Wednesday, September 30, 2015

VACHERON CONSTANTIN – ATELIER CABINOTIERS Reference 57260 White Gold



VACHERON CONSTANTIN ATELIER CABINOTIERS  Reference 57260 White Gold - Unique 260th Anniversary timepiece NEW

PRESENTING THE VACHERON CONSTANTIN REF. 57260
THE MOST COMPLICATED WATCH EVER MADE IN THE HISTORY OF HOROLOGY

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO


Manufacture of eternity since 1755, Vacheron Constantin celebrates 260 years of uninterrupted history on September 17, 2015. As part of this landmark event, the Maison unveils a unique timepiece. This watch is a breakthrough technical feat for Fine Watchmaking. From an initial idea conceived by a major collector, this watch became a reality thanks to the determination of Vacheron Constantin to redefine the limits of possibility.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO


September 17th, 2015 will be forever remembered in the history of horology as the most complicated watch ever created gets unveiled. In François Constantin's words: “ Do better if possible, and that is always possible”. The very essence of this motto drives Vacheron Constantin to cultivate special ties with the great patrons and exceptional men whose dreams have fired them to contributing to the advancement of art and of haute horlogerie over the past two centuries. To celebrate the 260th anniversary of Vacheron Constantin, the manufacture has created the most complicated timepiece ever made featuring 57 complications — three of them never seen in a watch before.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

The pocket watch ref. 57206 was developed and finished over the course of eight years by the hands of three master watchmakers. Below are some of the complications never before seen in a watch and that are included in the new Vacheron Constantin ref. 57260. Up to date the most complicated watches ever made were the Patek Philippe Calibre 89 with 33 complications, the Patek Philippe Star Calibre 2000 with 21 complications, the Patek Philippe Henry Graves Jr. Super complication and the Vacheron Constantin Tour de l'Ile with 16 complications.

 The Hebraic Perpetual Calendar

Probably the most challenging of the 57 complications the Hebraic perpetual calendar requested highly complicated mathematical calculations combining both the lunar months and solar year were transcribed into not only an operational mechanism but a display that is elegant, logical and easy to read. The Hebraic perpetual calendar works on the principle of the 19-year Metonic cycle because 19 years it is almost exactly a multiple of the solar year and lunar month over that period.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

On this watch, the Metonic cycle (also called Golden Number) is displayed as a sector at 3 o’clock concentric with the chronograph hour register. The date of Yom Kippur indicated in the Gregorian calendar each year, is represented by the corresponding retrograde hand at 6 o'clock, which returns to its starting point every 19 years, at which time the sector is replaced for another for each of the 19 year cycles.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

To keep the 12-month lunar year in pace with the solar year, a “13th” leap-month called an intercalary month has to be added seven times during the 19-year cycle. Ingeniously, this watch not only allows for this addition but also shows the user whether the current year is a 12 or 13-month year via an indicator hand and 12/13 display situated concentric with the chronograph minute register and counter hand in the 9 o’clock position.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

In the Hebrew calendar, there are fixed lunar months of 29 or 30 days alternately. Those of Cheshvan and Kislev can have 29 or 30 days, depending on the year. Here, the self-correcting date hand is concentric to the Yom Kippur sector and constant seconds. On either side of the date, two windows indicate the number of days and months in Hebrew.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

The secular Hebrew calendar, which is displayed in a four-digit window below the Yom Kippur sector is calculated from the supposed date of the creation of the world in 3760 BC. To calculate the present year in the Hebrew calendar 2015 is added to 3760 giving the year 5775. The Jewish New Year begins again in September 2015 with therefore the Hebrew year 5776. Tishrei is the first month of the Hebrew calendar.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

Within the center of the hour chapter-ring are four representations of the moon phases and also a hand indicating the age of the moon within its 29.5305882 day cycle. The Vacheron Constantin moon phase system requires correction only once every 1027 years.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

 Double Retrograde “Rattrapante” Chronograph

Completely new to the world of watchmaking, the retrograde rattrapante chronograph is of a totally innovative design and construction. This is the first watch ever to be made with a rattrapante chronograph with double retrograde action. It is not only a highly visual complication but mechanically ingenious.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

