Brand Cluster: The Rado Watch Company - The Alchemists of Lengnau - A Three-Way Showdown of Rado’s Toughest Divers

If you have been following my horological journey, you know that my appreciation for watch collecting went into full bloom years ago. From my career perspective as a statistician and financial analyst, I have an analytical eye for technical precision, value-for-money, and—above all else—material innovation.

 

When it comes to mastering avant-garde materials, there is one Swiss brand that has captured my attention from a technological standpoint: Rado. Originally founded in 1917 as Schlup & Co. in Lengnau, Switzerland, the company began selling watches under the "Rado" brand name in the 1950s. Since then, they have built a reputation as the pioneering "Master of Materials".

Today, we are putting three distinct Rado dive watches from my collection head-to-head: the vintage-inspired Captain Cook 42 mm Automatic Green (Reference R32505313), the high-tech Captain Cook High-Tech Ceramic Diver (Reference R32144202), and the retro-classic Original Diastar Diver Automatic (Model R12639023).

 

  

 

Brand Cluster: The Ball Watch Company - the Underrated King of Over-Engineered Swiss Watches

If you’ve been following my horological journey, you already know that technical innovation and sheer, unadulterated robustness are the absolute cornerstones of my watch collection. Ever since my love for watches went into full-bloom, I've been fascinated by the clever engineering required to make a tiny mechanical object survive extreme environments.

Today, we are looking at three Swiss-made heavyweights from the BALL Watch Company—a brand whose DNA is forever welded to the American railroad safety standards of 1891. Specifically, we are comparing my Engineer Hydrocarbon AeroGMT (Reference DG2016A-SC-BK), the monumental Engineer Hydrocarbon DeepQUEST (Reference DM3000A-SCJ-BK), and the vintage-inspired Engineer II Skindiver Heritage Blue (Reference DM3208B-P1-BE).

   

The Stages of a Watch Collector - My Own Experience

Having read Johannes Beer's "How One Watch Becomes Twenty: The Five Stages of Every Collector" I can only conclude that the author has either secretly been monitoring my browser history or has attended every watch meetup I've ever joined. The article's central premise, that nearly every collector follows the same predictable path from "I just want one good watch" to a constantly evolving collection, is uncomfortably accurate.  

Full Service: Alpina Pilot Automatic Startimer 44 mm Reference AL-525B4S6 Limited Edition of 8888 pieces (#2000)

My Alpina Pilot has started to give me problems. The seconds hand seems to be stuck around the 8 second mark and only after a gentle tap, it will start to move. However, after one circle, it get stuck at the same position. After checking when I bought the watch (December 2016), it was high time I got the watch serviced. Below is a video of the problem.

So I sent it to the AD that sold me the watch and he recommended that the watch be thoroughly serviced by Neuchatel Time, a watch service centre in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur that offers a full range of services.

Grand Seiko Evolution 9 Spring Drive U.F.A. Ushio 300 Diver SLGB023 (similar to SLGB025) - Precision Meets the Depths, A Review (plus Video)

I was given the opportunity to travel to Sapporo Japan in July 2026 to attend a conference. I took the opportunity to arrive four days earlier to experience Sapporo and I brought my family with me.

It was a schedule packed, my wife planned it as such that I got immersed with the island going up mountains and visiting farmlands. What she forgot to incorporate into the schedule is shopping time. I would liked to visit ADs of Japanese brands while I am in Japan. At that point of time I was resigned to the fact, that I may not be able to see any of the fine watches Japan has to offer.

With the conference running full steam, The days were full of presentations and bilateral meetings at the end of each day. Most of the ADs in Sapporo closes either at 5:00 pm or 8:00 pm (the latest) which does not leave me ample time to go shopping. 

Luckily, on the second day, no meetings were scheduled after the forum and I was able to start my hunt. The first stop is the Daimaru Sapporo Department Store which happens to be the AD for Credor, Grand Seiko, Citizen's Campanola and other brands as well. 

The first thing I noticed about the AD was the availability of some of the last models. Without needing to ask the sales person, I saw the Ushio 300 on display. Only the blue was available as the green version was sold earlier. After just holding on to the watch for a few seconds, I decided to get it. This watch was only made available since June 2026. What a find. Even then, I am almost certain an example will only be available to Malaysia in a few months time.