnerships in the arena of tool watches is the 70-year link between the Marine Nationale or French Navy and Tudor. In Marine Nationale: Vintage Military Watches of the French Navy, author and collector Scott Heileson shares an in-depth history of the collaboration as well as museum-quality examples of many of the issued watches. A Die Hard Christmas: The Illustrated Holiday Classic, Doogie Horner - $21 There are probably a few of you out there who don’t think Die Hard was a Christmas movie. Luckily, it’s ok to be wrong every once in a while, and Doogie Horner’s A Die Hard Christmas: The Illustrated Holiday Classic is even more compelling evidence of the film’s holiday spirit, presented in a new and fun way. Targeted: Beirut: The 1983 Marine Barracks Bombing and the Untold Origin Story of the War on Terror, Jack Carr & James M. Scott - $15 Like many in our community, we are big fans of Jack Carr’s Terminal List book series and its protagonist, James Reece. Targeted: Beirut: The 1983 Marine Barracks Bombing and the Untold Origin Story of the War on Terror is the author’s first foray into non-fiction, discussing the 1983 bombing of the US Embassy in Beirut and the attack’s lasting impact on the rise of global terrorism. 2054: A Novel,  Elliot Ackerman & Admiral James Stavridis USN - $17 In 2054: A Novel, the authors continue their series with a dystopian future set twenty years after the last installment where a drastic advance in artificial intelligence prays on America’s violent partisan divide to create an existential threat to the country. This is one of those fictional pieces that provides commentary on what is happening right here and now. Vickers Guide: Heckler & Koch, Volume 3, Larry Vickers & James Williamson - $135 In Vickers Guide: Heckler & Koch, Volume 3, authors Larry Vickers and James Williamson continue their beautifully photographed series with a detailed history of the production of rifles and machine guns utilizing the roller-delayed blowback operating system at Heckler & Koch. A Man & His Watch: Iconic Watches and Stories from the Men Who Wore Them, Matt Hranek - $22.50 One of the most commonly gifted books for watch enthusiasts has to be Matt Hranek’s A Man & His Watch: Iconic Watches and Stories from the Men Who Wore Them. With professional photography of great watches and intriguing personal stories from the men who wear them, this book illustrates once again that a watch is never just a watch. Clothes & Shoes: ThruDark Heritech Moorland Fleece - $234 One apparel brand close to our community is ThruDark, which was co-founded by Anthony Stazicker CGC and Louis Tinsley, both operators from the UK Special Forces. Their stuff ain’t cheap, but quality seldom is, with the Heritech Moorland Fleece serving as a great example. Clarks Desert Boot Suede - $150 Originally developed in Cairo’s Khan el-Khalili bazaar, the Desert Boot traces its origins to WWII when Commonwealth Forces began wearing these simple suede boots while fighting in the North African campaign. Today, the Clarks Originals Desert Boot in suede is the OG, and the standard pair of suede Desert Boots is one of the few looks that’s never out of place. Relwyn Quilted Insulated Tanker Jacket - $318 It may be more of a cool-guy fashion brand, but Relwyn makes great jackets I often use for travel including the Quilted Insulated Tanker Jacket I wear all the time. Based on old-school military tanker jackets, the Relwyn has enough tech features to be capable while looking casual enough to wear just about anywhere. Field Ethos The Magnum FE Hat - $30 Deep down, we all want to be Thomas Magnum at least a little bit, and the Field Ethos Magnum FE Hat calls back to Magnum’s iconic lid while also celebrating our friends (who are also animals) at Field Ethos. Burly Selleck mustache not included. Goodr Bosley's Basset Hound Dreams - $25 If you’re of the Use Your Tools mentality, sunglasses can have a hard life. The best inexpensive sunglasses I’ve found capable of stacking up just fine against the expensive boys are from Goodr. For $25, the Bosley's Basset Hound Dreams are worth a shot. Spirits: Belle Meade Bourbon - Prices Vary We’re not bourbon hipsters, but Belle Meade’s bourbons are one of our top choices for casual sipping that isn’t obnoxiously expensive. If you’re newer to “fancy” bourbon, this is a great place to start. Hooten Young Whiskey & Cigars - Prices Vary Founded by former US Army Special Mission Unit Member (MSG RET) Norm Hooten and Tim Young, Hooten Young is another great example of entrepreneurship coming from Global War Of Terror SOF veterans. More than a novelty item getting by on its SpecOps associated, I’ve enjoyed every bottle I’ve tried from them. They also produce premium cigars. Four Branches Bourbon - Prices Vary Four Branches is a brand founded by four veterans from four different branches that produces high-end bourbon on a small batch basis. We were introduced to the brand by RJ Casey, a friend of W.O.E. who served with US Army Special Forces before joining the US Air Force Pararescue community. Knives: Winkler Knives Crusher Belt Knife - $375 Executed by craftsmen under the direct supervision of Master Bladesmith Daniel Winkler, Winkler Knives was born as a result of requests from special operators for edged weapons and tools to suit their unique needs. The Crusher Belt Knife is small enough for IWB use while being stout enough for a wide variety of use cases. Wolf Forty Designs SEAF - $350 Another brand producing edged tools with SpecOps in mind is Wolf Forty Designs. Their SEAF is the product of three Special Operations Veterans looking to take the best features from the knives they’ve used and combine them into a single multi-purpose 8-inch blade. Tabasco - $3 (Priceless) If you didn’t know this was coming, you probably should have. Three bucks for the world’s finest hot sauce. Enough said. W.O.E. Gift Card If you’re still lost after all of that, the best option could be the Watches of Espionage Gift Card, instantly available via email in a range of denominations from $50 to $300. – As we close in on the holidays, we sincerely hope this gift guide has helped you find the best holiday gifts of espionage from some of our favorite brands. From everyone here at W.O.E., we appreciate your support and are excited to show you everything we’re working on for 2025. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: 2024 Holiday Gift Guide - Top Picks From The W.O.E. Shop  

Straps, Storage Options, & Other Purpose-Built Tools For Our Community 2024 has been a year of incredible growth for Watches of Espionage, with more articles on the Dispatch every week, the addition of our first full-time team member (intern), Benjamin Lowry, an Instagram following 185k strong, the launch of our YouTube Channel, and an ever-growing collection of tools on our site. Before we do anything else, thank you all for your continued support. The end of the year also means it’s time for the holidays, and we admit that watch enthusiasts and other gear-oriented people are notoriously hard to shop for. With that in mind, we assembled some of our top picks from the W.O.E store. Whether you’re shopping for yourself or trying to find exactly the right gift for the watch nerd in your life, this list includes a wide range of price ranges representing our most popular categories. *We will be closing up shop on December 14th this year for our holiday break. Please be sure to get your orders in before then.* Straps: One of the single best gift ideas for a watch enthusiast is a strap, a relatively inexpensive way to give a watch a new look. For a comprehensive look at the entire W.O.E. strap collection, click HERE, but here are some of our recommendations for this holiday season. NEW - W.O.E. FKM Rubber Strap - $85 More than a year in development, the new W.O.E. FKM Rubber Strap is produced to our specifications from FKM or fluoroelastomer, the highest quality rubber material on the market, and paired with a custom engraved 316L stainless steel W.O.E. buckle. 007 Bond Nylon Strap - Five Eye - $35 In honor of filmmaking’s most legendary secret agent, the 007 versions of our Five Eye Nylon Watch Strap provide three distinct patterns recognizable to Bond fans paired with our custom matte weave nylon construction, custom 316L stainless steel “WOE” buckle, a reinforced stitched tip, and beveled keepers. Glomar Explorer - Hook And Loop Watch Strap - $47 to $49 Available with either stainless steel or new PVD black hardware, the Glomar Explorer Hook And Loop Watch Strap is a premium execution of the classic hook and loop nylon straps favored by divers for decades. Gear: In addition to straps, we offer a wide variety of EDC or everyday carry tools not intended for watches. These are great options fit for virtually anyone who appreciates quality, utility, and W.O.E. The Mosebey Blade - $358 Inspired by Bill “Bwana” Mosebey, a legendary Africa Division Case Officer, The Mosebey Blade is a fully customized all-purpose blade made in the USA from premium domestic materials. Leather & Canvas Moleskine Notebook Cover - $145 Produced by hand by our friends at Leatherworks Minnesota, the Leather & Canvas Moleskine Notebook Cover is made from full-grain leather and U.S. government spec canvas and intended to fit the (included) Moleskine Classic Softer Cover Notebook. W.O.E. Spearhead Dad Hat - $35 We didn’t reinvent the wheel here, they are hats. That said, this is the ultimate “if you know, you know,” and if someone recognizes you wearing the W.O.E. Spearhead Dad Hat, you are sure to have a new friend. The Vespers Copper W.O.E. Flask - $89 For the adult beverage connoisseurs in the room, the Vespers Copper W.O.E. Flask is made of food-grade stainless steel coated with copper and wrapped with American-tanned English Tan Dublin leather from The Horween Tannery in Chicago. W.O.E. 3 Patch Pack Hook & Loop - $25 One of our best options if you’re unsure where else to look, our hook and loop-backed W.O.E. 3 Patch Pack includes three unique designs referencing key aspects of our “Use Your Tools” ethos. Watch Storage: Whether you’re traveling internationally or just want a great way to store your collection of tool watches, our watch storage options are custom-made to suit the high standards of our community. The Diplomat 4 Watch Roll - $165 Produced in the United States, the Diplomat 4 Watch Roll safely holds four watches while being hand-sewn in the USA with American-made waxed ripstop canvas and leather. Travel Pouch and Challenge Coin - $138 Our first custom tool and still one of our favorites, the Travel Pouch and Challenge Coin set is produced in the United States by our friends at Leatherworks Minnesota from US-tanned SB Foote leather and repurposed M81 camouflage material. 6 Watch Storage & Travel Case - $78 If security and safety from the elements are your primary concerns, the 6 Watch Storage & Travel Case is our best option, offering water resistance as well as custom-cut interior foam to safeguard your collection. W.O.E. X-Pac Strap Pouch - $42 Manufactured by hand in the United States from X-Pac, a waterproof three-layer material with a rugged camouflage 500D Cordura face fabric, the X-Pac Strap Pouch is an excellent option for straps, tools, or chargers. Home & Office: Whether you’re deeply into watches or not, our home and office collection provides excellent daily tools everyone can use to stay organized while demonstrating membership in our community. EDC Travel Valet & Bottle Opener - $115 For keys, watch accessories, or other small items, our EDC Travel Valet & Bottle Opener set is made from full grain leather and Mil-Spec canvas while coming with a custom metal bottle opener complete with the W.O.E. Spearhead insignia. W.O.E. Use Your Tools Coffee Mug - $35 If there’s one thing watch nerds and the military can agree on, it might be the importance of coffee. Our Use Your Tools Coffee Mug is handmade in the USA and complete with our Spearhead logo. W.O.E. Gift Card - $50 to $300 If you’re still lost after all of that, the best option could be the Watches of Espionage Gift Card, instantly available via email in a range of denominations from $50 to $300. – As we close in on the holidays, we sincerely hope this gift guide has helped you find the best holiday gifts of espionage. From everyone here at W.O.E., we appreciate your support and are excited to show you everything we’re working on for 2025. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: Tactical Watches & Christmas Films - Die Hard, Lethal Weapon & Home Alone

Trump’s NatSec Pick Wears A Rolex, New Omega Seamaster, Yakuza Stealing Luxury Watches, Giuliani Surrenders Watch Collection, & $50B Worth Of Submariners By Benjamin Lowry Welcome back to the Watch Industry SITREP or Situation Report, a brief recap and discussion of the previous month’s watch-related news and any other current events pertaining to our community. Here in the United States, Thanksgiving has come and gone and November is officially at an end. If it hasn’t already, Mariah Carey’s seminal work, "All I Want For Christmas Is You" will soon be bombarding your ears to harden your resolve ahead of another bustling yuletide season. But for now, let’s keep our sight picture squarely on watches and espionage. November offered a plethora of watch-related happenings from the worlds of politics, national security, and crime. In case you missed it, the US presidential election unveiled a new (old) president, with at least one of his potential appointments demonstrating solid watch taste likely related to his intriguing background. In addition, we have an updated Omega Seamaster, a legendary Japanese crime syndicate getting in on the watch theft trend, politicians surrendering watches, and some impressive Rolex stats. Trump’s Former SpecOps Pick For National Security Advisor Wears A Rolex GMT-Master II Rep. Mike Waltz is, like many members of US Army Special Forces, a Rolex guy. A few weeks back, President-elect Donald Trump asked Mike Waltz to serve as his national security advisor (NSA). We’re not here to comment on the political ramifications of Waltz serving in the role, but the Republican Representative from Florida does have quite the resume, having served in US Army Special Forces during the Global War On Terror and earning a total of four bronze stars (including two for valor). Waltz in Afghanistan wearing a Digital Tool Watch (D.T.W.). Embodying the adage that all a Special Forces man needs are “a star sapphire ring, a Randall knife, and a Rolex”, Waltz has been spotted on several occasions wearing a GMT-Master II, likely reference 126710 also known as the “Batman”. W.O.E. has been known to call the Rolex GMT-Master the perfect CIA Case Officer’s watch. With Waltz and SF legend Billy Waugh serving as excellent anecdotal evidence, the model family has strong roots in Special Forces as well. (Photo Credit: Green Beret Foundation) In another photo from the 80th anniversary of D-Day in Normandy, France where Waltz jumped from a WWII-Era C-47, he is seen wearing an older Rolex GMT-Master II with the all-black bezel, potentially a reference 16710, on a nylon pull-through strap, clear indication Waltz is at least a little bit of a watch guy. A New Omega Seamaster Diver 300 Bares A Striking Resemblance To Unit Watches (Photo Credit: Omega) Leaked during the Olympics on the wrist of wannabe spy Daniel Craig, Omega finally officially unveiled its revamped Seamaster Diver 300. It’s not a meteoric change compared to the preexisting model, moving to a non-date format, transitioning from ceramic to aluminum for the dial and insert, and adding a mesh bracelet option. While we don’t typically cover new releases, there is an uncanny resemblance between the updated Seamaster Diver 300 and recent examples from Omega’s modern unit watch program that has outfitted the US Navy SEALs, US Secret Service, and the Danish Frogman Corps, to name a few. The US Secret Service Omega Seamaster unit watch. It would be a stretch to say the new watch was developed as an answer to the hype surrounding Omega’s unit watch program after the US Secret Service variant was spotted on the wrist of an agent during the attempted assassination of President-elect Donald Trump, but in any case, we’re happy to see one of the most popular luxury dive watches move in a more utilitarian direction better suited to the Use Your Tools lifestyle. Yakuza Suspected In Coordinated Luxury Theft Of 172 Rolex Watches An alleged Yakuza member wearing a Rolex Submariner “Bluesy”. (Photo Credit: Sabukaru) Recently in Osaka, Japan, a delivery van loaded with over 170 new Rolex watches was stolen while its driver left the vehicle unattended and unlocked for “around three minutes”. Three individuals have since been arrested in connection to the theft, with one having strong ties to the Yakuza, a legendary organized crime syndicate with roots dating back 300 years. As you’d imagine, the van was later dumped after being emptied of its horological contents, which had an estimated value of $1.9M. If your AD has been dodging you, now might be a great time to check Chrono24’s Japanese Rolex listings… I’m just saying. Also in Osaka, a store clerk and police detained a would-be robber after he attempted to flee with four luxury watches. While much of the conversation surrounding watch theft in 2024 revolves around European cities including London and Paris or New York and Los Angeles in the United States, this coordinated robbery demonstrates a growing trend in Japan. In contrast to the strongarm robberies often perpetrated in Europe and the US, watch thefts in Japan are, other than this delivery van robbery, typically characterized by organized smash and grabs of high-profile retail locations. For another example of an organized crime syndicate focused on watches and jewelry, check out our recent Dispatch on the Pink Panthers (HERE). Rudy Giuliani Surrenders 26 Luxury Watches After $148M Lawsuit L Giuliani wearing a Shinola chronograph that appears to have been among his surrendered watches. Former New York City Mayor and Time Magazine Person of the Year Rudy Giuliani has been ordered to surrender 26 luxury watches as well as a 1980 Mercedes-Benz SL 500 formerly owned by movie star Lauren Bacall. This comes after Giuliani’s meteoric $148M loss in a defamation lawsuit filed by two Georgia election workers following the 2020 US presidential election. Giuliani has been the subject of no shortage of financial concerns as of late, and it looks unlikely that he will be able to repay the $148M, hence the surrender of many of his personal effects which also includes a $5M apartment on the Upper East Side. A screen capture from Ted Goodman’s video on X showing some of Guiliani’s surrendered watches. (Photo Credit: X) On November 14th, a spokesperson for Giuliani, Ted Goodman, posted a video on X showing 18 watches and a ring he said were in the process of being turned over to relevant authorities. According to court documents, these watches include Bulova, Shinola, Tiffany & Co, Seiko, Frank Muller, Graham, Corium, Rolex, IWC, Invicta, Breitling, Raymond Weil, and Baume & Mercer.  In the video, Goodman goes on to say, “This is the accumulation of 60 years of hard work. Many of these watches hold great sentimental value.” Whatever Guiliani’s watch collection is worth, it’s a small drop in a $148M bucket. The Total Value Of The World’s Rolex Submariners Surpasses Many Nations Analysis of data released in the recent Rolex Submariner book provided surprising conclusions. (Photo Credit: Hodinkee) Based on analysis of the production data for Rolex Submariners released in the Crown’s recent book, Oyster Perpetual Submariner—The Watch That Unlocked The Deep, the combined value of all of the nearly four million Submariner and Sea-Dweller models produced over the years adds up to a weighty $50B. It’s an astonishing figure, but the real revelations stem from contextual analysis of what a number like that means. We would have guessed the total value of Rolex’s Subs would have been a lot, but still… $50B is, for example, greater than the GDP or gross domestic product of countries like Jordan, Tunisia, Bahrain, El Salvador, Cambodia, and Iceland (according to 2023 World Bank Data). Of course, you can’t compile all of the world’s Submariners into an unholy Scrooge McDuck-style pool of gold doubloons, but the world-beating figure does help to illustrate the size of the global financial impact commanded by Rolex SA over the decades, which also turned over no less than $10B in 2023. We’re not here for Ernst Blofeld comparisons, but what kind of bargaining power and political influence does that offer to a brand that is already also among the most recognized on Earth? There’s a reason they call it “The Crown”, and it ain’t just the logo. Final Thoughts As we brace ourselves for the holiday season, we sincerely hope you’ve enjoyed your monthly helping of watch industry news and commentary. From a former Special Forces guy being picked to work in the White House with a Rolex Batman on the wrist to Rudy Giuliani’s forfeited watch collection to a Yakuza luxury watch heist, and an astonishing Rolex statistic, the November gales of watch industry content blew fast and strong. If you appreciate this format or have other stories you’d like to see covered in next month’s SITREP, please do not hesitate to let us know in the comments. If something about our coverage offended or upset you, we’re confident you’ll have no trouble expressing your concerns as well. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: Watch Industry SITREP - October 2024  

