Yema's Bronze Superman CMM.10; Farer Updates Palmer GMT; Union Glashütte Celebrates 180 Years; Tutima Releases Patria Evergreen; Zenith's Defy Extreme Lapis Lazuli; Urwerk Completes UR-230 Trilogy

Hey friends, welcome back to It’s About Time. We’re in the last week of the newsletter for the year. That means that we’re starting the countdown of the best watches tomorrow. But until then, a couple of great releases.

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In this issue

• Yema Releases The Superman Bronze CMM.10 Limited Edition "Navy Blue"

• Frederique Constand And Time+Tide Release A Very Stealthy Highlife Moonphase Manufacture Onyx Moon

• Union Glashütte Celebrates 180 Years With A Duo Focused On Seconds

• Tutima Glashütte Releases The Patria Evergreen With Eastern Arabic Numerals

• Zenith Pushes The Stone Dial Trend Perhaps A Bit Too Far With The Defy Extreme Lapis Lazuli

• Urwerk Completes The UR-230 Trilogy With The Mean Looking Black Star

• FOR WATCH CLUB MEMBERS Your Next Watch, Week 63: A Still Cool Hodinkee Collab; A One-Watch Collection Omega; An Incredible Tissot Deal; And The Last Watch Of The Year

👂What’s new

1/

Yema Releases The Superman Bronze CMM.10 Limited Edition "Navy Blue"

There’s a somewhat justifiable reason why it’s not just microbrands, but also brands like TAG Heuer, IWC, and Oris (although this is changing) rely on ETA, Sellita and LJP movements instead of building their own in-house movements. Not only is creating a brand-new in-house calibre expensive (and often difficult), it requires significant strategic planning in order to keep supply and demand in perfect balance. And if it goes wrong, it will most often go horribly wrong. So, it’s understandable why in-house is a route that only the biggest and boldest go for. Unless, of course, you’re Yema. Interestingly, Yema is not a microbrand, but it’s also not a huge watchmaker. They’ve been around since the late 1940s, reaching their peak in the 60s when they were the top exporter in France, selling more than 500,000 watches per year. The brand went under and was revived to much enthusiasm - steadily approaching 100,000 watches sold. In their revival infancy, they used accessible movements from ETA and Sellita, but then decided to bring back movement manufacture back to France. They started with the YEMA2000, their French-made ETA and Sellita alternative, which is where things went wrong for them. They took a few steps back and restarted their movement operation, with a dedicated factory just for them, producing interesting micro rotor and torubillon movements, before going for the in-house CMM.10, their everyday time-only movement. Now, this movement finds its way into the new Yema Superman limited edition, made in bronze, with a fantastic navy blue dial.

The regular Yema Superman is the perfect balance between the rugged Superman 500, the Superman Slim, and other variants of the Superman. To offer more versatility, it comes in two sizes — 39 or 41mm. Both are made out of bronze, and both have pretty much the same thickness, 10.85mm on the smaller and 10.95mm on the larger. The 39mm version has a 48mm lug-to-lug (with an unfortunate 19mm lug width), while the 41mm comes with a 49mm lug-to-lug and 20mm wide lugs. On top is a domed sapphire crystal, with a bronze unidirectional bezel with an engraved 60 minute scale. The bezel also has a locking mechanism which only unlocks when you unscrew the crown. Very cool, but not really practical for on-the-fly adjustments. Water resistance is 300 meters.

There are many dial options on the Superman, but this one is one of the best. They call it navy blue, but it looks almost like a light denim, especially thanks to the vertical brushing it gets, exposing a bit of white underneath. It really looks like a well worn-in pair of jeans. It’s also a sandwich construction, with cutouts for the hour markers that have the lower part painted in white lume. The hands match the bronze case, with a lumed lollipop seconds hand.

