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Ernst Benz John Varvatos Chronoscope Limited Edition Watch Hands-On

admin — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 07:19:54 +0000

Want a good watch that will satisfy you like chicken soup for the watch lover's soul and also give your fashion lover friend a hard-on like a pair of high-end designer jeans does? Look no further than a limited edition Ernst Benz John Varvatos Chronoscope limited edition timepiece. I previously wrote about these timepieces here.Â Available in a few style and released maybe a year or two ago - the collection is a joint effort between the famous clothes brands and Swiss watch maker Ernst Benz. And when I say joint effort, I really mean it. John personally spent a lot of time designing the watch. Edicting everything from the hands, to the colors,Â to the square chronograph pushers, to the colors. The notoriously design sensitive man who studied under Mr. Ralph Lauren likes Ernst Benz so much, John Varvatos boutiques are actually authorized dealers of Ernst Benz timepieces.

Go into one of the stores and you'll see a couple of Ernst Benz pieces in each. The star of the show are his limited edition pieces. Designed by him, with his name on the dials sharing space with Ernst Benz. The first thing you will notice is the post WWII vintage looks and the Gothic looking hour and minute hands. Carefully look at the details compared to other Chronoscope pieces and the differences become apparent. I love the gentle gradient on the dial, use of alternative colors of lume, and those kick ass hands. Ernst Benz hates short hands as much as I do. So the large 47mm wide case has hands that perfectly fit the dial - just one of many little details attended to given that Ernst Benz is owned and operated by a second generation watch maker.

There are a few versions of this fashion beast. Seen here are two dials types. In a grayish dial with dark gray lume coated hands and hour markers, as well as a tan and silver dial version. Each is limited to 250 pieces, and John Varvatos is designing/adding new models all the time. Each watch is fitted with a special strap - usually alligator or crocodile.Â The strap buckles are even signed "John Varvatos" for these special models. The case is brushed, though the bezel is sharply slanted in a mirror polish. Retro notes are throughout, from the chronograph pushers to the colors on the dials. Aside from a few elements like the movement, much of this limited edition watch is different than the standard Chronoscope model. Inside the watch is a Swiss ETA Valjoux 7750 automatic chronograph movement with a custom Ernst Benz logo in black. While the case is large at 47mm wide, it does fit comfortably.

While not aimed at the ultra elite watch lover who drinks morning coffee while reading the technical specs of their newest mechanical watch movement, Ernst Benz makes a very competent timepieces that is unfortunately sometimes elusive in appeal until you get your hands on one. With about 4000-5000 watches a year, the brand isn't unattainable, but certainly not pedestrian - much like John Varvatos. These special limited edition models for the fashion designer are available exclusively at his boutique stores (where you can get other Ernst Benz pieces as well). Price is about $6,800.

Written by Mr. Ariel Adams - aBlogtoRead.com, trusted independent watch media.

Ernst Benz Reminds You To Adjust Your Watches For Daylight Saving Time

admin — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 19:39:41 +0000

I really loved getting this e-mail. It makes sense too. A watch company using daylight saving time (DST) as a reason to send out an piece of marketing e-mail. You'd think more watch companies would do this. I don't really have many people reminding me to do this, and with the new times for DST lately (thanks Congress!), it is more difficult than ever to remember. Being two days from now, Ernst Benz is the only company that took this opportunity to "say hi."

What is funnier is the little message at the lower part of the image above, suggesting that if you need help adjusting the watch you should take it in to your local Ernst Benz dealer. Frankly, if you don't know how to adjust your watch back or forward one hour, you need to be hit in the face repeatedly and placed in the same rehabilitation home that they send people on airplanes who need help "fastening their seat buckle." That was kinda lame Ernst Benz, right? But before I complete my tirade on the matter, I will explain that they do this to hope that you'll go into the store and buy something new - which is guess is OK, but they could have said it better. By the way, I do like that Chronolunar watch they have on there with its automatic ETA Valjoux 7751 movement inside.

By the way... don't forget to set your watches back on November 1st at 2am. Which is gonna be an extreme pain in the ass for me given all the watches I have. DST is worse than tax time...

See Ernst Benz watches on eBay here.

See Ernst Benz watches on Amazon here.

