The ever-charming Antoine Pin of Bvlgari fame sits down with Rob to chat about his life in the industry, how his experience has shaped his approach to watch design and story-telling, and what possibilities might lie in store for Bvlgari in the future. In an energetic chat, Pin explains how he became bewitched by the industry and never managed to stay away from it for long. The fusion of passion, talent, and manual skill enthralls him on a daily basis at Bvlgari, and his guiding "why not&quo...
Nov 07, 2021•38 min•Season 3Ep. 76
Oct 28, 2021•56 min•Season 3Ep. 75
Here at Fratello, we love Casio. Some would say we love the brand too much. Those people would be wrong. Very wrong indeed... Today, Rob is talking to three of his teammates to the smooth booth to discuss their shared love and long-held obsessions with the Japanese Juggernaut that blessed the world with the G-Shock watch family. First up is G2. As the elder statesman of the team, "the G-Father" was actually an adult when G-Shock first appeared in the early eighties. This gives him a un...
Oct 11, 2021•1 hr 25 min•Season 3Ep. 74
Today on the Fratello on Air, Rob is joined by the boys from Straum watch company, way up in Norway. This emerging brand is the result of five years' hard work, a huge personal investment of time and money, and the inspiration offered by Norway's myths, legends, and landscape. The brand's Opphav model ranks near the top of several Fratello team members' wish lists so we thought it'd be a good idea to get the lads on the show to find out more. You can buy these watches on...
Sep 12, 2021•34 min•Season 3Ep. 73
WASP 9.91 sees the guys go to two decimal places for the first time, much to the confusion of everyone else. Less confusing, however, is the duo's shared love of a very special Omega Speedmaster created for the Olympics, but that's not the only Olympic watch to feature... Far from it... For the first time ever, an on-air purchase occurs as Rob stumbles across his all-time favorite Swatch available on eBay for a stunning price (box and papers included). Additionally, Fridge and Freezer ...
Sep 03, 2021•1 hr 5 min•Season 3Ep. 71
myhe boys are back in town after a desperately long hiatus. We've plugged in the fridge and switched on the freezer — Balazs and I are back and this week we have our top Olympic moments and some awesome vintage Omega purchases to share with you. We decided to choose our bronze, silver, and gold performers/moments from the Olympics this year, to round off what turned out to be a pretty darn exciting edition of the greatest sporting carnival of all. Normally, I don't reveal much about th...
Aug 26, 2021•48 min•Season 3Ep. 70
Over in article land, my good friend Dave Sergeant has written up the new release from URWERK and Collective today, so please feel free to check that out at your leisure for a detailed look at the watch itself and Dave's hot takes, and what is his favorite base model in the URWERK catalog. On the Podcast today, however, we're diving into the background of this project with Martin Frei of URWERK fame and co-founder of Collective, Asher Rapkin. Collective is a US-based group of watch lov...
Jul 20, 2021•56 min•Season 3Ep. 69
Welcome watch fans, to another very special episode of Watching Sports And Sporting Watches. Today, I (Rob) am joined by Fred Buyle, Ulysse Nardin ambassador, professional free diver, passionate conservationist, and, perhaps most interestingly for our community, a real watch guy. You'd probably expect a lot more ambassadors to be as into watches as Fred clearly is, but it really isn't the case. I've encountered sports stars and celebrities that have no idea what their agent is tel...
Jul 16, 2021•46 min•Season 3Ep. 68
Fridge and Freezer return after a short break with fifty minutes of top-quality sports chat, as several competitions get down to the sharp end. In an impassioned exchange, Balazs question's Rob's right to support England in Euro 2020 given his Irish birth, while Bobbysled Bobby defends himself on the grounds of dual nationality and his upbringing having been blighted by the national woe of being so thoroughly incompetent when it comes to major tournaments. The boys lament the fate of P...
Jul 11, 2021•52 min•Season 3Ep. 67
After coming down from the interview with World Number One Primož Roglič last week, Fridge and Freezer are back in the Smooth Booth, foraging around in a bulging mailbag. This week, the boys select two very watch-centric questions for one another. This week, the terrible twosome tackle questions about dress watches (the best ones and the very definition of the genre), which watches one should buy to commemorate achieving the PADI diving certification, why they collect watches and sports memorabi...
Jun 25, 2021•49 min•Season 3Ep. 66
Can you believe it? Fourteen episodes in, WASP welcomes its very first pro-athlete, and we've kicked things off with an absolute stunner: we're welcoming Primož Roglič, the number one ranked road cyclist in the world. A two-time grand tour winner, Roglič began his career as a ski-jumper, before rapidly rising the rankings to stand at the very summit of his new sport. Following Rob's chat with Primož, Balazs returns to the studio, reuniting the Fridge & Freezer presenting duo a...
