Our team

Alex – thewatchregulator     

El Presidente

Alex came to watchmaking late in life. He finally followed his dreams when he moved to Australia from his home in Scotland. Once he started to work within the watch industry a number of worrying things caught his attention as a watch enthusiast. Alex came up with the idea of a place for honest discussion free from the influence of watch brands after discovering that the larger media companies would review watches that had no movements in them. It was at this point that he decided the best people to review watches the actual owners of the watches rather than journalists regurgitating press releases. Shortly after the launch of the Fifth Wrist website he set up a podcast network for an honest discussion about watches and the watch industry, hosted by watchmakers and enthusiasts.

Grail watch: Ed White Speedmaster

Vaughan – hands.faces.cases     

Director of Operational Excellence

Vaughan was given his first watch by his Father on his 12th birthday. Since then he has been captivated by the engineering and art of watches. He has now been collecting watches for over 30 years and learnt recently that his great grandfather and grandfather both had watch collections. He has currently found or been given 9 watches (pocket and wrist) that belonged to family members dating back to 1902. Vaughan shares his passion for watches with his sons and the family collection continues to grow!

Grail watch: pending

Dane – the_watch_vault     

The First Wrist

Dane is a watch trader who enjoys the utmost respect from our community. He buys what he likes and has a passion for high-end independent brands. Dane is a go to source of knowledge for anyone within the Melbourne watch community who is about to do a deal. When he isn’t giving out free advice he can be found lending some of his personal collection to people looking to try something different. This sums up the kind of person Dane is – generous and passionate about his hobby. His dream lifestyle is riding around the city on his motorbike trading in watches and meeting other watch enthusiasts.

Grail watch: Urwerk 210

Rob – geneva_blue_

Second Wrist & Technical Director

Rob made the jump late in life to a watchmaking career after spending a decade travelling the world in various roles. He secured a hard-won place at the Audemars Piguet ‘manufacture’ in Le Brassus in an accelerated watchmaking apprenticeship program. Following stints in various workshops within AP Rob moved 50km along the lake to Geneva itself to manage the first Richard Mille flagship boutique in Switzerland. During these years Rob also met and visited many independent watchmakers in Switzerland, most of whom became good friends. Rob started Geneva Blue in early 2019 to share the watchmaking passion and culture with his friends and customers.

 

Grail watch: Greubel Forsey GMT

Anthony – defining_time

Third Wrist & Chief Radio Officer

Anthony has had a watch on his wrist since his first Mickey Mouse watch at age 3, followed by a G-Shock at age 8. He loved being able to set the alarm on the G-Shock and listen to it play under water (Small things amuse small minds). Banker by day and watch nutter extraordinaire by night. He enjoys researching and learning about watches and their history. When living in Melbourne he was introduced to a world of other watch nerds and a community of like minded people, this was important because he thought he was the only watch nut out there with his level of obsession. He was wrong. Anthony has a fascination with hand made products and appreciates the time and effort that goes into such beautiful pieces and the stories they tell or are yet to tell. He loves simple, mostly time only utilitarian watches, robust and quality is very important and has a ever growing passion for independents.
 

Grail watch: H Moser & Cie Pioneer Perpetual Calendar Funky Blue

Michael – woodswatchmaking

Watchmaker & Podcast Host

Fifth Wrist Radio superfan Michael is a third generation watchmaker who received his Diploma from WOSTEP. He then returned to Australia and accepted a position with Rolex to work in their Melbourne Service Centre. He went on to become their Head Watchmaker, until 2017 when he made the decision to return to independent watchmaking. Michael specialises in the repair, restoration and authentication of vintage Rolex and Tudor. When Michael isn’t listening to podcasts or teaching his children watchmaking, he can be found tearing through the Australian countryside on his beloved Harley or enjoying a glass of Jameson’s.

Grail watch: Swatch Skin Irony 42

Roman – timesromanau

Fourth Wrist, Independent Enthusiast & Podcast Host

“He is so bloody enthusiastic!” is normally how you will hear Roman being described by his friends within the community. When it comes to horology, they don’t come much more enthusiastic than Roman. He classifies himself as a horological history nerd, and collector of horological books, art and timepieces made by independent makers. Roman is a passionate defender of horological artisans, watchmakers, independent watch sellers, and is always keen to shine a spotlight on the amazing contributions the ‘indies’ make to the industry. When he isn’t studying up on Rolex reference numbers he can be found chatting about anything clock or watch-related.

Grail watch: Roger W Smith Series 2

Adam – mediumwatch

Watch Enthusiast & Podcast Host

Adam is an American collector of watches and art, with a bias towards the Bauhaus. True to his handle, his collection revolves around modestly-sized watches from a wide range of both obscure and popular brands. During trips to Switzerland, he has visited Audemars Piguet, IWC, Omega, and Vacheron Constantin. He once inadvertently walked by Ochs und Junior’s headquarters, and was moved to become a collector of their watches as a result. Adam has tried to link his passions for art and watches by painting a dial inspired by the work of Sol LeWitt, and then having it assembled into a watch of his own design. At home, he has regular wrist checks by his daughter, who always hopes he will be wearing something with a moonphase complication.