Inside, like I said, is the CMM.10 movement, designed by Yema and made almost exclusively in Switzerland and France. Designed by watchmaker Olivier Mory, this time-only movement has an anti-magnetic Glucydur balance wheel, is regulated to chronometric precision (but without actual certification), beats at 28,800bph, and has a modern 70-hour power reserve. You can see the movement through the case, and it’s quite an interesting architecture. The watches come on a spectacularly handsome fish scale-looking bracelet that closes with a double-security folding clasp with a wet-suit extension.

The new Yema Superman CMM.10 Bronze Edition Navy is limited to 100 pieces per size and available now, priced at €1,790. See more on the Yema website.

2/

Farer Updates Their Cool Palmer GMT With Eastern Arabic Numerals

Unlike the Tutima that you will read about in a bit, this new watch from Farer is not a straggler from Dubai Watch Week, despite the inclusion of Easter Arabic numerals. No, it’s just a different take on their Palmer GMT watch that they first introduced back in 2023. The new Palmer GMT takes pretty much the same case, same dial and same fantastic colorway, but replaces all of the Arabic numerals with their Eastern counterparts. I dig it.

At the time it was released, the Palmer case hit a happy medium in Farer’s GMT lineup which was 36mm and 41mm at the time. It still some pretty attractive dimensions — 39.5mm wide and just 10.8mm thick. It has a polished fixed bezel, a brushed case face and polished sides, topped by a wonderful box-style sapphire crystal. Water resistance is 100 meters, as you would expect from Farer by now.

To call this a white dial watch would do it a disservice. In fact, Farer doesn’t call it white. It’s pearlescent opaline, which gives the dial’s surface a slightly creamier tinge. All of the elongated applied hour markers are made of blocks of lume, painted black on top, making it look like it’s backlit. On the inner track is a 24-hour ring of Eastern Arabic numerals printed in teal, which matches the teal GMT. Orange details can be found on the seconds hand and smaller numerals, again Eastern Arabic, around the dial’s edge. At 3 o’clock is a well integrated date aperture, with teal Eastern Arabic dates inside.

Just like the other Farer GMT models, the Palmer GMT is powered by the Sellita SW330-2 which gives you a frequency of 28,800 vph, 56 hours of power reserve and a caller-style GMT function. The watches can be had on a wide variety of straps or on one of their metal bracelets at an extra cost.

The new Farer Palmer EA is a limited edition of 100 pieces, and they give you the ability to choose your engraved number. Pre-orders are open now, with shipping expected in early February. Price is set at €1,575. See more on the Farer website.

3/

Union Glashütte Celebrates 180 Years With A Duo Focused On Seconds

I wouldn’t call Union Glashütte watches cheap — either in price or in quality — but they have been known to provide a lot of bang for your buck. But for 180 years now, the brand has been working with the same approach in mind — offer fine Saxon craftsmanship at accessible prices. Now, they’re celebrating that anniversary with a pair of 1893 Johannes Dürrstein Anniversary Editions, the Large Second 41mm and Small Second 34mm, with a lot of style and a really great price.

Both watches come in steel cases with not much detail to them, letting the dials do most of the talking here. The larger one measures 41mm wide and 11.8mm thick, while the smaller one measures 34mm wide and 9.6mm thick. Both have domed sapphire crystal, with the bezel on the bigger one being a bit thinner than on the smaller. There’s also a difference in water resistance — 100 meter on the larger and 50 meters on the small one.

But while their cases are similar, the dials are very different. Sure, they both have the same taupe grained base with silver brushed and polished contrasting dials and tracks, but they also have completely different setups. The Large Second has off-centered hours and minutes on the left and, as the name suggests, a large seconds display on the right side, with an integrated date aperture. The Small Second version has a small seconds sub-dial at 6 o’clock, also with a date aperture. Both versions, however, have fantastic heat blued hands.

Inside, you’ll find a pair of horribly named movements. The large one has the U2899-993, and the smaller one has the U2895-2. They are derivations of the ETA 2899 and ETA 2895-2 architectures, both with 42 hour power reserves and fantastic decorations which include perlage, blued screws, and striping. The watches come on black calfskin leather straps with a double-fold clasp.

