Archiv für den Monat: April 2019

Magical: The New Bovet Virtuoso V

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The Bovet Virtuoso V paires jumping hours, retrograde minutes and a double-sided time display with a flamboyant red guilloché dial.

The heart of the Virtuoso V is undoubtedly its dial. It occupies the entire surface of the movement, giving it a completely new identity. While Bovet’s watchmakers ensured that all the information is displayed at the same level, the manufacturers of the dial created an unprecedented guilloche motif. The original stepped arrangement has given way to greater classicism, which enhances the artistic crafts and exemplary finishes of all the components. After decorating the metal base with a guilloché motif, they applied a dozen layers of translucent red lacquer. This creates an impression of depth as well as beautiful reflections that add the the dial’s magic.

In terms of technology, the Virtuoso V integrates two complications that are notoriously difficult to combine: jumping hours and retrograde minutes. The jump of the hour disk must be perfectly synchronized with the jump of the minute hand. This timepiece belongs to the Fleurier Complications Collection and is fitted with the patented Amadeo convertible case, allowing it to be transformed into a reversible wristwatch, a table clock, or a pocket watch, without the need for a single tool. As a result, hours and minutes can be found on both sides of the movement. A power reserve indicator completes the indications by displaying a remarkable autonomy of five days, ensured by the use of a single barrel. finally, to add to the timepiece’s functions, the watchmakers developed a corrector independent of the hour disk that can display a different time zone on each side of the timepiece.

The red or white gold Bovet case has a diamter of 43.5 mm and is water resistant up to 3 atm. Inside, works the calibre 13BM11 AIHSMR. The hand-wound movement operates at a frequency of 21,600 vibrations per hour and provides an impressive power reserve of 5 days.

Bovet delivers the Virtuoso V with an alligator leather strap and a red or white gold chain so that the watch can also be used as a pocket watch.

André Belfort Sirène: Feminine Elegance in Ceramic

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André Belfort is known for making stunning wristwatches powered solely and exclusively by automatic movements – not only in the men’s watches, but in those for women as well. This is a rare feat, and something all watch enthusiasts (especially the female ones) would love to see more of. So today, we are introducing the André Belfort Sirène, a beautiful ceramic wristwatch, made for both sexes.

The André Belfort Sirène is a big and beautiful ceramic wristwatch, which comes in two basic versions – in white or black ceramic. The case measures 41 mm in diameter, which is slightly on the bigger side regarding unisex watches. But since big watches are still totally en vogue, it’s a size, most women should be comfortable with. The case is water resistant up to 5 atm which means, that the Sirène will play well in all every day scenarios. But since the ceramic case comes with a stainless steel case, it packs quite a punch and is maybe not as light as one might expect, so be prepared.

The dial combines a variety of subdials with big, polished, applied Roman numerals. Hours, minutes and seconds are displayed by central hands, equipped with lume. At 3 o’clock you’ll find the subdial of the month, at 9 o’clock the subdial for the day of the week. Now, the subdial at 6 o’clock is slightly larger and comes not only with a day/night display via a beautiful sun and moon disc but with a 24-hour-display. At the 4.30 position, André Belfort has wedged a small date window between the numerals.
The colors on the dial mirror the colors used on the bezel, crown and pushers – stainless steel, gold or pink gold, which creates an overall handsome and consistent look. The dial is protected by a scratch resistant sapphire crystal and framed by a beautiful bezel, fitted with a ceramic inlay.

Like mentioned above, the André Belfort Sirène is powered by an automatic movement, the calibre AB-7110. It provides a power-reserve of approximately 38 hours.

The ceramic case of the André Belfort Sirène is completed by a ceramic bracelet which means, that this watch is especially easy to clean and maintain. Ceramic watches tend to feel good – and look good – for a very long time.

