Friday 13 December 2013

Rado...

Rado DiaMaster in Plasma high-tech ceramic for a metallic look with no metal. Indexes frosted with 93 diamonds make this ultra-feminine timepiece a girl’s best friend!

Are diamonds a must for your watch?

Wednesday 11 December 2013

Rado Watches: Rado watch store, Singapore

Rado Watches: Rado watch store, Singapore: Rado watch store, Singapore Rado’s global brand ambassadress, Rene Liu, joins the Swiss watch company in unveiling the first Rado Sto...

Rado watch store, Singapore


Rado watch store, Singapore


Rado store Singapore Rado watch store, Singapore
Rado’s global brand ambassadress, Rene Liu, joins the Swiss watch company in unveiling the first Rado Store in Singapore, at the iconic Marina Bay Sands. Inside Rado Store Singapore, the luminous space is matched with sleek modern black counters, a dynamic contrast in black and white combined with the colourful array of watch images which expresses the new spirit of the future oriented brand.
Rado store Singapore 02 Rado watch store, Singapore
The new advertising campaign including explosions or implosions, immersions or splashes of materials perfectly reflects the innovative materials used for Rado’s design watches and allows the focus to be on the products.
Rado store Singapore 03 Rado watch store, Singapore

Rado Watches, the Brand, the History

Lovers of high quality fashion designer watches have been fascinated for years by the premium quality and by the trend-setting innovations Rado watches are famous for. With cutting edge inventions like high-tech ceramics, scratch resistant surfaces and the development of the world's hardest diamond for use in watch-making, Rado has become a renowned brand leader. Rado is famous for its good-looking watches and for outstanding durability and the exceptional accuracy of its premium timepieces.
Rado Watches
rado watches
In Business Since 1917
With a long-standing history since the company's beginning in 1917, the Rado watch name has been one of the world's most trusted names in fine watches. This is when three brothers, Werner, Fritz and Ernest Schlup became business partners by opening their Schlup And Company clock factory in Lengnau, Switzerland. They could not have known where this new business venture would take them in the future in the competitive world of watch-making.
Their success story continued when, in 1957, Rado Uhren AG was begun and new watch collections sprang up from this new name in innovation. Rado was instrumental in delivering the world's first scratch resistant watch when the DiaStar 1 came out in 1962. In the 1980s, the brand began to feature new, ground breaking ceramics. This innovation soon became one of the things that Rado is best known for.
Rado's Best Known Innovation And Creative Vision
Holding true to their motto of "If we can imagine it, we can make it," Rado quickly became known for its most famous innovation, the use of the world's hardest diamond in watch-making. The Rado V10k that came out in 2004 is known the world over as the hardest watch on the market. It features an inventive, high-tech diamond material. This premium diamond has a hardness on the Vicker scale of 10,000, the scale's highest measurement.
Rado's team of skilled watch makers expanded over the years to include scientists, engineers and creatively visionary designers. Together they have fashioned some of the most beautiful and visually pleasing watches on the market today. In 1998, the company became part of the highly successful Swatch group.
The distinctive, innovative design of Rado watches sets this brand apart from all others. Rado became a highly regarded brand name through the use of new materials like tungsten and titanium carbide, which are also known as ceramics, and by featuring diamond and sapphire crystal. This use of new cutting edge materials has kept Rado on the leading frontier of the industry.
Durability Seamlessly Blended With Style Has Been Awarded
Along with the use of exceptional materials for durability, Rado watches have received many design awards for their distinctive design offerings over the years. They have received awards ranging from the industry renowned If Design Award to the Red Dot award. These highly regarded awards were received because of Rado watches exceptional functionality blended with ground breaking, industry changing design.
The Rado True Thin Line watch line received an honourable mention at the 2012 Red Dot awards, along with being featured in a display at Red Dot museums in Singapore and Germany. Chosen from over 14,000 entries from over 70 countries, this Red Dot award is one that Rado does not take lightly. A panel of thirty people chose this creatively designed watch line over a period of several days. At least ten of Rado's watches have been honoured with prestigious Red Dot awards over the years.
Styles And Prices Vary Widely
Rado watches come in styles that range from D-Original and D-Star to Hyperchrome, Centrix, Thin Line and True. They are available in both men's and women's styles. Prices vary widely, beginning at around $700. The price of a fine Rado watch can go as high in $250,000, depending on the styling and the use of diamonds, baguette diamonds, sapphire crystal and pave dials. Rado watches are considered to be an investment in premium functionality and trend-setting style in some of the finest fashion watches available today.