The new Union Glashütte 1893 Johannes Dürrstein Anniversary Edition watches are limited to 99 pieces per size, available individually or as a collector’s boxed with both watches. Price for the Small Second is €1,780, while the Large Second is €1,960. See more on the Union Glashütte website, here for the Small Seconds and here for the Large.

4/

Tutima Glashütte Releases The Patria Evergreen With Eastern Arabic Numerals

The end of this year has been a mess when it comes to watch releases. There have been so many that I have been running a 6-watch lineup instead of the regular 5 for a while and I’m still not keeping up. I’m taking a break after this week and already have all the watches for the week planned out, and still, I have 35 watches I haven’t written about. So it’s no surprise that I’m still writing about watches that were released back in November for Dubai Watch week. I wouldn’t bother otherwise, but I really like Tutima watches. And I really like this one they released for Dubai, the Patria Evergreen with their new titanium case, a wonderful green dial and Eastern Arabic numerals.

The Patria Evergreen is based on the recently introduced titanium version of the Patria, made out of polished grade 5 titanium, with an elegant shape and soft and swooping lugs. There’s something cool about titanium being used on a dress watch with a polished finish. The case measures 41mm wide and 11.2mm thick. That width might seem substantial, but from all the photos, it seems to wear smaller than the numbers might suggest. On top is a domed sapphire crystal that extends to the very edges of the case, with a discreet bezel around it. Water resistance is 50 meters.

The Evergreen also uses the same dial as the regular titanium versions but with a new, fantastic, green color and the inclusion of Eastern Arabic numerals at 12, 4 and 8 o’clock. You still get the same base that has a tiny pyramid pattern, a grooved smalls seconds display at 6 o’clock and diamond-cut indices, paired with manually finished hands.

Inside, you’ll find the in-house Tutima 617 manually wound movement which beats at 21,600vph and has a 65 hour power reserve. It’s a beautiful and impressive movement, with the iconic three-quarter-plate with Glashütte ribbing, beveling by hand as well as its ruby bearings set in screwed gold chatons. The pallet fork, specially manufactured in the Glashütte atelier, transmit the energy of the gear train to the balance, providing the heartbeat of the movement. The watch comes on a green alligator leather strap.

The new Tutima Patria Evergreen is limited 25 pieces and priced at €8,900. Tutima really has great value for money. See more on the Tutima website.

5/

Zenith Pushes The Stone Dial Trend Perhaps A Bit Too Far With The Defy Extreme Lapis Lazuli

Zenith has been making some pretty cool limited editions with their Defy Extreme model. I don’t know if you remember the completely bonkers Defy Extreme Jungle, which incorporates greens, tiger stripes, and precious stones, to make it look like a, well, jungle. People might call it crass and tacky, but I loved it. Sure, the Defy extreme line is already a very experimental line for Zenith, but I love it when a brand pushes things way forward. Now, they took on the stone-dial trend that has been overwhelming the industry and it’s… interesting. Not exactly my thing, but I think it goes to show that if you push things forward, you might sometime stumble. But they’ll get up. In the meantime, this is the new Zenith Defy Extreme Lapis Lazuli.

The steel case of the Defy Extreme is not a small one, but it’s not meant to be small. It measures 45mm wide, a hefty 15.4mm thick and an actually not that exaggerated lug-to-lug of 51mm, thanks to the relatively short lugs and integrated bracelet. The finishing is as wild as the rest of the design, with a full mirror polishing, and microblasted gold on the dodecagonal bezel and bases of the chronograph pushers. Despite its extreme look, it’s still quite functional, with a 200 meter water resistance.

But as controversial as the case might be, it’s nothing compared to the dial. In the middle of the dial is a sort of four-leaf clover shaped of blue lapis lazuli stone with golden pyrite inclusions. That holds the tri compax setup — a 30-minute counter at 3 o’clock, a 60-second counter at 6 o’clock and running seconds at 9 o’clock — and the Zenith logo and power reserve at 12 o’clock. that entire stone contraption sits over an openworked dial, with hour indices mounted on a blue flange. The indices and half-skeletonized hands are gold plated and filled with lume.