US Navy-Issued Doxas, Rolex, & A Complete Surprise By Benjamin Lowry The US Navy’s SEALAB experiments of the 1960s were pioneering attempts to prove man’s ability to live and work on the sea floor for an extended period, supported by a specialized underwater habitat. The techniques and equipment developed for SEALAB I, II, and III would later be used in shadowy underwater espionage targeting the Soviet Union, but SEALAB is better remembered to watch enthusiasts for some of the legendary watches used by some of history’s boldest divers. In this Dispatch, I’ll share how a chance encounter with a piece of handwritten history forever alters our understanding of the watches of the Navy’s final SEALAB project. __ For someone like me, the Man In The Sea Museum in Panama City Beach is something akin to paradise, providing one of the world’s most impressive collections of vintage military diving memorabilia, much of it related to SEALAB. Given the timing, SEALAB is associated with some of history’s great tool dive watches and played a key role in the development of the Rolex Sea-Dweller. Artist’s rendering of SEALAB III, the Navy’s final experiment to prove men could live and work on the sea floor. (Photo Credit: US Navy) But, despite what the internet may say, Rolex isn’t the only name in the SEALAB game. Thumbing through old binders while volunteering in the museum’s library, I came across an issue log for dive watches hand-written in 1968 by a SEALAB legend. The usual suspects including Rolex were there, but the log also illuminated the outsized role played by Doxa as well as another Swiss brand I would argue no one would ever guess. In this Dispatch, we’ll look to archival evidence, interviews with surviving Aquanauts, and a few educated guesses to provide the most complete picture ever assembled of the watches of SEALAB III. Man In The Sea Museum, Panama City Beach - 2022 My dad and I were hard at work cataloging and organizing the library in the Man in the Sea Museum when we came across a document that stopped us in our tracks. In this increasingly digitized world, there are still a few horological secrets lost to history waiting to be uncovered, the type of secrets that haven’t been converted to PDF. The same watch stories make the rounds again and again, some amazing discoveries are put forth by genuine horological enthusiasts, and some stories are haphazardly cobbled together by brands to help push more watches. Searching for dive watches in vintage photographs at the Man in the Sea Museum is the stuff of legend. (Photo Credit: Man in the Sea Museum) Most are somewhere in between. Watches have never received the amount of attention they do today. Record-keeping for the sake of enthusiasm or posterity was not common practice. This is also true in the arena of dive watches, fostering a healthy debate about the actual timeline of the introduction of the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms, Zodiac Sea Wolf, and Rolex Submariner, in particular. Except when it comes to the military. In military settings and especially diving, recording every bit of minutiae is an occupational necessity, a matter of life and death in certain cases. Luckily, as a Coast Guard veteran turned commercial diver, it happens to be my area of interest, which is how I found myself volunteering to help organize the Man in the Sea Museum’s stacked but admittedly disheveled library a couple of years ago. The Man In The Sea Museum is home to the original SEALAB habitat as well as an incredible library full of old US Navy records. Leafing through records from the SEALAB programs, I came across a few scribbled lines on notebook paper that validated my years-long horological quest to understand the role of tool watches in the United States military, particularly in underwater applications. Along with these handwritten records, I uncovered hundreds of photographs from SEALAB that had yet to be digitized, and therefore, had yet to be seen by the watch community, until now. A dive watch enthusiast’s dream. An archival photo from the SEALAB program shows Dr. George “Papa Topside” Bond (left), Captain William Nicholson (center), and Commander Jack Tomsky (right). Tomsky is wearing a Doxa Sub. (Photo Credit: Man in the Sea Museum) I went through binder after binder of records from all three of the Navy’s SEALAB experiments. I was looking for something that clued me into what equipment was used, particularly what watches were used. These aquanauts recorded everything. It was part of their job, of course, but the level of detail was staggering. A detailed record of saturation dives undertaken in a chamber at the Navy Experimental Diving Unit (NEDU) preceding SEALAB III. (Source: US Navy) Finally, after hours spent carefully flipping through delicate aged paper and deciphering faded handwriting from the ‘60s, my efforts paid off. A list of the exact watches that were used on SEALAB III. And when I say exact, I mean it—right down to the serial numbers. And it came directly from one of the aquanauts, meticulously detailed like everything else about the mission. While several watchmakers have established SEALAB connections—including an excellent article by Justin Couture detailing the role potentially played by Aquastar—some of the brands mentioned in the log had never really been in the SEALAB conversation before, let alone with hard evidence of being officially issued by the US Navy. If I could, with the help of friends and former Aquanauts, prove the veracity of this hastily written log, our understanding of military dive watches would be forever altered. Here is the handwritten log that sent me so deeply down the rabbit hole. The original handwritten log was reportedly penned by none other than Bob Barth, the only aquanaut to serve on all three SEALAB missions. For the sake of legibility and to aid in deciphering the shorthand, I have—with help from surviving aquanauts—added some context to the list to help give us a better picture of who these watches were issued to. Watches Issued On 03 Sep 1968 SEALAB III Rolex, 25 jewels Cyril Tuckfield, Chief Petty Officer, USN     Rolex, serial 1478174 Derek J. Clark, Petty Officer First Class, Royal Navy    Jaquet Droz Keith H. Moore, Machinist’s Mate Second Class, USN Doxa William P. Lukeman, Leading Seaman, Royal Canadian Navy Doxas Issued To Aquanauts On 23 Sep & 27 Sep 1968 SEALAB III Doxa 6665358 Keith H. Moore, Machinist’s Mate Second Class, USN Doxa 6665354 Cyril F. Lafferty, Lieutenant Royal Navy, Team Leader Doxa 6665425 James H. Osborn, Lieutenant Commander, Civil Engineer Corps, USN Doxa 6665416 Leo Gies Lieutenant Commander, USN Doxa 6665364 Richard M. Blackburn, Aviation Ordnanceman First Class, USN Doxa 6665367 Mark E. Bradley, Lieutenant Commander, Medical Corps, USN Doxa 6665417 Robert A. Bornholdt, Lieutenant, USN, Team Leader   Aquanaut Bob Barth’s Rolex Submariner Ref. 5512. (Photo Credit: Hodinkee) Unsurprisingly, we see the usual suspects on the wrists of the aquanauts, starting with Rolex, although it’s important to note that what was sometimes recorded as Rolex was sometimes actually a Tudor Submariner, as Rolex took care of distribution and delivery. In ‘69, the US Navy had a contract with Tudor that had already begun in the late ‘50s, so there’s a chance these watches came from that procurement arrangement. A brand associated with anything but diving in 2024, I was surprised to see Jaquet Droz mentioned in the issue log from SEALAB III. Looking through the list, something else stood out immediately. “JK Droz” was listed in the records as having been issued to an aquanaut. Surely not the Swatch-owned atelier producing automatons that cost six figures and watches with all sorts of crazy enameling and decorations. Jaquet Droz isn’t a name you hear in the W.O.E. sphere often. The brand has never once been mentioned on this site before, and they certainly don’t fit in with the “Watches of Espionage” crop of brands. As usual, there are layers to the story. But first, let’s look at the watches from brands we do know something about: Doxa and Rolex. While Doxa has been loosely associated with SEALAB and Navy Divers in the past, the discovery of this document adds clarity to the brand’s official position as a US Navy-issued watch during the SEALAB experiments. Digging deeper into the Doxa watches on the list, the brand’s serial numbering convention has been well documented by MKWS, a Doxa expert on Watchuseek. MKWS posits that Doxa introduced a 7-digit system where the first two numbers correspond to the year of production. In the case of all the models issued to SEALAB, that number is 66, which would suggest they were produced in ‘66, at least in theory. Officially released in 1967, there are only a few other examples of Doxa Sub 300 models from 1966, meaning the US Navy was among the earliest adopters of the brand. If that’s not an endorsement for a new-to-market dive watch, especially when Navy Divers already had access to Rolex and Tudor Submariners, I’m not sure what is. A Doxa Sub 300 from 1967. (Photo Credit: Analog:Shift) Interestingly, the only Rolex serial number listed also registers as being produced in ‘66 (Rolex serial numbers of that era aren’t an exact science, but can be traced to an approximate year of production). This all checks out, as the gearing up for SEALAB III would have taken place during this time. SEALAB II had been a successful mission in ‘65, and SEALAB III took some time due to engineering requirements and modifications that allowed the habitat to go significantly deeper than the previous two missions, 610 feet as opposed to 205 feet for SEALAB II and 192 feet for SEALAB I. The Vietnam War also put pressure on budgets for such a novel and costly project. Bob Barth (right) wearing his Rolex Submariner 5512, one of many Rolex Submariners used on the SEALAB missions. Much of the equipment and material—including watches—for the final SEALAB program was likely carried over from SEALAB I and II. After Doxa, the second most present brand appearing in the logs was Rolex, and the Crown had certainly been ever-present in underwater exploration for nearly a decade at the commencement of SEALAB III. Bob Barth, the only aquanaut to have dived on all three SEALAB missions, was reportedly instrumental in developing the Rolex Sea Dweller. This SEALAB III Rolex Submariner is not on our list but was owned by Leo Gies and sold by Bonhams in 2015. (Photo Credit: Bonhams) Barth dove with his Rolex Submariner on SEALAB I and II, so it’s no surprise to see several Submariners listed in the SEALAB III records. Another Rolex Submariner was issued to Leo Gies who is recorded on our list as having received a Doxa. Gies’s Submariner—which was sold by Bonhams on behalf of the Gies family in 2015—was engraved “SEALAB III” on the back, which makes its absence from our list all the more interesting. Maybe there is another handwritten log out there. Our research continues. We’ll do another Dispatch on the role of Rolex in US Navy Undersea Research, but for now, let’s continue by discussing the role played by Doxa in the dive watch landscape of the late 1960s. Doxa & Diving In The 1960s Georges Ducommun founded Doxa in 1899, and the company quickly developed a reputation for producing a broad range of dress and sport watches—but the brand will always be best remembered for its contributions to the world of undersea timekeeping. In the 1960s, Doxa was one of the front-runners when it came to producing watches specifically for professional diving applications. The “skin diver” category of watches was well established, with sporty watches suitable for recreational water activity. These came out of the recreational diving boom of the late ‘50s, but as diving equipment became more technologically advanced, so did the need for a watch that could handle significant depth and pressure, but more importantly, remain legible in murky water. This is where Doxa’s signature design element surfaced; the company found that a specific hue of orange was most visible underwater. The bright orange “Professional” dial became their calling card. Legendary oceanographer and filmmaker Jacques Cousteau wearing a Doxa Sub 300T “Sharkhunter”. The Sub 300 and later 300T models emerged from Doxa’s design and field studies and quickly became a popular diving watch for professionals—the intended target segment, and the military alike. The Swiss Armed Forces purchased and issued this model to Swiss combat divers in approximately 1970. Bolstered by its inclusion in Clive Cussler’s thriller novels, the orange dial and “beads-of-rice” bracelet have become a common sight in recreational and military dive communities ever since. The model also became popular because it was championed by none other than French oceanographer Jacques Costeau. Doxa & The US Navy A Navy Experimental Diving Unit photo from the early 1970s shows a Doxa Sub 300T Professional in use. (Photo Credit: Richard Blackburn) With a better grasp of the brands and watches on the list, our next step was to track down and speak with the surviving aquanauts, one of whom provided a bombshell about the written log’s author. When we reached out to aquanaut Richard “Blackie” Blackburn, he took one look at the log and confirmed that it was the handwriting of none other than Bob Barth, the Bob Barth who helped create the Sea-Dweller, pioneering the use of a helium escape valve in watches in the process. Barth was also, according to Blackburn, the man who kept track of where all the Navy’s Doxa Sub models and other watches were going. Unfortunately, Barth passed in 2020, so we weren’t going to be able to ask him directly about the log, but our research carried on. It’s also important to note there is no mention of the Doxa Conquistador in our log, which is a specific version of the 300T equipped with a helium escape valve. For more on the rarest Doxa Sub variant, check out Perezcope’s research on Doxa’s role in developing the helium escape valve. Given SEALAB was a saturation diving experiment—the one environment where you need the valve—it would have made sense for Doxa to have sent over the Conquistador, but we found no definitive evidence of this being the case. There are numerous examples of Doxa Sub models being used by Navy Divers, but their role in SEALAB hasn’t been confirmed until now. (Photo Credit: Man in the Sea Museum) The next step was taking stock of exactly what was issued using the records and then matching those serial numbers with the watches on the wrists of aquanauts, if possible. It was time for the detective work. While many have passed—SEALAB III took place 55 years ago—five of the aquanauts listed in the log as the recipients of Doxa watches are still alive today. We started by tracking down their contact info and cold-sending emails to these legends of undersea exploration. Doxa 6665364 Richard M. Blackburn, Aviation Ordnanceman First Class, USN Taken while working on an oil spill in California after leaving the Navy, this photo shows Richard Blackburn’s Rolex GMT-Master, a gift from Bob Barth upon his retirement. Whether or not Blackburn ever received a Doxa remains a mystery. (Photo Credit: Richard Blackburn) When I sent an email to Richard “Blackie” Blackburn with my number in the signature, my phone rang about two minutes later. After identifying the handwriting on the log as that of Bob Barth, Blackie informed me he had no recollection of ever being issued a Doxa. But, he said it wasn’t that unusual to see his name on the log, describing Barth’s issue process for watches as being as casual as “trading a cup of coffee” for a watch in certain instances before noting the transaction in his log with whatever name and number moved him at the time. Years later, Barth made up for it, gifting Blackburn a Rolex GMT-Master with his name and “SEALAB III” engraved on the caseback, a watch that he lost to a shady watch repairman years later. Doxa 6665354 Cyril F. Lafferty, Lieutenant Royal Navy, Team Leader Cyril Lafferty during SEALAB III. (Photo Credit: Shared By Perezcope) Because of a photo circulating the web showing the former Royal Navy officer wearing a Doxa, I felt confident Cyril Lafferty, who was loaned to the US Navy SEALAB project by Her Majesty’s Royal Navy, might have the goods. While Mr. Lafferty confirmed he is the man in the photo wearing a Doxa, he said he had no recollection of being issued a Doxa watch or any other by the US Navy. He did remember being issued a Rolex or Omega by the Royal Navy, however. Later serving as the captain of the Royal Navy’s only deep-diving research vessel, HMS Reclaim, Lafferty went on to pioneer hyperbaric treatment techniques for multiple sclerosis. Doxa 6665425 James H. Osborn, Lieutenant Commander, Civil Engineer Corps, USN Then-LCDR Osborn preparing for a dive in 1968. (Photo Credit: Jim Osborn) In an email exchange with retired Captain Osborn, he confirmed he was issued a Doxa watch and wore it for all of the years he was an active Navy Diver before making the change to a Seiko in 1983, a gift from his wife when he retired from the Navy. Years later, Osborn sold the Doxa and a personal Rolex to a jeweler, saying, “The cash went into my pocket and I never gave it a second thought.” We may not have the watch or its serial number, but this is a second piece of evidence—after the Laffery photo—supporting the issue log we found. Doxa 6665416 Leo Gies, Lieutenant Commander, USN While I failed to contact LCDR Gies via email, the salty old Naval officer was kind enough to give me a call one Friday morning. Despite the passing of some five and half decades, Gies is razor sharp and remembered being issued a Rolex dive watch before receiving the Doxa when he joined the SEALAB III program. Sadly, the Doxa is no longer in his possession. After leaving the Doxa with a watchmaker in the 1970s, Mr. Gies explained he never saw it again, thinking it was perhaps sold under dubious circumstances. It’s the kind of thing that could break a watch enthusiast’s heart, but for Gies, another lost diving tool wasn’t a huge deal then or now. In any case, Gies’s recollection serves as another hard firsthand link confirming the US Navy’s issue of Doxa watches during SEALAB III. Doxa 6665358 Keith H. Moore, Machinist’s Mate Second Class, USN I met Omar Moore in 2022 at a SEALAB reunion. He was wearing a Navy-issued Doxa T-graph, the stuff of legend. The hardest to track down was ironically the only aquanaut from the list I have met in person, Keith “Omar” Moore. On the very trip where I discovered the issue log in question, I also attended 2022’s SEALAB reunion. Moore attended wearing the impeccable example of a Doxa T-Graph photographed above, a watch he says was also issued to him by the Navy in 1968, before its commercial introduction in 1969. Could one of the serial numbers on this list belong to Moore’s T-Graph? After several unanswered emails, I asked a couple of the other aquanauts I connected with to vouch for me to Moore. 1968 photo of Omar Moore showing the incredible amount of gear worn by divers training for SEALAB III. (Photo Credit: US Navy) It did the trick. One morning a few days later, the phone rang. Moore informed me he was indeed issued a Doxa on one of the days listed in our note. He remembered Bob Barth setting up a small folding table not unlike a bake sale where SEALAB III divers and support staff could go and make an argument for why they should be issued a watch. Moore’s rapport with Barth was good, and Moore distinctly remembered Barth throwing him his brand new Searambler dial Doxa in its box from “across the room”. Where Barth got the watches from is unclear, but it is at least possible Doxa sent the watches to Barth directly or in the care of Barth because of his status as one of the “celebrity” aquanauts along with Mercury 7 astronaut Scott Carpenter. In any case, a few months later, Barth gave Moore another Doxa, this time the then-pre-production T-Graph chronograph. Moore remembered using both extensively in training dives and while supporting the construction and installation of the SEALAB III at no less than 610 feet of seawater off the coast of California’s San Clemente Island. “Mr. Moore, can I take a photo of your watch?” “Sure, man, whatever”. Unfortunately, when I was finally able to confirm the serial numbers of  Moore’s Doxa, both of which he still has, neither matched the handwritten log. Here are the numbers as read (and confirmed) from Moore’s Doxa watches: Doxa Sub 200 T-Graph - Serial: 6675653 Doxa Sub 300 Searambler - Serial: 717923 How the documented serial numbers manage to differ from Moore’s actual watches is anyone’s guess. Perhaps the recordkeeping on Barth’s part was simply not great—a theory Moore seconded—or the names and numbers had become mixed up as could easily happen with any piece of diving equipment. The idea that the first two numbers of a Doxa serial number indicate the year is also not watertight at this point as we are pretty sure the T-Graph wasn’t around in 1966 when the Doxa Sub itself was in its infancy. There are other examples of vintage T-Graphs with “66” as the beginning of the serial number, so I believe Moore’s example to be correct. Omar Moore’s incredible Doxa Sub 200 T-Graph. While it isn’t the smoking gun I was hoping for—a perfect match between the serial numbers on the handwritten log and the caseback of a Doxa Sub owned by a surviving Aquanaut—we’ve done more than enough to prove the role played by Doxa during SEALAB III and after, serving as an intriguing addition to the annals of dive and military watch history. Of course, the mission to record these stories for posterity is never over, so let’s finish with a closer look at the role played potentially by Jaquet Droz during SEALAB III. Though the log lists Moore as the recipient of a “JK Droz”, he has no memory of the watch. The plot thickens… An Unexpected Contender Jaquet Droz produced dozens of dive watches during the 1960s and 70s. Could some of them have been used on SEALAB III? The records indicate that several “JK Droz” watches were also issued alongside the Doxa models. If that sounds familiar, that’s because it sounds like the modern luxury brand “Jaquet Droz” that produces intricate automaton watches. And there is indeed a connection—but let’s get it straight—aquanauts were not wearing complicated watches featuring mechanical butterflies and singing birds worth tens of thousands of dollars during SEALAB III. Pierre Jaquet-Droz was a prolific watchmaker and automaton producer in the 1700s based in the Swiss city of Neuchatel. His name looms large in the Swiss Jura watchmaking region, and that makes it the perfect borrowed name for a brand—or many. Throughout the years, a few brands have resurrected the Jaquet Droz name to capitalize on his fame and imply a quality product, but many of these have a tenuous connection at best. They all originated in the same area of Switzerland, but that’s about it. It’s next to impossible to know for sure, but there are a few watch sightings in SEALAB archives that could be Jaquet Droz. The "JK Droz" watches that were issued have yet to be spotted. They could well be one of the ones pictured above or below, but we have no conclusive evidence. Given the timeframe and the role of the watch, it makes sense that the watch came from Jaquet Droz SA registered by Dr. Charles-Edouard Virchaux in 1964. The name was used to brand watches in the “Coopérative” that he ran. The Coopérative was essentially an OEM manufacturer that produced what were known as “catalog watches” that could be branded by any number of clients. (Photo Credit: Naval Undersea Museum) His in-house brand became known as Jaquet Droz, and they produced watches that looked similar to watches from a number of popular tool watch brands at the time. In the photo above, the “C” case might appear at first glance to be an Aquastar—and it may well be—but indeed Jaquet Droz also produced models resembling this design. Since the logs indicate that a few “JK Droz” watches were issued, this may be one, possibly even a standard skin diver whose bezel fell off. We may never know, but with period ads boasting that there were 1000 distinct models available, the possibility is there. Jaquet Droz might not get named along with the usual undersea living and exploration watches of the ‘60s and ‘70s, but that’s just it—the story is constantly being written. With these documents, two new brands are imbued with the lore of the United States Navy’s SEALAB program. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: The Dive Watch - How The Military Helped To Shape History’s Greatest Tool Watch  

SpecOps, Spies, & Military Watches In Movies Watches play a significant role in films, and an accurate depiction of a character often includes a watch they might actually wear. This is especially true in movies focusing on the military and intelligence. Whether we’re talking about mercenaries, arms dealers, CIA Officers, or Navy SEALs, a thoughtfully selected timepiece can complement a fictional character, lending a sense of credibility and bridging the gap between reality and Hollywood—especially for those in the know. Watches in popular films are also influential. Believe it or not, we know plenty of real spies and operators whose watch choices were influenced by movies. Take for example the Omega Seamaster and its connection to James Bond. Even though Omega pays big bucks to be the watch of choice for 007, the Seamaster has still become a go-to option for real-life intelligence officers, a classic case of life imitating art and vice versa. In our new video on the W.O.E. YouTube channel, we discuss some of the most accurate and intriguing depictions of watches in movies relevant to our community. Enjoy episode six of W.O.E. TV. Happy Hunting, -W.O.E.