Tuesday 26 November 2013

Posts Tagged ‘Rado watches’

Andy Murray rocks the RADO D-STAR AUTOMATIC Watch as he grabs the Grand Slam

Tuesday, September 11th, 2012
Scottish tennis star Andy Murray scooped the Grand Slam title at last night’s US Tennis Open becoming the first British man to win a Grand Slam since 1936 … and he celebrated in style wearing the stylish Rado D-Star Automatic Watch.
andy-murray-watch-_2335762b[1]
After the historic win, Andy was caught on camera searching for his coveted Rado watch which he had taken off before the big game, and was even spotted calling to his girlfriend Kim Sears, who was in the crowd cheering, to find out if she had his watch.
The Rado D-Star 200 Automatic Chronograph XXL Watch is one of the Swiss watch brand’s most prestigious timepieces and features a sleek monochromatic design that demands attention and admiration.
Andy was signed up as a brand ambassador for Rado earlier this year and can regularly be seen wearing the Swiss brand’s stylish time pieces. Rado’s luxury timepieces have also been spotted on the wrists of celebrities including Cameron Diaz, Bruce Willis and Will Smith.
andy-murray[1]
Rado watches, including the Rado D-Star 200 Automatic Chronograph XXL watch, can be found at Braehead, Silverburn and online at www.rox.co.uk.

Rado True Watches

Monday, July 2nd, 2012
New in store and online this week are some superbly refined timepieces in the Rado True watches range. These elegant ladies watches are created with effortlessly understated style, featuring subtly rounded ceramic cases and bracelets.
Naturally, such quality comes at a price, but Rox make owning these superior Rado watches remarkably affordable with interest free credit – own a Rado True watch from under £30 per month.
Buy Rado True watches online with 0% finance »
Rado True Automatic Ceramic Watch R27351102Rado True Black Ceramic Bracelet Watch R27654162

The New Rado D-Star 200: A Return To The Sane Diver?

The New Rado D-Star 200: A Return To The Sane Diver?

Rado is a brand we haven’t paid attention to for… well, forever. They made their mark back in the 1960s with their DiaStar line of watches, which were distinguished by their virtually scratchproof cases, made from high-tech ceramics. Through the ‘60s and 1970s, Rado kept a distinctive look that gradually became dated – thin rectangular dress watches and bulbous helmet-shaped sports watches, many with pedestrian quartz movements. And while Rado has never really caught on in the USA, it was for a long time one of the bestselling watch brands in Europe. Now Rado has released a new line of dive watches that made us sit up and take notice: the D-Star 200.
Nowadays, dive watches with ridiculous depth ratings and obese case dimensions are a dime a dozen. While they may be great conversation starters for landlubbers, these overweight leviathans are uncomfortable to wear and unfriendly to shirtsleeves and door frames alike. We’re waiting for a backlash against this trend, and a return to more sane divers. And that’s what we like about the Rado D-Star 200. The watch channels a ‘60s diver vibe due to its slim profile, narrow bezel, cushion-shaped case and modest (read “realistic”) depth rating of 200 meters. The classic, clean dial with minimal text, subtle date magnifier, baton hands and applied markers make this a versatile piece that give it a dressed-up aesthetic.
The Rado D-Star 200 comes in two basic self-winding iterations – a three-hand automatic with date and a two-register chronograph. Both will be powered by modified ETA movements –a 2824-2 and an A05.H31 that is exclusive to Rado, with a 54-hour power reserve. Display casebacks show the decorated movements. Rado says there will be five versions of each model, differed presumably by strap and bracelet choices and dial colors. No word yet on pricing or availability but more information and photos can be found here