A. Lange & Söhne Langematik Perpetual Honey Gold

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A. Lange & Söhne has reissued its classic Langematik Perpetual 18 years after its introduction in a limited edition, equipped with a sophisticated honey gold case and slightly reworked some of the decorative elements on the dial.
The watch manufacturer’s glorious history dates backt to 1845, when it began its second golden age in 1994. In the 25 years that followed, a. Lange & Söhne succeed in becoming an icon of the German art of watchmaking, which among other things produces one of the best perpetual calendars around.

The honey gold used by A. Lange & Söhne for the case and details on the dial is an alloy that is proprietary to the manufacture and reserved exclusively for the company’s most exclusive models. But this gold was not only created for aesthetic purposes; it is also more scratch-resistant than conventional gold alloys – or platinum. Less brass than yellow gold, warmer than white gold and less copper than red gold, this alloy manages to charm everyone. The only disadvantage of honey gold is that it is extremely difficult to process. This is one of the reasons why A. Lange & Söhne does not use it in its normal production.
Thanks to the honey gold case, the new Langematik Perpetual can be seen as even more elegant than its predecessors. A. Lange & Söhne has polished the bezel and lugs. With a diameter of 38,5 mm and a height of only 10,2 mm, the case is very understated proportioned.

The solid silver Argenté dial once again reveals the attention to detail for which A. Lange & Söhne is renowned. Against its background, the hands and Roman numerals in honey gold clearly stand out. The embossed circle of hour indexes further enhances the plastic effect. In order to achieve ideal legibility, A. Lange & Söhne has equipped the hands with lume.
The characteristic oversized date window dominates the upper third of the dial. An auxiliary dial at 9 o’clock  displays the day of the week and the day/night indication, while a second dial at 3 o’clock displays the month and – slightly offset downwards – the leap year. a third subsidiary dial at 6 o’clock offers space for the small second and the moon phase display. It is also designed for long periods of time and only needs to be adjusted by one day every 122,6 years.

The Langematik Perpetual demonstrates the full mastery of Lange’s craftsmanship and perfectly displays the date up to the year 2100 without the need for adjustment. Correctly set, the date at 12 o’clock does not have to be manually corrected until 2100, as this does not include February 29 due to an exception in the Gregorian calendar.

A. Lange & Söhne is using the same calibre in the new Langematik Perpetual in honey gold that powers the first 2001 model – the L922.1 SAX-O-MAT. The movement scores with a power reserve of 46 hours, is beautifully decorated and can be seen through the sapphire crystal back.

The A. Lange & Söhne Langematik Perpetual Honey Gold is a limited edition comprising only 100 pieces.

A New Limited Edition by Meccaniche Veloci

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Watch manufacturer Meccaniche Veloci presents a unique new timepiece from the QuattroValvole collection, the fruit of a collaboration with Nardi, the Italian firm known for making traditionally crafted steering wheels and working with the greatest names in the automobile industry (let us just say: Ferrari) for more than ninety years. The result of this cooperation is the QuattroValvole Nardi Edition.
With shared conceptual and stylistic intentions, the new timepieces represent the passion that the two brands share for the world of beautiful vehicles, as well as attention to detail. Drawing on their Italian roots, Meccaniche Veloci and Nardi have a joint philosophy: producing high-quality creations through the use of selected materials, specific production processes and unique style and design.

The watch dial presents an opaque surface with a delicate guilloché weave. As well as demonstrating the high quality of traditional watchmaking, this finish also renders the dial more precious and clearly recalls the harmonious design of Nardi’s most exclusive pedigree steering wheels that are still hand-crafted to this day.
Four small dials edged in blue in tribute to Nardi’s colours stand out against the QuattroValvole dial. The two brands‘ logos appear at the centre. All the hours and minutes hands are coated with Super-LumiNova and the seconds function is fulfilled by the small red hand at the bottom right of the dial, while the date may be read through a circular aperture with the dial above.
The Meccaniche Veloci QuattroValvole Nardi shows four independent timezones; the main dial shows hours, minutes and the date.

