This week, managing editor Stephen Pulvirent will be out on the west coast working on some awesome stories for HODINKEE. That seems as good an excuse as any to get a bunch of watch nerds together in a bar to talk about their latest finds, white whales, and current obsessions. You know what that means – it's HODINKEE Meet-Up time.

Back in 2010, Bremont introduced the Supermarine 500, which introduced a fresh take on a pretty well-trod path: the dive watch. Its unique crown guard, sapphire bezel, signature Bremont three-piece "Trip-Tick" case, and overall styling set it apart from the pack. It quickly became a favorite of dive watch lovers. Then, in 2014, came the Supermarine 2000, which quadrupled the water resistance, introduced the anti-magnetic and anti-shock properties of Bremont’s MB watches, and beefed up the case from 43mm to 45mm. But for many, 45mm, or even 43mm, is too large for a watch, even a diver. So at last week’s "Basel-upon-Thames" event in London, Bremont released new additions to the Supermarine lineup – the Type 300 and Type 301 – both with an all-new 40-millimeter case.

It's hard to imagine that a watchmaker could be one of the most reputable companies in the world – it's even harder to imagine that that watchmaker is in fact the number one most reputable company on the planet according to Forbes and Boston-based consulting firm The Reputation Institute. Then again, Rolex is Rolex.

Okay, in terms of surprises, maybe seeing an ultra-technical inclined tourbillon show up at The Oscars pales in comparison to witnessing that incorrect Best Picture announcement, but it was still a pretty unexpected appearance. It goes without saying that there were a lot of people wearing a lot of interesting, different, conspicuous, and breathtaking timepieces at the 89th Academy Awards. However, one that really caught our attention, for several reasons, was the one worn by Straight Out Of Compton and Underground star Aldis Hodge, who was there thanks to the nomination of Hidden Figures for Best Picture. The watch he chose for the evening was the Greubel Forsey Double Tourbillon 30° Technique Sapphire, which is not only a spectacular choice, but also a spectacularly different choice.

It's not something most of us think about on a daily basis, but most watches are basically useless for the visually impaired. Traditionally, the solution to this was to make watches with crystals that could flip up, allowing the wearer to feel the hands. These tended to be poorly made and touching the hands is a really good way to throw a watch off over time. But there are more creative solutions out there. Meet the Dot, a sleek motorized smartwatch that uses braille to give the wearer the time.

This week we've rounded up pieces that truly changed how wristwatches were worn, to greater and lesser degrees. Obviously the Rolex Submariner contributed immensely to the field of dive watches, but one should not underestimate what the Breitling Navitimer brought to pilot's watches, nor the impact of the Jaeger-LeCoultre Futurematic (despite its limited success). Lastly, both the Heuer Jarama chronograph and the Union Glashütte Julius Bergter Edition are indicative of their makers' mindsets at the time each was launched. Learn more in your Bring A Loupe for March 3, 2017.

One of the most-talked-about watches of the 2017 SIHH, the new Master Control Date adds a sector dial and tons of charm to an iconic Jaeger-LeCoultre archetype.

You never thought to ask. We did.

One of the last people I expected to meet in the middle of the Swiss Alps was Jérome Delafosse. I knew the French diver was an Oris ambassador. I knew also of his commitment to the brand, which far exceeds that of most ambassadors. But I wasn’t sure how Oris had convinced him to trade in his scuba gear for a headlamp and pair of snow boots, or why he had just trekked in the dark with a group of watch journalists, who were almost certainly going to discover the watchmaker's latest altimeter watch. (Spoiler: That's exactly what we saw.) But there was something else too, and it made Delafosse's presence make perfect sense.

The Bulgari Octo Finissimo Tourbillon was introduced in 2014, and, at the time, it was the thinnest tourbillon movement ever made, at only 1.95mm thick. The skeletonized version, introduced this year, lets you look inside that movement and get a better idea of how the watch manages to be so thin, while at the same time offering slickly cool visuals to go along with the faceted Octo case.

Bremont launched its first collection a decade ago. It’s hard to believe the British company is already turning 10, and perhaps even harder still to believe that in those 10 years it has found so much success that it no longer sees any reason to attend Baselworld, the world’s foremost watch fair. And yet, here were are in a small townhouse in the middle of Mayfair in London, viewing the company’s latest range. There are quite a few novelties to see, and we’ll eventually go through them all. But first, let’s take a look at some updates to a watch that has been part of the catalog since Bremont’s inception, the ALT1-P pilot's chronograph.

This week in the HODINKEE Shop we have a fantastic selection of vintage timepieces for you to peruse. We have a good selection of vintage Rolexes ranging from a 1950s Oyster Perpetual to an Explorer II reference 1665. In addition, we have a couple beautiful vintage Vacheron Constantin dress watches. Read on to see what's new.

In January, we told you that online auction house Auctionata had filed for insolvency after not paying salaries for weeks. The Berlin-based company began looking for new investors to keep itself afloat, but now, after another month or so of looking, has been forced to shutter due to lack of interest. The details are a bit messy, with some sub-companies making it out of the chaos alive, but the gist is that Auctionata is no more.

The Monsieur de Chanel was one of the more surprising watches from Baselworld 2016. A handsome watch overall, it was the company’s first dedicated to men and it is powered by the company’s first in-house mechanical movement too. An instant hit, it was also a sign of more to come. Well, 12 months later, more has arrived. When Chanel unveils its latest range of watches next month at Baselworld, it will be introducing its second in-house movement and this time it will be housed in a ladies' timepiece, the Première Camélia Skeleton Watch.

Watch auctions can be intimidating even for the most experienced collectors. What questions should you ask a specialist? How do you bid successfully? What pitfalls should you avoid? At the March 2017 meeting of the Horological Society of New York, industry vet William Massena (and Talking Watches alum) will address these questions and more. Massena's illustrated lecture will explore all aspects of the world of watch auctions, including key auction houses in the international watch market, the role of auctions in the context of watch collecting, and nuances of catalog descriptions.

With vintage watches, small details matter a lot. In fact, they're basically everything. When it comes to assessing the originality of a dial, this goes double, since any re-dial or service dial will dramatically impact the overall value of a watch. This explains the multiple questions surrounding the weird, round little marks sometimes found surrounding the "Swiss" or "Swiss Made" on watch dials from the 1970s. Those little marks are actually the lower case Greek letter sigma, and the dials are aptly called "sigma dials." The issue, you see, is that most of the plentiful information you find out there about sigma dials is wrong, plain and simple. So I decided to dig deeper and figure out when those sigma dials truly appeared and why. The story turned out to be even more interesting than I had expected.

One of my first stops at SIHH a few weeks ago was the Jaeger-LeCoultre booth, where I was on the hunt for one thing in particular – and it wasn't even a watch I was looking for. I stepped into the booth, got tunnel vision, and b-lined for the back, where, sitting on an unassuming white bookcase was the new Marc Newson–designed Atmos 658 clock. It was love at first sight.

Graham is a company with some very different faces. If you know the company at all, it's probably thanks to the Chronofighter series of chronographs, which have a left-handed crown, with a love-it-or-hate it trigger system for starting and stopping the chronograph, and a separate button for re-set. This watch is not one of those watches. Not even close.