Today's post might be a shorter one than normal. I chose the watch to be part of my collection because of its bright colours, but it's another mystery model.

The watch is by Cardini, and there seem to be quite a few for sale but very little information online. I found one link about this brand (rather than Carlo Cardini or Luis Cardini who were also watch brands), stating that the Cardini designers mention that “Time is the eternal component of the universe, why we shouldn’t have such decent accessory that will reflect this great and mysterious secret?". Unfortunately, when you go to the "official" website for the brand cardinitimepieces.com, it now seems to be a blog site for a single nurse called Emi, so I'd guess that the brand is no more.

There is no other information on the watch apart from it has a Japanese quartz movement.

The watch itself is a simple 3 hand dial design with a shiny green face and red and green hour and minute markers in geometric shapes. The strap is very busy with a colourful woven fabric cover on a black leather strap. The fabric has all manner of geometric patterns too, but there is a black leather strap over the holes for a bit of protection.

From the colour scheme and design, it looks very 80s to me, so that is my guess at its age (but it is purely a guess).

I have quite a liking for the ana-digi style of watches, and today is another.

This watch is the AQ-305 by Casio, and is an ana-digi model with a round case. It seems to be quite a rare model as there are very few hits and photos online, so there isn't much info about.

The watch has a 3 hand dial and a curved LCD with 6 small digits at the bottom of the face. There are 2 buttons for the digital display, and the crown controls the analogue part. Inside is a 388 module which has been seen before on this blog in the RKA-508 Adventure Club Rookie. It gives the digital display time, date, alarm, dual time, and stopwatch options. As the analogue dial is not linked to the LCD, it actually means this is a triple time watch I'd you really wanted to.

On the dial of the watch is another model number of 701A2-093 which I think might be the specific model variation. There is no date information on the watch, but I think this is a 90s model.

The case is light, so I think it is base metal with a stainless steel back. It has a metal Casio strap with a part number of S-087N.

Earlier this year, I blogged a watch by a brand called Franc, and here is another I've found.

The Franc brand is another of my mystery brands which seem to be quite anonymous online. The logo is the Franc name with a circle in the F, and very rounded text.

The design of this watch is quite familiar too, as it is the same type of watch as the Rubicon watch called John (which was one of the first watches on the blog in Jan 2012). It has a brown rectangular case with a transparent bezel and rounded corners. The display is a two line LCD with fancy digits (each has 17 segments). The top line has 6/7 digits and is for the day and date, and the bottom line is the time (6 digits with smaller seconds). It has a couple of modes in the module, which are alarm and stopwatch, and there is also an el-backlight.

I'm not sure when the watches are from, but as this is the same as the Rubicon model which is a modern watch, I'd guess this is the same age (early 2010s).

The Kahuna brand is one I've been aware of for some time, but it turns out to be more mysterious than I'd expected.

The Kahuna watches I can find now seem to be from a British brand (not Hawaiian as the name would suggest) which seems to be owned by the Peers Hardy Group Ltd. The group are a specialist watch, clock, and jewellery manufacturer  who own a whole range of brands including Ice Watch and Cross. This all seems straightforward, but for that brand, there is no logo on the site which matches the logo on the watch (a wave in an oval), and the font used on the watch face is different now. The watch also refers to a website address of kahunaextreme.com, but that doesn't exist anymore (without even a redirect). As there was one watch shop which linked this logo with the brand, I'm going to assume it is the same company, and they just had a major redesign at some point in the brands life.

The name Kahuna is a Hawaiian word and means expert, but there are both craft uses (expert makers) as well as for sorcerers (which was an illegal practice). It became linked to surfing with a movie where The Big Kahuna was the leader of a group of surfers, and I'm sure that'll be where the surf brand got the idea.

The watch has a model number of S23 and is a an analogue metal watch. It has a 3 hand dial design with date at the 3 o'clock position, and there is a rotating bezel. It has a heavy steel case (with the Kahuna name at the top) and is 10 atm water resistant (which helps confirm this is not American or for the American market as they would then use bar not atm).

