How Venezuela’s National Oil Industry Quietly Issued Tudor Submariners to Working Divers - Over the weekend, as headlines filled with images of helicopters, explosions, and the arrest of Nicolás Maduro, Venezuela once again reminded the world that power often flows through oil. At Watches of Espionage, we often use watches as a lens to view history and current events. With that in mind, we want to take a look at a little-known story of horology history: the watches that supported the divers of Lagoven Sociedad Anónima, a state-owned Venezuelan oil company that operated from 1976 until the late 1990s.

We came across two remarkable advertisements from 1942 and 1943 in Rolex Magazine that transcend the watch industry. Whether they are altruistic or motivated by self-interest is open to interpretation, but they are inarguably profound given the historical context.  

Our Favorite Tools & Accessories From The Community - In what has become one of our favorite holiday traditions, we are back with another list of some of our favorite tools and accessories from a diverse array of brands with real ties to the W.O.E. Community.

“Sketchy dudes wear Breitling” has taken on a life of its own. What started as an inside joke between me and our 250k Instagram followers has been parroted throughout the internet and mainstream watch publications. If I’m being honest, I am kind of sick of hearing it myself. But is the Breitling of today still sketchy?

Dubai is a contradiction. A booming metropolis in a lifeless and arid desert, which didn’t exist in its current form just decades ago. From Michelin-starred restaurants to vast malls and 6-star hotels, the overwhelming display of wealth and largesse is intoxicating. Emiratis maintain a conservative Arab culture, but Western practices (including alcohol consumption) are tolerated. Visitors from around the globe flock to Dubai to spend, make, and in many cases, store their wealth.

This month has been a big one, with Swiss and US officials finally reaching a much-needed tariff agreement that sucks less than the former 39% figure, a totally new Omega Planet Ocean that could end up on 007’s wrist, some intriguing watches in space, Oval Office clock drama that broke the internet, Keanu’s kindhearted letter to the FBI, a rare interview with the Rolex CEO, and more.

Despite its prominence, the dive watch is surprisingly misunderstood, especially as it relates to actual diving. Backed by my experiences in commercial and recreational scuba diving, in this Dispatch, I’ll unpack how to use a dive watch for actual diving, touching on historical use cases, the modern role played by dive watches juxtaposed against diving computers, a few special scenarios, and even some myths. 

If cost and scarcity didn’t matter, which watches would former intelligence officers, watch industry pros, firefighters, and Navy SEALs want for their personal collection?

One of our earliest partners, Leather Works Minnesota, has been making leather goods by hand in the United States since 1999.

On this Veterans Day, we highlight independent watchmaking brands founded by current and former service members from the United States & the United Kingdom. 

From a high-profile heist targeting literal crown jewels in Paris to Vice President JD Vance returning to his Apple Watch-wearing ways to a French politician accused of hiding his luxury watch, to a major slowdown in Swiss watch exports to the US, it’s been a big few weeks for the broader Watches of Espionage community. 

A US Navy Diver and EDC enthusiast customizes a niche French military dive watch to suit his underwater workplace. Brock Stevens is a US Navy Diver and part of the photography team at W.O.E. He’s also an EDC nerd who has helped in the development of several of our custom tools, including the Birdwatcher and the Submersible Wrist Compass. When we heard Brock was leaning into his diving experience and design ethos to develop a dive watch, we asked him to tell the story of the design process and how the watch was informed by his experience in the Navy as well as his deep appreciation for the utility of mechanical watches.

The Use Your Tools Ethos Is About Utility, Heritage, & Shared Experience, Not MSRP - The watch media landscape is replete with lists of “affordable” watches, many of which are constructed based on brand input or marketing dollars, SEO optimization, or integrating affiliate links. The adage that you should not believe everything you read rings true, but for many, these lists are helpful, providing a useful starting point for further research for anyone who does not live among the weeds. With that in mind, we created a list of relatively affordable watches specifically tailored to the needs of our community.

For Astronauts, Watches Are Tools & A Key Aspect Of Culture - In 2024, more than 8,000 individuals representing a diverse array of backgrounds and fields of expertise applied to be part of NASA’s 2025 astronaut class. 

Humankind’s quest to explore the final frontier has always relied on the most cutting-edge technology, including mechanical and digital watches. After the successful launch of the Soviet Union’s Sputnik 1 satellite on 04 October 1957, a sense of fear and panic spread across the Western world. 

Trump Hangs With The Rolex CEO, A Taliban Casio On Display, Honoring Robert Redford, The Syrian President’s Patek Philippe, & Plenty Of Watch Crime. 

