A favorite parlor game among watch enthusiasts, collectors, and, yes, writers is to ask ourselves, ?Who?s Next"? The nature of the watch industry and the media landscape that tracks it is such that a brand or watchmaker can come out of nowhere, develop a deep well of enthusiasm, and become a smash hit, seemingly overnight. Of course, in almost every case it?s not an overnight success story, and actually the product of years of work, trial and error, and enduring the slings and arrows that everyone experiences in this industry eventually. But still, we?re at a point where there seems to be a plethora of exciting new talent creeping into the independent watch scene, and if we?ve really reached peak Steel Sports Watch, it stands to reason that someone like Josh Shapiro could step in and get some of the truly widespread attention his devoted customers have known he?s been worthy of for quite some time. 
Shapiro is a relative newcomer to watchmaking, taking up the task of learning the art of engine-turning, the dial craft he?s become famous for, in 2013. In that short span of time, he?s built his brand, J.N. Shapiro, on a reputation for old world craftsmanship as seen in the multi-level guilloche dials found on his Infinity Series of watches. The latest addition to the Infinity Series is a trio of watches in tantalum, an uncommon material in watchmaking, to say the least. 

Tantalum is a metal with a blue-gray tone that is completely distinct aesthetically...