Age-wise, I guess this is a 90s, or early 00s design because it is a different style to the current brand and there is little online info on watches with this logo version.

As regular readers know, I'm a fan of the Storm watch brand. Most of my Storm watches are the vintage models from the 80s and 90s, but do I like the new models too.

Today's Storm is a modern model, and is still for sale on the Storm website. It's called the Digiplex and is a very large rugged LCD watch, with an industrial styling (at least in shape, but being light blue isn't so industrial). In the centre of the large plastic case is a round window where the LCD lies. The LCD is a 4 line design to make the most of the round shape. The top line is just 3 digits and covers the day or the mode. Below that is a 4 digit line for the date or more text info (such as "lap"). Next is the largest line with the time (4 digits), and at the bottom are the seconds. It is designed to be a multifunction sports watch and has the normal  modes for those needs: alarm (x5), stopwatch (with lap memory), and countdown timer. It also has 50m water resistance and an el-backlight. The strap is a silicone/rubber design for comfort and flexibility, with a metal fastener, and needs to be cut down to size if too large (so it's worth checking the size if you buy one second hand).

This is the blue model, but the watch also comes in black, white, red, and green. The original rrp was $150.

Today, it's a Swiss watch for a change with another model by Tissot.

This watch seems to be a model C263 and has this number on the back and at the bottom of the dial. It has 3 hands, but they are arranged in a 2 hand main dial with a small seconds hand dial in the bottom half. It has a slim case in gold colour with only a thin bezel around the dial. The dial itself is very uncluttered with a white face and simple gold hour markers. The only other things on the face are the Tissot name, and the text "C 263 Swiss".

Tissot is a Swiss watch manufacturer which started as a family business in 1853. They have become well known as a luxury brand, and have had many firsts over the years.

This model looks like it is one of their earlier quartz models, and that would suggest a 70s or 80s date, but that is just an educated guess.

Today, I'm blogging a watch which unfortunately I've not got working, but as I'm a fan of ana-digi watches, I thought I'd cover this one too.

The watch is branded Phasar, and from what I've seen online, this is a brand which was distributed by the American Sears department store chain. Sears, Roebuck & Company was founded in 1893 as a mail order catalogue which branched out into department stores in 1925. Many Phasar watches can be found at online auctions, and their styles suggest the line was active from at least the mid 70s onwards.

This model has a model number of 5070 and is an ana-digi design with the LCD at the top and a dial underneath. It is an alarm chronograph with those modes showing on the LCD display. As the module has ceased to work, I can't confirm whether there are any other modes (such as timer).

The analogue part is a 3 hand dial and states the watch is water resistant with a quartz movement.

Inside is one single module to control both the analogue and digital parts, but there is no makers name on the module (at least not on the surface).

For this watch, the design is very 80s and so I think it is that old. The only other date hint is someone has written a date inside (1996) which is when I assume they last changed the battery.

It seems like I've now become a collector of another line of watches - the Benetton watches by Bulova.

The Benetton by Bulova range seems to have started in the very early 90s and produced many different designs over the years. Many of the watches have the same style with a round case with the Benetton logo on the bottom of the bezel, and a decorated face.

The Benetton group was started by the Benetton family in 1965. Their United Colors of Benetton line is one of the more well known lines and normally contained very colourful designs. Bulova are a US based brand making luxury clocks and watches. They were founded in 1875 in New York, and started a dedicated factory in Switzerland in 1912, (leading to a debate as to whether they are an American company or not, but it was founded in the USA). Since 2007 the brand has been part of the Citizen Watch Co family, who they had been working with since 1958.

This model is a 3 hand dial design, and has a purple face with a picture of 2 yellow roses on. Rather than the more unusual silver case, this model has a black case with a green Benetton logo, and has a matching black leather strap. Om the back is the usual Benetton by Bulova stamp as well as a sticker saying this is made in Hong Kong.