New Omega & Tudor Watches For Military Pilots, Exploding Pagers, Stolen Astronaut Watch Recovered, & Even More Watch Crime  By Benjamin Lowry The Watch Industry SITREP or Situation Report, is a brief discussion of the preceding month’s watch industry news and current events related to the W.O.E. community. Based on feedback, we will ensure each story directly relates to Watches of Espionage and is not just a regurgitation of watch news you can get elsewhere. If you’re here looking for a hot take on the new Patek Philippe x Minecraft collab, you have come to the wrong place. Before we don our costumes and head out the door for Trick or Treat, this past month provided no shortage of intriguing W.O.E. stories, more watch-related crime, and even some explosive international espionage. To start, we have a rare Omega “unit watch” produced for a specialized aviation unit, once again showing the impact watches from within our community can have on the broader watch industry. Omega Speedmaster Flight Qualified “Unit Watch” The Omega Speedmaster Flight Qualified in action. (Photo Credit: Omega Forums) Thanks to a few cell phone photos from Navy SEALs, more widespread coverage of Danish King Frederik’s Frømandskorpset Omega Seamaster Diver 300, and most prominently, a watch worn by a member of former President Trump’s protective detail during his assassination attempt, the cat is very much out of the bag when it comes to Omega’s formerly secretive unit watch program. However, thus far, we’ve largely seen the Seamaster as the watch of choice for Omega’s customized military projects, that is until the leak and later confirmation of a novel variant of the Speedmaster available only to US Military pilots and navigators. The Omega Speedmaster Flight Qualified can be ordered by qualified US military pilots and aircrew and is available with a range of different case back insignia. (Photo Credit: Omega Forums) Most of the details surrounding the Omega Speedmaster Flight Qualified come from a military pilot active on Omega Forums, including an insane action shot of the watch in the cockpit juxtaposed against the edge of the Earth’s atmosphere—very cool. In contrast to the commercially available Speedy variants, the Flight Qualified offers up a color-coded display taking inspiration from Omega’s long-gone Flightmaster. According to the pilot on Omega Forums, you must be a qualified aviator, pilot, or navigator to place an order, and the watch is available with a range of different case backs to reflect specific insignia or squadrons. Our look at Omega’s unit watch program has become one of our most popular articles, and it’s great to see the brand broadening its collection of military-only offerings to include the aviation community. Tudor Pelagos FXD GMT & The Marine Nationale Following up on the original Pelagos FXD of 2021, the new Pelagos FXD GMT is yet another product of Tudor’s longstanding partnership with the Marine Nationale or French Navy. But where the original FXD was developed for diving with the combat swimmers of the Commando Hubert, the new watch was allegedly designed to meet the needs of the Aéronautique Navale, the MN’s aviation component. Coming from Tudor, this was a highly publicized release, and we plan to cover the watch in greater detail but will wait until we have information beyond what is already out there in press releases. At a glance, this is another cool release from Tudor that speaks directly to our community while also feeling like a great basis for future unit watches. Exploding Lebanese Pagers & The Dangers Of Connected Tech A crowd developed outside Beirut Medical Center as the injured poured in after the pager attack. (Photo Credit: Mohamed Azakir/Reuters) Expanding beyond the reach of the watch media, the preceding weeks also produced one of the more memorable and public instances of espionage in recent memory when pagers belonging to members of Hezbollah and others exploded in a coordinated fashion on September 17th. The pagers, which were developed and inserted into Hezbollah’s supply chain by Mossad, Israel’s intelligence agency, were packed with hidden explosives and designed to explode almost in unison, causing at least 37 deaths and thousands of injuries. While the use of pagers is not widespread in 2024, Hezbollah has opted for simpler tech in recent years, forgoing cell phones and other more complex wearables that are easily compromised by Israeli intelligence. The remains of exploded pagers. (Photo Credit: Getty) What does this have to do with watches? We’ve written extensively on the counterintelligence risks of smartwatches, and this attack once again demonstrates the dangers of connected technology and the lengths intelligence services are willing to go to reach their adversaries. With this attack setting a precedent, it is conceivable that a future attack could incorporate compromising smartwatches through the insertion of explosives or other means. As the attacks in Lebanon again prove, any level of connection, even the relatively simple tech involved in a pager, is more than enough for lethal effect. Spymaster Mark Zuckerberg Joins The W.O.E. Community With A Series Of Deep Cuts A Patek, two F.P. Journes, and a JLC make for one hell of a watch enthusiast starter pack. Mark Zuckerberg is arguably the greatest spymaster of the 21st Century. Monthly active users of Meta products (Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) are estimated to be up to 3 billion people, approximately 37% of the world's population, a remarkable fact. Zuck knows who you are, where you are, and your deepest secrets. He wields significant political influence with the ability to curate what you see by enforcing opaque community standards. So it is no surprise that spymaster Zuck, an individual traditionally known to wear t-shirts and hoodies, has finally caved and given into the world of Watches of Espionage. We wish him the warmest welcome to our community! Zuck was also recently spotted wearing an F.P. Journe Centigraphe Sport Aluminium. Zuckerberg has jumped into watch collecting with both feet and a surprising amount of taste by billionaire standards, already adding a Patek Philippe reference 5236P perpetual calendar, two F.P. Journe models, and a more obscure JLC to his collection. Of course, a watch is never just a watch, and Zuckerberg is no doubt aware of the inferences people will make based on his newfound appreciation of horology. It’s not rare for someone with billions of spare dollars to get into watch collecting, but Zuck’s approach suggests he is actually a fan of real horology or at least well-advised by knowledgeable enthusiasts or collectors. FBI Recovers Stolen Space-Worn Speedmaster & Returns It To The Smithsonian Eisele wearing two Speedmasters during training for Apollo 7. (Photo Credit: Bloomberg) This isn’t a new story but rather a classic from a few years back that was recently augmented with new information thanks to a FOIA document request by Jason Leopold over at Bloomberg. We all know US astronauts were issued Omega Speedmaster watches purchased directly from the Swiss brand by NASA. Once reaching the end of their service to the Space Program, most astronauts were expected to return the watches to NASA which then donated many—including a space-flown Speedy worn by Apollo 7 astronaut Donn Eisele—to the Smithsonian. Later loaned to the Instituto Geográfico Militar, a museum in Quito, Ecuador in 1988, Eisele’s Speedmaster was stolen the following year and in the wind for almost three decades, which is where it gets interesting. Smithsonian Inspector General documents detailing the return of the Eisele’s Omega Speedmaster. (Photo Credit: Bloomberg) In 2017, a tipster informed the Smithsonian they believed the missing watch—which is valued at $400k—was in private hands in Texas. The Smithsonian’s Inspector General, which is a thing, contacted the FBI who then located and met with the current owner. After verifying the serial number and the watch’s authenticity, and following a few stern words from the FBI, the dubious collector agreed to return the Omega to the Smithsonian to avoid further legal ramifications. You have to love a happy ending. Surprisingly, a total of six Speedmasters used by astronauts are still missing after having been stolen while either on loan or en route to other museums, including the Speedmaster worn by Buzz Aldrin on the moon during Apollo 11. Space-Flown Rolex GMT-Master Sells At Auction For $1.73M Mitchell’s GMT-Master is believed to be the first worn on the Moon. (Photo Credit: RR Auction) Keeping the space theme alive, the first Rolex worn on the moon was auctioned off a few days ago, hammering for an astounding $1.73M (before buyer's premium), well above its $400k estimate. This particular GMT-Master was worn by astronaut Edgar Mitchell on Apollo 14, likely underneath his space suit, while his NASA-issued Speedmaster managed primary timing duties. We at W.O.E. mostly don’t care about auction results and want nothing less than to aid in driving already insane prices with any sort of media coverage, but at times, history and the often frustrating world of auction houses intersect, and Mitchell’s GMT-Master is an important piece of not only the history of space flight but also horological history. Mitchell wearing his GMT-Master during Apollo 14. As Omega’s marketing often reminds us, they are the watchmaker of manned space flight, but that isn’t to say there aren’t other players, which is particularly interesting when astronauts chose to wear Rolex watches in space in addition to their Omegas. Ours is clearly not the first generation of Use Your Tools watch enthusiasts. Having sold for well over 1.5 million dollars, this kind of thing is out of reach for virtually all of us but incredibly cool nonetheless. We may never know, but I can't help but wonder whether it was Rolex itself which purchased the watch. The Crown is no stranger to preserving its history by buying up important vintage examples. Man Robbed Of $100k Worth Of Luxury Watches In Las Vegas The scene of the crime. (Photo Credit: AP Photo) In a real-life homage to the classic 2009 film, The Hangover, a man was robbed of approximately $100,000 worth of luxury watches from Rolex and Audemars Piguet after a very long night in Las Vegas. According to the Las Vegas Review Journal, a man and his friend were approached by two women while enjoying an adult beverage at a bar at Encore Las Vegas. After a certain amount of discussion, the women suggested the men head upstairs where further vigorous interactions were intended to take place. The victim allegedly fell asleep in his room where he had been “hanging out” with one of the women before both ladies elected to leave. In what may be the least surprising piece of news this month, the sleeping victim was relieved of several luxury watches including, “...an Audemars Piguet watch with a black face and full diamonds, valued at $80,000, a Rolex Presidential watch that features a green face and full diamonds, valued at $25,000, and a Rolex Submariner “Starbucks” watch with a black face, valued at $15,000.” Bummer. The victim also sent a Zelle transaction to someone named “Nikaila” though he conveniently has no memory of who that person could possibly be or why he would have sent them money. Some mysteries aren't meant to be solved. As it happens, this story has at least one happy ending. Las Vegas casinos have a lot of cameras and both women have since been arrested after being identified in surveillance footage from the scene. We’ve spoken at length about traveling with watches, but suffice it to say you’re probably better off leaving your $100k watch collection at home when traveling to Sin City, especially if you’re hoping to make friends. And people wonder why everyone meets on Tinder these days… Final Thoughts Whether it’s a pair of watch-thirsty ladies of the night, a new Omega unit watch for aviators, the new Tudor Pelagos FXD GMT, an astronaut’s stolen Speedy, exploding pagers, or Zuck’s new watch-collecting habit, the preceding month or so offered a plethora of intriguing events relating to the W.O.E. community. We sincerely hope you guys have as much fun reading this column as we have writing it, and please be sure to share any events we failed to mention in the comments so they can be considered for next month’s SITREP. As they say, the more you know… If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: Watch Industry SITREP - September

A Watch Belonging To Adolf Hitler… Purchased By A Jewish Collector? At Watches of Espionage, we often explore the darkest corners of horology. Whether we’re talking about the watches of terrorists, mercenaries, war criminals, or dictators, nothing is off the table. We use watches as a medium to get to the human element; they are our prism to view the world. That said, when I heard Adolf Hitler's gold reversible watch was auctioned for $1.1 million, I paused, thinking I may have found a watch too controversial for even W.O.E. to cover. As I attempted to wrap my head around the sale of Hitler’s watch, the buyer’s motivations, and the lack of traditional watch media coverage, I found myself wading into a more complicated conversation. Watches serve as mementos, objects that transcend their utilitarian value by representing history’s best and worst moments. But for collectors of historically charged timepieces, where is the line? Should anyone be comfortable buying, owning, or wearing watches associated with some of the most evil people to walk the Earth? Let’s explore. Watches, Warfare, & Swiss-Neutrality Watches are inextricably linked with warfare and many premier luxury brands owe their designs, legitimacy, and very existence to providing tools to warfighters. Iconic brands like IWC and Panerai often tout their military provenance as tools of choice for pilots and combat swimmers. But what the marketing departments (understandably) downplay is that some of those pilots wearing IWC watches were German Luftwaffe (Nazis) and Panerai’s Italian frogmen were Decima Flottiglia MAS, early amphibious commandos responsible for sinking Allied ships in WWII. The truth is complicated. Some of the most prominent Swiss brands have willingly provided custom watches to murderous dictators, including North Korean Kim Il-Sung’s Omega Constellation, Syrian President Hafez Al-Assad’s Rolex Submariner 5513, and a series of Patek Philippe models made for Libyan strongman Muammar Gaddafi. Even by conservative estimates, these men are responsible for hundreds of thousands of innocent deaths, yet their watches continue to fetch significant sums. Auction houses and dealers have a clear ideological allegiance: money. But what about the collectors buying these watches? Nazi Watches? WTF? With the above-listed issues in mind, some watches are too controversial for us to touch, most notably the watches of Nazis. In July of 2022, a watch reportedly belonging to Adolf Hitler auctioned for $1.1M at a Maryland auction house, Alexander Historical Auctions. The gold watch was reportedly manufactured by German watchmaker Andreas Huber with a movement from LeCoultre, now Jaeger-LeCoultre, and bears Hitler's initials (AH), a swastika, and the date of his appointment as Chancellor of Germany: January 30, 1933. The watch was allegedly liberated from Hitler's residence by French soldier Sergeant Robert Mignot as a “spoil of war.” The buyer? Reportedly an anonymous Jewish bidder in Europe, a detail that would not be significant if not for the fact that the man who wore this watch was responsible for the genocide of millions of Jews during World War II.  When I heard this news I cringed, why would someone want to own a watch belonging to (arguably) the most evil person to ever live? I am by no means superstitious, but I wouldn't want that thing in my house, let alone on my wrist. But the news of the auction led me down a rabbit hole of introspection on the ethical dilemmas of watch collecting. When does something controversial cross over into taboo? At what point does the preservation of history turn into the promotion of hate? It's complicated and highly subjective. Controversial Timepieces I own and wear several “controversial” timepieces including a Blackwater Breitling Emergency, a Rhodesian military-issued Roamer, and a South African Navy-issued Tudor MilSub. The Tudor Submariner and Roamer are byproducts of apartheid-era conflicts, a controversial topic by any measurement. Blackwater is one of the most controversial private military contractors and also conjures up strong emotions for many. These pieces are more than the sum of their parts, they are wearable artifacts of specific periods in time and for me indicative of historical significance rather than ideological affiliation. I believe one can own them and not condone the behavior of the original end-user (for the record I am against apartheid in South Africa).  Hafez Al-Assad Syrian Dial Rolex Submariner 5513 To complicate matters more, I recently considered purchasing a Rolex Submariner 5513 made for the late former President of Syria Hafez Al-Assad. President Al-Assad was responsible for numerous atrocities, including the 1982 Hama massacre when the Baathist government besieged the town of Hama for 27 days, resulting in an estimated 10,000 to 40,000 civilian deaths.  Hafez Al-Assad Syrian Dial Rolex Submariner 5513 (Photo Credit: HairSpring) Why would I want to own this piece? Is it really that different from Hitler's watch? Having spent much of my life living and working in the Arab world, including Syria, something about the red Arabic signature on the dial speaks to me. Of course, this desire is by no means an endorsement of the Assad regime. On the contrary, much of my time at CIA was spent working against individuals like Assad. For me, it comes down to collecting context. By default, I think we should take a nuanced understanding of history, and exploring a topic, or a watch, does not equate to endorsement of the subject. Provenance & Watches Of Notable Historical Figures Marlon Brando's GMT-Master on set for Apocalypse Now, 1979. “Provenance” is a term used by collectors and auction houses to document the history of a watch’s ownership, modifications, and service history.  Whether Paul Newman’s Rolex Daytona or Marlon Brando’s Rolex GMT, watches with notable provenance fetch premiums as they transcend from “just a watch” to a historical artifact. Military watches are no different and those with documented provenance to a specific individual or unit can increase the value by a multiple of two or three. When it comes to celebrities and other benign “famous people,” the inherent value is widely recognized. But when you get into the gray area of watch collecting, the “value” of provenance can vary based on one's ties to what that item represents.  My prized possession (grail watch) is a South African-issued Tudor MilSub reference 7016 from approximately 1974. While I have no ties to the Apartheid-era South African Navy, I have spent much of my life living and working in Africa and have a particular interest in Tudor MilSubs. The provenance of this watch has a greater value for me than the average collector. Similarly, Israeli Defense Force (IDF) issued Tudor 7928s likely have a greater value to one with ties to Israel whereas those opposed to Israel may view these watches with disgust. So What Type Of Person Would Buy Hitler’s Watch? My initial thought was a neo-Nazi sympathizer, a Bond villain character who wants to wear the watch in his underground lair as he pets his hairless cat. And while this may be the case, the truth, and motivations are likely more complicated.  According to at least one report from the Washington Post, the auction house president claims the watch was purchased by an “anonymous European Jewish bidder.” Is it possible that an individual spent over a million dollars on this item to remember the defeat of the Nazis? As uncomfortable as this may sound, the answer may be yes.  On the shelf in my office is a WWII-era-German (read Nazi) Eagle Claw Scabbard and Mauser-Werke Luftwaffe pistol, both war trophies brought home from the European theater by my grandfather. These items are by no means intended to honor the Nazis and to be clear as an individual and a platform we are anti-Nazi. On the contrary, these items commemorate what my grandfather and the Greatest Generation accomplished, defeating Nazi expansion in World War II. Would I purchase them at auction? No, but they do hold personal value. Watch Collecting On A Spectrum Our willingness to preserve history through the collection of timepieces occurs on a spectrum. Most are willing to buy and wear a new military-inspired watch. Even pacifists can appreciate them for their connection to the past. WWII Allied watches like the Dirty Dozen are also generally uncontroversial given the belief that the Allies were on the right side of history. But once you pass this, the value of the provenance is subjective. Auction Houses Google the name of any major auction house and you are sure to find at least one significant controversy including “fake” watches, stolen artifacts, or items of religious or cultural importance. The trade is morally complicated, and auction houses are incentivized to maximize monetary gain. The fact that Hitler's watch was sold at a relatively obscure auction house suggests that the larger auction houses passed on these items, finding them too controversial. This raises another rhetorical ethical question, is it ok for auction houses to profit off of these sales? Conclusion Would I want to own Hitler's watch? Absolutely not. Despite what is written above, I still believe this watch is a physical representation of pure evil. It belongs buried in a tomb or maybe in a museum honoring the holocaust victims. That said, collecting controversial watches should not be immediately shunned and we should have an open conversation on the ethical considerations at each level. Engaging in thoughtful discussions about the implications of collecting these items and considering their historical impact is essential for navigating this complex issue. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: The Watches of Hamas, ISIS, & the Taliban

