Monday, September 9, 2013

Ateliers DeMonaco - Ronde d’Or Grand Prix of Monaco 1965 Limited Edition














Ateliers DeMonaco - Ronde d’Or Grand Prix of Monaco 1965 Limited Edition NEW

Since its incorporation, Ateliers DeMonaco has made it clear that one of the voids it would like to fill is to be committed to deliver bespoke pieces the ultimate testament of personalised craftsmanship to serve the luxury consumer of the 21 century.

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The movement we used for this watch is our own in-house deve- loped and patented Grand Tourbillon Xtreme Precision 1, one of the most accurate TB movements in the world.




Then, on special request, we have worked with master engraver Bernhard Ditzoff to develop the 18k white gold dial, which is an engraved 3-D interpretation of the official poster used for the Monaco Grand Prix 1965. just the hand engraving of the dial alone took over 80 hours of sculpturing, leaving the car coming out in contrast!
 
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This specific design also has historical relevance as it portrays john Surtees chased by Jackie Stewart, two icons in racing history.

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Technical Specifications 

Reference: Ronde d’Or Grand Prix of Monaco 1965
Movement: Patented XP1 minute Tourbillon
• Automatic bi-directional winding
• Curved chamfered and hand guilloche decoration on bridges
• Hand engraved bi-colored solid gold 18K rotor
• Silicium escape wheel and lever
• Alternances 28800 beats/hour (4 Hrz)
• Custom-made hand engraving on Tourbillon cage
• Sapphire Tourbillon bridge
Functions: • Hours, minutes, small seconds (6 o’clock)
Case: • Diameter 43 MM
• Height 13.1 MM
• 31 parts overall
• Ultra light Titanium core
• Curved shaped 18K white gold side panels
• Brushed, polished and assembled by hand
• See through case back
• Front and back sapphire crystal
• Multi-layered anti-reflection coating on sapphire crystal
• Hand engraved case back, secured with 4 gold screws
• Water resistant up to 3 ATM
Dial: • Solid White Gold, Hand engraved dial showing
the Monaco Grand prix of 1965
Hands: • 18K white gold hands
Strap: • Ateliers deMonaco personalized hand stitched alligater strap.
• 18 K gold folding buckle, adjustable.
• Folding clasp lock finished with curved chamfered edges engraved
Ateliers deMonaco.
Edition: • Unique piece

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Elisabeth van Pappelendam
PR & Operations Manager
Betty@ateliers-demonaco.com
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Saturday, September 7, 2013

MB&F - Legacy Machine ML No. 2















MB&F - Legacy Machine ML No. 2   NEW

The innovative minds from MB & F have been always entertaining the watch connoisseurs with the exceptional horological machines with futuristic designs and recently they have also introduced a new line - Legacy Machines, which are exceptional reinterpretations of significant horological inventions by the greatest watchmakers in history. The first model under this line, the LM No. 1 was launched in 2012 and the brand now welcomes a new member - LM 2- to the Legacy Machines line.

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 Legacy Machines are wondrous reinterpretations of significant horological inventions by the greatest watchmakers in history. So the contemporary look endowed by the otherworldly appearance of Legacy Machine No. 2’s dual flying balances, suspended high above the dial from four gracefully arcing arms, may at first appear paradoxical. But make no mistake; LM2 is a timepiece tracing its lineage back over 250 years to three of the greatest watchmakers who ever lived: Abraham-Louis Breguet (1747– 1823), Ferdinand Berthoud (1727– 1807) and Antide Janvier (1751– 1835).

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These horological legends of the 18th century are united not only by their inventive genius, but also by the fact that they have all constructed clocks and watches with two balances.  Oscillating  on  high,  the  exalted  double  balance  wheels  of  LM2  were  inspired  by,  and  pay  homage to, one of the rarest mechanisms in the history of watch-making: the dual regulator.  And rarer still, the average rates of Legacy Machine No. 2’s dual regulators are transmitted by  a differential to a single gear train, where the majority had two separate movements.