This new chronograph is read by the user exactly in the manner of a classic split-seconds chronograph; uniquely however, whilst both hands still work in unison and from the same axis, unlike all other split-seconds chronographs, the two hands never actually meet but operate on two separate scales on opposing sides of the dial. In this respect, the new chronograph can perhaps be best described as a “detached” split-seconds chronograph.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

In addition, it has been necessary to specially design and make the two long and very fine chronograph hands so that the chronograph has perfect stability and extreme accuracy during operation. There are two register dials for the chronograph counting each elapsed minute up to 60-minutes and each elapsed hour up to 12-hours so that events of up to 12-hours in duration can be accurately recorded.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO


The Westminster Chiming, Alarm and Special Night-Silence Feature

Sectors can be seen on the dial to either side of the hour chapter ring, just above the chronograph registers. These sectors with their corresponding hands are indicators for the selection of the mode of chiming, mode of alarm striking and the alarm power-reserve indicator. These are unsurprisingly highly sophisticated and incorporate new and unique watchmaking inventions and innovations.

Chiming

This watch offers 3 possible striking modes:

1. Striking - the watch chimes automatically at each passing quarter hour, in the same way as a clock.
With five hammers striking five finely tuned steel gongs, the chiming sequence is that of "Big Ben", the clock of the Palace of Westminster in London.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

2. Night silence – chiming automatically disabled from 22h to 8h (described in more detail below).

3. Silence - chiming switched off when it is not desired.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

There are two additional options to choose from; Grande sonnerie - striking the hours and the quarters at every passing quarter and alternatively Petite sonnerie – striking the full hours at the hour but only a quarter-strike without hours on the quarters. To repeat the chiming at any time, the slide on the band of the case can be activated whenever it is desired by the user.

👉Link to the album

Night-Time Silence

A unique and very user-friendly new feature has been developed especially for the chiming system of this watch, that of the automatically activated “Night-Time Silence” mode. A special system has been developed by Vacheron Constantin and built into this watch whereby (in this instance) between the hours of 10pm at night and 8am in the morning it does not chime in order not to disturb its owner. This system is unique in being the first to be automatically activated without the need to manually set the chime or silence option.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

Alarm

In addition to the chiming mechanism, this model houses an integrally connected alarm system with separate power-reserve indication. The main feature of this Vacheron Constantin mechanism is that it allows a choice between either a traditional alarm on an additional differently tuned single gong with single hammer or Westminster carillon full chiming alarm in either Grande or Petite sonnerie mode.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

The alarm is set via the winding crown which moves an additional alarm hand co-axial with the hour and moon’s age hand. The flush-fit winding button is situated in the band of the case.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

The Second Dial and Further Functions

As well as the astronomical indications, several unique and major systems developed especially for this watch are presented here including a 12-hour second time-zone governed by a digital world-time display, a double perpetual calendar and a remarkable fully visible armillary sphere tourbillon.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

The blue star chart in the upper half of the dial represents the night sky and the star constellations visible from the user’s home city, with the months appearing around the edge. Concentric around the outer border is the scale for the retrograde date of the perpetual calendar, the hand “flying” back to its start point at the end of each month. Subsidiary dials for the days of the week and the months flank the star dial and the aperture above the month dial shows the number of the year between 1 and 4 in the leap-year cycle.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

Around the edge of the dial are three astronomic scales which are read using the central gold hand identified by its sun counterpoise. The outermost scale is for the months of the year and their respective number of days, while a concentric scale for the year divided into Zodiac sign periods additionally indicates the dates of the Vernal and Autumnal Equinoxes and the summer and winter solstices. The inter-related four seasons are displayed on a further inner concentric ring.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

The sector above the tourbillion aperture indicates Equation of Time showing the discrepancy between true solar time and standard meantime which fluctuates during the year but can be ahead by as much as 16 minutes (around November 3rd) and behind by 14 minutes (around February 12th). Solar and meantime are equal on just four occasions each year. Flanking the tourbillon aperture are two dual sectors for the time of sunrise and day length and time of sunset and night length in the user’s home city. These indications are in fact another relevant factor in the Gregorian calendar in which the days are calculated from the hours of light and darkness and not strictly set times.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

Another watchmaking first is the 12-hour second time zone dial with separate day and night indicator window located in the 10 o’clock position: the second time zone is used in conjunction with the digitally displayed world-time function which gives a choice of 24 cities and countries and their respective time deviations from Greenwich Meantime.

 Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

This thoroughly new and discreet 12-hour system of world-time mechanism and display is the first new system to be developed since Louis Cottier’s well-known world-time system with 24-hour indication invented about 1935 and is therefore of major significance.

The Dual-Function Perpetual Calendar

The perpetual calendar systems invented and built by the watchmakers of Vacheron Constantin are amongst the greatest achievements made during the construction of this watch. They represent Vacheron Constantin’s supreme mastery of both highly complex mathematical calculations and the ability of their watchmaking team to translate the calculations into mechanisms functioning in complete harmony in relation to the myriad other functions. Including the Hebraic perpetual calendar seen on the other dial, this watch has the ability to provide three entirely different perpetual calendar readings.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

The fundamental new departure is that two possible options are available for the reading of the Gregorian perpetual calendar displayed on this dial: either the traditional Gregorian calendar or the business calendar system known as ISO 8601, a numerical system which utilises 52 weeks and 7 days.

The Gregorian perpetual calendar which automatically corrects itself for the appropriate number of days in the month and the leap-years can be read on the dial using the retrograde date, the days of the week and months dials, with the leap-year window displaying a number between 1 and 4 located to the right of the retrograde date sector.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

The ISO 8601 business calendar is a specific system founded by the International Organization for Standardization and used mainly in the international financial sector – for example in company accounting for tax years, payment of wages or rents due on a weekly basis, the planning of projects in weekly cycles, etc. The purpose of this standard is to provide an unambiguous method of representing dates and times, so as to avoid misinterpretation of numeric representations of dates and times, particularly when data are transferred between countries with different conventions for writing numeric dates and times. When times are also required under the ISO system, they are given using the 24-hour system and with time-zone information where necessary. Both these functions are also present on this dial.

When the ISO 8601 mode is employed, the number of the week within the year and the number of the day within the week takes precedence over the traditional calendar month and traditional date, the number of the week is read from the dial concentric to the month indication and the number of the day within the week is indicated by a number between 1 (for Monday) and 7 (for Sunday) in a window directly above the week dial.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

The ISO system has a full cycle of 400 years and employs a seven-day cycle with weeks starting on a Monday. However, an ISO year can have either 52 or in some cases 53 full weeks when New Year’s Day falls on a Thursday (Wednesday or Thursday in leap-years):  this occurs every 5 or 6 years.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

In the ISO system, week 1 is the one which contains the first Thursday of the year and always contains January 4th. The last week of the year in the ISO calendar is the one that contains the last Thursday and always includes December 28th. This system requires the user to adopt a different way of interpretation, for example: if the calendar is displaying Thursday, September 17th, the ISO calendar will read as day 4 in the day aperture (because Thursday is the fourth day) and W 38 (W for week) on the week dial.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

Another option in the mechanism of this ingenious system is that it can be switched from ISO mode to traditional calendar year mode. A calendar year is the period beginning January 1 and ending on December 31. Its programming mode will therefore also on 1 January of the year put the number of days of the week in synchronization with the first day of the calendar year. If the annual calendar displays the first day of the year on Thursday, January 1, the calendar will display W1 on the week dial and 1 in the day window (Thursday is the first day of the year).

The Vacheron Constantin Armillary Sphere Tourbillon

The mesmerizing Armillary tourbillon cage containing the watch’s escapement is visible through the aperture beneath the sky chart. It is both technically exciting and visually dramatic.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

The watchmakers at Vacheron Constantin have created the most supremely elegant mechanism that displays a three-dimensional constantly rotating sphere moving with the utmost delicacy simultaneously in three directions. Appropriately, the watchmaker has also chosen to use a spherical balance spring which not only adds to the elegance of the mechanism, its special properties contribute to the accuracy of the watch.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

👉 Link to the album

This tourbillon was named "armillary" because visually it is reminiscent of the circles and rings of the scientific instrument known as the armillary sphere. It was placed in the second dial side complementing the astronomical functions to suggest the apparent movement of the stars, the Sun and the ecliptic around the earth. The frame of the cage itself, made of ultra-light aluminum and carrying the escapement and balance, is ingeniously constructed to incorporate the Vacheron Constantin company symbol of the Maltese Cross, once every 15-seconds during the tourbillon’s rotation, the Maltese Cross becomes fully visible to the viewer.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO


The armillary sphere tourbillon is a feat of high-precision watchmaking. Made of the lightest of materials, its purpose is to minimize the effects of gravity on the balance wheel, hairspring and pallet fork of the escapement. The tourbillon is essentially a revolving platform and “cage” upon which the whole escapement is mounted that makes one full rotation in one minute. In this tourbillon, the escapement is rotated in three planes at once. The escapement has two further exceptional features: a spherical balance spring and diamond anchor pallets.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO


Full List of All 57 Complications


Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO


Time Functions

1. Regulator-type hours, minutes and seconds for solar meantime
2. Visible spherical armillary tourbillon regulator with spherical balance spring
3. Armillary sphere tourbillon
4. 12-hour second time zone hours and minutes
5. Indication for 24 world cities for world-time
6. Day and night indication for the 12-hour world-time
Perpetual Calendar Functions
7. Gregorian perpetual calendar
8. Gregorian days of the week
9. Gregorian months
10. Gregorian retrograde date
11. Leap-year indication and four year cycle
12. Number of the day of the week (ISO 8601 calendar)
13. Indication for the number of the week within the year (ISO 8601 calendar)


Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO



Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO

Hebraic Perpetual Calendar Functions

14. Hebraic perpetual calendar with 19-year cycle
15. Hebrew name of the day
16. Hebrew name of the month
17. Hebrew date indication
18. Hebrew secular calendar
19. Hebrew century, decade and year
20. Indication for the number of months in the Hebraic calendar year(12 or 13 months)
21. Indication for the Golden Number with 19-year cycle

Functions of the Astronomic Calendar

22. Indications for the seasons, equinoxes, solstices and signs of the zodiac with “sun” hand
23. The sky chart (calibrated for the city of the owner)
24. Sidereal time hours
25. Sidereal time minutes
26. Hours of sunrise (calibrated for the city of the owner)
27. Hours of sunset (calibrated for the city of the owner)
28. Equation of time
29. Length of the day (calibrated for the city of the owner)
30. Length of the night (calibrated for the city of the owner)

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO



Lunar Calendar Function

31. Phases and age of the moon, one correction every 1027 years
Religious Calendar Function
32. Indication for the date of Yom Kippur

Functions of the 3 column-wheel Chronograph

33. Retrograde fifths of a second chronograph (1 column wheel)
34. Retrograde fifths of a second rattrapante chronograph (1 column wheel)
35. 12-hour counter (1 column wheel)
36. 60-minute counter

Alarm Functions

37. Progressive alarm with single gong and hammer striking
38. Alarm strike / silence indicator
39. Choice of normal alarm or carillon striking alarm indicator
40. Alarm mechanism coupled to the carillon striking mechanism
41. Alarm striking with choice of grande or petite sonnerie
42. Alarm power-reserve indication

Westminster Carillon Striking Functions

43. Carillon Westminster chiming with 5 gongs and 5 hammers
44. Grande sonnerie passing strike
45. Petite sonnerie passing strike
46. Minute repeating
47. Night silence feature (between 22.00 and 08.00 hours – hours chosen by the client)
48. System to disengage the striking barrel when fully wound
49. Indication for grande or petite sonnerie modes
50. Indication for silence / striking / night modes

Further functions


51. Power-reserve indication for the going train
52. Power-reserve indication for the striking train
53. Winding crown position indicator
54. Locking mechanism for the striking
55. Winding system for the double barrels
56. Hand-setting system with two positions and two directions
57. Concealed flush-fit winding crown for the alarm mechanism

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO


Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ....                 BIG FOTO