Civilians Wearing Military Watches, W.O.E.’s Grail, A Perfect EDC Bag, & More In this edition of the Dispatch, we’ll answer some common questions we get about W.O.E., timepieces, and the Intelligence Community at large. Many of these responses can—and probably will at some point—serve as stand-alone stories, but for now, here’s some additional insight on Watches of Espionage. If you have any other questions, please ask in the comments section and we’ll do our best to answer them in a future article. See past questions “Ask W.O.E. Anything Part I”, “Ask W.O.E. Anything Part II”, and “Ask W.O.E. Anything Part III”. Is it OK for civilians to wear military watches or does this qualify as “stolen valor”? (Photo Credit: Panerai) Many watch brands and references are centered around a specific narrative and culture of professionals: the Omega Speedmaster and space exploration, the Rolex Submariner and diving, and IWC’s aviation watches.  With this marketing, there comes some form of cosplaying or larping and in general, this is fine and part of the fun of the passion. I will likely never travel to space, but I like the idea of wearing a watch that has and has been designed for that purpose. (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) Additionally, we have covered many military-inspired brands like Bremont, Marathon, and Sangin, which are intended for use by active duty and former military members. While they maintain a strong customer base in these communities, of course not all of the customers are tier-one operators. Overall, there is no problem with this and it is by no means stolen valor. “Military-inspired” is synonymous with tough gear that is meant to be used. However, I do struggle with commercially available watches with a branch or unit insignia on the dial. IWC’s Pilot’s Watch Top Gun, Marathon’s USMC GSAR, and of course Panerai’s “Navy SEAL” watches. While I still don’t think this is stolen valor as such and don’t have a problem with people wearing them, I personally would not want to wear a watch with an insignia on the dial that I have no direct connection to, i.e. a unit I did not serve in. (Photo Credit: Marathon Watch) With “unit watches,” it gets more complicated and, in my opinion, depends on the specific unit watch and how much time has elapsed since it was worn by those who earned it. In general, I think watches with a specific unit insignia on the dial or caseback should be worn by those who earned them, not those who can afford to pay the absurd premium they command at auction. Customized Tudors, Omega, Rolex, and even Breitlings have sold for well over $40,000, a remarkable number. That said, at a certain point these watches do become collectibles and it is fine to collect them. Where that line is, is highly subjective. What was your go-to EDC bag when you were at CIA? W.O.E. in the Middle East, Sandstorm EDC bag. As a Case Officer operating overseas, your job is to recruit spies and steal secrets. This calling requires frequent travel and operational activity in a range of environments, from diplomatic functions in European capitals to dark alleys in war-torn countries. A good EDC bag should support your persona (cover) and not immediately peg you as an American. This obviously rules out the tacti-cool bag with Velcro for your Punisher morale patch. While I was at CIA, I relied on “issued backpacks” that were purchased overseas and modified by CIA as well as man purses I acquired myself, most notably the Canvas Andrew Work Bag from Sandstorm, Kenya, a bag I still use regularly today. Sandstorm Kenya The fictitious representation of “Q” in James Bond is largely a figment of Hollywood imagination, but gear and spy gadgets have been an integral part of espionage since the early days of the Office of Strategic Services.  Prior to an overseas assignment, CIA Case Officers visit an obscure warehouse outside of Washington D.C. and are issued a range of gear from disguises and backpacks. For most assignments, the gear is not as exciting as it sounds, but there are some deep disguises available, as made famous by former Chief of Disguise for CIA, Jonna Mendez. Case Officer’s EDC The key for EDC bags at CIA is to use something that won’t make you stick out as an American, i.e. the ubiquitous North Face and Patagonia backpack. I spent much of my overseas time living and working in Africa and fell in love with a boutique manufacturer called Sandstorm, which makes canvas and leather bags out of repurposed safari tent material. The bags are durable and classy, at home in the back of a dusty Land Cruiser just as much as a first-class lounge in Amsterdam. They aren’t cheap, but nothing good is. If you are really trying to blend in, or at least not stick out, my advice is to buy clothing and bags locally, or at least outside of the United States or your home country. Save the tacti-cool bags for range day and family trips to Chucky Cheese.  Many microbrands you cover use watches or parts made in China, is this ok? I’m a red-blooded American and in an ideal world, all tools would be made in America, watches made in Switzerland, and Whiskey distilled in Tennessee. That said, with the decline in American/British manufacturing and watchmaking, the reality is there are some great watches (and tools) that are designed in the US/UK, but manufactured in China and East Asia. In my opinion, many of these watches offer great value for the customer and I own some of them. Elliot Brown Holton on Glomar Explorer strap (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) Obviously, there is a stigma with “Made in China” and in some ways, this is warranted but the fact is that the country, and the region in general, has specialized in high-quality manufacturing at a cost-effective price. The computer I am writing this on, and the device you are reading this on, are made in China. There has been an effort to “reshore” manufacturing and watchmaking back to the United States, but much of these efforts have come up lacking, with customer complaints about price and quality control. The key here is transparency. Designed/assembled/sewn in the USA can mean very different things and many manufacturers work to obscure the origin of products with clever language. I’m not saying that brands should lead with “Made in China,” or stamp the case back, but they should be at least open about it. (Photo Credit: Atelier DE GRIFF) There is a lot of smoke and mirrors in the watch and EDC industry and even “Swiss-made” means that the watch is assembled and tested in Switzerland but not that all the parts originate there. Legally, “Swiss Made” means “60% of production costs are generated in Switzerland, and at least 50% by value of all components is Swiss-made”, which gives a lot of wiggle room. While I won’t dime them out here, there are plenty of “Swiss watches” with significant inputs from China. When you’re traveling abroad as a civilian with an Agency background, what is your EDC? Case Officer’s EDC, just the essentials. First of all, I think people put way too much thought into “Every Day Carry” and not enough into mindset, training, and physical fitness. I am a minimalist and generally carry the same thing I did at the Agency, no crazy whizzbang tactical tools, just the essentials: pen and paper, folding knife, over $300 in cash, passport, tourniquets, and a Surefire Defender flashlight. An external battery is a necessity also. Check out a past Dispatch on “CIA Case Officer’s Everyday Carry - EDC” for more on my reasoning and experience with these tools. My personal EDC hasn't changed much in two decades and it likely won't change anytime soon. Assuming I can’t afford the real thing, how do you feel about homage watches as opposed to  “fake” or “replica” watches? We wrote an article about the counterfeit watch industry (Read HERE) and several people asked what my thoughts are on “homage” watches like a Seiko modified to look like a Rolex Submariner or GMT. I don’t necessarily have a problem with these, but I would never buy one personally. It's hard for me to determine where the line between homage and fake is and I wouldn’t someone to spot me from across the room thinking I am wearing a Rolex, then come to find out it's a homage. That said, there are some “homage brands” like Tornek-Rayville, Benrus, and Vertex, that essentially brought these brands back to life, and that is something I can get behind (I own a Tornek and love it). (Photo Credit: Modbrand) Congrats on your first video and the launch of the W.O.E. YouTube channel. How did you come up with this unique format? Our core competency at W.O.E. is storytelling, offering readers/viewers insight into our community through the prism of watches. The goal is to inform and entertain and while long-form articles (ie the W.O.E. Dispatch) are our preferred medium, the sad fact is that most people don’t read more than a couple paragraphs, preferring to take in bite-sized chunks of engaging video and photographic content. We knew video was inevitable and have been working on this for over a year. The school solution in launching a YouTube channel is to have an influencer sit in front of a ring light and offer spicy clickbait takes and “Top 10 lists” of the best watches. At W.O.E. we always aim to do something different so we decided to take the concept of our Dispatch articles and convert them into mini-episodes. This concept will evolve as we gain more resources. We have been overwhelmed with the response and plan to continue to release an episode every 2 weeks through the end of the year. Check out our first four videos HERE. What’s the best spy movie from a former Case Officer’s point of view? I like thrillers/spy movies as much as the next guy. Jason Bourne, James Bond, and Red Sparrow are all fun and entertaining experiences, but they are far from the reality of true espionage work which is months of hard work and lots of writing, punctuated by exciting moments and “cool” operations. The fact is most intelligence work is boring and if the movies were accurate . . . they wouldn’t be that interesting. Spy Game is one of my favorite movies and is entertaining, but also has threads of truth, particularly the training and mentorship of Tom Bishop, played by Brad Pitt. It’s still Hollywood, but a great watch, nonetheless. Argo and Charlie Wilson's War are interesting looks at historic CIA operations, however, I would recommend starting with the books. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and The Good Shepherd capture the methodical aspect of the wilderness of mirrors of the spy world, but also aren’t as exciting as the Bourne series. The Recruit is an interesting look at the training pipeline at “The Farm” and one that many from my generation watched multiple times prior to training. (Photo Credit: Black Hawk Down) Movies like Zero Dark Thirty and Black Hawk Down are less historically accurate, but interesting watches nonetheless. Regardless, if you want to learn about these events and what really happened, I would recommend reading the books first. Our W.O.E. Reading List (read HERE) is a great place to start. Last but certainly not least, Spies Like Us is a comedy with zero historical accuracy but does have a real cult following in CIA. “Doctor” can be heard in just about every CIA Station around the globe. Don’t sleep on it. If I’m down to two or three watches that all meet my criteria and price range, how do I decide? (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) One of the most common questions I get is people looking for help trying to decide between two or three watches they want to buy. Sometimes they are very different—like a Tudor FXD and a Breitling Aerospace—and sometimes they are similar references from the same brand. The answer is always the same, go with your gut. Continue to watch videos and read about the watches, but most importantly try them on at the store or borrow one from your watch friends. This is such a personal decision and nothing I say should impact your choice. Ultimately, go with your gut, and your budget.  Is there any watch that’s a grail for you, something you’d trade your entire collection for? W.O.E.’s South African-issued Tudor Submariner reference 7016. (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) Yes, no. A “grail watch” is the ultimate watch for a collector, something that they would never sell if they were able to acquire it. Like the “holy grail”, this watch is often unattainable, or incredibly unlikely to obtain. It’s more of a fantasy than a realistic goal. Pictured above is my South African-issued Tudor Submariner ref 7016 from approximately 1974, which is (was?) my grail watch. I acquired this piece from Ross Povey last year and it is my “prized possession,” I will never sell it. A Rolex Milsub is another grail for me, but I wouldn’t trade my entire collection for one. (Photo Credit: Bonhams) Moving forward, there are plenty of watches I would love to acquire including a Rolex MilSub and an Israeli-issued Shayetet 13 Tudor Sub 7928. That said, there is nothing I would trade my entire collection for. Many of my watches have personal value that transcends monetary value. The Breitling Aerospace I received from King Abdullah of Jordan (Read HERE) is probably worth a few thousand on the market, but to me, it is priceless. I have too many memories with that piece to let it go.    How do I buy a watch for my wife? (Photo Credit: Tudor Watch) This is a tricky one. I have purchased Mrs. W.O.E. several watches including a Cartier Tank, Black Bay 58, and a Patek Philippe Gold Ellipse. Despite my best efforts to woo her into the world of watch nerds, she couldn't care less. The fact is that women have more competition for their attention (and money) than men. While this is a generalization I am probably going to catch some smoke for, women are bombarded by messaging for and tend to covet handbags, shoes, earrings, bracelets, and necklaces whereas men traditionally have fewer personal items to consider. The watch industry has been desperate to acquire women customers and has made some headway, but it's still heavily tilted toward men. My advice is simple, bring your significant other to a watch store to try on a range of watches. If something speaks to them, then follow that thread. If not, don’t push it.    What is your favorite strap and why? (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) When it comes to W.O.E. products, I am our first customer and if it's not something I would use, then it doesn’t get made. That said, each of our product lines is very discrete and developed for different use cases. Just because you like one of our straps doesn’t mean you will like them all. The Glomar Explorer probably gets the most wrist time, particularly in warmer months. It’s such a versatile strap and works particularly well with both the Blue and Black FXDs, but also virtually any tool watch. With the new tightened strap keeper, there is no chance it is coming off your wrist.  Sizing can greatly vary on these straps, depending on the watch and your wrist size. (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) Second, I am a big fan of leather on field watches and divers and wear the Jedburgh, particularly on my older vintage pieces and watches like the Arabic Seiko.  From the start, it is a very comfortable strap with a low profile. (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) Lastly, I love all of our Five Eyes straps and wear them regularly. But when it comes to single-pass straps, I often defer to our past collaborations with Zulu Alpha and recently have been wearing the W.O.E. - Zulu Alpha 4.0 a lot. They are expensive, there is no way to sugarcoat that, but the quality of the hardware and fabric are night and day in my opinion. (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) The main point here is to find a strap that works for you.  There are so many variables in watches, wrist size, and preferences, that there is no one size fits all. I encourage you to read the (over 1,000) reviews on each product page and see what other people's experiences have been. Remember, it’s much easier to buy and try a lot of different straps than it is with watches… What current Rolex model family would you buy assuming no wait list and cost isn’t an issue? I am a big fan of Rolex, particularly vintage and neo-vintage Submariners and GMTs. I am a simple man and give me any Sub or GMT with an aluminum bezel and drilled lug holes and I will be happy. I have “expressed interest” in the new Black/Gray Rolex GMT Master II, and would love to get one, but I am not losing sleep over it. That said, the one piece I would kill for (not actually) is the Titanium Yachtmaster. However, these pieces are almost impossible to get and I am not willing to pay the excessive premium on the secondary market or play silly games with ADs to get one. I am ok with that. Watch buying advice? (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) Still, the most common question we get is on watch buying advice from newbies and experts alike. While the W.O.E. platform is geared towards telling stories from our community, we have considerable resources to answer these questions.  Please check out the following articles if you are new to the world of watches. Advice for Buying a Watch Best Watches Under $5,000 - Ask the Experts Best Watches Under $1,000 - Ask the Experts Best Military Watches If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. – This Dispatch has been reviewed by the CIA’s Prepublication Classification Review Board to prevent the disclosure of classified information.

Despite being a fictional character, perhaps no figure in the world of Watches of Espionage claims as much influence as James Bond. The celebrated links between 007, Rolex, and Omega are well-established and contribute to the lore surrounding two of history’s most important tool watches, namely the Rolex Submariner and Omega Seamaster. But wherever you fall on the Rolex vs. Omega debate for 007, the charismatic secret agent’s watch history is much more diverse, including several brands and watches you may have never imagined. We’ve theorized our picks for a more realistic James Bond in the past (read HERE), but what brands and watches have been worn by Bond onscreen that didn’t come from the hallowed halls of Omega or the Crown? To explore the lesser-known watches of James Bond, we invited Caleb Daniels, a longtime friend of the site and subject matter expert on all things James Bond, for an in-depth look at Bond’s other watches. For those interested in Bond’s considerable history with firearms, Caleb has a new book coming out with our friends at Headstamp Publishing called LICENSED TROUBLESHOOTER: The Guns of James Bond. Beyond Omega & Rolex, The Watches Worn by 007 Over The Years  By Caleb Daniels In two previous Dispatches, the discussion around the watches of James Bond has focused on the two most prevalent brands of the franchise, Rolex and Omega. There are, however, many other timepieces that have been included in the cinematic world of James Bond, and this Dispatch will highlight these watches from varying manufacturers and their stories. Some, you may know. Others appear only in brief sequences and are often missed but deserve equal celebration. Gruen Precision 510 (Or Maybe Not) - Dr. No, From Russia with Love, Goldfinger, You Only Live Twice, Diamonds are Forever (Watch Photo Credit: Second Hand Horology) In 1962’s Dr. No, when James Bond utters the famous line introducing himself for the first time, in a dim casino, while lighting a cigarette nonchalantly, it’s not a Rolex on his wrist. Rather, it is a common watch for the era, an understated and relatively small gold dress watch. Legend has it that this was a personal watch of Connery’s. Further, this watch would appear time and again throughout his tenure as 007, including in From Russia with Love, Goldfinger, You Only Live Twice, and Diamonds Are Forever. If speculation is to be believed (and it ought not to be) the watch in question is a Gruen Precision 510, a diminutive 34mm, 17-jewel watch with a sub-seconds register. Or at least that’s the story on most style blogs and mainstream outlets, including Esquire and GQ. Unfortunately, this model selection is entirely speculative, as at no time on screen is the watch visible enough to confirm any definitive identifiable details. In 2013, Dell Deaton “confirmed” the model as accurate on James Bond Watches Blog, leading to absurdly overpriced listings of a relatively simple timepiece. A Gruen Precision 510 similar to the one Bond could have worn in several films. Ironically, Connery’s watch could be an Omega based on the case construction and lug shape. If that’s the case, Omega by sheer happenstance was the first ever on-screen Bond watch, a monumentally big deal if true. Despite the uncertainty around the piece, I appreciate the lower-priced Gruen examples—as little as $30—as a quiet Bond nod and adore the finished details. The questionable origin story notwithstanding, the brand has been deeply ingrained in the Bond community, and I enjoy seeing it on the wrist. Tragically, we have yet to identify this watch, but if the Connery estate ever confirms the model, expect to see yet another classic and inexpensive timepiece explode in value. Breitling Top Time - Thunderball “Here we have a Geiger counter, useful and unobstructive, the sweep hand takes the radioactive count, it's waterproof of course” - Q to Bond in Thunderball. (Watch Photo Credit: Christie’s Auction House) Sketchy dudes wear Breitling. W.O.E. doesn’t make the rules but just keeps getting this one completely right. In one of my all-time favorite films, Thunderball, 007 dons a Breitling Top Time encapsulated in an oversized cushion case as he hunts for missing nuclear weapons stolen by SPECTRE. His Breitling, in a wild turn of events, is equally as sketchy as the man who wears it, as its Q Branch modifications include the addition of a Geiger counter to aid Bond in his mission. The oversized case was designed by the Valley Tool Company, as commissioned by EON’s art department. Only one watch was ever manufactured, making this an incredibly rare piece. The actual watch is infamous for going missing for decades, only to be found at a flea market, purchased for roughly $33, and in 2013 it fetched $103,875 at Christie’s. The Top Time dial lends itself to the Q Branch aesthetic, with the two silver sub-registers that could just as easily actually be a Geiger counter. Bond wears this watch most notably with his blue striped camp shirt and cream linen trousers while visiting Emilio Largo’s oceanside home, Palmyra. It’s in this sequence that Connery casually shoots a 12-gauge Browning A5 from the hip while trap-shooting over the water, and without looking, dusts the clay pigeon. This scene is made even cooler by the very real recoil of the shotgun—it’s likely that Connery actually fired a live 12 gauge round over the ocean from the hip. Sketchy watch, Sketchy dude, epic film. Bond - “Seems terribly difficult…” [shoots without looking] “Why no, it isn’t, is it?” Hamilton Pulsar P2 2900 - Live and Let Die With Roger Moore, a new Bond was brought onto the scene, and unlike with Lazenby, a conscious effort was made by EON Productions to market Moore as his own version of the character. Live and Let Die’s marketing portrays Bond with several Smith & Wesson revolvers, most notably the chrome-plated .44 Magnum Model 29. Moore’s Bond also doesn’t smoke cigarettes anymore, he prefers cigars, and bourbon to his martinis. While Moore does wear a Rolex throughout his films, his Bond also wore a variety of digital timepieces, hallmarks of the quartz revolution and a new age of timekeeping. Live and Let Die opens with Bond being issued a new Rolex, with a buzz-saw bezel and a magnetic personality, but in putting it on, he first removes his Hamilton Pulsar P2, highlighting the timeliness of the Bond films. Pulsar released the P2 in 1973, the same year as the film, and it was the first successfully marketed and manufactured digital watch. The Pulsar’s portrayal in the film is brief but serves as a clear example of EON’s concern for putting daylight between Connery and Lazenby, the Bonds of old, and Moore, a 007 for a new generation. Bond’s digital Pulsar had glowing red digital indices that appeared only when the user tapped a button on the side of the case. Hamilton recently brought this model back, with the most notable difference being their name on the case instead of Pulsar. The Seikos of Roger Moore Moore’s affinity for new, cutting-edge watches did not end in Live and Let Die. Throughout the 12 years and (00)7 Bond movies, there are (00)7 nonstandard watches worn, including the aforementioned Pulsar and six Seikos. The Seiko watches selected work well inside the Moore era, which leaned on the campier tones more often than not. Like so many Bond watches, the Seikos get gratuitous screen time as gadgets on many occasions, beginning with the Seiko 0764 LC of The Spy Who Loved Me. Seiko 0764 LC - The Spy Who Loved Me In the opening sequence of The Spy Who Loved Me, James Bond is rather cozy in front of a fire, only to be interrupted by his timepiece that prints out the message “007 TO REPORT.” Bond quickly dons his canary yellow ski suit, departs the cabin, battles KGB agents on the slopes, and opens the title song sequence by skiing off a cliff face and opening a rather overt Union Jack parachute. Unlike his Pulsar, Bond wears this watch throughout the entire film. Seiko M354 Memory Bank Calendar - Moonraker Promotional shot for Moonraker focusing on the Seiko. It is an interesting selection that feels a bit visually incongruent with the classic country aesthetics of Moore’s sartorial selection in Moonraker. The full-face digital display is in harsh contrast to his brown donegal tweed suit and the chateau atmosphere of the Drax estate. For all the deliberation we have had in previous Dispatches on product placement, the forceful inclusion of this watch in the place of the previously worn Rolex 5513 is an error I cannot defend. Once again, this watch is a gadget used by Bond. In this case, it conceals an explosive that Bond and Ms. Goodnight use to escape the Moonraker launch platform. Billboards for this watch are visible in the film as well, highlighting the clear partnership between EON and Seiko. Seiko H357 Dual Display - For Your Eyes Only Screen capture from For Your Eyes Only. The Dual Display seen in For Your Eyes Only is an interesting design, with a digital screen above a more traditional analog dial. The watch is rarely seen on-screen but does get a shining moment at the end of the film. Bond receives a message on his watch in red letters, scrolling across the screen reading “COME IN 007.” The film ends with Bond dropping the watch next to a parrot, who speaks to Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher (an impersonator) in Bond’s place, using the watch as a communication device. Is there anything more Moore than that? Seiko 7549-7009 Professional Quartz Diver (Golden Tuna) - For Your Eyes Only (Watch Photo Credit: Analog:Shift) The aforementioned Dual Display is one of two Seikos worn by Bond in For Your Eyes Only. Bond also wears his Golden Tuna while searching the St. George wreck for the missing ATAC (Automatic Targeting Attack Communicator) device. The Golden Tuna is worn against the canary yellow dive suit, outside the sleeve, and on full display. The black titanium nitride-coated case and black rubber strap are in stark contrast to his brightly colored suit, but the gold bezel and accents are complementary to his louder dive getup. (Photo Credit: @movementsofaction) The Tuna is rather famous outside of Bond as it was the first dive watch ever produced with a quartz movement. The Tuna is also notable for its titanium case and is still highly regarded. Seiko TV Watch DXA-001 - Octopussy In the 1983 film Octopussy, Bond introduces us to the TV Watch during the standard issue Q Branch scene. 007 walks up to the watch and mounted camera combination and asks Q about it while messing with the camera, notably zooming in on the chest of a nearby MI6 employee, checking his work on the watch’s display, quipping, “Perfect image, Q.” Aside from that tongue-in-cheek, signature Moore moment, the TV Watch is used in the climax of the film. As Bond and Q descend on Kamal Khan’s palace, they use cameras mounted below their hot air balloon to view the ongoing battle and to locate Octopussy. Bond watches the video feed on his timepiece. (Photo Credit: @movementsofaction) The Seiko TV Watch features a 1.2” LCD in a standard Seiko case. All UHF and VHF channels can be viewed with the aid of an external receiver which affixes to the top of the watch case. The watch function is found in the thin banner above the TV screen, similar in style to the previously shown Dual Display. Seiko G757 Sports 100 - Octopussy (Photo Credit: @movementsofaction) This watch’s unique display design makes for a perfect Q Branch gadget. In an earlier Q Branch scene, it is implied that this model is the standard issue 00 operative watch, as Q notes that, “the homing device is compatible with the standard issue radio finder in your watch.” Bond uses this tracking device and the mini-map on his watch face to locate the Fabergé egg. Bond Lifestyle notes that this watch is the most visible Seiko in any of the films, and gets a healthy amount of close-ups throughout the film. A View to a Kill - A Trio Of Quiet Seikos Moore’s last outing as James Bond features three Seiko models, each with relatively brief moments, and as such they’ll be all addressed together here, for the sake of completionism. Seiko 7A28 7020 Quartz Chronograph Bond wears this white-dialed chronograph after evading capture in a ski chase and climbing aboard his iceberg-shaped submarine. The watch gets its moment in the sun as Bond flirts with yet another coworker. Seiko 6923-8080 Quartz SPD094 (Photo Credit: @movementsofaction) The gold dial dress quartz is only shown briefly but is worn by Bond during his time at Zorin’s home. The colorway and design are clearly Seiko’s budget take on the iconic Rolex Oyster Perpetual Datejust. Stills show that at one point Moore accidentally wore (or perhaps wore due to prop unavailability) his personal Datejust in place of the Seiko. Seiko “Arnie” H558-5000 Another Seiko dive watch is worn twice on screen by 007, first during the ski escape sequence (which causes a continuity error for the submarine scene) and later during the Eiffel Tower chase with May Day. In addition, the so-called Seiko “Arnie” also features on the wrist of a nefarious KGB agent in the film, providing a better screen capture than we were able to get for Bond himself. Product Placement & Seiko Beginning in The Spy Who Loved Me, the credits of Bond films note “Seiko Watches” as a partner. Unfortunately little is known about the behind-the-scenes reasons for this partnership, but the commercial nature of it is very clear, as shown by the advertisements of the period. Bond advertising and watches have a history spanning back to the Connery era and Rolex, and of course throughout recent years and the Omega partnership. TAG Heuer 1000 Professional Night Diver Ref. 980.031- The Living Daylights The last non-Omega or Rolex worn on screen by 007 was the seldom-seen TAG Heuer 1000 Professional Night Diver sported by Timothy Dalton in 1987’s The Living Daylights, and its appearance was once again tragically brief. The pre-titles show the 00 division parachuting into Gibraltar for a training exercise. Kitted out in 1980s SAS-style black tactical attire from head to toe, Bond also wears the black PVD cased watch on the matching bracelet. The only pop of color is the dial, which is fully lumed, leading to a soft yellow-green coloration. TAG Heuer released an updated variant of the Night Diver in 2021, with several prominent design modifications, making the new watch hardly reminiscent of the original. Bond’s watches, like his sidearms, are an iconic part of the character. Despite the miscellaneous Q Branch gadgets that crop up in many films, Bond often depends primarily on his wits, watch, and PPK to save the world. To that end, the timepieces of 007 will always be a cornerstone of the character, and if and when Bond 26 ever appears, I look forward to seeing what is on the wrist. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: Bond: A Case for Omega

