Jorg’s Watch Resolutions For 2024 Include A GMT…And A Possible Grail — It’s About Making Choices In 2024

Happy New Year, everyone! I have the honor of kicking off a new series with my watch resolutions for 2024. We started writing down our watch resolutions in several articles last year. This year will be no different as the Fratello writers will look back at last year’s resolutions to find out what happened to them. Additionally, they will share their plans for this year regarding watches. I am pleased to kick this series off with my plans for 2024.

Let’s start with a small confession. When I think about my plans for the year ahead, they are somewhat the same as in 2023. The past year saw a major change in my personal life, so I did not have a strong focus on buying new watches, let alone making last year’s resolutions come true. That’s why some of last year’s dreams directly translate to this year’s resolutions. Let’s first look back at some things that I penned in early 2023.

Looking back at my watch resolutions for 2023…

I started last year’s resolutions by confessing my love for Zenith. I can tell you that the spark is still there 12 months later, even if I wasn’t nearly as impressed by the brand’s releases in 2023 as in previous years.

For me, the Zenith highlight from 2023 was the Chronomaster Original with a black tricolor dial. It’s a great testament to the style of the original A386. Other than that, only the steel-bezel variations of the Chronomaster Sport stood out to me. But that doesn’t mean my love is gone or that my idea of starting a small Zenith collection has changed. Will it happen this year? We’ll see. But it’s a long-term goal that will indeed happen.

Image: The Watch Club

The second big part of last year’s resolutions was my quest to find a capable GMT or multiple GMTs. As some of you will know, I love GMT watches because of their looks and functionality, and the Rolex GMT-Master ref. 1675 is my favorite of all time. I won’t go into detail again about what sparked this quest — you can read that in last year’s article — but I will say that the quest has not significantly changed.

I stand by my statement that an incredibly low number of GMTs tick the specs boxes and bring the right visual entertainment to capture my heart. So does that make 2024’s resolutions a copy of last year’s? Not exactly.

The quest remains the same…

Let me start by saying that, like any other watch enthusiast, I keep track of the price developments of some watches I would love to add to my collection. For me, one of those is the Laventure Transatlantique GMT from 2020. I have stated that I generally do not regret watch-related decisions, but I should have bought that watch when it was launched. From that moment on, the brand’s popularity skyrocketed. As a result, getting your hands on any of the Laventure models was impossible.

To top it off, the pre-owned prices have risen to ridiculous levels. You can have a Transatlantique GMT if you are prepared to pay roughly €9,000. It is an impressive financial performance for a watch introduced at CHF 3,350. Don’t get me wrong; I still think it’s quite possibly the best-looking GMT of the last few years. But looks only go so far for an ETA-powered GMT watch.

But don’t expect a potential future Transatlantique GMT to be any more affordable since it will probably have a proprietary GMT movement. Let that at least be a flyer-style GMT, please, and if the watch is executed in the right colors, I might fall in love all over again. With rumors of a new Transatlantique GMT flying around, we will likely find out something this year.

…With a recurring character…

That said, what happened to the two watches that I talked about last year? The Transatlantique GMT was not one of them due to the ridiculous prices. Last year’s article focused on the Tudor Black Bay Pro and the Omega Seamaster GMT “Great White.” I can tell you that the Omega is no longer one of my potential future buys.

While I still love the watch, honestly, I have hardly thought about it in the last 12 months. And if a watch is not constantly on the top of my mind as a “want,” it only makes sense to say goodbye for now. So that one is out.

However, the Tudor Black Bay Pro is the one watch I have grown to love more and more. I explained in last year’s resolutions article what makes it such an appealing watch. And in the many talks about future wants in the Fratello offices, that is the watch I kept returning to as the GMT for me in 2023.

As Thomas said nicely in one of my conversations with him, “Hearing how you talk about that watch, it will surely come to you.” I think the time is finally right to pull the trigger on it in 2024.