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40Mm Moonphase Black Leather Band Watch 20311A
$1,425.00
Time Remaining: 1d 5h 22m
Buy It Now for only: $2,240.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40Mm Moonphase Black Leather Band Watch 20311A
$1,525.00
Time Remaining: 1d 8h 42m
Buy It Now for only: $2,400.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40mm Black Moonphase Swiss Automatic Watch 20311B
$1,450.00 (1 Bid)
Time Remaining: 1d 9h 42m

Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronosport 36Mm Swiss Automatic Green Leather Band Watch 30234A GRN
$650.00
Time Remaining: 1d 12h 2m
Buy It Now for only: $910.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz ChronoScope watch
$1,300.00
Time Remaining: 1d 15h 59m

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Ernst Benz ChronoJewel Mother of Pearl Dial with 10 Diamonds
$1,199.00
Time Remaining: 1d 19h 3m
Buy It Now for only: $1,199.00
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Written by Mr. Ariel Adams - aBlogtoRead.com, trusted independent watch media.

Chef Anthony Bourdain And His Ernst Benz ChronoFlite World Timer Watch

admin — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 11:10:41 +0000

I recently wrote about chef Mario Batali and the special Ernst Benz Chronoscope for in his honor/image. A lot of people felt very strongly about it. Some people liked it, some people didn't, but most sorta voiced a general dissent of Mario Batali himself. Well, the man does use lots of butter and oil in his cooking, but the orange watch done for him by Ernst Benz wasn't half bad. Mario Batali isn't the only celebrity chef to wear an Ernst Benz watch. One of my favorite TV chefs also has one, and can be seen wearing it his show on the Travel Channel, "No Reservations." I am of course talking about New Yorker Anthony Bourdain.

He looks cool and eats just about anything. That is basically his shtick. Others have come after him to do the same, but no one is as suave about it, or seems to actually enjoy what they are eating quite like Tony. In addition to cooking, traveling, writing, and being on TV, Mr. Bourdain might also be one of us - a watch lover. Hard to say how he came to own his Ernst Benz watch, but it does fit with the world travel theme of his Emmy-nominated show.

He has a black dialed Ernst Benz ChronoFlite Word Timer watch on the steel bracelet. Ernst Benz watches on a metal bracelet are the most rare it seems. The ChronoFlite World Timer is 47mm wide in steel and has a Swiss automatic mechanical GMT movement - likely an ETA 2893-2. The watch also comes with a white dial and a legion of leather strap options. I think it looks pretty handsome with the bracelet. Plus, Tony likes it that way.

The watch has a world timer complication which is a city ring that is operated with the crown at 10 o'clock. You then use the GMT hand (which is well designed by the way) to read the time in that other timezone. The ETA 2893-2 movement makes it easy to set the GMT hand as it can be adjusted in perfect one hour increments. Ernst Benz is further quick to point out that using the special indicators on the rotating inner ring, one can see take into consideration daylight savings time when reading the time in a given city. Since Anthony has been wearing his ChronoFlite World Timer watch throughout the show, he most likely enjoys it. A good sign from a well-regarded food personality. Then again, he is the guy that will eat just about anything. Food for thought.

See Ernst Benz watches on eBay here.

See Ernst Benz watches on Amazon here.

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40Mm Moonphase Black Leather Band Watch 20311A
$1,425.00
Time Remaining: 1d 5h 22m
Buy It Now for only: $2,240.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40Mm Moonphase Black Leather Band Watch 20311A
$1,525.00
Time Remaining: 1d 8h 42m
Buy It Now for only: $2,400.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40mm Black Moonphase Swiss Automatic Watch 20311B
$1,450.00 (1 Bid)
Time Remaining: 1d 9h 42m

Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronosport 36Mm Swiss Automatic Green Leather Band Watch 30234A GRN
$650.00
Time Remaining: 1d 12h 2m
Buy It Now for only: $910.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz ChronoScope watch
$1,300.00
Time Remaining: 1d 15h 59m

Bid now

Ernst Benz ChronoJewel Mother of Pearl Dial with 10 Diamonds
$1,199.00
Time Remaining: 1d 19h 3m
Buy It Now for only: $1,199.00
Buy It Now

Written by Mr. Ariel Adams - aBlogtoRead.com, trusted independent watch media.

The Mario Batali Limited Edition Chronoscope Watch Line

admin — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 07:02:43 +0000

When I think of Food Network Chef Mario Batali, I think "big and orange," which is a lot like the special Ernst Benz Mario Batali watches. I also keep hearing him scream "Parmigiano Reggiano" in my head. Hence the blocks of Parmesan cheese. See, it all goes to together. Haven't watched an episode of Molto Mario in a while to be aware of whether he brandishes the watch during the show, but I do know that Mr. Batali wearsÂ an Ernst Benz watch (with his namesake on it) about town much of the time. I've known about the orange themed watches for a while, but it wasn't until June when I got to check them out (picture above of me wearing the watch) that I thought much about them. While I don't need a butter laden Italian food themed watch in my life, you can just pretend that it is a good black and orange watch. Suddenly you have like a Halloween theme and the watch is cool again. The watches are pretty nice actually, and they make a good case for themselves being connected with a Charity. Best I can see (depeneding on where you buy the watch) a significant amount of the purchase price goes to charity. About a quarter of the retail purchase value. From what I can tell, about $600 - $1000 will be donated to the New York or San Francisco Food Bank.