The more Boy London watches I've seen, the more confused I'm getting about them. There are among different styles and designs, which is fine and understandable, but it's the different information on the back which is more strange. Some of that I can rationalise by the different eras of watches, but others either have incorrect statements, or like todays watch, nothing at all!

The brand itself is a bit of an enigma. It was created in the 70s by Stephanie Raynor with a base at 153 Kings Road, London. It took a break in the 80s and 90s (but was a very popular second hand purchase), before reappearing in 2007. Most of the watches I've seen seem to be from the 80s, 90s, or early 00s, so correspond exactly with the break in the main brand.

The watch is a typical 3 hand design quartz watch. This model has a bit of a different design from the others I've blogged so far. It has a black and white painted face with a mixture of symbols and words on - a sun, a Union Jack, the Boy London stickman, a target, the Boy London name, and the words Fashion Shock. It also has the number 2000 which I'm going to assume is the date for this model. The painted face is normal for the brand, but the case is a round moulded design with various shapes protruding, including the Boy London eagle symbol, circles and triangles, parts of the letters for Boy London, and the icon for male (a circle with an arrow sticking out). The strap is a two tone leather design with the brown section connected to the black part with a stud. The brown parts of the strap also have the Boy London name and the stickman logo.

Today's choice of watch is another by the Metro brand.

Metro seem to be a mystery fashion brand which is popular in Japan (with a lot of people bidding on the auctions, often with quite high end prices). Despite this, there is not much online about the brand itself. From what I've seen, they normally make large watches in LED (dot matrix) or with quartz dial/disc movements, and many are named after American cities or towns.

This model is called Philadelphia and is of a rotating disc design, but with an unusual layout. Time is read through 3 windows spread around the face rather than being aligned like the usual disc watches. The hours are read from the top left window, minutes on the top right, and seconds at the bottom. The display windows are very small compared to the overall case size giving the watch a very unusual look. Inside, the watch is run by a Japanese quartz movement. On the face it describes the watch as "Heavy Duty Design Equipment"  and "Digital Quartz". The Metro name and Crown logo are on bottom left of the face. There is text on the back of the watch, but it says exactly the same as the text on the face. The strap is a wide black leather design with a shiny textured surface.

Looking online, it seems that this watch has a model number of WW036, and one Rakuten seller shows the watch having an original rrp of ¥12,000 (but they had been selling them new for 1/3 of that price). It also showed that the watch came in 6 colour variations (black/black, steel/red (limited edition), steel/silver, gold/olive green, gold/blue (limited edition), and rose gold/black). I also liked the shops description which says something along the lines of that you need to get into the habit of reading it, but you'll grow to love it even though the display is hard to read.

What I found online suggests that this is a modern watch, but the heavy discounting and that it is out of stock suggest that it could be a late 2000s model.

Today's watch gives me a dilemma as it has told me that one of my earlier posts isn't quite correct.

The watch is called Future Digital, or just Future with Digital being the model description. It is the second watch I've published from Future after the Future Electronvolt which I covered in late August. As with the Electronvolt, this watch has been Produced by Time Reverse. Unfortunately, the phrase Time Reverse is too generic for web browsing, and searching for the phrase "Produced by Time Reverse" only links to my blog, so I haven't found any more information on them.

Now, eagle-eyed readers with good memories may have noticed the issue from the post title - the model number (or what I though was a model number). The number on the back of the watch says MV 2034, but that is the same number as the Future Electronvolt, and the designs are quite different! This suggests to me that the model number isn't really correct and the numbering possibly doesn't mean anything, which is a shame. The only thing may be that if all Future watches have the same, but different lines of watches by Time Reverse have different numbers...

The watch itself is a small (women's?) rotating disc design watch. It has an oval case and the combination of that and the design of the metal strap (but not the face) reminds me of one of the Alba AKA designs (the V743 I blogged in May). In this design, the hours and minutes discs are shown to the left of the centre, but the seconds are on the other side.