Grail watch: Patek Philippe Retrograde Perpetual Calendar

Benoit – petitesecondes

Watch Enthusiast & Podcast Host

Benoit has been a part of the Fifth Wrist community since the very start. First we convinced him to review one of his watches, then we convinced him to start his own podcast. Now he hosts The Vintage Henhouse where he discusses vintage watches with other enthusiasts from our global community. Benoit is the talent manager of our mascot Snow the chicken and he is often called upon to do art work for the site. He can also be found on our regular European Gang Talks podcast.

Grail watch: pending

Claus – tapir_ffm

Podcast Host

Claus burst onto the Fifth Wrist scene when he recorded a podcast episode with the legendary Dr. Ludwig Oechslin.  He then went one step further and had the German audio dubbed with English. All so other people from the community could enjoy the conversation. He now hosts our European Gang Talks podcast and helps run our regular global community meet ups on Zoom. Enjoy Claus while you can before he is cancelled for his #watchesandboobswednesday creation.

 

Grail watch: A. Lange & Söhne Datograph

 

Phil – pippy

Podcast Host

Phil started his meteoric rise to power within the global Fifth Wrist Empire by reviewing some of his watches for us. That wasn’t enough for this self-taught watchmaker so he then went on to be crowned Fifth Wrist writer of the year 2020. He continued to shock the world of horology with his greatest achievement thus far, as the host of our European Gang Talks podcast.  Phil can often be found in our community slack group answering questions about Seiko Pogues that nobody can remember even asking him.

 

Grail watch: Breguet No.160

 

Wolfgang – w_a_t_c_h_s_t_y_l_e

Podcast Host

Wolfgang first became noticed when he took 90% of the entire running time of the 2020 Wristies awards to do his wrist check, from that moment on he became invaluable as both the organiser of our behind the scenes Regulars Table events and also as the host of our European Gang Talks podcast.  Wolfgang enjoys sartorial elegance and waxing lyrical about the benefits of non-alcholic drinks.

 

Grail watch: Rotonde de Cartier Mysterious Day & Night

 

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Stuart – watchbrocephus

Editor-at-large

Our most prolific writer is half Scottish and half English and lives in Kentucky with his wife and son. When we first talked to him about reviewing a watch he said that he would only do it if he could be honest. That was perfect for us! When he isn’t supporting his beloved Manchester City FC and Celtic he is buying and selling all kinds of stuff. It isn’t out of the ordinary for him to have had the same watch a number of times. Who better to review a watch than a person who has owned it multiple times. Sometimes by the time his review is up the watch has already left his collection.

Grail watch: Rolex Datejust 16014 (1971)

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Ed – southslope.nyc

Editor-at-large

Ed came down with WIS syndrome relatively late in his life. After recognizing the seriousness of his predicament, he immediately joined Fifth Wrist to get the help and support he needs. An engineer by training and a designer at heart, Ed adores mechanical watches with a mid-century aesthetic. When it comes to his writings on Fifth Wrist, he loves bringing attention to the underappreciated hidden gems of the vintage watch world. These days, Ed spends much of his free time trying to convince his wife to let him get “just one more watch” (but she is very good at keeping Ed’s addiction in check).

Grail watch: Grand Seiko VFA 6185-8021

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Andrej – a.cesnovar

Editor-at-large

As long as I can remember, I’ve been always drawn to two diametrically opposite things – art and engineering. And even though I’ve pursued a career in engineering and metallurgy, art has always stayed close to my heart. For me, watches are the perfect thing that unifies these two seemingly incompatible love interests of mine.

My love for watches begun at a very young age, when my father bought me my first watch – an F-91W Casio. Some years later, I received my first mechanical piece – my grandfather’s Seiko Actus from the ‘70s. And it has all kinda grown from there.

Nowadays, my collection still fluctuates, and as much as I love the romantic idea of having permanent pieces as a part of it, I’m also a firm believer that you shouldn’t limit yourself and should try to experience as much as you can. My tastes are usually more left-field and instead of following the watch community dogma, I enjoy discovering lesser-known pieces and great value propositions.

Making reviews on fifthwrist has provided me with an opportunity to combine another two of my passions – writing and watches – as well as to share my humble knowledge and insight with the community. And for that, I’ll always be grateful.

Grail watch: doesn’t believe in it

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sgtudorboy1988

Editor-at-large

A watch collector based in Singapore whose journey started in the early 2000s when he was gifted his first mechanical watch – a Tudor Hydronaut and it was a highway straight down the rabbit hole! Prioritizing practicality is a key tenet in curating his medley of timepieces, but every so often, he slips away with dress watches. Each piece encapsulates a memory, strung together, it forms his life story. He hopes to stick to his mantra for not letting any go as he grows his collection.

Grail watch: Lange 1 Tourbillon Handwerkskunst

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Richard

Editor-at-large

Richard grew up with the makers gene in his blood. As the son of a blacksmith he learned from a young age the wonders of hand made objects. He studied history at Oxford University where his love of horology really began to take hold. Known for sometimes rubbing people up the wrong way, he isn’t shy when it comes to sharing his thoughts on the watch industry. Richard splits his time between his homes in St. Albans and Avignon where he studies astronomy.

Grail watch: Bovet Récital 20 Astérium