A skeleton I'd actually wear
By Priya Nair, Singapore ·
I don't usually like skeleton watches. Most of them look like the inside of a toaster.
This one is different, because the bridges of the 9629 MC are shaped into the Roman numerals themselves, so the movement is the dial rather than something hiding behind a cut-out one. 38 mm across, 8.6 mm thick, steel, leather strap, open caseback, and a hand-wound calibre with 72 hours, which is generous enough that you can skip a day of winding.
The trouble is the 30,000 to 32,000 dollar price. That's Royal Oak money, for steel on a leather strap from a brand whose skeletons don't have a strong resale record. And legibility is poor once you're in a dark restaurant, which is precisely when you'd wear it.
It suits someone who already owns a Tank and a Santos and wants the Cartier that starts conversations. If that's not you yet, it shouldn't be your first.