To make that possible, Zenith uses the El Primero 9004, which brings up the beat rate from 5Hz to 50Hz. Even with twin barrels, with such a fast beat rate, the 50-hour power reserve is pretty impressive. The watch comes on a mirror-polished steel bracelet, with an additional black embossed rubber strap and a black Velcro strap.

The new Zenith Defy Extreme Lapis Lazuli is a limited edition of 50 watches, available only in Zenith retailers. Price is set at €34,900. See more on the Zenith website.

6/

Urwerk Completes The UR-230 Trilogy With The Mean Looking Black Star

I only recently learned that the Urwerk UR-230 series was always intended to be a trilogy — the Eagle, the Polaris, and the watch we have today, the Black Star. For some reason, despite me already being a huge fan of the brand, that made the funky UR-230 even cooler. The Eagle came with a half-covered crystal, the Polaris did some very cool stuff with hybrid-ceramics to create a stark white case, and the Black Star continues where the Polaris stopped. We’re back to the traditional Urwerk acid-yellow and deep blacks, with the same cool material.

The case of the new UR-230 Black Star is quite large, measuring 44.81mm wide, 18.38mm thick and 53.55mm long. The case is once again black, made with the same polymer base that uses sheets of ceramic and fiberglass. The color comes from the resin, which is machined to achieve the final shape, revealing all the layers inside. Very cool. This version also doesn’t have the crystal cover, giving you a full look inside. Water resistance is 30 meters. Not great, but this is not exactly a dive watch.

There’s no dial to speak of. Instead, you get a look at the three-armed carrousel that carries rotating hour cubes for the wandering hours complication. The cube that points towards the wearer shows the correct time, and there’s a three-dimensional retrograde hand that sweeps along a dedicated track for the minutes. The hours, markers and automatic winding indicator all have green Super-LumiNova. The 60-minute mark and the “Off” position for automatic winding are hand-painted with red lume that glows green.

Inside is the UR-7.30 calibre which beats at 4Hz, with a 48 hour power reserve. The movement has a dual turbine system that minimizes the impact of external shocks and optimizes airflow to the winding mechanism. An adjustable “air brake” also allows fine-tuning of the winding efficiency. The watch comes on a rubber strap with a Velcro closure.

The new Urwerk UR-230 Black Star is available now, limited to 35 pieces. Price is set at CHF 150,000, without tax. See more on the Urwerk website.

FOR WATCH CLUB MEMBERS Your Next Watch, Week 63: A Still Cool Hodinkee Collab; A One-Watch Collection Omega; An Incredible Tissot Deal; And The Last Watch Of The Year

We continue with our exploration of watches we shouldn't spend our money on, but most likely will. Read it here. 

⏲️End links

A bunch of links that might or might not have something to do with watches. One thing’s for sure - they’re interesting

• A vanished fintech star, a war-torn petrostate, and a trail of missing millions: this investigation follows fugitive Wirecard executive–turned–Russian asset Jan Marsalek into Libya’s cement plants and oil rigs, tracing how hidden investments, shell companies, and Mayfair dealmaking became a covert lever for Moscow’s power games — and sparked a new shadow war among his former partners.

• Netflix ditches the couch for the mall, transforming dying department stores into immersive playgrounds packed with Stranger Things VR, Wednesday goth fairs, and One Piece escape rooms. As streaming giants chase Warner Bros. and eyeballs flee to TikTok, these red-hued Houses lure fans back to brick-and-mortar with merch, mini-golf, and endless IP autoplay, trying to prove the future of binge culture is hands-on.

• A bookish college sophomore turns mandatory South Korean military service into a clandestine reading marathon—smuggling printouts, pulling graveyard shifts, and dodging hazing rituals amid barracks cruelty and rank tyranny. But in this Kafkaesque gulag of boyhood, does literature foster empathy or mere detachment from the human drama unfolding around him?

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