-----------------------------------------------------
Technical Specifications

ATELIER CABINOTIERS Reference 57260 White Gold

----------------------------------------
👉 Link to photo album  BIG FOTO

Reference:  57260/000G-B046
Hallmark of Geneva certified timepiece


 Movement 
Caliber 3750
Developed and manufactured by Vacheron Constantin
Mechanical, manual-winding   
    Diameter: 72 mm (31"'1/2)
    Thickness: 36 mm
    Number of components: Over 2,800
    Number of jewels: 242
    Frequency: 2.5Hz / 18,000 vibrations per hour
    Power Reserve: 60 hours
    Number of complications: 57
    More than 2'800 components
    242 jewels
Calibre plates
   Plate 150: Chronograph
   Plate 250: Gregorian perpetual calendar
   Plate 350: Chronograph & Hebraic perpetual calendar
   Plate 550: Astronomic calendar
Indications
   Time functions (6)
   Perpetual calendar functions: Gregorian and Hebraic (15)
   Astronomic calendar functions (9)
   Lunar calendar function ( 1)
   Religious calendar function ( 1)
   Chronograph (3 column-wheels) functions (4)
   Alarm functions (6)
   Westminster Carillon striking functions (8)
   Further functions (7)
Case   
    Material: 18k White gold
    Diameter: 98 mm
    Thickness: 50.55 mm
    Water resistant: Non
Dial
   Metal
   Silvered Opaline
Number of hands
   Front: 19 / back: 12
Accessories
   Delivered with a corrector pen & a magnifying glass
Additional Information
   Unique piece crafted on demand
   Total weight: 960 gr

--------------------------------------------------
Vacheron Constantin
Press Department 10, Chemin du Tourbillon
P.O. Box 95
CH-1228
Plan-les-Ouates/Geneva
Tel. +41 22 930 20 05
Fax +41 22 930 20 06
press@vacheron-constantin.com
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
www.facebook.com - Vacheron Constantin 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
www.Vacheron-Constantin.com

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Backes & Strauss – Piccadilly Princess Royal Emerald Green















Backes & Strauss Piccadilly Princess Royal Emerald Green - Unique Piece NEW
BESPOKE PIECE UNIQUE 2015

Backes & Strauss continues its collaboration with Gemfields in the creation of the unique Piccadilly Princess Royal Emerald Green timepiece. As the world's oldest diamond company, Backes & Strauss has collaborated with Gemfields for its expertise as leading supplier of coloured gemstones to create another timeless masterpiece.


Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ...       BIG FOTO




































 


The Piccadilly Princess Royal Emerald Green is the third in a series of five unique watches, following the release of the Piccadilly Princess Royal Colours in 2014 and Piccadilly Princess Royal Blue in 2015. The series commemorates the 225th anniversary of Backes & Strauss.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ...       BIG FOTO







































Backes & Strauss' creations are inspired by London’s Regency Era, when architect John Nash led initiatives commissioned by the Prince Regent to liven and recreate the city’s landscape. Architecture, art and culture flourished in this period, particularly the growth in the city's commitment to nature and the environment. The vibrant green emeralds on this Piccadilly Princess timepiece reflect London's devotion to its natural landmarks and lush green parks, celebrated and cherished from the Regency Era to today.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ...       BIG FOTO






























This breath-taking, natural green vision displays 245 Zambian emeralds with 10 different cuts for a total of 31.91 carats. The responsibly sourced gems combined with Backes & Strauss' carefully engineered design create a brilliant piece found nowhere else in the world.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ...       BIG FOTO




 


Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ...       BIG FOTO























The exquisite quality of these vivid emeralds is attributed to the delicate and sustainable unearthing methods used in Gemfields' Kagem Mines in Zambia. "A shared dedication to environmental and human rights responsibility along with commitment to high-quality cut and polished stones are what have encouraged us to continue a partnership and create another masterpiece with Gemfields," states Vartkess Knadjian, CEO, Backes & Strauss.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ...  





















Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ...       BIG FOTO



























------------------------------------------------
ABOUT BACKES & STRAUSS

As the world’s oldest diamond company (est. 1789), Backes & Strauss has constantly looked forward, pioneering new diamond cutting techniques and enthralling connoisseurs with its compelling designs.

Today, Backes & Strauss is part of the Franck Muller group. Backes & Strauss and the Franck Muller Group are masters of the art and science of their respective crafts. While Backes & Strauss is occupied with light and Franck Muller is concerned with time, both share a devotion to mathematical precision.

The result of this meeting of masters is a collection of timepieces so intricate, they are veritable masterpieces both inside and out.
----------------------------------------------------

ABOUT GEMFIELDS

Gemfields is the world’s leading supplier of responsibly sourced coloured gemstones, specialising in high quality emeralds and amethysts from Zambia, and more recently rubies from Mozambique.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ...  














