Orient's August 2024 Releases

After a mostly quiet summer, Orient are now releasing a bunch of new models – a few Bambinos ("Classic and Simple" as they like to call it), and some solar chronographs. Let's see what's new.

 

Bambino 38 On a Bracelet

First, let's look at the new Bambinos. These are variants of the 38mm model, and for the first time – we're getting the Bambino 38 on a steel bracelet.

The new bracelet seems humble but nice enough – classic and simple indeed. It definitely adds a bit of sportiness to this generally dressy watch. Having a 20mm lug width, one can always swap the bracelet for any sort of leather strap, especially with such colorful dials, but having a properly fitted steel bracelet is a great option.

We're getting three new references in this series:

·         RA-AC0M09E with a dark, "grass green" dial;

·         RA-AC0M10L with a blue (but also a bit lavender-purple, from the pictures) dial;

·         RA-AC0M11Y with what Orient refer to as "copper" dial. They do try to avoid using the term "salmon"…

All dial versions are sunburst and quite pretty. These are not overly versatile shades, but given the entry-level pricing of Bambinos, it is not inconceivable that one might wish to add 2-3 of these watches, in different colors, to their collection.

Like the previously released Bambino 38, these are all 38.4mm wide cases, 44mm lug to lug, 12.5mm thick, and powered by Orient's automatic caliber F6724. The crystal is mineral and water resistance is 3 bar.

 

Solar Chronographs

Orient are expanding their range of solar chronograph watches with nine new references. Six of these are added the brand's "Contemporary" collection, characterized by the sharp case shape.

The new watches are all different variations of the "panda" theme, with black sub-dials over various main dial colors.

·         RA-TX0301G has a gold color plated case with a champagne dial;

·         RA-TX0302S is a two-tone style watch, and a white dial;

·         RA-TX0303L has a steel case with navy-blue dial;

·         RA-TX0304L has a light blue dial;

·         RA-TX0305S is classic panda, with a white dial;

·         RA-TX0306S is the only model coming on a leather strap, with golden bezel and hands over a white dial.

The solar chronographs are powered by an Orient quartz movement, with power reserve said to last up to 6 months on full charge. The watch have a 40mm wide case that is 48.2 mm long lug to lug, and 11.1mm thick. The crystal is sapphire, and water resistance is 5 bar.

In addition, Orient also introduce three new solar chronographs in its "Diver Style" collection (aka "Mako"). While technically similar to the Contemporary models, these look and wear quite differently.

·         RA-TX0206L has a light blue dial, and black diver's bezel;

·         RA-TX0207R has a red dial and black bezel;

·         RA-TX0208L is the limited (3000 pieces) edition, dedicated to the Mako's 20^th anniversary, with a dark blue gradation dial and a black-and-blue bezel.

The Mako-style chronographs are 42.8mm wide, 48.1mm lug to lug, and 13.1mm thick. With a sapphire crystal and a screw-down crown, they have a 20 bar (200m) water resistance.

Prices for all August releases have not yet been disclosed.

 

Orient's Modern Skeleton

This year, Orient marked the 10^th anniversary of the "Modern Skeleton" design, which was first introduced in 2014. A good excuse, then, for a brief overview of this quintessential Orient model.

We've discussed Orient's Skeleton watches before. For the last 30 years or so, the brand – always on the lookout for standout features that would differentiate it from its step-sister brand Seiko – adopted the concept of exposing the movement on the dial side. While Seiko rarely shows more than a little round "open heart" aperture, Orient have released models spanning the entire spectrum between semi- to full skeleton.

Over time, Orient established a fairly consistent ratio of exposure to the dollar, meaning: full skeletons will appear at the very high end of the Orient Star price range, while "regular" Orients might at best get the open heart. In-between the two ends, are Orient Star models with varying degrees of open dials.

The Orient Star Modern Skeleton was introduced in 2014, a sort of successor to the Retro-Future Bicycle model – an older model that used the same caliber 40S and boasted a similar level of exposure of its internal mechanism.

The first batch of Modern Skeletons included five references: WZ0181DK (black dial), WZ0191DK (blue dial), WZ0201DK (brown dial), WZ0211DK (white dial), and a limited "Prestige Shop" model – WZ0221DK (blue dial with gold hands and markers).

The dimensions of the watch were classic, sporty, not too big and not too small: the case was 41mm wide (without the crown), 49mm lug to lug, and 12.4mm thick. Lug width was 21mm, same as many Orient models.

In the following years, more variations of the Modern Skeleton were released. First up was the 2015 "Orient's 65^th anniversary" piece, ref. WZ0261DK; and later, the "Modern" became a standard celebratory model for the brand, i.e. a base design that would often receive special editions when Orient wishes to mark any particular event. Naturally, in 2016, "Orient Star's 65^th anniversary" versions followed: WZ0331DK and WZ0341DK, featuring beautiful, deep color dials in blue and reddish-brown, respectively.

More models released in 2016 included references WZ0271DK (black dial), WZ0281DK (ivory dial), and WZ0291DK (also ivory dial, but with a leather band). In 2017, for some reason, Orient released limited editions of the watch inspired by British colors, blue and green: references RK-DK0001L and RK-DK0002L. It wasn't blue from the flag or the famous racing green: nope, Orient mentioned the inspiration as a blue-and-green Scottish tartan (I'm not making this up).

