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Abid Rahman

It’s Father’s Day this Sunday! What do you mean you forgot? You’re a terrible child? I see. OK, there’s still time! Stop reading this and head to the shops ASAP!
In all honesty, I totally forgot it was Father’s Day, and it was a professional (ha!) dereliction of duty on my part not to make the previous column about gift ideas, but lately my mind has been distracted by self-improvement.
Long-time readers will know that I can’t swim (or drive, or ride a bike properly) and I’ve grown tired of being told I’m missing out on splashy water-based fun (and cars, and I guess bikes?), so I’m doing some­thing about it. Yes, I’ve finally taken the plunge on swimming lessons. And let me tell you, after only two lessons, I’m a water baby. Apparently I have lots of natural ballast. Which I took as a compliment, because it is. I think.
Anyway, I’ll keep you updated on my journey to becoming the next Eric the Eel but for now we’ll return to watches and three timepieces that caught my eye in the past month or so. They might even make a suitable eleventh hour, or extremely late, Father’s Day gift.
Three of the best pilot’s watches for military-history and aviation buffs
We’ll start with the more accessibly priced Spinnaker Bradner, which comes with an all new steel “bead of rice” bracelet. A snip at HK$2,900 (US$370), the Bradner is another winner from a brand that has, of late, been mining the rich seam of watchmaking heritage for its design cues and then adding modern accents.
“Bead of rice” is the name given to the tight link construction of the bracelet, which was more commonplace in the 1950s and 60s, and the addition here ups the retro factor but is also, lest we forget, a much better option for the summer compared with the sweat-hating leather strap. Another consideration for the swimmers out there – and that sorta, kinda includes me now – is that the Bradner is a dive watch, with up to 180 metres of water resistance, so the steel bracelet is handy.
The watch itself has a vintage dial design with big luminescent numerals for legibility in the dark and the sea and a bidirectional bezel with a funky thick glass covering. Inside the 42mm steel case is a steady if unspectacular Japanese movement.

Next we have the Longines Heritage Military, which is a bit more pricey but definitely worth the extra change. This watch is aimed at nostalgia fans and those who like their timepieces with a military flavour. Longines plucked the design from its archive, the original having been designed for Britain’s Royal Air Force in the 40s.
This aviation watch has a clean dial and legible numerals and that’s about it, but features aren’t the point of this timepiece. Yes, it’s a reissue, but Longines has stayed as faithful as possible with the 38.5mm case, which isn’t exactly the same as the original but much more traditional and understated.
The strap is thick-cut leather, which is extremely durable, but it’s easy enough to swap in a nylon one for a military look. The watch is priced at HK$17,300.

Lastly, we have something that might break the bank at HK$125,000, the 2019 Rolex Sea-Dweller. Full disclosure: I’m not ordinarily a fan of the Sea-Dweller. It’s less well known than other Rolex lines such as the Datejust, Day-Date and, dare I say, the Cellini but it’s always had the same look about it as the Submariner and Deep Sea.
I’ve probably offended all the Rolex nerds out there. The big difference between the Submariner, in particular, and the Sea-Dweller is that the latter has vastly superior water resistance and a helium valve, so it’s aimed at professional divers. But come on! How many people honestly take their Rolexes diving? Seriously? If I ever master the seas and I owned one I definitely wouldn’t.
Anyway, this year Rolex has spiced things up and given the Sea-Dweller an eye-catching two-tone yellow gold (Rolex’s proprietary Rolesor gold) and steel bracelet with gold accents on the dial and the bezel.
I was sceptical before, but I really love this Sea-Dweller and now it stands out from the brand’s wider collection. The 43mm watch still comes with 1,220 metres of water resistance that 99.9 per cent of the people who buy it will never get near.
Other features include the unidirectional bezel and Oysterlock system on the bracelet. Inside the watch is the cutting-edge calibre 3235 movement.


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Striking timepieces from Spinnaker, Longines and Rolex for the big man in your life


Striking timepieces from Spinnaker, Longines and Rolex for the big man in your life.


Father's Day

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Three watches for a Father’s Day gift

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;}Striking timepieces from Spinnaker, Longines and Rolex for the big man in your life

Striking timepieces from Spinnaker, Longines and Rolex for the big man in your life