The company has pioneered leading environmental, social and safety standards within the sector and by doing so is able to provide discerning customers the assurance they require of the responsible journey their gemstones have taken from mine, to market.
www.Gemfields.co.uk
----------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------
Technical details:

Reference: PC.37.PRINCESS.ROYAL.Emerald Green

Size: 37 mm  
Case: 18 carat White Gold case set with Natural Green Zambian emeralds
Dial: Set with White and Natural Zambian emeralds
Hands: Sword-shaped hands
Movement: Quartz
Display: Hours and minutes
Bracelet: Jewellery Bracelet in White Gold set with Green Zambian emeralds
Total carats:  
245 Gemfields Zambian emeralds –
31.91 carats, 10 different cuts


-------------------------------------------------------
CONTACT
For further press information, please contact Karlina Nathan or Florence Bull:
Karlina Nathan: T. +44 (0) 203 772 2463 E backes&strauss@bellpottinger.com
Florence Bull: T. +44 (0) 207 629 5714  E fb@backesandstrauss.com
-----------------------------
Backes & Strauss
76 Brook Street, Mayfair, London, W1K 5EE
TEL: +44 (0) 207 518 2585
Email: info@backesandstrauss.com
-------------------------------------------------------
www.facebook.com - Backes Strauss London
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
www.Backes and Strauss.com

Monday, September 28, 2015

IWC’s New Proprietary 52000 Calibre Family


IWC’s New
Proprietary 52000 Calibre
Family
September, 2015
In 2015, IWC Schaffhausen will embark on a concerted campaign to develop more of its own movements. In the years ahead, this will result in the launch of three new calibre families, all made in Schaffhausen. The new movements, developed and produced in-house, will feature numerous technical improvements. Apart from these new elements, IWC’s calibres will undergo a design overhaul to enhance their aesthetic appeal. First out of the blocks is the newly developed 52000-calibre family, which is found in four models in the new Portugieser collection.

In some IWC calibres, the balance rim oscillates to and fro on a Breguet spring. The terminal coil is painstaking shaped by hand and plays a significant role in ensuring that the balance oscillates with perfect regularity, thus increasing the watch’s precision.

Sometimes a second can seem like an eternity. On other days, hours pass in the blink of an eye. Although our subjective perception of time is relative, it progresses inexorably at the same, constant rate. Our watches document the regular sequence of seconds, minutes and hours. “In watchmaking, the ultimate aim is ‘isochronism’: or in lay terms absolute regularity in the vibration of the balance, regardless of amplitude or position.”
This is how Raphael Frauenfelder, watchmaker and project manager specializing in industrialization at IWC Schaffhausen, describes the challenge posed by his metier.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ...           BIG FOTO

The 52010 calibre is featured in the Portugieser Automatic (Ref. 5007)


The aim is to generate uniform oscillations

In a mechanical wristwatch, the balance performs the same function as the pendulum in a clock. It determines the regular intervals at which the escapement releases the wheel train, allowing the hands to advance, and it does so largely independently of the energy left in the mainspring. “As the tension in the spring decreases, the impulses transmitted from the pallet lever to the balance become weaker and the distance by which it oscillates decreases. But even as the amplitude decreases, the impulse pin pushes the pallet lever at almost exactly the same intervals,” says Frauenfelder, describing the principle.


 Securing the balance spring at a highr level allows the spring to expand evenly
But the physical characteristics of the pendulum are only the basis for the high level of precision. For in mechanical wristwatches, which comprise hundreds of individual parts and are also constantly in motion, the devil is – quite literally – in the tiniest details. For centuries, therefore, creative geniuses and lone inventors have tried to increase their precision. The spring developed by the Swiss watchmaker Abraham-Louis Breguet in around 1795 and named after him has also contributed significantly to ensuring that the balance oscillates regularly.

A flat spring does not develop evenly

In Breguet’s time, the balance was still secured to a flat spring. In such a spring, the inner and outer ends of the spring are on the same, horizontal level. “The outer end of the spring is attached to the stud. In the case of a flat spring this, unfortunately, gets in the way, and the spring is unable to expand evenly, so it develops eccentrically,” says Frauenfelder, describing the problem. The centre of gravity is constantly changing, which results in a positional error. To make it worse, there is an elasticity effect, which leads to acceleration and deceleration in the oscillations. These two phenomena – positional error and elasticity – can have a negative influence on the watch’s accuracy.

In the course of his experiments, Breguet hit on the ingenious idea of securing the outer end of the spring at a higher level than the rest of it and bending the final coil in a special way. The resulting section of the spring is known as the ‘overcoil’: it involves making a sharp upward bend in the terminal coil and taking it across the top of the spring. It ends where it joins the index, and the end of the spring is secured to a stud. Frauenfelder explains the advantages of the ingenious solution: “The fact that it has the special bend and is secured at the top allows the spring to oscillate evenly at all times and remain concentric.” Positional errors and elasticity are eliminated, and the balance oscillates at more regular intervals.