What Watches Teach Us About Political Messaging, Propaganda, & Manipulation In one month, the American public will elect the next President of the United States. In honor of another historic presidential race, our new episode on the W.O.E. YouTube Channel discusses the small but significant role played by the watches worn by US Presidents and the current candidates for Commander-in-Chief. Whether it’s Donald Trump’s collection of solid gold luxury watches, a Cartier on the wrist of Vice President Kamala Harris, or a humble Timex on the wrists of George W. Bush or Bill Clinton, watches are a subtle tool to communicate with constituents and influence potential voters. To be clear, W.O.E. is an apolitical platform. Our analysis of political figures and their watches is presented as an informational exercise not intended to align with one side or the other. If seeing a particular president or their watch upsets you, we recommend you take some deep breaths and consider spending more time outside. Don’t let the internet ruin your day. No matter where you fall politically, it’s important to keep in mind that every aspect of a president or candidate’s appearance—including the watch on their wrist—is carefully curated and intended to send a message. Remember, a watch is never just a watch. Happy Hunting, -W.O.E.

Affordable Yet Capable Digital Watches Favored By SEALs, Special Forces, & Intelligence Officers It’s hard to believe we’re already on our third video on the W.O.E. YouTube Channel. There’s been a steep learning curve in adapting to the new platform, but the response has been surprising and humbling. THANK YOU for your support and stay tuned. We have a lot of great stuff in the pipeline. While W.O.E. often focuses on analog mechanical tool watches, the reality today is that the majority of special operators utilize affordable digital watches including the G-Shock, which has also been widely issued across the US Military in particular. Our third video provides an in-depth look at G-Shock, affordable digital watches from Japan that have earned a place on the wrists of elite military operators and intelligence officers since the 1980s. Whether you’re a seasoned luxury watch snob or a G-Shock fanboy, you can’t argue with the utility and unmatched durability offered by even the most inexpensive G-Shock models. -W.O.E.

Share Your Military-Issued Watches, Custom Unit Projects, & Operationally Worn Watches To Be Included In Our Upcoming Book We have big news. Watches of Espionage is in the early stages of working on a coffee table book that will offer a closer look at some of your favorite stories from the Dispatch as well as completely new content, all supported by brand-new professional photography from our regular photographic contributor and publisher, James Rupley. A US Navy UDT-issue Tudor Submariner 7928 from W.O.E.'s personal collection. (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) As always, everything we do is for, with, and through the community. Our book will be no different, and we are looking for individuals with interesting watches to feature in our first printed publication. If you’re in the DC/Maryland/Virginia area or willing to travel there and have an interesting watch you wore operationally in the military, special operations, or intelligence, we’d love to hear from you. Here’s what we’re looking for: Military-issued watches. Unit watches i.e. custom Tudor, Omega, Bremont, Breitling, etc… Mechanical timepieces that were worn in an operational capacity. If any of these apply to any of the watches in your collection, please let us know by completing this brief survey HERE. As always, thank you for your support. -W.O.E.

The World Needs Watchmakers & A Unique Organization Aims To Help Fill The Gap With Veterans Bolstered by the rise of social media and a slew of watch-related platforms, the internet has made the age-old art and science of horology cool once again. Ironically, as more people enter the hobby, the global watch industry faces a labor crisis. Becoming a skilled watchmaker is no joke, and there are simply not enough qualified watchmakers to go around. In this Dispatch, we’ll discuss the watchmaker shortage, including how we got here, what the industry is doing about it, and a unique opportunity for veterans who want to get involved. It may not feel like an obvious choice, but if you’re a disabled veteran in search of a new career, watchmaking may be one to consider. An organization called the Veterans Watchmaker Initiative provides all but completely free initial watchmaker training, credentialing, and even help with job placement. What Is A Watchmaker? (Photo Credit: VWI) Watches date back to the 16th Century, and watchmakers were artisans who hand-fabricated every component of every single watch they produced. By the early 1900s, standardization took over, with watch companies focusing on mass production using interchangeable components. A watchmaker from the Swiss Vallée de Joux. (Photo Credit: Musée de l’Elysée, Lausanne) Watchmaking changed from a largely European artisanal cottage industry to a broader technical field where budding watchmakers could learn the ways of assembling, maintaining, and repairing watches and “calibers”, which is what watch nerds and the French call the movement. Until the 1960s, watches were virtually all powered by mechanical means. That, coupled with the fact that almost everyone used to wear a watch, meant watchmaking was a small but legitimate career field supported by trade schools, apprenticeship programs, and infrastructure providing aftermarket components for servicing or repair. The Quartz Crisis To Today The release of the Seiko Astron spurred the Quartz Crisis, the effects of which directly influenced the current watchmaker shortage. (Photo Credit: Seiko) While there were numerous earlier efforts with electronic timekeeping, Seiko’s 1969 release of the Astron launched what came to be known as the “Quartz Crisis”, a major contributor to today’s watchmaker shortage. Bad news for watchmakers, quartz calibers were easier to mass produce and would quickly become far less expensive than their mechanical counterparts. Some estimates indicate the number of watchmakers employed just in Switzerland dropped by over 60% during the 1970s while the Swiss watch industry as a whole saw its employment decline from 90,000 at its peak to just 28,000 during the same period. Inexpensive digital quartz watches from Japan like the Casio Casiotron of 1974 emperiled the Swiss industry like never before. (Photo Credit: Casio USA) As the need for watchmaking declined with the rise of quartz, the once-proud trade of watchmaking became less profitable and attractive and the watchmaking needs of those who still preferred mechanical timekeeping were increasingly met by an aging population of watchmakers, a trend that continues into modern times. The numbers are staggering. A watchmaker at work at Patek Philippe's "The Art Of Watches" exhibition in 2017. (Photo Credit: CNN/Getty) According to Jordan Ficklin, the executive director of the American Watchmakers-Clockmakers Institute (AWCI), today there are an estimated 4,000 watchmakers in the United States, a decrease of as much as 90% compared to the 1960s. Of course, there are fewer mechanical watches out and about compared to that period, but the shortage still means backlogs for watch repairs stretch into the years in some instances. Becoming A Watchmaker In 2024 (Photo Credit: VWI) As internet-based watch enthusiasm has spurred a modern renaissance for mechanical watches at virtually all levels of the industry, the supply of newly minted watchmakers has failed to keep pace. Every year, hundreds of watchmakers who were trained before the Quartz Crisis retire with only a handful of qualified replacements stepping up to take up the reins. But let’s say you’re interested in watches and seriously considering taking up watchmaking as a career choice, how does one become a watchmaker in the first place? At least in the United States, there are essentially two options. A budding watchmaker can either attend a formal school—and there are only a few in the US—or complete an apprenticeship program. There are only a handful of certified watchmaking schools in the United States including Gem City College School of Horology in Quincy, Illinois (Photo Credit: AWCI) With a formal watchmaking school, students pay to attend a program lasting from two to four years. The schools also typically work with brands and other entities to employ newly minted watchmakers, which is the easy part given the shortage. With an eye towards self-preservation more than altruism, many watchmaking schools are subsidized by the brands. Apprenticeships, the old-school way of becoming a watchmaker, still exist but are rare in the United States today. In most cases, apprentices don’t get paid, making this a challenging route. (Photo Credit: VWI) In either case, if you can get yourself trained or experienced or both to a solid level, there is no shortage of jobs out there waiting for qualified watchmakers, some of which pay surprisingly well compared to a traditional college education for non-binary art history or whatever kids are studying these days. If you’re a veteran, there is another unique opportunity out there that is so good, we almost didn’t think it was real. Veterans Watchmaker Initiative Sam Cannan founded VWI in 2017. (Photo Credit: VWI) Starting in 2015, Sam Cannan, a retired Baltimore police officer turned watchmaker, set out on a unique journey, to create a school for disabled veterans to learn watchmaking. Even more challenging, Cannan aimed to make the school completely free of charge, providing a pathway for veterans to learn a skilled trade and earn gainful employment in a high-demand career field. It took a couple of years, but Cannan eventually found a building in Odessa, Delaware where he set up shop, donated by the New Castle County government for $1 a year. The Joseph Bulova School of Watchmaking was founded after the Second World War and provided no-cost watchmaker training to disabled veterans. (Photo Credit: Bulova) Calling back to the Joseph Bulova School of Watchmaking founded in WWII to provide veterans of the wars in Europe and the Pacific with free watchmaker training, Bulova came on board as a founding sponsor. In return, VWI is also an authorized Bulova service center, and students finishing the school’s full 16-month watchmaker training course attend a further three-month internship repairing watches within the service center. While studying, students also have the option to live in a nearby house owned by the school, providing an opportunity for students to obtain an almost completely free education in watchmaking. (Photo Credit: VWI) The program’s graduates are in high demand and have been placed—with the program’s assistance—within the Richemont and Swatch Groups as well as brands like Patek Philippe, with a near 100% placement rate for students graduating from the full watchmaker course. Staring into a watch movement wearing a loupe may seem like a far cry from the realities of military service, but many program attendees and particularly those diagnosed with PTSD as a service-connected disability describe the trade as therapeutic, providing a level of mental health support in addition to promising career implications. If you’re a disabled veteran and interested in attending one of VWI’s courses, which also include a shorter six-week watch technician program, click HERE to learn more. Watchmaking In 2024 (Photo Credit: VWI) Thus far, a renewed interest in mechanical watches has failed to spur a new generation of watchmakers. However, with the help of programs like VWI, hope is on the horizon. As is often the case with the so-called “Skills Gap”, awareness is at the core of the issue. If watch brands both big and small hope to persevere, qualified watchmakers must exist at all levels, ready to handle assembly at the production level as well as after-sales service whether handled by an authorized dealer or an independent watch repair business. As we’ve described, brands including Bulova are stepping up to help—in its interest as much as anything—but we would argue a broader effort from the largest players is necessary to keep pace with a majority retirement-age watchmaking workforce. Especially for disabled veterans searching for a skilled career field that is also in high demand, watchmaking might be a great place to look. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: Advice for Buying a Watch

Top Picks From A CIA Case Officer’s Bookshelf One of the most common requests we receive is for a reading list on intelligence, special operations, and national security. While this is a little outside our scope of Watches of Espionage, we are encouraged by this question because it demonstrates a desire to learn more about impactful topics within our community. With that in mind, I took a hard look at my library and queried other friends on their favorite books on intelligence and SpecOps to create an incomplete but workable list. There are a lot of great books out there on these subjects. For brevity’s sake, we elected to make this a series, with the first installment focused on books covering the Global War On Terror that raged for 20 years in the aftermath of the attacks on September 11th, 2001. We encourage you to add your favorite reads to the comments.  CIA’s Team Alpha Prior to Insertion into Afghanistan in the wake of 9/11. While the purpose of this platform isn’t to inspire the next generation of public servants, we are quickly learning this is a byproduct of W.O.E., which is great. So whether you are a student interested in a career at CIA or a washed-up dad wanting to relive the glory days, here are some great books to keep you entertained, informed, and educated. *We have added affiliate Amazon links for each book if you want to purchase directly from Amazon and support the site. If not, that's cool too. The Global War On Terror (GWOT) In Books Kill Bin Laden: A Delta Force Commander's Account of the Hunt for the World's Most Wanted Man, Dalton Fury In Kill Bin Laden, retired US Army Major Thomas Greer, whose action movie-style pen name is Dalton Fury, describes his firsthand experiences as a senior Delta Force officer during the hunt for Osama Bin Laden including a riveting eyewitness account of the Battle Of Tora Bora in 2001. Of note, he also has some great fiction reads similar to Jack Carr. The Way of the Knife: The CIA, a Secret Army, and a War at the Ends of the Earth, Mark Mazzetti While we’re typically hard on reporters, Mark Mazzetti, a Pulitzer Prize winner, provides an excellent multi-faceted look at modern warfare by sharing the stories of intelligence officers, special operators, and CIA assets including at least one socialite. There is some great detail in this book that would never pass the CIA’s Publication Review Board. Licensed to Kill: Hired Guns in the War on Terror, Robert Young Pelton A closer look at the world of private military contractors (PMC), Licensed to Kill details CIA’s “Dirty Wars”, contractor training, and some of the most prominent successes and failures of private military contractors, often operating without oversight or repercussions when they cross the line. If you want to learn more about the Blackwater Breitling, this is a good place to start and about as unbiased as it gets on this controversial topic. Jawbreaker: The Attack on Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda: A Personal Account by the CIA's Key Field Commander, Gary Berntsen & Ralph Pezzullo This time coming from the Agency’s perspective, Jawbreaker is career CIA Case Officer Gary Berntsten’s first-hand experience coordinating the CIA's fight against the Taliban while searching for Usama bin Laden in the war’s early years. First In: An Insider's Account of How the CIA Spearheaded the War on Terror in Afghanistan, Gary Schroen Gary Schroen was a legendary CIA Case Officer who led the initial Northern Alliance Liaison Team—codenamed “Jawbreaker”—into Afghanistan, in late 2001. First In is his account of some of the first boots on the ground belonging to a team of CIA Officers tasked with linking up with the Northern Alliance in the Panjshir Valley. We profiled Schroen and his Rolex Submariner in a previous Dispatch, read HERE. First Casualty: The Untold Story of the CIA Mission to Avenge 9/11, Toby Harnden One of the best-researched accounts of the first phase of the war in the aftermath of 9/11, Toby Harnden’s book, First Casualty, should be required reading for anyone looking for a 10,000-foot overview of the CIA and US Army Special Forces’ efforts in Afghanistan in the Fall of 2001. Of note, Harnden also wrote a Dispatch on Israeli Spy Eli Cohen’s Eterna-Matic Centenaire Recovered by Mossad, read HERE. The Triple Agent: The al-Qaeda Mole who Infiltrated the CIA, Joby Warrick Coming from another Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter, Joby Warrick’s The Triple Agent is the harrowing narrative of Humam Khalil al-Balawi, a Jordanian double agent who claimed the lives of seven CIA Case Officers and Paramilitary Officers at a secret outpost in Afghanistan in 2009.  This was required reading for several courses at CIA and an important study of counterintelligence in counterterrorism operations. Hunting the Jackal: A Special Forces and CIA Ground Soldier's Fifty-Year Career Hunting America's Enemies, Billy Waugh & Tim Keown A legend among SpecOps and the Agency, Billy Waugh fought in Vietnam with US Army Special Forces and worked as a contractor for CIA in Khartoum, Sudan in the early 90s keeping tabs on a certain bad actor named Usama bin Laden. When the GWOT kicked off, Waugh, who was then 71, deployed to Afghanistan to continue his lifelong service to our country. Waugh is also a W.O.E. Dispatch profile alum, having worn some of history’s great tool watches throughout his adventure-filled life including a Rolex GMT-Master, Seiko 6409, and numerous Digital Tool Watches (D.T.W.) throughout his career. Click HERE to read more. Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001, Steve Coll Where many of the books we’ve mentioned thus far cover the events immediately following 9/11, Steve Coll’s Ghost Wars concentrates on the intelligence efforts before September 11th including CIA’s clandestine efforts to subvert Soviet action in Afghanistan in the 1980s. I read and reread this book every time I went to Afghanistan, and it is one of the most comprehensive histories of the US Government's involvement in the region. Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, Steve Coll Another Steve Coll piece, Directorate S covers the intelligence challenges faced by CIA in Afghanistan caused by Pakistani ISI’s "Directorate S", a highly secretive wing of the country’s intelligence service charged with arming, training, and attempting to legitimize the Taliban’s role in the region. This is a great follow-on reading to Ghost Wars. Surprise, Kill, Vanish: The Secret History of CIA Paramilitary Armies, Operators, and Assassins, Annie Jacobsen Another text looking at CIA’s Paramilitary operations, Surprise, Kill, Vanish provides a high-level overview of the history of CIA's Special Activities Division (SAD / SAC) interwoven with firsthand accounts of the secretive unit’s actions during the Cold War and the GWOT. I will note, while this is a good read with lots of great information, several sections are over-Hollywoodized and not as accurate as they appear. 13 Hours: The Inside Account of What Really Happened In Benghazi, Mitchell Zuckoff with the Annex Security Team 13 Hours is a detailed account of the events of September 11th, 2012, when a six-man team of GRS security contractors working for the US Government defended a CIA annex and a State Department Special Mission Compound from armed militants in Benghazi, Libya. Also having been made into a feature film of the same name starring the dreamy John Krasinski, 13 Hours also offers some premium Rolex Submariner content on the wrist of Ty "Rone" Woods, a CIA Global Response Staff contractor played by James Badge Dale. The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11, Lawrence Wright Another prequel to the events of 9/11 and the GWOT to follow, The Looming Tower is a Pulitzer Prize-winning narrative describing Usama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri’s ascent to the heights of global terrorism as well as the FBI’s efforts to track and understand the emerging threat presented by al-Qaeda in the 1990s. This is the best read on helping understand the events that led to the attacks on September 11th and an easy read. Send Me: The True Story of a Mother at War, Marty Skovlund Jr. & Joe Kent Authored by our good friend Marty Skovlund Jr. and former CIA Joe Kent, the subject’s widower, Send Me is the incredible story of Senior Chief Petty Officer Shannon Kent, a trailblazing female special operator, gifted linguist, and mother of two who served with Naval Special Warfare and CIA during the Global War On Terror, ultimately losing her life in a suicide bombing in Syria in 2019. Relentless Strike: The Secret History of Joint Special Operations Command, Sean Naylor Relentless Strike is one of the best overviews of Joint Special Operations Command or JSOC, the parent organization that serves as operational control for Delta Force, the 75th Ranger Regiment, SEAL Team Six, and other secretive intelligence and aviation assets. From its humble beginnings in the 80s to its exponentially larger role in the GWOT, JSOC became one of the United States’ most impactful weapons in the fight against terrorism. There is some great CIA content also in this book that is scarily accurate. Not a Good Day to Die: The Untold Story of Operation Anaconda, Sean Naylor An in-depth account of Operation Anaconda, Not a Good Day to Die is intelligence and counterterrorism reporter Sean Naylor’s beautifully researched description of one of the United States’ bloodiest battles in the Global War On Terror. This work details the early actions of SOF, JSOC, and CIA in the early days of the conflict in Afghanistan. No Easy Day: The Firsthand Account of the Mission that Killed Osama Bin Laden, Mark Owen & Kevin Maurer Where 9/11 is the event that caused the GWOT, the killing of Usama Bin Laden in 2011 is perhaps the second-most crucial event marking the culmination of an unprecedented intelligence effort by CIA and a harrowing raid by SEAL Team Six, which is described in detail in No Easy Day by Mark Owen, a veteran SEAL operator who was on the mission. While we generally roll our eyes at SEAL books, this is an incredible insight into SEAL Team Six and a first-hand account of this historic operation. See No Evil: The True Story of a Ground Soldier in the CIA's War Against Terrorism, Robert Baer Another account from a CIA Officer serving before and in the opening phases of the GWOT, See No Evil is an incendiary look at what the author sees as the Agency’s intelligence failures as well as a description of the roots of modern terrorism. Bob Baer is a controversial figure at CIA and many say his reputation is less than stellar. That said, this book inspired an entire generation of CIA officers, coming out shortly after September 11th. Horse Soldiers: The Extraordinary Story of a Band of US Soldiers Who Rode to Victory in Afghanistan, Doug Stanton One of the GWOT’s most iconic images is that of US Army Special Forces riding horses into battle in Afghanistan shortly after September 11th. Horse Soldiers tells the story of how these American special operators blended old-school cavalry tactics with modern warfare to fight the earliest battles of the early GWOT. This book sets a good foundation for our follow-on piece by former senior CIA Case Officer J.R. Seeger writes about the role his watches played in the early days of the conflict in Afghanistan (read HERE). The Accidental Guerrilla: Fighting Small Wars in the Midst of a Big One, David Kilcullen Providing a global perspective on the Global War On Terror, David Kilcullen’s The Accidental Gorilla contextualizes the importance of smaller conflicts and intelligence operations in Indonesia, Thailand, Pakistan, the Horn of Africa, and East Timor and their role in the more prominent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The More You Know Beyond their entertainment value, these books provide detailed history and incredible firsthand accounts of how modern warfare, special operations, and intelligence collection unfolded over 20 years of war in Iraq, Afghanistan, and around the globe. Setting politics aside, the GWOT presents myriad cases of true heroism displayed by regular soldiers, intelligence officers, and SpecOps personnel at all levels of the war. There are, of course, numerous other books detailing the events of the Global War On Terror including thousands written by Navy SEALs, but this list is a great place to start. As they say, the more you know... If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: Israeli Spy Eli Cohen’s Eterna-Matic Centenaire Recovered by Mossad   *As a disclaimer, as Amazon Associates, we earn from qualifying purchases. When you click on links to various books in this article and make a purchase, this can result in Watches of Espionage earning a commission. If you’re interested in these books and want to make a purchase using these links, we appreciate your support.