Jun 19, 2021•48 min•Season 3Ep. 65
With Rob "the little man" Nudds on the road, Balazs takes over the mic and welcomes Dave "down the pub" Sergeant to the smooth booth to round up the NBA action from the play-offs. How will Fridge fare without Freezer? And what on Earth is the wee man's excuse for leaving the Horntail untended? Tune in to find out. Find and follow us on Instagram at @davesergeant , @ferenczibazs , and @robnudds ....
Jun 13, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Season 3Ep. 64
The last year or so has certainly been special, but now that things are reopening, it's time to get back out there. Perhaps you've read Fratello like crazy, but have you been able to try on any of the great watches that came out over the past 12 to 18 months? Finally, the reopening is here. Sure, in places like the USA or Japan, they never truly closed. However, some folks have waited to head out until feeling comfortable. Here in Europe, stores were closed for something like six month...
Jun 12, 2021•57 min•Season 3Ep. 63
A couple of weeks ago, our very own Ben Hodges enjoyed an illuminating back-and-forth with one of his musical heroes. The gracious Misha Mansoor of the metal band Periphery took some time out of his day to chat about timepieces. Today, we revisit that interview with the audio supplied by Misha, interspersed with the fearsomely inane commentary of Ben and Rob. Okay, we're not that bad. In fact, there's a good argument to be made that we might be mildly entertaining. From my perspective,...
Jun 06, 2021•1 hr 14 min•Season 3Ep. 62
It's true that Fratello boasts one of the more multinational teams. One of our listeners from Finland decided to take advantage of that by asking us about watch culture around the globe. How do people come together, do they come together, and do they even like watches in some countries? We don't have all the answers, but we enjoyed the chat. This time, it's Mike, Jorg, and Balazs on the mics for a bit of banter. Wrist check and the news The gents roll through a "Handgelenks K...
May 30, 2021•1 hr 5 min•Season 2Ep. 63
Welcome to Episode 61 of Fratello on Air, otherwise known as WASP 9.3. After spending the last three weeks rummaging around in our mailbag, we’re returning to the world of sports to provide you with a quick whizz around the American sports leagues to keep you abreast of news and developments in the NBA, NHL, MLB, and NFL. Find us on Instagram @robnudds and @ferenczibazs ....
May 21, 2021•1 hr 7 min•Season 3Ep. 61
RJ chats with the guiding IWC into the next phase of its development, who, coincidentally, also happens to be the same man that designed IWC's current manufacturing headquarters... Some people have all the talent...
May 21, 2021•22 min•Season 2Ep. 60
Hi and hello watch fans, and welcome to Fratello on Air Episode 59, otherwise known as WASP 9.2. Balazs is in Hungary; Rob is in Dresden but soon to hit the road once more. As such, a whistle-stop episode of WASP was recorded in between many other things, so our dedicated listeners don't have to go without their weekly fix of Skilly Music's sweet theme tune... Today we talk about the Champions League finalists (and how we called it way back in Episode 9.0), the best watch to wear (or n...
May 14, 2021•25 min•Season 2Ep. 59
Yo, yo, yo, we've gone decimal! I knew there was a reason we had those funny old episode numbers. Now we finally know why. The long-planned episode 10 has been delayed because for the first time this year both Balazs (Fridge) and Rob (Freezer) are in different countries (whaaat?). That's right, episode 9.1 (the second installment of our mailbag series) sees the Podcast come to you from Dresden (Germany) and Pécs (Hungary). Our intrepid international impresarios have watches from Omega,...
May 07, 2021•42 min•Season 2Ep. 58
Today on Fratello on Air, I welcome my old friend Giles Ellis of Schofield Watch Company to the smooth booth to discuss some of his finest creations in exacting detail. Giles has been busy. Despite the world shutting down for many businesses, Schofield is busier than ever. The recent Strange Lights collection has been a great success thus far with very few units still remaining. Its release last year heralded a new and more consistent design language moving through the brand. We talk about pens,...
May 03, 2021•31 min•Season 2Ep. 57
Hi and hello watch fans, welcome to Episode 56 of Fratello On Air, otherwise known as WASP 9.0. This week on Watching Sports and Sporting Watches, Balazs and I will be stepping away from North America itself and focusing on our very own mailbag, which is bursting at the seams thanks to our valued listeners writing in with their questions. We have questions from both sides of the Atlantic to address, with fun answers to chew through. First, though, we touch on the latest developments in European ...