In 2018, Orient introduced the F6 caliber into the series, and a fresh batch of watches was presented featuring the new movement: RK-AV0004L (blue dial), RK-AV0005N (grey), RK-AV0006L (blue, with leather strap), RK-AV0007S (ivory dial), RK-AV0008Y (grey-green), RK-AV0009L (prestige shop blue model), and RK-AV0010E (limited edition of black IP case and green dial).

What's interesting is that the Modern Skeleton is one of very few Orient models that went through a movement update, while keeping its design almost 100% unchanged. In fact, the only differences between the F6 and older models were the upgraded power reserve scales (now reaching 50 hours, instead of 40), subtle changes in the movement itself, visible through the dial openings, and a slight reduction in thickness to 12.0mm.

Like the old model, the new F6 Modern Skeleton continued to receive new versions. These include the 2019 RK-AV0111L (released under the "Moving Blue" campaign), the 2020 RK-AV0116L/0117L (also under "Moving Blue") and RK-AV0113S (white), RK-AV0114E (teal) and RK-AV0115B (black and gold); and the 2021 RK-AV0118L/0119L (with sparkling blue dials).

The flow of "moving blue" references continued in 2022 with the RK-AV0120L/0121L (this time with a golden bezel) and in 2023 with RK-0122L (slightly different shades of blue).

The final batch, for now, of Modern Skeletons arrived in 2024, celebrating as mentioned the tenth anniversary of this model. This includes RK-AV0124G (champagne dial and yellow-gold elements), RK-AV0125S (silver dial) and the all black RK-AV0126B. Outside Japan, RE-AV0123G (with rose gold elements) was also released.

At the moment, there is no sign that the end of the Modern Skeleton is near. Apparently, the model continues to be popular. What makes this so successful, and is this watch as good in reality as it is in pictures – that remains to be seen, and seen it will be! A review of one of the latest iterations of the Modern Skeleton is coming up soon, here on Orient Place blog.

 

Orient's Mystery Dials

"Mystery Watches" is a general term for watches where the operation of the mechanism, or the movement of the hands, is not clear to the viewer. More specifically, we speak of Mystery Dials when referring to a watch dial that seems to conceal the way the mechanism makes the hands move around.

While some mystery watches can get very fancy, with transparent wheels that connect to the movement, a more down-to-earth mystery dial effect can be achieved at a relatively low cost. Historically, Orient always preferred to choose the more cost-effective path; and so it did in the case of mystery dials as well.

Let's take a look at some examples of mystery dials from Orient's distant – and more recent – past.

Orient began playing around with unconventional dial/hand configurations as early as the mid-1950s, using its Orient Star range as a platform. These early models, like the ones shown in the above picture, weren't classic "mystery" per se, but they did offer a fairly unusual design.

The second hand was replaced with a kind of turbine, which rotated against a reverse turbine background – thereby creating a cool effect when moving. A number of versions were produced, in black and white.

Toward the end of the 1950s, Orient began developing its new Royal range, so they naturally added a "mystery" version as well.

The Royal Orient's concept was quite similar to the Orient Star, again with the rotating "turbine". However, the execution of the Royal looks a bit more sophisticated. You can read more about this particular model, here.

In the early 1960s, new models joined the Orient line-up. The Grand Prix, another high-end model, was next to get the turbine second-hand; curiously though, the design was a lot simpler, without the fixed part, making the effect a lot less impressive. Part of the "mystery" of the earlier turbine design was also that it hid the base of the hour and minute hands, so only their tips would show; here, this effect was also gone.

However, around the same time, Orient revealed the Freshman. And, the Freshman mystery version finally featured a proper "mystery dial", with an arrow-like second hand, magically hovering around the center of the watch. Indeed it was painted on a transparent disc.

The Olympia range was perhaps Orient's most diverse line in the 1960s. It was only appropriate, then, that it also received the most varied collection of Mystery Dial designs – as you can see in the picture above.

The watches at the top-left and bottom-right corners of the picture use the same style of hovering arrow second hand as the Freshman – quite possibly even the very same part. The model at the top-right corner is somewhat closer in spirit to the early turbine designs, only this one seems to have been somewhat modernized, and given a more streamlined appearance.

This leaves one more watch that's unique not only for its dial, but its entire design. This one is special enough to deserve a dedicated blog post… coming soon!

After the Olympia, Orient have stopped making Mystery Watches, and it took more than 40 years before they returned to this concept.

It was only in 2011, with the introduction of the "Stylish and Smart" Disk watch, that Orient resumed production of a proper mystery dial. This one used an "inverse hand", where a moving disk had a hole shaped like the hour hand which revealed the colors beneath.

Now, using elaborate shapes instead of the second hand, like the early "turbine designs" did, can be quite strenuous for the watch movement, as it needs to constantly push something significantly heavier than a typically very thin hand. Rotating the slow-moving hour hand, however, is fairly effortless. So there's no reason why Orient can't add a bit of mystery to its current line-up, too!

 

Pictures that appear in this post were taken from the 1999 Orient Watch Catalog book, and some other online publications.