There are three versions of the Mario Batali limited edition Ernst Benz Chronoscope watches. Aside from the special colors and caseback, the watches are the same Chronoscope watches that Ernst Benz typically offers. There are three sizes of the watch. Two chronograph models which are 40mm or 47mm wide and a smaller 36mm three-hand ladies watch (I assume it is for the ladies being that size). The chronograph models each have automatic ETA Valjoux 7750 movements, while the three-hand model has some ETA automatic. Not sure of which movement specifically. Each watch is limited to 250 pieces, and I believe there are some still available as the watches trickled out of Ernst Benz starting about two years ago.

Like all Chronoscope watches, the timepieces are nicely made and usually in limited numbers. Ernst Benz just doesn't make that many watches each year. You can see the nice concentric circles making a pattern on the dial of the watch, while the hour markers are applied and filled with lume. The hands have that classic aviator feel to them and are easy to read. The case of the watches enjoy a high level of polish. While sporty in heritage, Ernst Benz watches are made to be shown off to appreciative audiences. They make a nice splash and have the appeal of any easy to use instrument. The watches come with either an orange alligator strap or a black alligator strap with orange stitching. Prices for the Mario Batali Limited Edition watches ranges from $2,500 - $4,500 (with a hefty sum of that going to charity).Â Learn more about these limited edition Mario Batali watches at Ernst Benz here.

See Ernst Benz watches on eBay here.

See Ernst Benz watches on Amazon here.

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40Mm Moonphase Black Leather Band Watch 20311A
$1,425.00
Time Remaining: 1d 5h 22m
Buy It Now for only: $2,240.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40Mm Moonphase Black Leather Band Watch 20311A
$1,525.00
Time Remaining: 1d 8h 42m
Buy It Now for only: $2,400.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40mm Black Moonphase Swiss Automatic Watch 20311B
$1,450.00 (1 Bid)
Time Remaining: 1d 9h 42m

Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronosport 36Mm Swiss Automatic Green Leather Band Watch 30234A GRN
$650.00
Time Remaining: 1d 12h 2m
Buy It Now for only: $910.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz ChronoScope watch
$1,300.00
Time Remaining: 1d 15h 59m

Bid now

Ernst Benz ChronoJewel Mother of Pearl Dial with 10 Diamonds
$1,199.00
Time Remaining: 1d 19h 3m
Buy It Now for only: $1,199.00
Buy It Now

Written by Mr. Ariel Adams - aBlogtoRead.com, trusted independent watch media.

Awesome Ernst Benz Chronoflite GMT Watch

admin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 09:36:42 +0000

This was easily one of my favorite watches of JCK Las Vegas and my current favorite Ernst Benz watch. I consider this to sort of be a Rolex Explorer II on steroids, the 47mm wide steel case size might have a bit to do with that. Of course the style is similar to the Explorer II as well, just look at the GMT hand and the 24 hour bezel. Ernst Benz probably doesn't like all the comparisons to the Rolex, but most of you will easily see that. Then Ernst Benz starts with its own style. They indicate that the watch is meant to be retro inspired, which is part of the style of the finish of the bi-directional rotating bezel. Actually, the bezel is not my favorite part of the watch, though I would easily live with it. I like how the numbers are engraved into the bezel and darkened, but I would have done the polish on the metal a bit differently - minor point though.

The beauty of the watch is in the large textured dial and very easy to read face. You can see that there is a nice circular texturing and the center of the face is done with a polished finish. The applied hour markers are border in a black contrasting color and the center is a thick strip of lume. The hands on the silver dialed version have an excellent contrast with the dial - as good at the Rolex Explorer II with the white dial. The black colored version is almost as easy to read - and still offers superior legibility over most other watches. Then you have the large red GMT arrow hand that does perfect service. It is really the simplicity of the watch design and the small details that make it so outstanding, I really like this Chronoflite GMT timepiece a lot!