…And some new stars

Have any other watches replaced the Omega as a potential buy for 2024? There is a watch from Longines that piqued my interest this year. And if you think it’s the brand’s popular Zulu Time, you are mistaken. It’s the green, gold, and cream HydroConquest GMT. I love that watch for a variety of reasons. First, I love that it’s a GMT diver, stylishly combining different functions.

The design is a weirdly comfortable clash between a modern, shiny dive watch in its form and a retro-inspired GMT watch in its colors. With modern materials like a ceramic bezel insert, the flyer-style caliber L844.5, and the relatively friendly €3,100 list price, this watch is on my radar.

The search for an affordable GMT also gets a sequel

Last year, I also thought of buying an affordable GMT watch from Unimatic or Serica. Both brands have added new GMT models to their collections, but none of them ignited a burning desire in me. I liked Unimatic’s Modello Quattro U4S-T-HS quite a bit, but it wasn’t as striking as last year’s brilliant titanium Modello Uno U1S-TGMT. On top of that, I added the striking Modello Uno U1S-ET to my collection, scratching my recurring Unimatic itch.

Serica released the “Desert Red” 8315-2 GMT Chronomètre with its stylish “grills,” as Daan called them. It’s a nice-looking option, but I would have preferred a coffee-brown version. Additionally, I would love to see a nice steel bracelet for the 8315. So there is no GMT for me from either brand at the moment.

The Christopher Ward C65 Dune GMT is the winner

There is, however, one affordable GMT that completely blew me away. And I had to think of a comment that our loyal reader MarkB posted under the article for the Unimatic Modello Quattro GMT that I mentioned. He stated, “They’re good-looking watches, but not so good that I’d pay twice as much as a C. Ward GMT for one.” I remember reading that comment and thinking, “If only Christopher Ward would make a watch that looked as good as any of the Unimatic GMTs.”

Some of you already know what happened. When that article was published, I had already missed the launch of the limited-edition Christopher Ward C65 Dune GMT and the chance to own a fantastic, affordable GMT that ticked the boxes for me.

The weird thing was that I only discovered how much I loved that watch after it sold out. The brand sent it to us for review, and I found out immediately that it is the best in class in terms of luxury feel, overall build quality, and level of finishing. Plus, I adore how it looks. I won’t go over the details — in the review I wrote, I explained why I adore it so much — but that is the watch that I’m focusing on adding to my collection in 2024. As a little sidestep, I found it amazing how the watch resembles Marlon Brando’s bezel-less GMT-Master ref. 1675 that sold at auction last November.

Christopher Ward has shared that there will be a new version of the C65 Dune GMT, and I will try to get my hands on one as soon as it comes out. Additionally, I would love to add 2023’s sold-out version to my collection. So the hunt for both of them is on in 2024.

The changes in the pre-owned market sparked an old flame

Lastly, there are two possible additions that I would love to talk about briefly. The first is the long-desired Rolex Sea-Dweller ref. 16600. I was immediately sold when Robert-Jan handed me his 16600 to wear for a few days in the early 2000s. It’s been on my wishlist ever since.

But over the past few years, prices on the pre-owned market shot up to levels that made me question whether I wanted to spend that much money on a Sea-Dweller. As we all know, though, in the last 12–18 months, prices for pre-owned Rolex watches have come down significantly. As a result, the Sea-Dweller has resurfaced on my radar and will stay there in 2024.

My Constellation Manhattan from 1984 and my father’s Seamaster DeVille from 1966

Last year, I also told how my father would turn 80 years old in 2023. And I would have loved to buy a 1960s Seamaster De Ville as a fixer-upper for a potential father-son project. While my dad is still very happy with his 1966 Seamaster De Ville, he wasn’t into that little project. But my brother and I decided to get him a new watch when he hinted at getting a new daily wearer. We jumped on it and are now talking to him about a slim, solar-powered watch that is preferably no bigger than 40mm. We can’t surprise him, though, as he doesn’t like to be surprised and knows what he wants. That said, my father’s birthday watch will surely be my first and most meaningful watch buy of 2024.

I will keep you posted on that and the rest of my adventures. For now, have a great 2024 with a lot of watch fun, everybody! And let us know about your watch resolutions for 2024 in the comments section below.