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
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
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)
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
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
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
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