For Some Of The World’s Most Powerful & Influential People, A Watch Is Never Just A Watch - At Watches of Espionage, we view timepieces as tools, serving dual duty as timing instruments and cultural symbols.

Forget The Insiders: The Only Rule Is To Wear What Matters To You - Over the weekend, The Wall Street Journal published an article, “Do Not Wear This Watch With a Suit! And Other Men’s Watch Rules to Know in 2025.” The article garnered significant attention, with many sending it in for our thoughts.

The single watch case is durable, compact and functional, and honors our community with subtle accents, most notably flap catches constructed from recycled Battle Dress Uniforms (BDUs). It features subtle nods to our community, honoring those who have gone before us and upholding our ethos.

Tudor In The Terminal List: Dark Wolf, Tariff Drama Heats Up, Keanu’s Stolen Watches Coming Home, Hans Wilsdorf Revelations, Fake Cartiers, & Facebook Marketplace Watch Crime - It is once again time for the W.O.E. SITREP, or Situation Report, our monthly amalgamation of news and events related to watches, intelligence, national security, and the military.

The Most Fascinating In-The-Wild Watch Photos From Watches Of Espionage - W.O.E. is about watches, and we love watches, but it's really about people, heritage, and culture. We view the world through the lens of timepieces and use them as a vector to the human element for history and current events.

From Open-Water Swims To Dinner Out, Meaning Comes From Use, Not MSRP - Summertime generally means travel, time off at the beach or in the mountains, or, if you are lucky, a trip to Europe or another cultural destination. It is also a great time to build lasting memories. 

Welcome back to the W.O.E. SITREP, or Situation Report, a monthly download of current events related to watches, espionage, the military, and national security, all coupled with our semi-informed commentary. 

What Can A Tragic Accident Teach Us About The Watch Industry & The Risks Of Exploration? Earlier this month, Baumgartner, aged 56, tragically died instantly when he reportedly fell unconscious in midair and flew a motorized paraglider into the side of a pool near the Italian coast. 

