Fratello.com

Latest Episodes:

Fratello Talks: Watches And Wonders 2024 Apr 18, 2024

Show notes

Welcome to this week's episode of Fratello Talks. In this special long-form episode, Nacho, RJ, and Morgan discuss Watches and Wonders 2024. There's much to unpack from this year's fair, so prepare for an extended episode. The trio tackles topics including the general atmosphere of the fair, noticeable trends from brands and the industry overall, and finishes by going through many of the show's notable releases. This year's show was slightly slower than what we've seen in the past, but there were no fewer releases from the 54 participating brands. Do you want to get an idea of what it was like to walk the halls and touch (and feel) the watches? Then tune in to this episode of Fratello Talks!

Fratello On Air: Watches And Wonders 2024 — Much Ado About Nothing Apr 16, 2024

Show notes

Fratello On Air returns after a three-week break. Half of us traveled to Geneva while the other went to Florida. Both of us saw fancy cars, but only one of us saw impressive watches. The question of who might have a surprising answer! Watches and Wonders 2024 has come and gone and, frankly, it was a bit of a stinker.

Watches and Wonders 2024 certainly delivered on the first half of its name. The second part? Not so much in our opinion. There were several nice releases, but we'll go on record to say there wasn't a shocking piece that set the watch world on edge. We discuss why it was such a dull event. Of course, we mention our favorites and bring up some of the questionable releases. We hope you enjoy the show!
Handgelenkskontrolle

Before heading to our main topic of Watches and Wonders 2024, we spend some time talking about movies and television. Long flights and travel have allowed us to catch up on recent films and shows. As far as the Handgelenkskontrolle, Balazs is sporting a pre-production watch from TUUL watches. This is a military-style watch from the makers of B&R Bands from Brooklyn. Mike is wearing his L-Series Rolex Explorer 1016, a watch that came on his trip to Florida.
Watches and Wonders 2024

We move on to our main topic of Watches and Wonders 2024. Balazs was on the ground in Geneva while Mike covered some of the releases from South Florida. Overall, we felt this was one of the sleepiest years in recent memory. The color variants were more common than actual new watches. The new watches that did arrive weren't landmark pieces. As far as our favorites, we liked the Nivada F77, L.U. Chopard sector dial pieces, TAG Heuer Skipper in 18K, Zenith Triple Calendar Boutique Edition, and Tudor Black Bay Fifty-Eight GMT. We discuss the odd gold Rolex Deepsea, Cartier Rewind, Bremont revision, and Patek "Canadian Tuxedo" models.

What were your thoughts on Watches and Wonders 2024? Did you enjoy it? We hope you at least enjoyed this episode and we look forward to coming back to you next week! If you have any thoughts for future shows, please let us know.

Fratello Talks: A Guide To Gifting Watches Apr 11, 2024

Show notes

Hello there! Welcome to a new episode of Fratello Talks. This week, we have decided to discuss a topic we often get asked about: gifting watches. Nacho, RJ, and Daan explore the topic, from whom you should gift a watch, to when it's appropriate to gift someone a watch. Of course, they also provide some examples from their own experience and share some stories of times when they themselves have gifted and received watches as gifts. The former being the more common occurrence. Finally, they also provide some recommendations on the kinds of watches you should consider if looking to give someone this special gift. After all, a watch is an exceptional gift that could potentially last someone a lifetime. So, tune in for some solid Fratello advice on gifting watches.

Fratello Talks: Waitlists, Limited Editions, And Things That Make A Watch Worthwhile Apr 04, 2024

Show notes

Welcome to a fresh new episode of Fratello Talks. Today, Nacho is joined by RJ and Lex for a varied chat centered around the topic of things that make a watch worthwhile. From waitlists to limited editions and even watches for special occasions, added value is not really a matter of price. Does a reasonable wait add to the experience of eventually owning a watch? And does too long a wait spoil the desire? This is one of the topics tackled today. As is the matter of limited editions. These days, everything seems to be limited and exclusive; but does this spoil it for everyone? It seems that, on the other hand, a total lack of LEs from certain brands is also no fun. So, where's the sweet spot? And what makes a watch worthwhile?