From the Cold War To The War In Ukraine, Watches Are Used As A Propaganda Tool, But Are They Effective? In June 2022, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited the frontline troops on Ukraine's Armed Forces Day and presented soldiers with Ukrainian-produced Kleynold watches. The tradition of presenting watches to military personnel as commemorative gifts is long, but these watches served another purpose. With a government photographer on hand to capture the moment, the Ukrainian-produced Kleynold KFS-820s were tools of propaganda, a public demonstration of unity, patriotism, and Ukrainian ingenuity. This is just the latest example of watches used as tools of influence by Ukraine, the Soviet Union, and the United States. Cold War Of Covert Influence During the Cold War, the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) competed on several “battlefields.” These included “hot wars” like Korea and Vietnam, “near-miss Armageddons” such as the Cuban Missile Crisis, and shadowy proxy wars around the world. One of the lesser-known battlefields involved influence operations. Both superpowers used overt, clandestine, and covert resources to influence non-aligned populations in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. In the United States, the lead agency was the US State Department and, specifically, the Policy Planning Staff (PPS). George Kennan, the State Department senior official responsible for the PPS, served in Moscow and realized that in the case of the USSR, the United States faced an implacable foe under Joseph Stalin determined to control the world either by force of arms or by political warfare. George F. Kennan pictured in Geneva, Switzerland. To counter that threat, Kennan prepared a series of papers at State addressing political warfare's challenges. Kennan understood that a successful program would have to include every possible tool in the national security tool kit. This included public diplomacy, economic and military support to neutrals as well as allies, and clandestine and covert influence programs run by the newly formed Central Intelligence Agency.  The diverse set of CIA operations supporting this strategic plan included clandestine publishing and delivery of books banned in the USSR such as Boris Paternak’s Doctor Zhivago, smuggling news and music radio broadcasts into the Warsaw Pact countries and the USSR, and effective use of “agents of influence” to deliver a US-orchestrated message. Traditional Propaganda To counter this effort, the USSR used similar techniques. In the case of strategic communications, the USSR offered foreign journalists tours of “Potemkin villages” presenting the power of the communist economy. The May Day celebrations included displays of the Soviet military might, and in 1960, they created an international university in Moscow, Patrice Lumumba University, to train future non-aligned leaders. The KGB conducted “active measures” propaganda using their own agents of influence designed to portray the West and most especially the US as a poverty-stricken, depraved nation. The greatest tool in the Soviet propaganda tool kit was their space program. While US rockets were blowing up on the launch pad, the Soviets launched a small satellite, SPUTNIK, in October 1957 which broadcasted a radio signal as it orbited the Earth. In April 1961, the Soviets put the first man, Yuri Gagarin, into orbit, providing rocket fuel for the USSR’s propaganda program. The Soviet Union & Watches The Soviet Union had a basic watch industry before the start of World War II, but it was after the war that their watchmaking endeavors shifted from producing watches for the war effort to a blend of military and civilian programs. Two of the best-known of these 20th-century watch factories were VOSTOK (“East” in Russian) and the Petrodvorets Watch Factory (later renamed RAKETA, Russian for “rocket” after Yuri Gagarin’s epic flight). Both companies produced basic, easy-to-service, reliable hand-wound watches. Both RAKETA and VOSTOK watches were worn by Soviet political and military leaders as well as Soviet astronauts, pilots, and polar explorers. Soviet watch designs were also distinctive (for example the “Big Zero” Raketa). They also offered creative designs for water resistance including the legendary Vostok Amphibia that relied on increasing water pressure at depth to secure its water resistance. Raketa “Big Zero” in a chrome-plated cushion case with short, curved lugs (Photo Credit: Vintage Watch Inc) Beginning in the 1960s, both factories began to produce watches that advertised Soviet successes in military operations, space, and exploration. These watches had dial designs including Gagarin’s face, Soviet tanks, Soviet ships, submarines, and Soviet aircraft. These designs were primarily focused on building solidarity within the Soviet Union, but they were also exported around the globe allowing citizens of non-aligned countries with weak economies to own a reliable watch marked in English as “MADE IN USSR”.  Vintage Raketa with Soviet astronaut Yuri Gagarin on the dial. The objective was clear: While the West produced watches for the elite, the Soviet Union made watches for the common man. While anyone familiar with the international watch industry of the 1960s knows that US, UK, and Japanese firms were producing high-quality watches at an affordable price, the marketing plans for these firms did not counter the Soviet argument. Simply put: The West ceded this particular piece of strategic communications to the Soviets. Did it matter? Probably not. The collapse of the USSR was a catastrophe for most command economy industries. However, both RAKETA and VOSTOK survived and began to export to the West. The oddest aspect of these export efforts was the importance of nostalgia for the Cold War. Soviet paraphernalia began to show up in kiosks throughout Europe and both RAKETA and VOSTOK found European partners willing to invest in their robust yet extremely inexpensive watches. The War In Ukraine Long after the collapse of the USSR and the creation of the modern state of Ukraine, the country had a nascent watch industry in Kyiv founded in 1997 and focused on simple quartz and mechanical watches. None of these watches appeared on the market in the West and they certainly didn’t hold the status of popular VOSTOK models including the  Komandirskie and the Amphibia, both of which have cult followings among enthusiasts.  A KLEYNOD watch from the brand’s military-oriented “Forces” collection. However, following the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukrainian territory in 2022, the Ukrainian Kyiv watch company changed its name to KLEYNOD (Ukrainian for “treasure”) and began to impress a historic Ukrainian battle insignia on their watches. Their marketing tool was simple: The KLEYNOD watches symbolized the Ukrainian resistance to the Russian invasion. In a previous W.O.E. Dispatch, we showed President Zelensky giving KLEYNOD watches to front-line troops. At present, KLEYNOD offers over a dozen different military-related watches, clearly keeping the ongoing war effort in mind. Colonel Oleksandr “Grey Wolf” Oksanchenko, an early casualty of the War in Ukraine wearing a Ukrainian-made watch, Kleynod "Independence Insignia" edition. When Ukrainian Su-27 Flanker fighter pilot Colonel Oleksandr “Grey Wolf” Oksanchenko was killed on 25 February by a Russian S-400 missile during the Battle of Kyiv, he was posthumously awarded the Order of the Gold Star. Oksanchenko was a legendary Ukrainian pilot who retired in 2018 but like many Ukrainians returned to service to defend his nation. To celebrate this national hero and create unity, the Ukrainian government and press circulated pictures of the Grey Wolf, with a Kleynod "Independence Insignia" edition watch clearly visible on his wrist. The watch was developed on the 15th anniversary of Ukraine’s Independence. Russia, Putin, & Timepieces Similarly, Russia continues to tout its watch industry as a source of national pride. President Putin, known for his extensive watch collection including an 18k yellow gold Patek Philippe, A. Lange & Sohne, Blancpain, and IWC, is now seen regularly wearing a Russian made, Imperial Peterhof Factory (Raketa) watch. Putin and affiliated Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) officials similarly have presented Russian-made watches to forces as honorary gifts. Conclusion: In the West, we often see watches as timekeeping tools or status symbols. Certainly, both points are true around the world with world leaders wearing valuable timepieces. Cases in point include the new Danish King Frederik’s Omega Seamaster “Unit Watch” or Donald Trump’s many Rolex models. However, in the case of the USSR or today’s Russia and Ukraine, watches made locally serve as small but impactful propaganda tools that remind both the wearer and the observer alike that indigenous industries make reliable tools that are robust and meant to be used. Both countries export these timepieces to sustain their industries, but also to send a small message to the world: We are industrial powers. -- This piece was jointly written by W.O.E. and J.R. Seeger who served as a paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne and as a CIA officer for a total of 27 years of federal service. Seeger led multiple, small unit teams during his service, including leading one of the CIA teams that infiltrated Afghanistan after 9/11. This newsletter has been reviewed by the CIA’s Prepublication Classification Review Board to prevent the disclosure of classified information. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE.  Read Next: Double Wristing Stormin' Norman

Asking Watch Nerds & Experts from Special Operations, Intelligence, & NatSec For Their Picks We’ve often argued the best place to start with watch collecting is under $1,000. With the rise of watch enthusiasm bolstered by the internet over the last couple of decades, there are more great options than ever to consider on the more attainable end of affairs, many of which we discussed in a previous “Ask The Experts” Under $1,000 Dispatch. We stand by our statements about starting with an affordable watch, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be a day when you’re interested in ascending to a more luxurious tier of watchmaking. Whether we like it or not, so-called “luxury” watches bring a lot to the table, more commonly offering in-house calibers, better finishing standards, and more premium materials while also tapping into the history and heritage behind some of horology’s most legendary names. As many of our Dispatch articles have illustrated, using a more expensive watch doesn’t have to impede upon the “Use Your Tools” ethos with numerous documented cases of individuals from the military and intelligence communities reaching for luxury watches in the performance of their missions and to honor their culture. For further guidance on where to look in the crowded $1,000 to $5,000 tier, we asked a handful of our friends from both the traditional watch media and NatSec communities for their choices. There are a few returning guests from our previous look at watches under $1,000 (read HERE) as well as some new blood. Despite the diversity of our experts, the one thing they all have in common is a shared love of timepieces. These watches are not inexpensive by any means, and the idea that not everyone can afford to play in this space isn’t something we take lightly. Tudor Pelagos FXD Black - $4,150 Jason Heaton (@jasonheaton) is an author, freelance writer, and co-host of the podcast, The Grey NATO. The field of “Use Your Tools” watches is a crowded one, but in my mind, the Pelagos FXD stands above the rest. Forged from the ethos of vaunted historic military divers from the houses of Rolex and Tudor, it is modernized through its use of titanium, ceramic, and, in the case of the movement’s escapement, silicon. Fixed strap bars aren’t for everybody, but their use on the FXD is delightfully uncompromising and will appeal to those who like to use their blunt instruments at the sharp end. CWC Mutineer ≈ $2,000 Chris Craighead (@christian_craighead) former British Special Air Service (SAS). Founder of The Ministry of Defence. To start, I have to apologize for the tease, but this article with W.O.E is too good an opportunity to miss mentioning my upcoming collaboration with my brand, Ministry of Defence, and CWC, a legendary British watchmaker known for supplying UKSF units since the 70s. Building upon an existing CWC case design, the Mutineer will offer a Swiss automatic movement and a few other subtle elements speaking directly to my experiences in the military. I used a number of different analog and digital watches during my service, but if I could have designed the perfect watch for my needs then, it would have looked something like this. The tentative release date is Fall 2024. Sinn U2 - $3,160 Dave Hall (@davehall1911) is a retired SEAL Senior Chief, Strategic Advisor, and President of the Silent Warrior Foundation. The Sinn U2 has been my daily wear and tool watch for over a decade and it is as at home in a pool or ocean as it is in a subterranean environment. I love the simple style and brute ruggedness of this watch. I use the dual time zone feature daily. The watch has many more useful features such as the comfortable four o’clock crown placement, an Argon-filled case, a water compromise indicator, a clasp expansion system to wear over rubber, hacking seconds, and a luminous blue bezel indicator which easily differentiates it from the greenish dial and hand colors in darkness. These features combined with the price point make it a tool watch worthy of consideration in the W.O.E. community. Sangin Hydra DLC - $1,999 Brock Stevens (@deepsea.edc) is an active-duty US Navy Diver and watch photographer. The Sangin Instruments Hydra is my first Sangin and definitely will not be my last. With a 43mm case, 49.5mm lug to lug, and a case thickness of 12.5mm, the Hydra wears great on my 7-inch wrist. The stand out here is the thinness of the case (while offering 300m of water resistance), which allows for a very comfortable, low-profile wearing experience. The Hydra is offered in both 12-hour and elapsed time bezel variants, and the case options include a DLC or beautifully brushed 316L stainless steel. As you can see, I chose the DLC diver’s version and never looked back. The Hydra immediately drew me in with its rugged, mid-century compressor design with that tool watch or tactical element that I love to see in my collection. The build quality and operation of the internal bezel are excellent for the price and stand up to larger Swiss and German brands. The dial is extremely legible and in low-light conditions, the lume is fantastic. With a name like “Hydra,” you would expect the watch to excel in an amphibious environment. However, it’s hard to know if you have a proper diver’s watch until you take it underwater. After testing the Hydra on-wrist on many dives, I am happy to report that it lives up to its name. Vertex M100A - $3,300 Darren (@zulualphastraps) is the owner Zulu Alpha Straps and a veteran of the British Royal Navy. The Vertex M100A is a must for every military watch enthusiast. Based on the Cal 59 which formed part of the original Dirty Dozen issued by the British Ministry of Defence in WW2. The M100A connects you to the story that brought us all into the fold, the origins of where watches and the military intersect. Tudor Black Bay GMT - $4,375 James Rupley (@jamesrupleyphoto) is a co-founder of small arms reference publishing companies, Vickers Guide and Headstamp Publishing, and a regular photographic contributor to W.O.E. A properly built GMT is a do-anything watch, and the OG 41mm Tudor Black Bay GMT with “Pepsi” bezel is my go-to timepiece. One of my pleasures when traveling is “jumping” the hour hand to the local time zone of my destination as I settle into the seat of my flight for departure. Its versatility is evidenced by the fact that I have worn it straight to the beach after landing, to formal business dinners, and to photo shoots hauling more Pelican cases than I have hands for across cobble-stoned European streets. Its satin-finished anodized aluminum red/blue bezel hits differently than the ceramic bezel inserts in use by Rolex today—part of the reason I consider it the spiritual successor to the iconic Rolex 16710 BLRO GMT Master II. I’ve got more miles under the belt of my Tudor Black Bay GMT than another other watch in my possession, and I have yet to see any contender capable of dethroning it of that title. Christopher Ward Twelve Ti - $1,895 Rob Huberty is a former SEAL and the COO and co-founder of ZeroEyes, an AI gun detection company. My first choice would be a Tudor Pelagos FXD, but others in the W.O.E. community chose it. Tudors are more rugged tool watches, and I am a washed-up Team Guy, so the Christopher Ward Twelve takes its place. Christopher Ward is starting to replace Seiko as my recommendation for the first “good” watch for enthusiasts. The Twelve is inspired by Gerald Genta’s (the most famous watch designer) integrated bracelet watches that cost 25 times more. (AP Royal Oak, Patek Phillipe Nautilus). The Twelve feels like it should cost much more, is COSC certified, and is watch nerd-approved. It comes with both a rubber strap and an awesome titanium bracelet that feels like an AP Royal Oak. The Twelve is less action and adventure than my Tudor, but it looks great when I am answering Slack messages, writing emails, or watching YouTube videos about watches. Bulgari Aluminum 40mm GMT - $3,700 Justin Hast (@justinhast) is a writer, producer, and watch lover. The Bulgari Aluminum 40mm GMT is criminally comfortable with a distinct vibe you either love or hate (the way great design should be). It was the watch of the Jet Set in the 90’s and even adorned the nose of an Alitalia. It’s a sub-$5k wild card for the curious. IWC Pilot’s Watch Automatic Spitfire - $4,900 Nic Barnes is an Australian military pilot & W.O.E. contributor. Given the industry’s relentless price increases over the past few years, finding a watch from a major luxury brand within this price range is now much more challenging than it would have been previously. That said, if I was given $5,000 to spend on a watch tomorrow, I’d go straight to this one. The IWC Pilot’s Watch Automatic Spitfire combines exceptional Swiss craftsmanship with rich aviation heritage and versatile style. The clean dial is incredibly legible, with a distinct military-inspired aesthetic that gives it a classic appearance reminiscent of IWC’s mid-20th century pilot’s watches. In terms of robust functionality, the 6-bar water resistance is sufficient for any aviation activity I’d be willing to undertake, while the movement has recently been upgraded to the 32111 Calibre, giving it an impressive 5-day power reserve. At 39mm, the Spitfire is subtle enough to avoid unwanted attention but strikes a rare balance of sophistication and practicality. CWC RN Automatic Divers Watch 'MK. 2' - $1,370 Henry Black (@onhenryswrist) is a WOE contributor and a writer for Fratello. He's passionate about the power of the hobby to forge friendships and a sense of community, as well as sharing stories about the hobby from across the globe. The CWC RN Automatic Divers combines actual military heritage, with the original watches being issued to Royal Navy divers in the early 1980s (and iterative versions also being issued to the UK's Special Boat Service members). The specifications are modern: Fixed spring bars and a rugged stainless steel case with 300m of water resistance and a flat sapphire crystal, inside is a trusty Sellita SW200-1. The CWC is a fantastic strap-on-and-go watch. CWC watches continue to see action with journalists reporting from the front lines of conflicts around the world. I wear mine in the ocean regularly, and the practical visibility and the quality of the luminescent material are good, too. For that reason alone, it is a solid choice for the W.O.E. community, and epitomizes the idea of "everything you might need, and nothing else." There are versions available in quartz, too. Doxa Sub 300T - $1,990 Sketchy Boyz Watch Club (@sketchyboyzwatchclub) is an online community of professional end-users sharing our takes on all things horological. A modern reinterpretation of the original 1968 Doxa 300T "Conquistador", the contemporary Sub 300T is a purpose-built tool packed with functionality and historical provenance. Historically used by military, scientific, and professional divers across the world, Doxa has earned its place on this list. Those who wear them certainly understand the meaning of "use your tools." One of the best parts about the Sub 300T is the wide array of colors and configurations available to users as well. While the enigmatic "Professional" model in Signal Orange is, dare I say, "Iconic", there are several variants that all have their own appeal and unique history behind them. It is because of all these reasons that the Sketchy Boyz Watch Club recommends the Doxa Sub 300T for this list. (And all the other ones we wanted to do were already taken). Tudor Pelagos FXD MN - $4,150 Asha Wagner (@wildlander6) is a Fire Captain, Hazardous Materials Specialist, & USAR Task Force team member. The FXD MN was the first watch in the FXD series and was built from the ground up to be a purpose-built tool watch. The watch has a bidirectional bezel, which goes against the ISO 6425 requirements but makes the watch more useful for its intended purpose as an underwater navigation tool. It is also the first watch in the Pelagos line to have a bezel that overhangs the case as well as having its namesake fixed lugs. The wider bezel makes the watch easier to operate, especially while wearing gloves. The fixed lugs ensure the watch will remain securely attached to my wrist no matter what I get up to (I’ve popped spring bars on a number of occasions and almost lost a few watches). The shade of blue Tudor picked for this watch looks great whether it’s paired with my work uniform or it’s worn while on a tropical vacation. For all the reasons mentioned above, the Tudor FXD is a pioneering purpose-built tool watch that’s hard to beat for under $5,000. Sinn T50 - $3,840 Nacho Conde (@nachoconde) is a writer, photographer, host of the Fratello Talks podcast, and the Head of Content/Managing Editor at Fratello. Few brands today take the creation of bona fide tool watches as seriously as Sinn. The Frankfurt-based brand prides itself on manufacturing some of the world's most overdesigned, overspecced, action-ready watches. The Sinn T50 is a pinnacle of the brand's efforts to create a perfect titanium dive watch with the brand's uniquely function-informed aesthetics. It's an uncompromising tool, obscenely legible, perfectly proportioned, and packed with special features such as its locking bezel, dehumidifying capsule, and hard-coated titanium case. For the price, it's damn near impossible to beat. The Sinn T50 is an unpretentious watch more than capable enough to take on anything you throw its way and look good doing it, whether it's daily life or the sketchiest of adventures. Tudor Black Bay Pro - $4,225 Soturi (@soturidesign) is a Marine veteran-owned business producing handmade watch straps inspired by military heritage. The Tudor Black Bay Pro is easily the best watch under $5,000 because it nails that perfect mix of vintage style and modern performance. With a 70-hour power reserve, you can leave it off for a couple of days and it’s still ticking strong. Its versatile design means it looks great whether you’re at the office or in the field. Plus, the build quality is top-notch, so you know it’s going to last. Tudor’s solid reputation in the watch world just seals the deal. Sinn T50 - $3,870 James Stacey (@jestacey) is the Lead Editor with Hodinkee, Co-Host of The Grey NATO Podcast, and a hopeless tool watch nerd. Given the $5000 limit meant that I couldn't pick my beloved Tudor Pelagos 39, the final choice was pretty easy for me as I'm a huge fan of the excellent Sinn T50. Essentially a titanium take on the already A+ Sinn U50, the T50 offers a 41mm grade 5 titanium case with a black dial and super-legible sword hands. Paired with either Sinn’s matching bracelet or the brand's recent addition of a two-piece nylon (or heck, one of W.O.E's excellent Five Eye nylon straps) it's a premium sport watch that looks the part and won't get you much in the way of unwanted attention if someone spots it on your wrist. Think of it like a modern Omega Seamaster 2254 but made of titanium and representing all of Sinn's skillset in crafting sporty, well-made, and entirely action-ready watches. Doxa Sub 1200T - $1,990 Benjamin Lowry (@submersiblewrist) is a member of the W.O.E. team, a former commercial diver, and a veteran of the United States Coast Guard. The predecessor to the modern Sub 300T that also made this list, I received my Doxa Sub 1200T as a gift from my wife when we got married in 2015. Heading to commercial diving school shortly thereafter, I decided I would wear the watch in all conditions above and below the water’s surface no matter the repercussions. Today, with a lot of dives under its bracelet, the old Doxa shows no shortage of wear and tear while feeling more like an old friend than any other watch in my collection. With 1200 meters of water resistance, an unused helium escape valve, and a chunky wearing experience, the Sub 1200T is way more capable than I ever was underwater while harkening back to the golden age of tool dive watches. The case back is also engraved with my anniversary so I don’t forget. Tudor Pelagos 39 - $4,700 Watches of Espionage is a former CIA Case Officer turned watch influencer. My pick-up-and-go watch is the Tudor Pelagos 39. While dubbed a smaller version of the 42mm Pelagos, in reality, this is more of a modernized titanium Tudor Submariner than a smaller Pelagos. Titanium is my favorite material for tool watches given its wearability which is, at 39mm, perfect. The bracelet is so comfortable I rarely wear straps with it and the micro adjustments make it comfortable during the summer months.  If the Black Bay 58 and FXD got together and had a baby, it would be the Pelagos 39. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE.  Read Next: Advice for Buying a Watch