The watch doesn't have any more information on, just showing the name, producer, and the misleading 'model' number.

As the watch this looks like was from the late 90s (same as for the Electronvolt), I'm still thinking that these were late 90s or early 2000s watches, but they could be more modern.

Now this is my second watch by Red, I'm coming to the conclusion that they are a brand for if you want large (and inexpensive) watches.

From its size, this watch looks very impressive. It spans the whole width of my wrist and has a large important looking shiny turquoise button on the side. The reality is that is is just being a show-off, as the button doesn't actually do anything (-you can press it in, but nothing happens). The same goes for the other smaller black button, leaving the watch to just be a large 3 hand dial design.

It has a large metal case which is black metal, but painted with a thin black rubbery layer. This makes it match nicely with the black rubber strap. The numbers on the dial have an interesting effect in that is some light they look a shiny black, but when the light hits them right, they are shiny turquoise to match the hands and button. It has the Red logo on the face which is the word red across the front of 3 horizontal lines, and this has the same colour effect as the numbers. The bottom line of the logo on this model also says "made in New York", but I'm still convinced that this is not actually true.

The back shows this model has a model number of BA321, but not much more. I still think this is a modern fashion watch line, and my guess is that it is from after 2010.

Today, I chose a kids watch from another Japanese TV series.

The watch is a promotional item for the series Tomica Hero: Rescue Fire, which is a sequel to the series Rescue Force, and ran from 2009 to early 2010. The series is a Japanese Tokusatsu series, which is the style better known for the Power Rangers or Ultraman. The Rescue Fire series is based on the Tomica die-cast toy car line which has been produced by Takara Tomy since the 1950s. The easiest follows a branch of the United Fire Defence Agency (UDFA) who are saving people from Super-Fire which has been created by demons.

This particular model is for Fire 4, who is a black clad member of the UDFA called Tsubasa Aoi. He has studied in America before joining the team and has a strong rivalry with one of the other team members (spoiler: who he also has feelings for). The watch has the team logo on the front cover, and lifting the lid reveals the face which features a picture of Fire 4 as well as the digital display. The strap has the name of the series and Fire 4 printed on it, as well as some red flames.

The watch is the typical 4 digit LCD, with just the time, date, and seconds modes. The back shows it has copyright to TR2/TVA - D, and the watch is made in China. The back also mentions T-Arts which may be the watch maker.

Earlier this year I blogged the first one of my watches from the Town & Country brand, and here is the second.

The Town & Country Surf Designs brand are better known for their surfboards, as well as their 1980s shirt designs. They were started in the 70s in Hawaii by Craig Sugihara.

The watches are quite common online and come in a variety of styles (but possibly all dial watches). They may have been produced by Orient, but I haven't managed to prove that definitively yet.

This model is one of their Chronograph designs, also with an alarm function. It is a 3 hand dial, with 3 smaller dials on the face, and a date window at the 3 o'clock position. The top two small dials are for the chronograph, while the bottom small dial shows the alarm setting. The face and back has the brand name written on it, and in the centre of the back is the Town & Country logo of a yin and yang symbol (taijitu). The case is fully stainless steel with a rotating bezel, screw back and 10 bar water resistance. The watch is a TD01 model with a full model number of TD01-C0.

Time for another mysterious Japanese fashion watch today, and it's one with an unusual name.

The watch seems to be by, or from a line of watches called Exklu, which I'm guessing comes from the word exclusive (in some language which uses a K rather than a C). Some sales sites link the name with the name Elite watches, so this may be the overall company (which isn't mentioned on the watch itself), or it may just be that they think the watches are in an elite class.

The watch has a small square dot matrix style inverse LCD display which is spread over 3 lines (hours, minutes, and a small line for seconds). There is also a set of day markers (in English) down the left side of the LCD. There isn't a button to cycle through the modes, but instead, holding the different buttons displays a different thing. There isn't much explanation for the modes, so I think that it has date, dual time, and alarm, and there is an el-backlight too.