The One-Stop Shop For “Hey W.O.E., Which Timepiece Is Right For Me?”  Every day, we field questions from the community about which watch to buy. It’s easy enough to answer: “Pick the watch you like the best that you can also afford most easily.” It’s sound advice, but in many cases, there’s simply more to it. The watch world has not only grown by leaps and bounds in recent years but also fundamentally changed. Legacy luxury brands from Rolex to Omega are still there, as are value leaders like Seiko and Citizen, but now, there is a brave new world of “microbrands” to explore as well. So, where do you fit in?  For the aspiring watch dork simply trying to make an informed buying decision they can feel good about, we set out to create a comprehensive resource with everything you need to select the right watch the first time around. Keep in mind that everything you see here is tailored for the W.O.E. community and those who subscribe to the Use Your Tools ethos. If you clicked through for a list of 36mm dress watches to suit your Old Money mood board, this ain’t it. If you’re looking for useful advice and some of our picks for great tool watches at different price points and from a wide range of brands, you’re right where you belong.  Advice For Buying A Watch (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) Starting with the 10,000-foot overview, Advice For Buying A Watch is our general guide that answers some of the most common questions we receive across our social channels. If the last new watch you remember was that Fossil you got from your parents for eighth-grade graduation, this is where you start: a step-by-step rundown for newbies presented in an easily digestible format. If you’ve ever wondered about what kinds of brands to look into first, buying watches as investments, or the types of watches to consider, we have the answers.  What Should I Buy For My First Watch? OK, you’ve done your research, noted our advice for buying a watch, and you’re ready to pull the proverbial trigger. In What Should I Buy For My First Watch, we share some of our top picks in the most popular tool watch categories while also addressing price points from $50 to $10,000, meaning everything from the legendary Casio Duro to attainable Seiko models to Tudor and even Rolex and Omega. It might seem crazy to buy a luxury watch right out of the gate, but it happens more often than you might imagine. If you’ve ever considered buying a vintage watch as your first serious timepiece, we also share some of our thoughts on that process. The Best Military Watches For Land, Sea, & Air Assuming you’re a dedicated student of the Use Your Tools ethos, it would be fair to say that military watches are another great place to look when buying a watch. For The Best Military Watches For Land, Sea, & Air, we compiled a comprehensive list of true military watches as well as watches well-suited to military or other hard use in the most common operational environments. Sure, a solid Digital Tool Watch (D.T.W.) like a G-Shock can do pretty much anything any of these watches can do, but a growing subset of the military and the Intelligence Community value the combination of utility, heritage, and mechanical intrigue presented by analog timepieces, so we stick to analog options.  Best Watches Under $1,000 - Ask The Experts  (Photo Credit: Brock Stevens) If you’re looking for even more options from people who know as much as anyone about the Use Your Tools lifestyle, Best Watches Under $1,000 - Ask The Experts is your guide to some great choices under $1,000, with all of the picks coming from members of the W.O.E. community. Our pool of experts is diverse, including former Navy SEALs, watch industry pros, W.O.E. himself, and a US Navy Diver. If you’re newer to watches, it makes a ton of sense to toe the waters with a less expensive watch, and today there are tons of great options under $1k to consider from brands like Marathon, Sangin, Seiko, Tornek-Rayville, and more.  Best Watches Under $5,000 (Photo Credit: Jason Heaton) Looking to the community once again, Best Watches Under $5,000 is packed with more expensive picks from Jason Heaton, former Navy SEAL Rob Huberty, former SAS operator Chris Craighead, fire captain Asha Wagner, and more. If you’re newer to watches, ponying up for a watch costing $5,000 might seem crazy, but every one of the watches recommended in this article is backed by someone deeply familiar with using watches for their intended purposes. The higher price point also brings in names like Tudor, a brand we’ve often called the modern tool watch leader, thanks to models like the Pelagos FXD.  Knowledge Is (Watch-Buying) Power  While it’s not always a core aspect of buying a new watch, the more you understand about watches in general, the better off you’re going to be when it’s time to make a purchase. Here are a couple of helpful guides to increase your baseline horological knowledge, especially as it relates to tool watches. The Dive Watch - Everything You Need To Know You will notice that many of the watches we cover are dive watches, and this is not an accident. We are fond of any watch built and used for a specific purpose, but the influence and utility of the dive watch is difficult to overstate, having been used by countless military members, SpecOps, Intelligence Officers, and regular civilians. In The Dive Watch - Everything You Need To Know, our dive expert Ben provides a primer on the basics of what constitutes a dive watch, how water resistance works, the best straps and bracelets for diving, and how watches have been used both historically and today by military and commercial divers. If your journey into watchmaking has you considering a watch meant for undersea use, this is a must-read.  Get The Most Out Of Your Watches This Summer Use Your Tools is our ethos year-round, but the warmer months are when most watches encounter the types of risks that could see them irreversibly damaged. In Get The Most Out Of Your Watches This Summer, we share our recommendations and best practices for keeping your watch in working order for the beach, swimming, hiking, irresponsible firework usage, outdoor sports, and—for a select few—diving. Because it doesn’t matter whether it’s a Rolex Sea-Dweller or a Casio Duro if the crown is unscrewed as you scream “watch this” and drunkenly cannonball into your local swimming hole. An Overview Of The Watches Of Espionage Strap Collection Along with a passion for watches, many nerds also develop an interest in straps, which are the easiest and least expensive way to change up the look and feel of your favorite watches. In An Overview Of The Watches Of Espionage Strap Collection, we provide our general thoughts on the most popular strap types while also discussing the W.O.E. strap collection in great detail. Whether you’re looking for the ideal hook-and-loop strap to pair with your tool dive watch or want a refined French-made suede strap for your vintage Rolex GMT-Master 1675, anyone who loves watches should know their straps.  Final Thoughts - Buy What You Want  Buying a watch is a deeply personal experience. We are dedicated to helping you make sense of the watch landscape, but all we can do is provide our advice, personal experiences, and the recommendations of others who know what it means to use a tool watch. At the end of the day, this is on you. If you’ve absorbed everything here and still want to pick up an Invicta on Amazon Prime Day, do your thing. Remember, we don’t make the rules, and our community is for anyone who understands how to Use Your Tools. 

Your Friends & Neighbors - Lessons In Watch Security From A Suburban Heist Show - I rarely watch TV shows these days. Not because I’m off doing cool covert CIA operations in far-flung countries (anymore), but because I have little kids who generally control the remote.   

A New 007 Seamaster Chrono, A SEAL’s “Secret” Tudor, BW Breitling Emergency In Haiti, Rolex-Thieving Ladies Of The Night, & Some Dubious Watch-Related Iran-Pakistan Espionage - Welcome back to the W.O.E. SITREP, or Situation Report, our monthly digest of news and events related to watches, espionage, the military, and national security, all coupled with our commentary. 

Iranian Nuclear Airstrike: Exploring The Custom Breitling, Omega, & Bremont Unit Watches Of The B-2 Community - On 21 June, seven B-2 Spirit heavy strategic bombers took off from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri and set a course for Iran.

A Rolex Unraveled A Bizarre Murder Mystery & Exposed A Conman - It's Never Just A Watch 

More Tariffs, Al Capone’s Patek, CIA Recruiting Ads, The Pope’s Apple Watch, Rolex Rippers Getting Busted, & More