Sketchy Breitlings, A Vietnam-Era Rolex, & More Making fun of Navy SEALs writing books is a joke that will never get old.  That said, there have been some great authors to come out of the Teams and Jack Carr is at the top of the list. Carr’s series of novels detailing the adventures of James Reece has become a massive hit, transcending the boundaries of our community to find broader mainstream success including a 2022 television adaptation starring Chris Pratt, The Terminal List. We have discussed watch culture in the SEAL Teams at length and Carr is also a watch enthusiast, with an extensive collection that includes a Rolex Sea-Dweller he wore while serving in the Teams as well as a Tudor Pelagos FXD Black, several Vietnam-era Seikos, an Ares, and more (Photo Credit: W.O.E./James Rupley) One of the key aspects that makes Carr’s writing compelling is the author’s incredible attention to detail, always doing additional research to describe firearms, gear, and watches in depth. Throughout the series, James Reece, Carr’s protagonist, wears a vintage Rolex Submariner gifted to him by his father, a Vietnam-era SEAL turned CIA Case Officer. In the television adaptation, Reece—portrayed by Chris Pratt—wears several watches including an Oris Aquis Pro Date Calibre 400, Resco Instruments BlackFrog Gen2 Black PVD (an insider told us he wanted to wear a military watch in specific scenes), a G-Shock GA-100-1A1, and a period correct 5.11 Military Tactical Field Ops Watch. Chris Pratt wearing a Resco Instruments BlackFrog Gen2 Black PVD in the television adaptation of The Terminal List. (Photo Credit: Justin Lubin) Carr’s seventh book in the James Reece series, Red Sky Mourning, was released last month. When I read it, I was truly surprised by the number of specific watches mentioned in the text, with one even playing a pivotal role in the plot. I knew Carr was a watch enthusiast, but this new novel shows how far down the rabbit hole the SEAL-turned-author has fallen. If you haven’t checked out the book, be advised: This text contains some spoilers. Elba Industries Breitling Emergency In Red Sky Mourning, at least one watch with a special complication plays an integral role in the plot. Andrew Hart, the dastardly fictional head of the fictional Elba Industries, wears a sketchy Breitling Emergency complete with a co-signed dial featuring Elba’s logo, a golden bee, an homage to co-signed “unit watches” from Breitling including the Blackwater Breitling we have discussed in great detail. Given Carr’s history in the SEAL Teams and working with CIA, it would be reasonable to assume the author has seen a few of these watches in his day. Former Blackwater CEO Erik Prince wearing a Blackwater-signed Breitling Emergency. An analog digital timepiece from Breitling’s golden era producing “watches for professionals”, the Emergency contains an antenna that broadcasts a signal on the 121.5 MHz aircraft emergency frequency when activated. Commercial and military aircraft monitored the frequency and were able to alert search and rescue teams of an individual's location, anywhere in the world. At Red Sky Mourning’s climax, the signal from Hart’s Emergency is used to locate the ne'er-do-well and James Reece, an old-school Rolex guy through and through. Vintage Rolex Submariner A Rolex Submariner reference 5513 from the same era as the Sub worn by James Reece throughout the books. (Photo Credit: Wind Vintage) In the Terminal List series, James Reece is a former US Navy SEAL who has also worked extensively with the Agency. Reece’s father, Tom, was also a SEAL turned CIA Case Officer, having served in the Teams in Vietnam where he purchased the Submariner that also features prominently throughout the series on his son’s wrist. In Red Sky Mourning, James Reece’s Rolex is taken from him by the Chinese intelligence officer Ba Jin who also asks what year the Sub is from. Reece says, “It’s a ’68. You guys had just kicked off your Cultural Revolution a couple of years earlier. How many people did Mao kill in his efforts to purify the Party?” As you’d expect, Reece ends up getting the watch back in a way that does not work out well for Ba Jin. US Navy SEALs in Vietnam wearing Rolex or Tudor Submariners. Given the 1968 timeframe, the Submariner in question is most likely either a non-date chronometer certified 5512 or potentially the non-COSC 5513, both models that are closely associated with Vietnam-era SEALs. It’s also conceivable the watch is a date model 1680 that also offered the red Submariner text at the time that is so coveted by collectors today. While arguably this should have been an issued Tudor Submariner, a classic Rolex Submariner is the perfect choice for a legacy SEAL like Reece that also once again demonstrates the author’s attention to detail and love for horology. Rhodesian Army Roamer Anfibio W.O.E.’s personal Rhodesian Roamer (Photo Credit: James Rupley) In Red Sky Mourning, as he often does, Reece visits the Hastings family, home of his best friend Raife Hastings, a South African-born former SEAL teammate, and his father, Jonathan, who served with the Special Air Service (SAS) and later the famed Rhodesian Selous Scouts. Reaching extremely deep into the annals of military watch history, Carr equips Jonathan with a Roamer Anfibio, a seldom-discussed Swiss watch whose claim to fame is having been issued to the Rhodesian military back in the 1970s. Rhodesian issued Roamer on a leather military "Bund" strap worn by Colonel David “King” Parker, Commanding Officer of the Rhodesian Light Infantry (RLI). Col. Parker is wearing the Roamer, which was common according to pictures from the Bush War. Jonathan Hasting’s history with the Selous Scouts, a special forces component of the Rhodesian Army, makes this watch an excellent and historically accurate choice for Hastings who serves as something of an additional father figure to Reece. What led Roamer, a Swiss brand founded in 1888, to supply the Rhodesian military is one of watch history’s mysteries, but you can’t fault the quality of Carr’s homework. If you have been following this page, you know I've spent a lot of my life living, working, and traveling in Africa, a country with a large number of unique and lesser-known military watches. Interestingly, Hasting’s trajectory closely follows that of a real individual, someone who is not widely known outside of the Intelligence Community. Tianjin Seagull 1963 Chang Zheng is a Chinese Jin-Class Type 094 Submarine featuring  prominently in a cat-and-mouse game with the USS Reagan in the early pages of Red Sky Mourning. In describing her captain, Commander Zhen, Carr says mentions the, “…Tianjin Seagull 1963 watch on his wrist.”, a reference that serves as perhaps the second deepest watch cut in the book after the aforementioned Roamer Anfibio. Known to enthusiasts as simply the “Seagull 1963”, the Chinese-made manual-winding chronograph serves as perhaps the least expensive mechanical chronograph available today, with an ST19 caliber produced in China at Tianjin’s factory with tooling purchased from Switzerland back in the 1950s. A Chinese Jin-Class Type 094 Submarine like the Chang Zheng mentioned in Red Sky Mourning. Initially produced for Chinese Air Force pilots, the Seagull 1963 is an enthusiast-favorite watch because of its attainable price point—typically less than $500—in relation to its complication coupled with a surprisingly well-decorated movement. For a Chinese submarine commander, it also makes a lot of sense given the watch’s military history. Captaining a Chinese submarine likely involves direct inclusion in the communist party. For Commander Zhen to demonstrate his pride in the party by wearing a mechanical watch produced in his country feels dead-on accurate. Rolex Yacht-Master A second watch from the Crown mentioned in the text is the Rolex Yacht-Master, worn by Dr. Lawrence Miles, an avid sailor, former CIA contractor, and the billionaire founder of the Delphi Corporation. Reece goes to Miles’ home in Marin, California to learn more about the motivations behind the nefarious Andrew Hart. During their conversation, Miles describes a meeting he had with Hart and two other sketchy individuals, saying, “I remember they all wore the same watch—Breitling Emergencies. As a sailor you notice things like that,” he said, tapping the white gold Rolex Yacht-Master on his wrist and pointing to the stainless Submariner worn by his guest.” While white gold and platinum are the materials that come to mind first for the Yacht-Master, the new titanium version would also be an interesting pick for Miles’ character. (Photo Credit: Hodinkee) Also describing his sailing history, the Yacht-Master is the perfect choice for the billionaire and passionate sailor who spends his days overlooking San Francisco Bay. Unlike many Rolex sport models, there is no full-steel Yacht-Master in the modern catalog, meaning you’re looking at either full-gold, some combination of steel and platinum or steel and gold, or the new titanium variant released earlier this year. Given Miles’ financial situation, we like to think we went full billionaire bling. (Photo Credit: W.O.E./James Rupley) Digital Tool Watches (D.T.W.) & Smartwatches In addition to the above-listed mechanical analog watches, Carr also mentions a Timex Ironman in the text, placing the legendary attainable digital watch on the wrist of retired US Army General and current CIA Director Marcus Howe. In the text, Carr writes, “Howe looked down at the Timex Ironman watch that had graced his wrist for most of his time in uniform…” With a thirty-year background in US Army Special Forces, the humble Ironman is an appropriate and pragmatic option for the Agency director. Adding another layer, the Timex Ironman was commonly issued to CIA Paramilitary Officers as well as partner forces including Afghan units. While less key to the plot, smartwatches are also mentioned several times in the text, usually in discussions regarding their vulnerability. We’ve detailed the role and counterintelligence vulnerabilities of the smartwatch in modern espionage, and we appreciate Carr for bringing this element of modern watch culture into the book. Read more about “CIA Officers and Apple Watches” HERE. More than many thriller writers from outside the community, Carr manages to capture both the essential essence and concrete details of life within intelligence and special operations. Viewed from any number of angles and by various enthusiast communities for knives, firearms, tactical equipment, and watches, Carr packs the James Reece sagas with layer upon layer of references and Easter eggs that some will grasp and some won’t, but that’s the fun of it. We often make fun of SEALs, most of whom are authors, and will continue to do so. But Jack Carr has done it the right way, avoiding repetitively rehashing his own GWOT adventures in favor of the larger-than-life story of James Reece that is bolstered by Carr’s personal experience in the field of special operations and espionage. For watch enthusiasts, this level of attention to detail and historical accuracy is the good stuff and only adds another level of intrigue to Carr’s work. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE.  Read Next: SOG Seikos - Vietnam MACV-SOG Watches, Part II     Featured Image Credits: Breitling Emergency (Photo Credit: Lunar Oyster), Rolex Submariner 5513 (Photo Credit: Wind Vintage), Roamer Anfibio (Photo Credit: James Rupley)

A Special Unit-Specific Version Of An Iconic Watch Designed For The US Secret Service This past Saturday, a series of gunshots was heard around the world. Former US President Donald Trump was speaking at a rally in Pennsylvania in support of his upcoming presidential bid when suddenly, he flinched and reached for his right ear as shots rang out. In seconds, the former president’s US Secret Service protective detail took him to the ground, shielding Trump with their bodies as a USSS Counter Sniper Team engaged and killed Thomas Matthew Crooks. As Secret Service agents rushed Trump offstage, a member of his detail was photographed wearing a special unit-specific version of the Omega Seamaster, another example of a member of our community wearing a serious watch in the line of fire. The USSS Omega Seamaster Diver 300 “Unit Watch” on the wrist of an agent on Trump’s protective detail. (Photo Credit: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) As a disclaimer, our interest in the watch in no way diminishes the severity of the incident, the injured, or the tragic loss of firefighter Corey Comperatore. The Omega is relatively insignificant here, but timepieces are our prism to view history and current events. By any measurement, this assassination attempt was a security failure and will be investigated. Much of what transpired remains unclear and disinformation and misinformation are rampant. We will not opine on what we think happened and will wait for the details to come to light.  Regardless of the failures this past weekend, the Secret Service is an honorable profession with ranks filled with true professionals. Secret Service Agents are in harm’s way on a daily basis, regularly putting their lives on the line to protect the office of the President and those running for it. It is a zero-fail mission. The good guys have to get it right every single day, the bad guys only have to get it right once.   This article will likely be interpreted by some as political, but to be clear, it is not. On Saturday, July 13th, a timepiece—a special version of the Omega Seamaster Diver 300 designed for the US Secret Service—found itself at the center of a history-making event. We are here to talk about that watch. Omega Seamaster Diver 300 US Secret Service Unit Watch A community submission showing a USSS Omega Seamaster “Unit Watch”. In late 2023, US Secret Service Agents representing multiple field offices and units began taking delivery of a customized version of the Omega Seamaster Diver 300, a model family more closely associated with James Bond. Serving as the primary unit watch within Omega’s catalog, the Secret Service Seamaster differs from the standard version with a no-date format, beige luminescent material, and matte finishing throughout the case and bracelet. On the case back, the Secret Service star is engraved along with “Worthy of Trust and Confidence.” On the bottom of the case, agents can have their commission book number or something else unique to them printed in subtle text. While watches like this are sometimes purchased from a commemorative point of view, many are used as tools, with the pictured Special Agent in Trump’s protective detail providing further evidence. Importantly, this reference is available only to military and law enforcement units, including the US Navy SEALs, Danish Frogman Corps (Frømandskorpset), and other American and European units. Other individuals within the Secret Service including the Counter Assault Team (CAT aka HAWKEYE), which was also present during the assassination attempt, have also purchased the Omega. Of note, other USSS units have special versions of the Tudor LHD Pelagos and certain Breitling references. As is often the case in our community, the US Secret Service has a thriving watch culture. Again, the watch in question does not represent the most important aspect of the events that transpired over the weekend, instead serving as yet another example of how watches are utilized as tools in the daily lives of professionals in the military, intelligence, NatSec, and federal service communities. Thoughts and prayers for all involved in the events over the weekend. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: U.S. Presidents and Timepieces, The Last 40 Years