Yes, the size is big, but I like that in a watch like this. Again, I have smallish wrists and I think the watch looks fine. Ernst Benz doesn't really make small watches, so this is average for them. I'll tell you that it fits comfortably. The black alligator leather strap has that cool contrast stitching that works well, and calf leather and aviator leather straps are also available. You can also get the watch with a metal bracelet that looks pretty cool. Of course the crystal is sapphire (with double AR coating), and there is also a sapphire crystal over the caseback exhibition window.

Inside the watch is an automatic ETA 2893-A2 movement that is the 2892 with an independently adjustable GMT hand. The movement has some nice blued screws and slightly decorate black automatic signed rotor. Nothing too special about the movement though. The screw-down crown works well and has guards on it built into the case. One area I would like to have seen improved is the water resistance. I know that this watch is not a divers watch, but 50 meters of water resistance means that Ernst Benz probably doesn't recommend you shower in it. I would have liked to see the watch with 100 - 200 meters of water resistance to give it that same type of durable character as the Rolex. UPDATE: I realized that the written Ernst Benz materials were wrong and inadvertently neglected to read the 20ATM that is actually written on the back of the watch. So the Chronoflite GMT is actually 200 meters water resistant, sorry about that. So, actually you can go swimming with the watch I am sure. and showering is probably OK, but for the price which I think is around $6,000 - $8,000 bucks. If you are looking for a solid GMT watch and can handle the price - this is a great option from a low volume, high quality watch brand.

See Ernst Benz watches on eBay here.

See Ernst Benz watches on Amazon here.

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40Mm Moonphase Black Leather Band Watch 20311A
$1,425.00
Time Remaining: 1d 5h 22m
Buy It Now for only: $2,240.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40Mm Moonphase Black Leather Band Watch 20311A
$1,525.00
Time Remaining: 1d 8h 42m
Buy It Now for only: $2,400.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40mm Black Moonphase Swiss Automatic Watch 20311B
$1,450.00 (1 Bid)
Time Remaining: 1d 9h 42m

Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronosport 36Mm Swiss Automatic Green Leather Band Watch 30234A GRN
$650.00
Time Remaining: 1d 12h 2m
Buy It Now for only: $910.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz ChronoScope watch
$1,300.00
Time Remaining: 1d 15h 59m

Bid now

Ernst Benz ChronoJewel Mother of Pearl Dial with 10 Diamonds
$1,199.00
Time Remaining: 1d 19h 3m
Buy It Now for only: $1,199.00
Buy It Now

Written by Mr. Ariel Adams - aBlogtoRead.com, trusted independent watch media.

Ernst Benz Releases The ChronoDiver Thinking It Is Being Innovative And Unique: Its Not

admin — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 22:15:03 +0000

Ernst Benz is like an estranged cousin of Panerai with little bloodline connection. It makes a heap of really large watches with "instrumental" appeal, but unlike Panerai, the watches typically suffer from being appropriate without being very unique. Oh, and they are overpriced, in my opinion. The newest from Ernst Benz is the new ChronoDiver collection, with a name as dry as the watch themselves. There is actually nothing at all wrong with the watches. They are a pretty good emulation of a theme. That theme being the diving watch chronograph. The thing is, for the over $5,000 retail price, where is any character of innovation? You get a 47mm wide case, a number font that looks to be Ernst Benz-ish, and perhaps come concentric circle texturing on the dial. Otherwise, we've all seen this design hundreds of times before.

So what gives? Ernst Benz did need a diving watch for their line up. Practically everyone does, but this effort just seems a bit rushed to ask such a price for such a standard offering is...well not very well thought out. The point to the fact that despite having a 200m water resistance the rear of the case has a sapphire window. While this is uncommon in diving watches, it is certainly not unheard of. Further, 200m is the standard resistance for all Valjoux 7750 movement based watch (that the ChronoDiver) appears to be. It is funny actually, because you know the case is 47mm, much larger than the movement size. Then you look at the watch face and can see where Ernst Benz literally added space on the periphery of the dial making it larger beyond the boundaries of the movement. There is a chance that the movement is actually the ETA Valgranges, a larger update to the Valjoux 7750, but I've not seen mention.

The ChonoDiver is available with either a steel bracelet, rubber strap, or hand stitched alligator strap. Typical stuff. So you have an acceptable, legible, and well crafted diver's watch. You don't have anything particularly unique or interesting. And in my humble opinion the asking price is far from fair. I'd not be surprised to see street prices going for half or less of the retail price.

See Ernst Benz watches on eBay here.

See Ernst Benz watches on Amazon here.