Apr 30, 2021•51 min•Season 2Ep. 56
Balazs and I are inquisitive folks. We acted on this trait with a very different type of show. Each of us came up with two questions for the other person. The rules? They were simple! The question had to relate to watches in some way and neither of us could prep the other person ahead of time. The hypothetical looms large and your hosts had to think on their feet. We think you'll enjoy this candid listen. Wrist check and the news Before hitting the main topic, we do a wrist check and then m...
Apr 30, 2021•1 hr 5 min•Season 2Ep. 55
Hi and hello watch fans and welcome back to Watching Sports and Sporting Watches. In episode 8.0 and we will begin with a short interview, as the Hungarian Horntail takes the reins and welcomes his most charming guest to the smooth booth yet... Spoiler alert: it's Rob. But that's all we're going to say about that. After Balazs has put our resident motormouth through his paces, we kick him into touch in favor of Dave "down the pub" Sergeant, who phones in (quite literally...
Apr 22, 2021•1 hr 10 min•Season 2Ep. 54
This year's introduction of the new Omega Speedmaster Professional Moonwatch, Seamaster 300, De Ville Trésor, Constellation, and black ceramic 300M is a good reason to catch up with Omega's CEO and President, Raynald Aeschlimann. On the first (Speedy) Tuesday of this year, Omega introduced its new and improved version of the iconic Speedmaster Professional Moonwatch. A combination of the latest innovation when it comes to movements and heritage when it comes to design. Then, at the end...
Apr 22, 2021•40 min•Season 2Ep. 53
After some jocular banter and a wrist check, the trio gets down to business. The team trades watches (and quips) in rotation with two favorites per person. We talk about the following: A. Lange & Söhne Triple Split in Pink Gold and Blue Vacheron Constantin Traditionelle Split Seconds Chronographe Ultra-Thin Platine Breitling Premier Chronograph 40 in Steel IWC Big Pilot's Watch Shock Absorber XPL Patek Philippe In-Line Perpetual Calendar 5236P-001 Tudor Black Bay Fifty-Eight 925 It&apos...
Apr 19, 2021•1 hr 15 min•Season 2Ep. 52
Welcome to Episode 51 of Fratello on Air, otherwise known as WASP 7.0. Today we’re going to discuss our three favorite sporting icons and which watches we’d gift them if we had the chance. We've got disgraced and redeemed French cyclists, Swiss footballers and tennis stars, Hungarian and Irish soccer legends, a swaggering quarterback, and arguably the GOAT of all GOATs for your listening pleasure. The watches we've handed over to these sporting heavyweights range from the ludicrous to ...
Apr 16, 2021•1 hr 15 min•Season 2Ep. 51
Rob and RJ select their three favorite watches from Watches & Wonders 2021. Some very unexpected choices appear in their lists. And, on top, they pick a bonus (4th) watch. Listen to Rob and RJ talking watches from Watches & Wonders.
Apr 09, 2021•1 hr 11 min•Season 2Ep. 50
We discuss the new Rolex Explorer, Explorer II, Daytonas, and new Datejust dials in detail in this podcast. The responses were all over the place yesterday, and so are ours. A bit different for Tudor, with some proper new releases in silver and gold. And its new Black Bay Chronograph, of course. We have these watches in the Fratello offices for a closer look and will be publishing a hands-on review soon. Last but not least, we talk about the Patek Philippe Nautilus 5711 in steel, with a green di...
Apr 08, 2021•40 min•Season 2Ep. 49
This week, Balazs and Rob tackle the subject of watch brand ambassadors in the four major professional sports leagues in North America. Amazingly, six episodes in, this is a topic that hasn't been fully addressed. In our pilot episode, we touched upon Tom Brady's ambassadorship for IWC but he is far from alone in the NFL, with Justin Jefferson of the Minnesota Vikings coming in atop Balazs' list of football-playing watch lovers and Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers is Rob&apo...
Apr 04, 2021•1 hr 10 min•Season 2Ep. 48
Part of me was scared to over-hype this interview/podcast in case you'd feel let down by the end of it. Then I re-read the interview, listened to the Podcast (enduring an hour of my own voice), and revisited the Lapinist's Instagram account and realized that, if you class yourself as a fan of vintage Seiko or Grand Seiko, you won't possibly be disappointed. On the contrary, I'm willing to wager you will be totally amazed... About a week ago, I conducted an interview with Kami...
Mar 29, 2021•1 hr 6 min•Season 2Ep. 47
