MONTBLANC – Star Legacy Exo Tourbillon Skeleton Gold 44.8 Limited Edition 2020
Star Legacy Exo Tourbillon Skeleton LE 8:
A New Level of Suspension
The new Montblanc Star Legacy Exo Tourbillon Skeleton Limited Edition 8 has been completely reinterpreted to feature a refined fully-skeletonized, three-dimensional movement bringing a new level of suspension to the timepiece.
Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTO
In keeping with the purest horological traditions, the
188 components of the Manufacture
Calibre MB M18.69 are entirely hand-decorated by expert craftsmen and women using artisanal finishings such as circular graining, mirror-polishing, and beveling. In addition, the movement also counts
420 inner angles that require expertise and passion to complete.
The new skeletonized Exo Tourbillon movement’s architecture
The original patented
Exo Tourbillon complication was developed in-house at the
Montblanc Manufacture in
Villeret and required three years of development. This new version of the in-house manual-winding movement — the
Calibre MB M18.69 — took the
Montblanc engineers a further
18 months to develop due to the complexity of its skeletonization. The Manufacture movement
Calibre MB M18.69, with its
188 components, was completely rethought in terms of aesthetics, geometry, and stability to reveal the beauty of its mechanism while increasing its performance.
Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTO
The
movement features a three-dimensional construction on different levels,
bringing a whole new level of suspension to the timepiece. This is
achieved with five pillars that support the main plate on the top, and
the barrel and going train bridges on the bottom. It is completed on the
front by the Exo Tourbillon balance wheel and the off-centered domed
hour and minute dial at
12 o’clock. The main plate and bridges have been
completely open-worked, making them visible on both sides of the watch.
The barrel drum has also been opened to reveal the spring.
The
resulting timepiece creates a composition of pure lines where
watchmaking artisanal know-how meets technology, drawing attention to
the
Exo Tourbillon and the skeletonized movement from top to
bottom. Very rarely can we observe a whole movement working from every
angle and get a
360-degree view. Each of the movement’s tiny components
is meticulously decorated by hand, following traditional techniques that
create a bright and airy timepiece. Due to the level of skeletonization
and decoration, assembly requires particular dexterity and care in
order to avoid scratches on the beveled components.
Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTO
The
Montblanc Manufacture in
Villeret is a very
special place that possesses the know-how to produce a movement from A to Z, making all the main components in-house, such as the plates and bridges in German-silver (“
Maillechort”) with traditional decoration, and it also manufactures the full regulating organ in-house, including the hairspring.
Artisanal hand-finishing movement decoration
The
188 components of the Manufacture movement
Calibre MB M18.69 are entirely decorated in the
Montblanc Manufacture in
Villeret with traditional horological finishings such as circular graining, mirror-polishing and beveling with inner angles. In total, the movement has more than
420 inner angles that take over two weeks to be decorated by
Montblanc’s watch experts. This high-end, artisanal finishing, where the angles of tiny components are beveled by hand to accentuate the play of light, is a very ancient and authentic watchmaking art.
Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTO
There are different types of angles, but the inner angles (
90° < to <
180°), where the meeting point of two chamfers creates a sharp intersection, are very difficult to achieve. It is impossible to make these with a machine and each artisan develops his/her own technique and tools in order to work each tiny component. In
Villeret, artisans often use the stems of mountain flowers, such as gentian, a soft local wood, that is used to apply the polished diamond paste to specific components in order to create the distinctive final shiny effect. This kind of decoration takes time and patience and it takes years of experience to master this precise and regular work.
The new 18K rose gold case & the 18K gold and Grand Feu enamel dial
Inspired by the three-dimensional bridge configuration, the construction of the case, with its domed sapphire crystal on the front, has been built around the movement. The external part of the movement’s main plate has been fixed inside the sides of the case giving an impression of complete suspension. The
44.8 mm case comes in
18 K rose gold and features a sapphire crystal on both sides of the watch, revealing the full beauty of the hand-finished manually-wound
Calibre MB M18.69. It also provides a totally transparent view of the
Star Legacy Exo Tourbillon Skeleton from front to back.
Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTO
The off-centered dial, placed on the movement and located at
12 o’clock, is made of
18 K gold and Grand Feu enamel, a rare technical feat that provides an artisanal and traditional touch.
18K rose gold leaf hour and minute hands complete the overall aesthetic.
The timepiece comes fitted with a brown
Sfumato alligator leather strap coming from the Pelletteria in Florence, Italy, and is equipped with a triple folding clasp with security pushers, offering a secure grip.
The ”Exo Tourbillon” by Montblanc, patented since 2012
The
“Exo” is derived from the Greek for external or outside and refers to the large balance wheel with screws, which is positioned outside of the tourbillon’s rotating cage. This particular patented construction of the
Suspended Exo Tourbillon allows the watchmakers at the
Montblanc Manufacture in
Villeret to have a large and impressive balance wheel and eliminates the need to increase the size of the movement or the case. The massive balance wheel is raised
4.15 mm higher than the dial and appears to be floating above it. This suspended position has been made possible thanks to a tourbillon bridge with only one stainless steel arm which is curved and mirrors the domed hour circle at
12 o’clock. It creates a three-dimensional look and a new fine watchmaking aesthetic.
Click, to see the large size. ▶ BIG FOTO
Due to its asymmetric construction, the alignment of the
Exo Tourbillon bridge, with its solitary arm, represents a horological challenge and demands skill and dexterity to complete. The complexity of the patented
Exo Tourbillon comes from the dimensions of the long axis that needs to be precise with a concentricity tolerance with a diameter of
0.01 mm, along with the complication construction itself, which requires that the balance’s axis must be perfectly perpendicular to the movement. This technical aspect has been particularly worked on this new model as the tourbillon bridge and the seconds counter are made of one piece, leading to a highly stable construction that is easier to align. Then, a deviation of
5 microns (
0.005 mm) at the base of the bridge can result in a deviation at the centre of only
5 microns (
0.005 mm) à ratio of 1
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TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
Model:
Montblanc Star Legacy Exo Tourbillon Skeleton Limited Edition 8
Ident.
126096
MOVEMENT
Montblanc Manufacture open-worked
Calibre MB M18.69
Type of movement Mechanical movement with manual winding mechanism, patented one-minute Suspended
Exo Tourbillon
Dimensions Diameter = 41.95 mm; height = 6.45 mm
No. of components 188
No. of rubies 19
Power reserve Approx.
50 hours
Balance Screw balance, diameter = 14.5 mm; moment of inertia = 59 mgcm²
Frequency 18,000 A/h (
2.5 Hz)
Hairspring With Phillips terminal curve
Plate Open-worked rhodium-plated German-silver, stretched stripes on both sides, hand-chamfered edges
Displays Off-centered hours and minutes, small second at 6 o’clock
Patented Exo Tourbillon (one revolution per minute to indicate the seconds) with one arm-bridge at 6 o’clock, mirror-polished Exo Tourbillon cage
Bridges Open-worked rhodium-plated German-silver, stretched stripes on both sides, hand-chamfered edges
Going-train Gold-plated, circular grained, chamfered, diamond hubs on both sides
Barrel Mirror-polished open-worked ratchet, circular-graining inside the mirror-polished winding pawl shaped with the Minerva arrow
Habillage
Case
18 K rose gold, polished case
Crystal Scratch-resistant, domed anti-reflective sapphire crystal on both sides
Back 18 K rose gold with inset pane of sapphire crystal
Dimensions Diameter =
44.8 mm / Height = 15.01 mm
Water resistance 3 bar (30 m)
Crown 18 K rose gold with Montblanc emblem in mother-of-pearl
Dial
Domed 18 K gold dial with ivory “Grand Feu” enamel,
black Arabic numerals,
18 K rose gold leaf hour and minute-hands
Wristband
Brown Sfumato alligator leather strap coming from the Pelletteria in Florence,
Italy with an
18 K rose gold triple folding clasp
Limited Edition 8 pieces
Availability: On request,
only at
boutiques
Price: € 138,000
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Press releases - 2020
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