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40Mm Moonphase Black Leather Band Watch 20311A
$1,425.00
Time Remaining: 1d 5h 22m
Buy It Now for only: $2,240.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40Mm Moonphase Black Leather Band Watch 20311A
$1,525.00
Time Remaining: 1d 8h 42m
Buy It Now for only: $2,400.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40mm Black Moonphase Swiss Automatic Watch 20311B
$1,450.00 (1 Bid)
Time Remaining: 1d 9h 42m

Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronosport 36Mm Swiss Automatic Green Leather Band Watch 30234A GRN
$650.00
Time Remaining: 1d 12h 2m
Buy It Now for only: $910.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz ChronoScope watch
$1,300.00
Time Remaining: 1d 15h 59m

Bid now

Ernst Benz ChronoJewel Mother of Pearl Dial with 10 Diamonds
$1,199.00
Time Remaining: 1d 19h 3m
Buy It Now for only: $1,199.00
Buy It Now

Written by Mr. Ariel Adams - aBlogtoRead.com, trusted independent watch media.

Ernst Benz Shows China Love With The Beijing 2008 Limited Edition Chronoscope Watch

admin — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 16:43:43 +0000

Typically speaking I am not a huge fan of anything that Mario Batali (or other Food Network chefs) promotes. The large, overly orange man is one of several "brand ambassadors" of Swiss Ernst Benz watches. Accordingly, Ernst Benz also offers a large, overly orange version of its popular Valjoux 7750 based watch named the Chronoscope, which is part of a Mario Batali edition. Though not all of their watches have such silly companions.

The newest Ernst Benz Chronoscopes are a limited edition in recognition of the Olympic games being held in Beijing China. These watches are actually more a tribute to the city, than the games, which is a good thing. Perennial Olympics "official time keeper" Omega also has its limited edition 2008 Olympics watch (seen here) that makes particularly good use of the well known five ring design.

So what is it that makes looking at these Chinese themed Ernst Benz Chronoscope watches so pleasant? Well for one we all seem to love red and black. Be it red with black trim, or black with red trim, it always looks cool. You could take a 30 dollar Casio and make it black with red trim; instantly cool. Then, you have something us Westerners are not used to; Chinese numerals. No, I can't read them, but based on their location, I can guess they number 1 through 12. Actually, the "8" is distinct as it indicated "08" for the year of the Olympics. And, as many of you know, 8 is a lucky number in Chinese culture.

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The dial patterns are gorgeous really. Look closely and you will see a traditional Chinese background design that looks great with the characters. Functionality is pretty chronograph standard, utilizing the full feature set of the automatic Valjoux 7750 with the 12 hour stopwatch, date, and day of the week. I love the size of this watch at 47mm wide. What is funny is that Asian market watches are typically much smaller than those for Europe and the US, typically 36-38mm. So I hope that the Chinese are ready to bring on the big ways of the west with this Ernst Benz watch.

As part of this homage the China, Ernst Benz is very particular about pleasing the current Chinese government. The distinct reds of this watch are noted as "China Red." Statement about the government or otherwise? The black hands and cases of the black watches are done in PVD. My choice of course is the black PVD case model with the red face, black hands, and red alligator strap. Now that is a nice watch!

You'll have to act fast though as there are only 88 pieces of each watch as part of this limited edition. If you are lucky enough to get one, you'll get a Chinese styled packaging and tons of other Chinese themed accessories and pamphlets. All pre-approved by the Chinese government of course.

See Ernst Benz watch on eBay here.

See Ernst Benz watches on Amazon here.

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40Mm Moonphase Black Leather Band Watch 20311A
$1,425.00
Time Remaining: 1d 5h 22m
Buy It Now for only: $2,240.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40Mm Moonphase Black Leather Band Watch 20311A
$1,525.00
Time Remaining: 1d 8h 42m
Buy It Now for only: $2,400.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronolunar Mens 40mm Black Moonphase Swiss Automatic Watch 20311B
$1,450.00 (1 Bid)
Time Remaining: 1d 9h 42m

Bid now

Ernst Benz Chronosport 36Mm Swiss Automatic Green Leather Band Watch 30234A GRN
$650.00
Time Remaining: 1d 12h 2m
Buy It Now for only: $910.00
Buy It Now | Bid now

Ernst Benz ChronoScope watch
$1,300.00
Time Remaining: 1d 15h 59m

Bid now

Ernst Benz ChronoJewel Mother of Pearl Dial with 10 Diamonds
$1,199.00
Time Remaining: 1d 19h 3m
Buy It Now for only: $1,199.00
Buy It Now

Written by Mr. Ariel Adams - aBlogtoRead.com, trusted independent watch media.