Fake Watch Shopping In Istanbul -  A Case Study As a CIA Case Officer operating overseas, you are exposed to the dark side of humanity. It is not a career for the faint-hearted and you learn some things they don’t teach in school. He who fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you. – Friedrich Nietzsche While the quote is dramatic, there is some merit to it. I didn’t fully realize how abnormal life at CIA was until I separated from the Agency. A byproduct of a career at CIA is a fascination with illicit activity; arms dealers, wildlife trafficking, organized crime, and, now that I am an aspiring watch nerd, counterfeit watches. Fake Watches - A Real-World Case Study Most articles on fake, or “replica” watches cover topics like “How to spot fake Rolex?”, “How much does a fake Rolex cost?”, or “Where to buy a fake Rolex?” These are all interesting topics, but we wanted to go deeper into the counterfeit luxury watch industry.  To do this, I went counterfeit watch shopping in Istanbul, Turkey. There’s nothing like first-hand experience. Counterfeit timepieces are a multi-billion-dollar industry, with shaky estimates indicating between 30 and 50 million fake watches entering the market each year. Contrast that figure with Rolex’s estimated annual production of approximately 1 million pieces per annum; It is reasonable to conclude that there are probably more fake Rolex watches on wrists than there are genuine examples throughout the world. This means that when you see someone wearing a Rolex, statistically speaking, it’s probably fake – a crazy thought. Istanbul - A Counterfeit Watch Mecca During a recent trip to Istanbul, I had a mission: to acquire a “super clone,” or ”superfake” a watch that is nearly indistinguishable from a real thing. Not only are cosmetic traits like the miniature laser-etched Rolex crown on the crystal present but if you take the watch apart, the movement itself is branded Rolex. Even for experienced watchmakers, some of these “super clones” are, all the way down to the movement components, virtually indistinguishable from genuine Rolex. There are differences, of course, but these “super clones” are astonishingly close to the genuine product to the untrained eye. I wanted to see for myself. Rolex crown laser-etched into the crystal, introduced in 2001 to deter counterfeiters. (Photo Credit: Bob’s Watches) Istanbul, Turkey Istanbul's Grand Bazaar is a covered market with over 4,000 shops selling everything from Turkish sweets to clothes and yes, of course, a large selection of counterfeit goods. Entering through the Nuruosmaniye Mosque gate, visitors are overwhelmed with a plethora of shops specifically targeting tourists. The presence of fake watches is immediately apparent and, in contrast to many markets around the world, completely in the open. The watch shopping experience varies depending on the shop but on the higher end is almost like a boutique experience, the only difference being the watches are fake and you can actually buy a “Rolex” rather than be put on a waiting list. They offer tea and coffee, a chair for your bored spouse to sit in, and customer service that exceeds the boutique experience presented by many luxury watchmakers. Interestingly, pictures are generally not discouraged and the sellers are relatively open about the sale of fakes. It isn’t just Rolex, either. Panerai, Audemars Piguet, Patek Philippe, and even counterfeit sketchy Breitlings are readily available, with starting (negotiable) prices of around $450. Most of the watches utilize Miyota movements and are, as you might expect, made in China. Pretty much any reference you can imagine is available including the Le Mans Daytona and Titanium Yachtmaster. 2024 Watches and Wonders releases? No worries, they should be available soon. What Is A “Fake” Rolex?  It is important to understand what a fake Rolex is. We have identified three categories of counterfeit Rolex watches to be aware of. Cheap Or Tourist Fakes: These cost somewhere between $50 and $300 and are generally picked up from street vendors in major tourist cities in Europe, South America, the Middle East, and even New York. You used to be able to spot them by their quartz movements which caused the second hand to “tick” instead of sweep, but now they tend to have automatic movements, more accurate details, and better finishing. But, in general, they are still sloppy fakes and you are not fooling anyone who owns a Rolex with this piece unless you are in a dark room. Super Clone or One For One: So-called replica watches, nearly identical to the genuine thing. They can cost over a thousand dollars and rumor has it that even when taken apart, it can be difficult to tell if the watch is genuine or a reproduction. In theory, one could wear a super clone to the local RedBar watch nerd meetup and fool everyone in the room. It’s been rumored that these have even been unknowingly sold by legitimate dealers as well, proving that the only way to know something is real is to buy it from the boutique. Frankenwatches:  A catch-all term used to describe watches that may be made up of parts that have been switched out and/or a real watch with fake parts (replaced bezel, dial, hands, etc…). Some are honest efforts to restore a watch, but more sinister versions are meant to fool prospective buyers. A recent notable example was the “Tropical” Omega Speedmaster Ref. 2915-1 ‘Broad Arrow’ auctioned by Phillips for over $3.4 million. As documented by popular watch blogger Perezcope, the watch itself was a frankenwatch, allegedly cobbled together by insiders with access to the Omega archives.   Tropical” Omega Speedmaster Ref. 2915-1 ‘Broad Arrow’ frankenwatch, sold Phillips for over $3.4 million (Photo Credit: Phillips) Why Are Fake Watches A Problem? At a minimum, fake watches are textbook examples of intellectual property (IP) theft, using the designs and logos that Swiss brands spent millions of dollars developing over decades. Some go as far as to link the sale of counterfeit watches to child labor, sweatshops, and even terrorism, human trafficking, and organized crime. While direct evidence of this is scarce, it is reasonable to assume that a link exists to some extent. That said, the vast majority of the counterfeit industry originates in China and it appears as though the Chinese government at least tacitly supports it and probably has some oversight and regulation. Are Fakes Substitutes For The Real Thing? According to Business Insider, 23.3 million counterfeit watches are circling the US, more than Rolex has sold worldwide in the past 15 years. The logical conclusion is that this hurts Rolex’s bottom line. But are fakes reasonable substitutes? Is Rolex losing potential customers to fake watches? Probably not. The fact is, the type of person that will buy and wear a fake, likely can’t afford the real thing. In other cases, some may buy a fake now and then the real thing as their financial circumstances change. UFC fighter Conor McGregor recently revealed during a GQ Sports interview that he used to wear fake watches to press conferences before he could afford a genuine Rolex. He is now a legitimate customer, owning millions of dollars in Rolex, AP, and Patek. One could argue that in McGregor’s case, the fake Rolex watches served as the “top of the funnel” for Swiss brands. Conor McGregor Wearing a (real?) Rolex Daytona “Eye of the Tiger” Should I Buy A Fake Rolex? We can think of very few legitimate reasons to purchase a fake Rolex, and yes, doing so does ultimately fuel the already insatiable market for these timepieces and potentially provide funding for organized crime syndicates. Further, in some places, it’s illegal to buy and transport fake watches. Our advice is simple, buy the (real) and best watch you can afford. There are plenty of great and legitimate watches on the market that cost less than your iPhone. Real Rolex Sub (Photo Credit: James Rupley) In response to “Trading A Rolex To Get Out Of A Sticky Situation - Myth Or Reality?”, many commenters suggested traveling with a fake Rolex for bartering. The logic may be sound, but if you are really at the point where you have decided to part with a watch worth thousands of dollars, your life is likely on the line and the cost is trivial. Further, whoever you are giving the watch to is presumably in a position of power and likely someone you do not want to piss off should they determine the watch is fake. The potential for this plan to backfire is simply too high. Le Mans Daytona and “Titanium” Yachtmaster - all fakes I have heard of some people with expensive watch collections that have “dummy” displays in their house, the idea being that if someone breaks in to steal their collection, they would take the fake watches without realizing the real collection is hidden in a safe. This is something that could potentially make sense but is not a practice I would advise. If someone goes the distance to specifically target you for your watch collection, they are likely going to be pissed to find out they stole fake watches and may come back for retribution. No watch is worth your life. All that said, I do have a fake Rolex Submariner that I received as a gag gift from a wealthy friend in Dubai. I have never worn it or even taken out the links to make it fit. Who knows, maybe it will come in handy one day. A real Rolex Daytona (Photo Credit: James Rupley) Should I Be Worried About Fake Watches? By some estimates 20-50% of art in museums is fake and even the largest auction houses with significant resources have been duped with fake watches. While the risk of unwittingly buying a modern watch that is fake is real, this is particularly real in the vintage market, where replacement parts and refinishing jobs can result in a “real” watch becoming a frankenwatch. As an individual buyer, you should not be responsible for identifying a fake.  The safest thing to do is to either buy new watches or build a relationship with a seller you not only trust but trust their expertise. The latter is difficult as it can be incredibly difficult to determine which parts are genuine and which are replacements.   Back In Istanbul Despite my best efforts, I was not able to track down a “super clone” in the Grand Bazaar. Many of the vendors claimed to have better quality watches and vigorously sent Whatsapp messages to their colleagues to bring one by, but they never appeared. The fakes in the souk were mediocre at best with loose bezels and crude finishing and claimed Miyota movements. Fun party gags? Maybe, but I didn’t buy one. W.O.E.’s personal fake watch, acquired in Dubai. I did pick up a set of (fake) boxes, papers, and a blank Rolex warranty card to match my gifted counterfeit Rolex. Similar to the watches themselves, the box was crudely crafted and isn't fooling anyone. While I do not advocate for anyone to purchase anything illicit, I did it in the name of science. 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Unit Watches Of The UK’s Royalty and Specialist Protection Despite the rise of inexpensive Digital Tool Watches and feature-rich connected smartwatches, there is an ever-growing subset of the military, intelligence, and law enforcement communities with a passion for mechanical or otherwise more interesting timepieces. We’ve discussed so-called “unit watches” in detail many times. However, in this Dispatch, we’ll take a closer look at unit watches from the world of law enforcement, specifically the UK’s Royalty and Specialist Protection (RaSP), an intriguing unit from within the Metropolitan Police’s Specialist Operations directorate. To date, there are three known unit watches from RaSP, a Casio G-Shock from the attainable tier as well as a Tudor and Omega from the world of Swiss luxury, all of which see active service as tools in the performance of the unit’s unique role. Protecting Royals, Politicians, & A Castle Or Two Officers stand guard outside Windsor Castle. (Photo Credit: Maureen McLean) Similar to the role played by the US Secret Service, who are also no strangers to unit watches, RaSP provides close protection services to the UK royal family including the king, the prime minister, various other politicians, ambassadors, and visiting heads of state. In addition, the unit also serves as specially trained armed security for royal residences including palaces in London, Windsor Castle, and other sites in Scotland. Unlike the United States, which has not been ruled by anyone wearing a crown since a kerfuffle ending in 1783, the average police officer in Great Britain doesn’t carry a firearm, making the armed and highly trained RaSP a higher level of protection and response in the event of terrorist attacks or assassination attempts on the Royal Family. Hired from the ranks of experienced frontline police officers as opposed to “off the street”, RaSP officers have been called into action on several prominent occasions. Royal Protection Officers tackle an attacker after an assassination attempt on then-Prince Charles (standing far right) in Sydney in 1994. (Photo Credit: Express UK) Far from idle threats, Royalty Protection Officers engaged in a dramatic shootout during an attempted kidnapping of Princess Anne in 1974 as well as when then-Prince Charles was attacked during a speech in 1994. In recent years, the Duke of Sussex (Netflix calls him Prince Harry) made headlines when he fought to continue his RaSP protection detail even after leaving his royal role and moving to California in 2020. In close protection scenarios, RaSP officers typically wear a suit with a concealed firearm, radio, and less-than-lethal weapons in certain instances. In contrast, officers don a more traditional uniform when providing overt armed protective security at royal residences. This operational duality is reflected in the unit’s choices for customized timepieces. A Custom Full-Metal G-Shock For Royalty Protection Officers The RaSP’s customized GM-B2100BD-1A. (Photo Credit: G-Central) The impetus for this article stems from G-Central, a leader in G-Shock news and information. A few weeks back, we noticed a post covering a unit-specific version of the GM-B2100BD-1A, a full-metal variant of the so-called “CasiOak” that debuted back in 2019. With an analog-digital display and an IP-coated black stainless steel case and bracelet, the RaSP unit variant was spotted on uniformed officers outside Windsor Castle and included a custom United Kingdom flag integrating a Thin Blue Line motif on the clasp as well as a special XIV engraving on the bracelet. The XIV references the SO14, the former name of the Royalty Protection Department that merged with SO1 or Specialist Protection to become the modern RaSP in 2015. On the case back, the watch offered an engraved image of Windsor Castle. Judging by the wear across the case and bracelet on the watches spotted by G-Central, the Royalty Protection Officers use these tools in performing their duties, with the G-Shock serving as an excellent pairing with the more utilitarian uniform worn by the unit in this instance. While we always hear about G-Shock in military and law enforcement scenarios, customized unit versions are rare and in this case, pretty cool. A custom caseback and clasp engraving for the RaSP G-Shock. (Photo Credit: G-Central) Rather than an officially sanctioned unit watch, these G-Shock models appear to have been a smaller unofficial unit purchase only for members of Windsor Castle’s protective detail. With that in mind, the G-Shocks do not expressly display “RaSP”, instead using XIV as a reference to the unit’s history. For more refined scenarios including providing close protection for royals during public events, RaSP also has a couple of interesting official watches from more luxurious brands in its stable. Omega Planet Ocean For Royalty Protection Officers Known for recently providing customized versions of the Seamaster Diver 300 to US Navy SEALs, Danish Frogmen, and the US Secret Service, Omega also produced a very rare unit version of its Seamaster Planet Ocean for RaSP, designing the piece with input from the unit in 2018 with delivery of approximately 60 units taking place in 2020. From the front, the watch looks identical to civilian market versions. On the case sides, the watches are engraved with the officer’s initials, warrant number, and watch issue number, marking the only time we’ve seen engravings on the case side of a unit-customized Omega. In addition, the sapphire exhibition case back is emblazoned with a two-part emblem consisting of a crown representing the royalty side of the branch as well as a portcullis signifying the specialist side tasked with protecting government ministers and other dignitaries. In addition, the caseback's outer perimeter references the previous unit designations used by those departments that merged to eventually become RaSP. SO14 and SO1 we've already touched on, which were in existence until 2015, however SO12(A) was an earlier forerunner on the ministerial side. The Shield Protects The Crown (Photo Credit: Bob’s Watches) The phenomenon of Tudors of Espionage (T.O.E.) is nothing new, with the shield having provided special unit versions of many of its core models to various military and governmental organizations. Around 2017 or 2018, the unit commissioned 75 Tudor Black Bay Blue for current and former members of the unit through Watches of Switzerland. A Tudor rose with a crown on top is on the dial, representing an intriguing mashup between Tudor the watch brand’s rose logo—seen on the crown on this reference—and the traditional heraldic rose that often serves as an emblem of England. The case back is engraved with “ROYALTY & SPECIALIST PROTECTION”, an individual's identification number, and serialized one through 75. Photo Credit: Bob’s Watches (Left) & Ross Povey (Right) Like other special watches commissioned for military or government units, several of these RaSP Tudor Black Bay have made their way into private civilian hands by way of prominent auction houses and aftermarket resellers asking for prices as high as $30,000. One special example produced for Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022 hammered for a staggering CHF 81,900, about $91k in today’s US dollars. These very public sales—one of which occurred around the time of The Queen's funeral—resulted in a change of policy from the department's senior leadership sometime in 2023, and there have been no newly developed official RaSP unit watches since. That’s why the above-mentioned G-Shock was produced on a smaller team-specific scale without RaSP markings. While we are not here to condemn unit members looking to turn a profit on personalized watches they likely never imagined would attain such value, we prefer to see these in the hands of the operators themselves, carrying forward the Use Your Tools ethos. Dual Purpose Tools While we typically concentrate on unit watches related to the military and intelligence community, there is clearly a significant community of watch enthusiasts in law enforcement and first responders. Unit watches like those produced for the UK’s Royalty Protection Officers serve a dual purpose role, acting as tools in the performance of their daily missions while also serving as keepsakes honoring their service both during and after the fact. Seeing such a wide swath of watchmaking within the Royalty Protection community, from a $500 G-Shock to luxury models from Omega and Tudor, further solidifies that our community is oriented around the capabilities and intrigue of the tool rather than flex culture. If you have other interesting unit watches to share, you know where to find us. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. READ NEXT: U.S. Presidents and Timepieces, The Last 40 Years

Picking More Reasonable Timepieces For History's Most Famous Secret Agent When it comes to Watches of Espionage, James Bond is the elephant in the room. While there is a significant gap between real-world intelligence operations and Hollywood's depiction, Ian Fleming’s character has had an indelible impact on our community’s watch culture. We know several real “spies” who purchased an Omega or Rolex because of the Bond connection. Even before the legendary films, 007 was already closely linked to the world of horology. Fleming, the legendary author behind Bond, even went so far as to name names, calling out a “Rolex Oyster Perpetual” in his 1954 novel, Live and Let Die while unfortunately failing to identify a specific model. Likely inspired by Fleming’s reference 1016 Explorer, many regard the James Bond of the literary world as an Explorer man as well. However, 1962’s Dr. No, the secret agent’s first foray into film, would forever alter Bond’s history with Rolex, with Sean Connery serving up a full-screen wrist shot of a Submariner reference 6538. Beyond a few abbreviated sojourns into other brands including Breitling, Seiko, and Hamilton, the Bond of film was primarily a Rolex guy until 1995’s GoldenEye where Irish actor Pierce Brosnan famously wore an Omega Seamaster Professional, a seismic shift for watch enthusiasts. In the Dispatch, we’ve argued for tradition in favor of The Crown in the past with an excellent counter-argument coming from Caleb Daniels in favor of Omega, which remains Bond’s chosen brand. It’s a fun debate, but what watch would a former British SpecOps turned “Secret Agent” really wear? Bond’s Rolex Submariner 6538 in Dr. No and the OMEGA Seamaster Professional in GoldenEye are both icons, but what if they’re not the right picks?  Taking a step back, there’s a good chance a real “secret agent" using their license to kill on MI6’s behalf wouldn’t wear a luxury watch at all. With the most up-to-date Rolex Submariner Date reference 126610 coming in at $10,250 (assuming you can get one) and Omega’s 007 Edition No Time To Die Seamaster priced right at ten grand US, the biggest issue here is probably cost taking into account Bond’s role as a civil servant. Add to that the ostentatious nature of these heavily-branded luxury watches for a guy who would probably prefer a low profile, and some other timepieces just might be better suited to Bond’s profession. In addition, we'd argue our Bond would also favor British watchmaking brands, with more great options than ever before coming from the UK. In this Dispatch, we’ll share our picks for which watch we think our more reasonable 007 would wear. CWC SBS Diver Issue Price: $750  Given Bond’s insurmountable Britishness, we would argue it makes sense to look at brands with strong ties to the Empire as well as the Ministry of Defense (MOD). The obvious choice is a brand with a strong following in the W.O.E. community, CWC or Cabot Watch Company, which was founded in 1972 for no reason other than supplying the MOD. For maritime specialist units including the Royal Marines and Special Boat Service, CWC has long supplied the SBS Diver Issue, a PVD-coated descendant of the original Royal Navy Diver’s watch that succeeded the Rolex Military Submariner in 1980. We know several former British SBS members who still have, and wear, their issued SBS, making this a logical watch for Bond. Robert 'Bob' Hawkins (1961-2023) was a legend in the Mine Warfare Clearance Diving community. Like Bond, Hawkins was a Commander in the Royal Navy and is seen here wearing the CWC SBS Diver Issue. With 300 meters of water resistance, the utility offered by day and date functions, and excellent legibility, the SBS Diver Issue is an excellent option for the modern British secret agent whether he’s doing some Thunderball-style diving combat or simply keeping a lower profile. Fixed lug bars mean Bond is stuck with pull-through straps, but for a secret agent who inspired a namesake nylon strap color scheme, it shouldn’t be a problem.  Vertex M100A Price: $2,625  For a more old-school look that also leans into the literary Bond who many argue wore a Rolex Explorer, we have the Vertex M100A. Dating back to 1912, Vertex is another brand closely associated with the Ministry of Defense, having produced watches for the British military as early as the First World War. Of the twelve manufacturers of the legendary “Dirty Dozen” watches produced for the Allied war effort in World War II, Vertex was the only British option, with the modern M100A calling back to that history with its core design while making room for more modern watchmaking standards and specifications. But what does James Bond have to do with a WWII field watch, you may ask? (Photo Credit: WatchGecko) Thunderball aside, the vast majority of Bond’s adventures both tactical and otherwise have taken place in the dry, and we might argue some of the key elements of a perfect Bond watch would be—even more than water resistance—legibility, durability, and the timeless style so often associated with Bond’s on-screen portrayals. Compared to something like the aforementioned blacked-out CWC, the Vertex would also be a lot easier to wear with a tux.  Elliot Brown Holton Professional Price: $541 Where the CWC SBS celebrates its history of issue to the Special Boat Service in both name and marketing, the Holton Professional from Elliot Brown takes a more subtle approach to its special operations associations. Founded in 2013, the founding principle of Elliot Brown’s collection is durability, with many of the watches finding favor within the British Military. Based in Poole, the elite Special Boat Service approached Elliot Brown in 2015 to help design a watch for the unit to issue. The result was the Holton Professional, a watch that has earned an NSN or Nato Stock Number making it available for official issue to military forces. Coming from another British brand, and with a quartz movement, hardened stainless steel bezel, and C3 Super-LumiNova, the Holton also presents a solid option for someone like Bond who is likely to be harder on his watches than most. For deep nerds, Bond has an entirely imagined special operations background, meaning Commander Bond may have either been issued the Holton Professional or purchased a special version as part of a smaller unit-specific order. Bremont S302 Price $4,200  Currently the subject of some well-deserved controversy regarding a recent rebranding effort, Bremont is still among our top picks for James Bond. Despite its foundations in aviation, Bremont also boasts an impressive array of diving-oriented watches under the Supermarine name. For a more luxurious option compared to some of the other watches we’ve highlighted, we select the S302 for Bond, a watch that combines 300 meters of water resistance with the useful addition of a GMT function. Where some of our choices thus far are more utilitarian and even tactical, Bremont manages to straddle the line, feeling just almost as at home with a suit from Savile Row as it does with a wetsuit, no mean feat. The S302’s GMT is particularly appropriate as well. As we discussed in our Dispatch unpacking Zulu Time, having a second timezone at a glance provides tremendous upside for an asset coordinating with a broader multi-agency effort. Besides, Bremont is one of the few companies that has actually made a unit watch for the British Secret Intelligence Service.  Christopher Ward C60 Trident Pro 300 Price: $1,095 Long scolded as a microbrand rehashing established designs, Christopher Ward has stepped up massively in recent years and is another brand with a strong following in the W.O.E. community, at an affordable price point. For a government employee like James Bond, the price of the C60 Trident Pro, one of Christopher Ward’s marquee dive watches, is fair. Add to that the watch’s solid water resistance and legible dial format and we have another under-the-radar pick for Bond. Adding an element of legitimacy, Christopher Ward has been quietly collaborating with numerous military units in recent years. Despite solid finishing for the price range, the Trident isn’t ostentatious and doesn’t advertise to prying eyes or invite further scrutiny. Bamford London GMT Price: $1,500  Better known for Bamford Watch Department’s watch customizations and collaborations with established watchmakers from the luxury tier, George Bamford also produces a more attainable line of wholly designed watches under the Bamford London moniker. Assuming our modern Bond was a man of more avant-garde styling who rubbed shoulders with Eton graduates, something like the Bamford London GMT could make a lot of sense.  Available in a wide array of dial colors, Bamford’s GMT is housed within a reasonable 40mm case complete with an internal rotating GMT bezel that obviates the risk of accidentally changing the secondary timezone on display. For the $1,500 asking price, Bond also gets an excellent bracelet, 100 meters of water resistance, as well as a sub-12mm case height that should work as well with a tuxedo as it would with a woolen commando sweater.  Arken Alterum Price: $750  A true microbrand at this stage, Arken presents a wild card choice for Bond. Housed within a scratch-resistant titanium case, the Alterum, the second watch from the brand, fuses GMT functionality with 200 meters of water resistance and a design format that is a lot further afield than many of our previous choices. Admittedly, the Alterum dial serves up a lot of information including the second time zone, managed by a GMT hand, as well as a date sub-register and an intriguing day/night indicator executed with a pair of apertures on the dial’s lower half. Despite the additional complexity, the overall effect is clean, subtle, and the kind of thing Bond could easily wear in virtually any environment without anyone asking too many questions.  Final Thoughts For the diehard Rolex and Omega James Bond fanboys, the picks in this Dispatch may be blasphemous. We invite you to submit your counterarguments in the comments. In any counterpoints, it's important to remember that for intelligence professionals like Bond, watches are, first and foremost, a tool. While there is a significant watch luxury watch culture in espionage, it’s not so hard to imagine a real-life James Bond might benefit from a watch that won’t get him mugged by some scooter-riding London street toughs. As for Bond's strap of choice, we'd argue 007 would do his best work with a Five Eye (FVEY). -- If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: Does Rolex Make Mistakes? The Motley 8 - Error Batman Bezel