Monday 25 November 2013

Rado Hyper chrome Automatic watches

Rado HyperChrome Automatic Watches

Rado HyperChrome Automatic Watches   rado
"HyperChrome" sounds like a pretty cool name if you ask me. That could be the name a neat video game or anime TV show. But no, for 2012 the HyperChrome is going to be a new collection of watches from Rado. In this article I am debuting two of the new HyperChrome watches, but according to Rado there will be about 27 varieties this year alone!
The HyperChrome asserts Rado's key strength as a producer of quality ceramic watches. Available in black and white ceramic variants, Rado uses some sophisticated technology to make nicely formed ceramic parts. The case for example is a monocoque (single) piece, with hardened steel sidings. Hardness rating for them is 1,250 Vickers. It comes in a few styles and sizes for both men and women.
Rado HyperChrome Automatic Watches   rado
Rado HyperChrome Automatic Watches   rado
Rado has learned over the last few years that many of its key designs (many thematically unchanged since the 1980s) are a bit too distinct for the modern mass market. I think that a lot of their core pieces will stick around, but they are really working on spicing up the collection with more mainstream designs. Rado was the first brand to really make something of the ceramic watch, but it took Chanel to highly popularize the material. Learning a few lessons from Chanel as well as other brands, Rado is pushing forward to become a major brand internationally once again.
The men's piece here is in black ceramic with steel pushers (set with ceramic pieces in them). The crown is rubber coated. The case is 45mm wide and sporty in an elegant manner. The design reminds me a bit of some of the more recent Movado pieces. The piece is called the Rado HyperChrome Automatic Chronograph XXL (I assume there will be smaller ones as well with a name like that). The case and bracelet look great and the dial is very traditional with modern minimalist elements.
Rado HyperChrome Automatic Watches   rado
Rado HyperChrome Automatic Watches   rado
An interesting design note that Rado mentions is that the Rado anchor logo placed under 12 o'clock actually moves. I assume it spins around like a tiny rotor if I understand their language correctly. If that is true then I think it will be fun and unique element to the collection. The cases are really quite nice and I enjoy what Rado is doing mixing metal and ceramic parts. The side of the HyperChrome Automatic Chronograph XXL is just very neat looking. Crystals are of course sapphire, and the cases are water resistant to 100 meters.
Both the three-hand and chronograph variants share the same type of dial theme. Mid 20th century era hands and hour markers that you'd find in Rado pieces from the past. They translate well into classy sport watch styles in watches today. For women Rado has use previewing for you a white and PVD rose gold women's model of the HyperChrome. The attractive looking piece is 36mm wide and feels like a good mix of white and gold colors. I am very curious about the rest of the HyperChrome collection.
Rado HyperChrome Automatic Watches   rado
This HyperChrome Chronograph comes with a Swiss ETA 2894-2 automatic chronograph movement while the HyperChrome Automatic contains an ETA 2681 automatic movement. While I don't know too much about the rest of the watches I do know that there will be additional case size options. All will be in either black or white ceramic, and there will be automatic and quartz movement options available. There will also be models of the HyperChrome with diamond decoration. The bracelets further look appealing - and according to Rado they have titanium deployment clasps.
Overall it seems like Rado is starting off 2012 properly with their new D-Star 200 Dive watch and the HyperChrome. Two product families with universal appeal and good use of the brand strengths and history.


Useful Links

Here are some sites I find particularly useful.
Site Description
http://www.phfactor.net/wtf/ Huge amounts of technical sheets
http://cousinsuk.com/ Cousins UK, supplier of lots of watch parts
http://cgi.julesborel.com/ Jules Borel Parts Database
http://davidbill.co.uk David Bill & Sons Dial Restoration
http://kronoswelt.de Kronoswelt Dial Restoration
http://replateit.com ReplateIt Case replating

Repair + Service: Rado DiaStar Magic / ETA2789

IMG_8915Alistair sent in this great looking DiaStar Magic, and it’s not working at all. When it comes to funky case and crystal design, it doesn’t get much better than what Rado used to do. This is as space age as it gets!
IMG_8918Even though the movement is marked as a Rado 2798, but in reality, it’s an old friend, the ETA2789.
IMG_8921
The dial has suffered a bit, but there isn’t much I can do about that.IMG_8922
Bottom plate with day and date ring.IMG_8923
The day/date change mechanism now visible.IMG_8928
The gear train.
IMG_8930-circle
And here is our culprit – one of the case clamps broke in two, and a bit got stuck on the barrel. No wonder the watch isn’t working!IMG_8931
The second hand arbor has a bit of rust on it, but that will come off.IMG_8933
The mainspring is still in very good shape, and I will leave it in the movement.IMG_8941
Almost done.IMG_8947
All ready for the cleaning machine.IMG_8948
The cleaned parts ready for reassembly.IMG_8949
Epilame treatment.IMG_8950
As I’m reusing the mainspring, I wind it up again.IMG_8951
Wound and ready for the barrel.IMG_8952
The barrel wall got some braking grease, and the mainspring itself gets some mainspring grease.IMG_8953
The balance jewels are back in.IMG_8954
With the wheel bridge back in, the gear train is moving. You can now see the ETA stamp and calibre number.IMG_8955
And the base movement is ticking again.IMG_8957
Oh yes, baby!IMG_9080
The auto-winder bridge is back on.IMG_9081
And the bottom plate comes back together.IMG_9082
Hands and dial back on.IMG_9086And cased.
IMG_9087