The case is a white painted metal design, and has a matching white rubbery strap. The back is stainless steel, and has the model number which is 03-643BF.

The Exklu brand are still sold, suggesting it is a newer make, but the few links to the sale of this model don't exist anymore. One link does have a date of early 2011, and makes me think this is from the end of the 00s.

This is my 1000th post on my blog! It's not quite the 1000th watch (which will come sometime next week), but I'm happy to have reached this milestone!

I decided to mark the occasion with one of my Deadman watches, and one with a very smart look.

The watch is called a Special Edition on the face, but I'm not sure if there was some special occasion it was released for, but it has a high quality look about it.
The face shows this as a skeleton watch, but with 1/2 of the face covered. The shape of the covered half is made so that the dial looks like a yin and yang symbol (or taijiku as I found out earlier this week). The back is also clear showing the very cut away mechanical movement inside. It is a hand wind mechanical watch with 3 hands and a sweep hand movement registering at least 14,400 bph (>4 beats per second). The movement is a 17 jewel design, but there are no makers marks obvious on the movement through any of the windows.

There is also no model number on this watch, which seems to be the case for most of the mechanical Deadman watches. All that is written on the watch is "Deadman, Mechanical, Hand winding mov't, 17 jewels, Special Edition".

I'm afraid I still don't know too much about the Deadman brand. I know that they were around in the late 90s, and produced a wide range of different design (as you can see by looking at the different models on my blog). The quartz watches were low cost, but they have a reasonable quality, and the mechanical watches are very well made.

It's time for another of my old Swatch watches today, but as it is sunny today, the name wasn't so appropriate.

The Swatch model is called the Raincoat and is from 2002 (with the design copyright to 2001). It is part of the gents Originals range and so is a 3 hand dial design with a plastic case. This one has a silver face and a transparent case with a blue/green strap. On the face are the hour numbers in a clean black font, but there are some of the 24hr hours marked as well on the sides (numbers 14 to 16, and 20 to 22). The strap is also unusual as it has a clear plastic first section with a hoop on the end where the blue/green strap is connected. Looking online, the strap was originally more blue than my one shows, and I guess it discolours to be more green with age.

The model number for this watch is GK372

Yesterday, I had a watch who's name wasn't so appropriate for the weather, but as there is rain and the forecast for thunderstorms today, this one is better named.

The watch is called the Thunder Glow by the watch brand Storm of London. The Storm watches have featured heavily on my blog before (this is number 19 here) and were the watch which started my collection. Storm started in 1989 and is now sold in over 45 countries. They have a vision to keep pushing boundaries to give exciting designs.

The Thunder Glow is from 1994, and has a typical look and feel of the 90s Storm watches. It has a slightly shiny steel case, and matching strap. The strap of these models was very distinctive to Storm with the first section being a solid curved section with a raised line down the middle with a concave line down each side, and the flexible links having a squared Y shape. On the back of the strap is a the Storm reg. no. of 2016064.

This model has a 3 hand dial design under a domed glass. The face is yellow (but I've seen blue ones too) with raised shapes for the 12, 3, 6, and 9 o'clock positions. The shapes are a circle (12), triangles (3 and 9), and a rectangle (6) and all appear to slope down to be the least raised towards the centre (although this could be an optical illusion from the curve of the glass). Inside is a Japanese quartz movement.

The back of the watch has the model number, and with its screw on cover it has 50m water resistance.

Today's post may be the shortest one on my blog so far.

The reason is that there is no information on the watch at all, neither on the face or the back. This means I have no idea on the maker or the date (but I think it is pretty new).

It has a rectangular case with a round coloured window in the middle (with the sides cut off). It has a 4 digit blue LED which lights on the press of the top right button, and further presses show the date and then seconds. One of the other buttons (bottom right) is for time setting, while the bottom left button lights all of the LED segments. There is a 4th button, but that does nothing.