Featuring a 49-mm-case with anti-reflective sapphire crystal, the QuattroValvole Nardi watches are driven by the calibre MV8802. The in-house calibre allows two different time zones to be displayed simultaneously and independently, an expression of both the fleeting nature of time and space and their precise mastery. On the case (which is water-resistant up to 5 atm, by the way), four crowns positioned adjacent to the four dials allow each individual time zone to be adjusted.
The automatic movement works at a frequency of 28,800 oscillations per hour and provides a power reserve of approximately 48 hours.

The strap is directly attached to the case via a system that does not require lugs. Meccaniche Veloci opted for black leather with green stitching and a steel folding clasp.

Von der Meccaniche Veloci QuattroValvole Nardi gibt es nur 50 Stück.

Patek Philippe: A New, Complicated Wristwatch in a Simple Case

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Patek Philippe introduced a new wristwatch, the Calatrava Weekly Calendar Ref. 5212A-001, at the Baselworld, a new function for calendar watches: The weekly calendar is a semi-integrated mechanism. In addition to the day of the week and the date it also displays the week number.
Patek Philippe has developed a broad spectrum of calendar functions, from the simple aperture date to the extremely complex secular perpetual calendar that is preprogrammed into the 28th century. For quite some time, the perpetual calendar has established itself as a genuine specialty of the manufacture. In 1996, the manufacture introduced the annual calendar, which only needed to be corrected once a year (on March 1), and in 2013 came another innovation with a instantaneous day-of-week and date display. Now, Patek Philippe is taking a step forward by expanding its collection of „useful complications“ with the addition of a weekly calendar that displays the current week number. It is a decidedly practical function in a globalized world, even in the smartphone era.

The new Calatrava Weekly Calendar Ref. 5212A-001 expresses its uniqueness with a silvery opaline dial and the unusual layout with five hands from the center – quite a rare configuration. The hours and minutes are indicated with Dauphine hands in blackened white gold. They feature two lapped facets, a perfect match for the applied baton indexes, also in blackened white gold. A slender counterbalanced hand tracks the seconds. The day of the week is displayed by a hammer-shaped hand with a red hammer head on a circular scale in the middle of the dial. A second hand of the same design delivers week number and month readings on two concentric scales at the periphery of the dial. these calendar indications are complemented by an aperture date at 3 o’clock. Another special feature: The typography created explicitly for this watch is based on the handwriting of one of the manufacturer’s designers and recalling an epoch in the not too distant past when notes were still written by hand.

With a diameter of 40 mm and a thickness of 11.18 mm, the new Calatrava is moderately proportioned. The case is made of stainless steel – a rarity a Patek Philippe. Also special is the ingenious construction of the bezel that extends over the two-tiered, gently curved strap lugs. The Calatrava Weekly Calendar Reference 5212A-001 features a box-type sapphire-crystal glass with a slightly cambered profile. The case is water-resistant up to 3 atm.

To display the day of the week and the number of the current week, Patek Philippe developed a totally new semi-integrated mechanism. The calendar displays advance semi-instantaneously in discrete steps to avoid energy consumption peaks. Corrections of the day-of-week and wek-number displays are performed with two push pieces recessed in the case flank at 8 and 10 o’clock. the date is corrected via the crown. Thanks to a fail-safe concept, such corrections can be performed at any time of day or night without risking damage to the movement.
The weekly calendar mechanism is not the only special feature of the Ref. 5212 – it is equipped with a completely new movement. It is based on the self-winding caliber 324 and sports several innovations and optimizations that improve its performance and dependability. Patek Philippe has also revised the automatic winding system.

The sapphire crystal case back reveals the refined architecture and meticulous finishing of the 26-330 S C J SE calibre.
The Calatrava Weekly Calendar Reference 5212A-001 is equipped by a light brown calfskin strap.