Fratello Talks: The Best Watches Of 2024 So Far Mar 28, 2024

Show notes

Hello, and welcome to a rather rowdy episode of Fratello Talks. It's a Friday afternoon at Fratello HQ, and Nacho, Lex, and Thomas gather around the mics to list some of the best watches of 2024 so far. Each of them has picked three of their favorites released during this first quarter and three additional honorable mentions. But, despite their best efforts, it doesn't take long until the structure crumbles and their chat diverges into a discussion on some of their favorite (and not-so-favorite) new releases of the year so far.

Fratello On Air: Our Favorite Watch And Strap Or Bracelet Combinations Mar 26, 2024

Show notes

Fratello On Air returns with a new episode inspired by one of our listeners. Today, we're talking about our favorite watch and strap combinations. Of course, we're allowing bracelets to enter the conversation as well. Like always, we also have several other topics on tap.

So, what are our favorite watch and strap combinations? It's a good question, but one that we seek to answer. We thank our faithful listener, Richard, for today's topics. Metal enters the fray too because some watches look better with a bit of dangle. Shoes are also in focus as this was also a request from our listener. We hope you enjoy the show!
Handgelenkskontrolle

After some television discussion, we kick off our show with the Handgelenkskontrolle and are wearing watch and strap pairings that will be mentioned during the main topic. Balazs is home in Hungary and has brought his Grand Seiko SBGA439 on a denim blue Delugs strap. Mike is wearing his 1951 Longines 14ct Park Avenue on a "Honey Wind" leather strap. We then turn our attention to our current grail sneakers. Balazs lists the Asics Gel Lite 3 Miami Beach Edition, Jordan 1 Fragment x Travis Scott, and his signed Adidas Stan Smith shoes as his favorites. Mike is still pining for one of his high school favorites to return. His all-time crush is the gray, white, black, and yellow Nike Air Trainer Max '91 worn by Bo Jackson. Finally, Mike has purchased a vintage Tissot pocket watch, which sparks a discussion about what to do with these lovely objects.
Watch and strap combinations

Asking about our favorite watch and strap combinations is a tough question. It depends on the day, the season, and the specific watch. However, we've tried to bring up some of our most frequent picks. Here are the main points we discuss:

GLC camouflage ripstop strap
Any saffiano or Epsom leather strap on a simple dress watch
Switching from a bracelet to a strap that matches the dial color, such as the Delugs strap Balazs has on his Grand Seiko
Forstner bracelets, especially the flat link and the Klip
Vintage bracelets, including well-made pieces from Germany, the UK, and the USA
The Honey Wind strap from Wind Vintage

We hope you enjoyed today's episode and thanks again to Richard for the great topic suggestions! If you have any additional topics for future shows, feel free to let us know.

Fratello Talks: Cut The Excuses And Enjoy Watches Mar 21, 2024

Show notes

Hi there, and welcome to a new episode of Fratello Talks. Excuses, excuses, excuses... Letting them get in the way of a good thing is a shame. So it's time to cut them out and enjoy watches. This is this week's topic of discussion, which Nacho, Lex, and RJ explore in detail. It's an interesting phenomenon that we've observed lately. A new watch is announced, and out pour the single-phrase comments providing personal justification for a lack of intention to purchase. It all results in a rather dull, nasty, and repetitive rabbit hole of cynicism. But why does this happen? Is it a FOMO-induced face-saving reaction? Does it have more to do with how information is shared online? Or is it just the nature of online comments? And can't we just cut it out and enjoy watches regardless?

Fratello On Air: Wearing Vintage Watches On Airplanes Mar 19, 2024

Show notes

Welcome to another episode of Fratello On Air. This week, we discuss flying on airplanes with our vintage watches and why we avoid it. We also cover several other watch-related topics before and after the main subject. Enjoy the show!

