If you’re on your way to the post office or struggling to e-file your 1040 forms today, try to think about the possible reward at the end of the tax-year rainbow. While most filers won’t see a pot of gold, we hope more than a few of you will see enough–eventually– to help finance a new timepiece. We suggest not to seek advice from your accountant.
To motivate you, we’ve assembled eight relatively new timepieces that can possibly get you through the next few hours of painstaking estimation and schedule sorting. These watches, from high-end to most affordable, offer a variety of dreamy, sporty and dressy options. Since several of the newest models are still on-route to retailers, you may want to file these suggestions for your own use next month– and far away from the IRS.
Angelus
U10 Tourbillon Lumière
The limited edition (25 pieces) from the recently revived Swiss-based Angelus brand is a modernist ode to industrial designs of the 1960s and 1970s. This new somewhat avant-garde steel-cased watch features hours, minutes, dead-beat seconds and a one-minute flying tourbillon, plus a ninety-hour linear power reserve indicator on the side of the case.
Price: $110,000
A. Lange & Sohne
Limited Edition 1815
This Limited edition of the firm’s emblematic 1815 celebrates the 200th Anniversary of the birth of company founder F. A. Lange. Inside is a manual-wind Lange manufacture caliber L051.1 decorated and assembled by hand. With only 200 being made, it won’t be available too much longer at the A. Lange & Söhne boutiques, where you can find it priced at $33,500.
Zenith
El Primero Sport
Among Zenith’s many 2015 debuts, this El Primero Sport attracted extra attention at last month’s Baselworld. The watch is a 45mm steel model with the famed El Primero fast-beat chronograph caliber inside and a choice of two dial colors – silver-toned and slate grey – matched by three different strap versions. Its chunkier screw-down crown and pusher set mark its sportier intention. On the bracelet model, Zenith has added a new clasp. Price: $11,000 (on strap); availability this fall.
Seiko
Grand Seiko SBGR094
With this 62GS collection, Seiko faithfully recreates its 1967 automatic Grand Seiko with four models cased with the same dimension (37.6mm) as the originals, plus four slightly larger models Seiko calls “modern re-interpretations” featuring Grand Seiko’s high-beat movement or Spring Drive. The four re-creations, including the gold example pictured, feature the crown at 4 o’clock like the original, plus offer the dual-curved box-shaped sapphire crystal that really marks their vintage cred. Seiko is making 100 units of three different gold cases, and 600 steel models. Price: $16,300 in yellow gold.
Girard-Perregaux
1966
This new reinterpretation of Girard-Perregaux’s dressy 1966 watch features an 18-karat pink gold case and a lovely guilloché dial. The men’s version is 38mm, while the ladies’ version is 30mm and features sixty brilliant-cut diamonds on the bezel. Each watch houses a Girard-Perregaux-built self-winding movement. Price: Men’s, $16,300; women’s $18,800.
Montblanc
Timewalker Urban Speed Chronograph
If you are in the market for a high-tech watch but don’t want to give up your Swiss craftsmanship and genuine pinions and gears, this 43mm chronograph might offer a happy compromise. This very sporty case is made of cold-grey, sandblasted stainless steel with a matte black ceramic bezel surrounding an ETA Valjoux-based automatic chronograph. The Montblanc proprietary ‘E-strap’ features a small screen that will alert its wearer via vibrations of incoming email, text and digital feeds without the need to look at your phone. Price: $4,900 with E-Strap and $4,600 for the chronograph with standard Montblanc strap.
BALL Watch
Engineer Master II Skindiver II
This new watch takes its inspiration directly from the first BALL Skindiver timepiece made in 1962. The new 43mm example, available in June, features enhanced water resistance (to 500 meters) and is a COSC-certified ETA-based chronometer. As with nearly all BALL watches, the dial glows, and here you’ll find fifteen double-sized micro gas tubes on the hour, minute, second hands and dial. A bracelet with retro-shaped stainless steel links evokes diver’s watches of the 1960s. Alternatively, the watch comes fitted with a rubber strap and standard buckle. Price: Approximately $2,900.
Citizen
TI+IP
As just seen at Baselworld, this new sporty model offers a case and bracelet made from Super Titanium, a lightweight material that is hypoallergenic, resistant to scratches and rust and more than five times harder than stainless steel. It combines Citizen’s proprietary titanium processing technology with a surface hardening finish called Duratect. The light-powered watch has a black dial, a 1/5-second chronograph, hours, minutes and date. price: $450