The exact shape differs from one calibre to another

However, there are no hard and fast rules for bending the terminal curve in a Breguet overcoil. “The exact shape depends on various factors, such as the distance between the balance’s centre of rotation and the outer point at which the spring is secured,” explains Frauenfelder. Watchmakers identify the various types of terminal curves using a special numbering system. In curve number 100, for instance, the stud is placed directly above the spring’s outermost curve. Depending on the type of balance system, different curves are paired with different types of calibre.

Only a short time after its invention, the Breguet spring was a much-sought-after sign of quality in mechanical wristwatches. IWC founder F.A. Jones also used the specially bent balance spring to meet his exacting demands for precision and innovation. “At IWC, Breguet springs are bent by hand to this day,” adds Frauenfelder. The Schaffhausen-based company has preserved and cultivated the technical expertise and fine-motor skills needed for the job over many generations. Together with the watchmakers, the individuals responsible for the task are the timers, who have a recognized profession of their own. In IWC’s latest collection, balances with Breguet terminal curves are used in the 51000, 52000 and 59000-calibre families, among others.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ...           BIG FOTO


The 52615 calibre is featured in the Portugieser Perpetual Calendar (Ref. 5034)

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ...           BIG FOTO

The Caspari effect corrects another error

Although the Breguet terminal curve has a proven positive effect on a watch’s accuracy, a high degree of precision can also be achieved with a flat balance spring. Mechanical watches are complex systems in which countless factors can influence the balance. A certain physical effect is therefore not necessarily a bad one. “The French marine engineer and astronomer Chrétien Edouard Caspari hit upon the idea of using the elasticity effect created in a flat balance spring to eliminate another error in the system,” explains Frauenfelder.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ...           BIG FOTO

The 52610 calibre is featured in the Portugieser Perpetual Calendar (Ref. 5033)

Caspari looked at how the angle between the inner and outer leverage point of the spring influenced its oscillations. He identified a specific angle at which high amplitude would cause a timepiece to go slow, whereas low amplitude would make it run fast. Discovering this enabled him to correct an error caused by the Swiss club-tooth lever escapement. As the amplitude decreases, the balance finds it increasingly difficult to push the pallet lever back and forth, which causes the watch to run slow. “The fact that both phenomena cause the watch to run slow at various amplitudes means they mutually eliminate each other,” says Frauenfelder, describing the ingenious solution.
Many factors influence the oscillating rate

But there are other factors that have an influence on the oscillations. “The play in the spring – the distance between the two pins in the index mechanism, which limits the active length of the balance spring – plays an important role in our adjustments,” says Frauenfelder. The bigger it is, the more the watch slows down as the tension in the spring decreases. With a flat balance spring, the watchmaker will opt for a relatively large amount of play between the two pins to counteract the elasticity effect. However, if a Breguet spring is used, the distance is intentionally kept small. Alternatively, the watchmaker will use an indexless balance whose frequency is set using only the weight screws on the balance rim.


The method used to achieve isochronism differs from one case to another. Often, watchmakers have to dig deep to come up with unconventional ways of allowing physical phenomena to act together or against one another. “The technical elegance of the Breguet spring lies in the fact that it eliminates several types of error from the entire system,” says Frauenfelder, summing up the system’s advantages. And the knowledge that the internal workings of a watch are largely the work of men like Breguet or Caspari merely serves to increase the fascination of complex mechanics.

Despite elaborate decorative elements, the movements in the new 52000-calibre family retain their technical character. IWC Schaffhausen thus remains true to the engineering ethos for which company founder F. A. Jones laid the cornerstone with production methods that, even back then, represented the state of the art.

Click on the mouse wheel to see the large size ...           BIG FOTO

The 52610 calibre is featured in the Portugieser Perpetual Calendar (Ref. 5033)

TextBoris Schneider
------------------------------
IWC Schaffhausen
Nicole Bänninger
Department Manager Public Relations
Tel. +41 (0)52 635 69 29
E-mail nicole.baenninger@iwc.com
 ----------------------------------------------
www.facebook.com - IWC Watches
-------------------------------------------------
www.iwc.com