Flying on airplanes may be a normal and safe activity, but how does it affect our vintage watches? We discuss our thoughts on the question and why we tend to wear newer pieces. For those who don't love our banter, we begin our main subject after 40 minutes. However, all but a few minutes of the first portion are watch-related. So, fast-forward at your peril!
Handgelenks Kontrolle

We kick off our show about wearing our vintage watches on airplanes with several topics. Balazs mentions a recent visit by his friend and fellow Angelus lover, Bosko. Bosko brought along a stunning Angelus Chrono-Datoluxe that has made Balazs just a tad envious. We then discuss the recent Sunday Morning Showdown where the black Speedmaster Professional easily bested the new white Speedy. The Handgelenks Kontrolle brings a story from Mike about a newly acquired vintage Jaeger-LeCoultre. The watch was purchased at auction and needed work. This led to a fun adventure in London last week. Balazs, on the other wrist, is wearing his Grand Seiko SBGA439 on a Delugs strap.
Wearing vintage watches on airplanes

Today, we respond to one of our listeners who asked why Balazs no longer wears vintage watches like his Rolex GMT-Master on airplanes. Balazs isn't the only one as Mike also tends to wear newer watches. The risk of spills, knocks, and more leads us to choose newer, more robust watches. Are we overprotective and unreasonably concerned? Who knows, but we've both flown a lot and have experienced our share of accidents. We're curious if you're also cautious when flying and keep your older, more fragile watches in a bag or at home. Feel free to let us know!

Thanks for listening to today's episode, we hope you enjoyed it! If you have ideas for future episodes, let us know.

Fratello Talks: Watch Marketing Past, Present, And Future Mar 14, 2024

Show notes

Welcome to Fratello Talks. This week, you join your host, Nacho, alongside RJ and Lex for a discussion on the evolution of watch marketing. The idea of marketing watches has been around since selling them became a lucrative endeavor. Since then, we have seen the watch industry's efforts take many different forms, from posters to print ads, television spots to ambassadors, and the many different ways in which watch brands are involved in the world of sports. Today, the guys take a look at many of these aspects and discuss examples that they find memorable, effective, and downright cool. They also list some examples of not-so-effective marketing. Finally, they do some wishful thinking for its future.

Fratello On Air: Brands Everyone Should Have In Their Collections Mar 12, 2024

Show notes

Fratello On Air returns and this week we discuss watches from brands that everyone should own at some point on their collecting journey. Our ideas come across as more of a suggestion than an edict, though. We also touch on several other watch-related topics before the main event. Enjoy the show!

Whether we're talking watches, cars, or any other item, we're not sure that anyone likes being told what they should or shouldn't buy. That's why our main topic today on watch brands is fairly light. We also spend a decent amount of time talking about last week's Cartier episode, the new white Speedmaster, and Balazs' watch-related travel in the USA.
Handgelenks Kontrolle

We kick off our episode with a mention of one of our listeners. He asked about aluminum luggage, which fed a conversation during last week's podcast. He also happens to be a stuntman who has worked with Tom Selleck and shared some news about Tom's Rolex GMT-Master. We move on to Cartier and how it must be one of the most polarizing brands in existence. Then, we transition to the white Omega Speedmaster, a watch that Balazs saw while traveling in Miami. As far as our wristwear, both of us are doing our best Magnum P.I. impersonations. Balazs has his trusty Rolex GMT-Master 1675 and Mike is rocking his later 16750.
Brands everyone should own at least once

We move on to our main topic regarding brands that everyone should own. The idea came from one of our listeners, so thank you very much! Balazs names some brands and watches that may come across as a surprise. The Bvlgari Octo Finissimo makes an appearance along with the Zenith El Primero. Then, he mentions Omega, Grand Seiko, Tudor, and Breitling. Mike brings in Parmigiani and Moser. However, despite the venom that exists among so many people, he can't resist bringing up Rolex. Pound for pound, they make a fantastic watch and if purchased at retail price, a Rolex is hard to beat.

We hope you enjoyed today's show and thanks for listening! Feel free to let us know if you have any suggestions for future episodes!

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected