Tuesday, January 18, 2022

GREUBEL FORSEY – BALANCIER S² Titanium Edition


GREUBEL FORSEYBALANCIER S² Titanium Edition

REFINED AND POWERFUL: BY STREAMLINING ITS ORIGINAL
BALANCIER S, GREUBEL FORSEY HAS CREATED 
AN ASSERTIVE AND MODERN BALANCIER S² .

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THE NEW GREUBEL FORSEY FLAGSHIP

With the GMT Sport and the original Balancier S, Greubel Forsey revealed a new facet of its identity. This highly contemporary and exciting approach to fine watchmaking has just been raised to the power of 2, amplifying the very essence of Greubel Forsey.


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The Greubel Forsey Balancier S² isolates the most powerful elements of the original Balancier S and accentuates and modernises them. Instead of soft curves and a discreet overall aesthetic, the Balancier S² is all about contrast and power. It shares the movement of its predecessor but introduces a new case, new finishing and new design codes.

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Greubel Forsey
chose to accentuate the contrast – and therefore the legibility – of its dial, with an intense black or grey backdrop that cuts through the balance bridge between 5 and 9 o'clock.
 
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The edges are sharp and the matt-effect hand- grained finish allows the bridge and indices to stand out much more clearly. The latter have been reduced to their simplest expression, with 12 towering indices for 12 hours.
 
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For the first time, the central double-arched titanium bridge which holds the gear train is openworked: once again, we can see the desire to lighten, purify and return to the essential. The new titanium bracelet reinforces this dynamic. It offers perfect continuity with the titanium case, exuding a robust and contemporary appeal.
 
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The Greubel Forsey Balancier S² affirms its place in the Haute Horlogerie of today and tomorrow as a timepiece that sacrifices nothing to the excellence of high-end watchmaking. Yet it’s a timepiece designed for everyday use, not one to simply be stored away in a safe.
 
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The Balancier S² also features a slightly larger diameter that helps assert its new personality. Increased to 46.5mm, it is now topped by a striking brushed titanium bezel with polished flanks, instead of the key Greubel Forsey values.

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Similarly, the barrel cover no longer features the large “Greubel Forsey” signature, but instead a very modern circular pattern designed exclusively for this model. The Greubel Forsey signature appears under the internal bezel between 12 and 2 o’clock. Suspended high above, the hour and minute hands appear in luminescent white.
 
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Only 88 pieces of this new Balancier S² will be made for the version with a charcoal grey backdrop, for a total of 22 pieces per year from 2022 to 2025. For the version with a light grey background, 16 pieces per year will be released over 4 years, totalling 64 pieces. Both versions will come in a titanium case
 
A focus on chronometry

The large inclined balance wheel at 7 o’clock stands out. Aiming above all to improve chronometry, it maximises the space offered by the arched case and sapphire crystal, inextricably linking form and function. 
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In their relentless quest for precision and performance, Robert Greubel and Stephen Forsey have already challenged chronometry, notably by reinventing the tourbillon mechanism with the Tourbillon 24 Secondes, Quadruple Tourbillon and the Double Tourbillon 30°. They chose a new approach here, based on their large balance wheel unveiled in 2016.

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Entirely developed and made within the Greubel Forsey Atelier, this balance wheel is distinguished by its oversized 12.6mm diameter, ensuring excellent timekeeping performance.

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To allow fine timekeeping adjustment of the moment of inertia, the balance wheel rim is fitted with six gold regulating screws, inset so as to limit air friction. In this new hand wound calibre, with several patents pending, the imposing Greubel Forsey balance wheel can be seen in an inclined construction for the very first time.

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This 30° angle with respect to the horizontal plane of the movement proves to be an outstanding solution for limiting timing errors due to the effects of gravity on the regulating organ (balance wheel, spring and escapement) in stable positions.  
 
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Combined with the large diameter of the balance wheel and the frequency of 21,600 vibrations/hour, it provides this timepiece with excellent chronometric performance – it’s also prominently visible in action due to the unique movement architecture.

A showcase of exceptional craftsmanship

With two coaxial barrels mounted in series, the 307-component movement has a 72-hour chronometric power reserve, indicated on a sector at 2 o’clock using an openworked red-tipped hand.

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The central hours and minutes display, with profiled and openworked polished steel hands, is completed by a small seconds hand on the inclined plane of the escapement at 8 o’clock, accentuating the depth and relief of this new calibre.

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Following the Greubel Forsey creative spirit, technical and architectural innovation is accomplished with unconditional care and craftsmanship for all the components of the movement – whether these are visible through the sapphire crystal, the transparent caseback or hidden in the mechanical mysteries within.

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This traditional and irreplaceable artisanal know-how is mastered in the Greubel Forsey Atelier – frosting, polished bevels and countersinks, circular and straight graining highlight even the smallest surfaces. The use of titanium for the mainplate and bridges proved much more difficult for manual hand-finishing than steel or even nickel silver and further increases the technical and aesthetic challenge that this timepiece represents.

S² for sport
 

The exceptional chronometry of this Greubel Forsey creation is combined with an unequivocally sporty case.  Made of titanium and water resistant to 100 metres, its powerful case shape is distinguished by its lightness and comfort on the wrist. Its robustness protects the movement, in particular its large balance wheel, tested in the Greubel Forsey EWT Laboratory assuring its reliability and chronometric performance at all times.

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The flexible and resistant rubber strap with texture in relief reinforces the sporty dimension, with all the comfort of a titanium folding clasp.

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With the “Balancier , Robert Greubel and Stephen Forsey take another step in their exploration of new technical and aesthetic horizons. Rarely has a watch with a sporting vocation presented such a degree of craftsmanship in movement and case. An exclusive alliance between creativity and performance, the Art of Invention, signed Greubel Forsey.

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TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Collection: BALANCIER S²

In titanium 
Hand-wound movement 
• Patents pending Timepiece with four hands 
• Hours and minutes • small seconds power-reserve 
30° inclined GREUBEL FORSEY balance wheel system

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Movement
Dimensions
• Diameter : 38.00 mm
• Thickness : 10.70 mm
Number of parts
• Movement : 307 parts
• Escapement platform : 68 parts
Number of jewels • 42
• Olived-domed jewels in gold chatons
Chronometric power reserve • 72 hours
Barrels
• Two coaxial series-coupled fast-rotating barrels
(1 turn in 3.2 hours), one of which is equipped with a slipping spring to avoid excess tension
• Relief-engraved text, circular-grained, black treatment, polished chamfe
Balance wheel
• In-house variable-inertia with 6 gold mean-time screws (12.60 mm diameter)
Frequency • 21’600 vibrations/hour
Balance spring
• Phillips terminal curve
• Geneva-style stud
Bridges and main plate
• Titanium
• Frosted, polished bevelling and countersinks, black treatment
• Multi-level, openworked suspended-arch bridge, black treatment, straight-grained and polished,
polished bevelling and countersinks
Movement side
• Frosted bridges, black treatment, polished edges and bevelling
• Gold plate with engraved limitation number, circular-grained, polished bevelling and
countersinks, straight-grained flanks
Escapement platform
• Titanium
• Inclined at a 30° angle
• Frosted, polished countersinks, large straight-grained inclined facet
• Multi-level, openworked balance wheel bridge, black treatment, straight-grained and polished,
polished bevelling and countersinks
Gearing
• Involute circle profile
• Inclined gear and profiled teeth on intermediate wheels of the set hands mechanism and small seconds
Displays
• Hours and minutes, on suspended arch bridge
• Small seconds
72-hours power reserve on a sector
Exterior
Case
• Titanium with curved synthetic sapphire crystal
• Three-dimensional, variable geometry-shaped bezel, hand-polished with hand-finished straight graining
• Profiled lugs, screwed fixing
• Transparent back with high domed synthetic sapphire crystal
• Titanium security screws
• Raised engraving “Balancier Incliné” and “Greubel Forsey
Dimensions
• Caseband diameter : 43.50 mm
• Bezel diameter : 46.50 mm
• Case height : 13.75 mm
• Height on synthetic sapphire crystals : 15.60 mm
Water resistance of the case • Water-resistant 10 atm - 100 m - 328 ft
(standard NIHS 92-20/SN ISO 22810:2010)
Crown
• Titanium, polished and straight-grained, with GF logo
Dial side
• Three-dimensional, variable geometry minute-circle, polished, with engraved and lacquered minutes indexes
• Three-dimensional, variable geometry hour indexes, polished, with Super-Luminova
• Power-reserve indicator, engraved and lacquered
• Gold small seconds dial, polished bevel, black treatment
Hands
• Hours and minutes, curved profile, polished steel with Super-Luminova
• Small seconds, in polished steel, flat black polished head
• Power-reserve, red triangle
Strap and clasp
• Non-animal material, rubber with texture in relief, titanium folding clasp, engraved GF logo
On demand: 3-row metal bracelet in titanium, folding clasp with integrated fine adjustment, engraved GF logo


Price  (without VAT), first pieces will be delivered this year.
Rubber strap – CHF 205,000 💰
Titanium bracelet – CHF 245,000 💰


Limitation 
Limited Edition of 88 pieces.

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Press Release - 2021-22
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GREUBEL FORSEY SA
For further information: 
Communication Department 
press@greubelforsey.com – +41 79 194 2884
Eplatures-Grise -16 P.O. Box 670 
2301 La Chaux-de-Fonds - Switzerland
+41 32 925-4545
+41 32 925-4502
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