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On display under a domed sapphire crystal cupola, the dial of Legacy Machine No. 2, which is actually the top plate of the exquisitely finished movement, is an object lesson in symmetrical simplicity. Top to bottom: the white stretched lacquer sub dial at 12 o’clock, with its blued gold hour and minute hands, is visually balanced by the large, raised differential at 6 o’clock.
Left to right: the two flying balances and their escapements are identical mirror images, right
down to the position of the stud holders pinning their balance springs.

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While the levitated oscillating balance wheels of the binary regulators catch and hold the  viewer’s gaze, it is the large planetary differential sitting proud of the dial that is the real  heart of Legacy Machine No. 2. In an incredible feat of micro-engineering − and the sheer  paucity  of  timepieces  with  multiple  regulators  connected  via  a  differential  attests  to  the  enormous difficulty in creating such a complex high-precision mechanism − the differential  has three roles:
1. Transferring power to each of the regulators; 2. Receiving the individual  timing rates from each balance; and 3. Transmitting the average rate of the two regulators to  the gear train, where it finally manifests itself as the displayed time.

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The movement of Legacy Machine No. 2 was developed to MB&F’s specifications by award-winning watchmaker Jean-François Mojon (Best Watchmaker at the 2010 Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève) and his team at Chronode.  Acclaimed independent watchmaker  Kari  Voutilainen  ensured  that  the movement’s  aesthetic  style  was  consistent  with  high- quality traditional timepieces of the 19th century and for specifying the superlative hand- finishing.

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Immaculate  Geneva  waves,  gold  chatons,  mirror-polished  bevels  and  bridges  designed   with deliberate internal bevelled angles (which cannot be finished by machine) showcase the movement’s peerless fine finishing. Consistent with MB&F’s spirit of transparency, the   names of the two men responsible for the movement are hand engraved on the back.

Two and a half centuries after three of the world’s greatest watchmakers put two balance wheels into their movements; MB&F celebrates their pioneering works by creating LM2, a timepiece with two balances hovering outside the movement.
Legacy Machine No. 2 is available in 18k red gold, 18k white gold and a limited edition of 18 pieces in platinum 950 that features a striking sky-blue dial.
 
Even today with computer aided design programs (CAD) and ultra-high-precision machines  CNC machines, the sheer complexity of high-end mechanical watch movements requires  skilled  assembly  and  regulation  to  achieve  good  timekeeping  over  a  range  of  positions.  Whether the watch is laid flat, vertical (on its edge), crown up or crown down, slightly affects the components inside – and the balance in particular – which in turn slightly changes the timing rate.

In the 18th century, higher manufacturing tolerances coupled with low-quality oils meant that it was virtually impossible to regulate a movement to the high precision we have come to expect today. So it should come as no surprise that the greatest horologists of the period experimented with a wide variety of mechanisms to improve timekeeping.

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While Ferdinand Berthoud (1727– 1807) averaged his two regulators mechanically, Abraham- Louis Breguet (1747– 1823) and Antide Janvier (1751– 1835) both created double regulator  timepieces  using  the  phenomena  of  resonance  to  average  the  rate  of  the  two  balances,  It  should  be  noted  that  the  majority  of  dual  regulator  timepieces,  especially  those  using  resonance to couple the two systems, had two complete movements rather than just two  regulators. The fact that these horological geniuses made such a limited number of clocks and watches with double regulators (just a few each), indicates that they doubted that the reward was worth the effort. 

Nearly 100 years later, in the 1930s a few of the very best students at the Watchmaking School of the Vallée de Joux made double regulator pocket watches with the rates of two balances averaged by a planetary differential. The students usually made two pieces each – one for themselves and one for the school – and it is thought that 10 such timepieces exist.  

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Philippe Dufour, an independent watchmaker based in the Vallée de Joux saw one of these pocket watches and was inspired to create his Duality. Launched in 1996, the Duality was the first known wristwatch to feature two balances joined by a differential. And while there have been a (very) few other double balance wristwatches coupled via differentials.
 
The advantage of using a planetary differential is that the two balances beat at their natural rate,   with   the   differential   supplying   the   average   of   the   two   completely   independent frequencies. Other mechanisms when coupled have one balance slowing down or speeding up the other to achieve an average rate and this induces slight stresses in the system.However, the rarity of all dual regulator movements is testimony to the difficulty in their realisation and regulation. 

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While superficially Legacy Machine No. 2 may look like a traditional round watch, its three- dimensional architecture offers visual treats on multiple levels. What looks at first glance to be the main dial is actually the top plate of the movement, which has been finely engraved,  plated  (or  blued  for  the  platinum  model)  and  then  hand-engraved  with  Legacy  Machine below the differential.

Slightly  raised  above  the  surface  is  the  hour-minute  sub  dial,  its  fine  gold  circumference  highlighting the pure white of the stretched lacquer dial, which is created by applying and  heating multiple layers of lacquer, causing them to stretch tightly over the surface of the dial.

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The white contrasts superbly with the bright blued 18k gold hands. The hands are slightly curved to follow the slightly convex surface of the sub dial. To ensure aesthetic purity of the dial and its traditional Roman numerals, a sophisticated fixation underneath negates the necessity of visually obtrusive screws. 

The planetary differential also sits proud of the surface, supported by a stunning double- arc mirror-polished bridge inset with three large jewels. The complex differential is the key element in the double regulator system and raising it just above the movements enables the mechanism to be better appreciated.

Suspended  above  both  the  sub  dial  and  the  differential  are  the  two  oscillating  bespoke  balance wheels. The dual balances feature Breguet overcoils, inset with four fully functional timing screws. The two balances are mirror images of each other so that they react differently   to different forces.  The  distance  between  the  balance  wheels  has  been  carefully  and   deliberately calculated to avoid resonance, as this would negatively interfere with regulation.  

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Those elegant majestically curved arms suspending the flying balances are sculptural works of art in themselves. The elongated triangular cut out section could not be created by the usual method of wire electro erosion, but necessitated the creation of an electrode precisely shaped to the form of the cut out section.

Independent master watchmaker Kari Voutilainen assumed responsibility for ensuring the   historical accuracy of the style and finishing of the Legacy Machine No. 2 movement.  A finely engraved sun-ray pattern on top of the movement plate (dial side) subtly catches   the eye at certain angles without distracting attention from the pure white sub dial, flying balances and raised differential.  But  it  is  in  the  style  and  finish  of  the  bridges  and  plates  visible through the display on the back of the movement that Voutilainen has excelled in  providing  exquisite  historical  fidelity,  both  the  shape  of  elegantly  curved  bridges  and  the  traditionally wide spaces between the bridges and between the bridges and the case. 

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On the back of the movement, over-sized ruby jewels set in highly-polished countersunk  gold  chatons  provide  striking  visual  counterpoints  to  the  Geneva  waves  traversing  the  sensually curved bridges. While providing historical links with the large jewels seen in high- grade  antique  pocket  watch  movements,  the  ruby  bearings  have  a  practical  application in  reducing wear by accommodating large diameter pinions and holding more lubricating oil.

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Maximilian Büsser has had a long affinity with pocket watches of the 18th and 19th centuries.Virtually all horological complications we see today were not only imagined in that period,  they  were  developed  using  just  paper  and  pen  (no  sophisticated  computer  programs),  components  were  produced  to  extremely  high  precision  using  –  by  today’s  standards  –  fairly primitive machines (no electricity) and finely finished, assembled and regulated to an  incredibly high quality that we still strive to match today. Their generous size compared with  modern  wristwatches  allowed  for  uncluttered  movement  architectures  with  beautifully  shaped bridges and plates. 

While  MB&F’s  futuristic  Horological  Machines  have  a  firm  foundation  in  the  very  best  of  traditional  horology,  Büsser  wanted  to  pay  homage  to  that  rich  tradition  by  imagining  the  type of timepieces he might create if he had been born 100 years earlier, i.e. 1867 instead of   1967. With its two, flying balances raised planetary differential, historical bridge designs and classical fine-finishing, LM2 celebrates historical dual regulator watches with flair and passion. 

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Technical details

Movement
Three-dimensional horological movement developed exclusively for MB&F by Jean-François Mojon at Chronode, and Kari Voutilainen Manual winding with single mainspring barrel
Power reserve: 45 hours
Differential: Planetary differential comprising 3 gears and 5 pinions
Balance wheels: Two bespoke 11mm balance wheels with four traditional regulating screws floating above the movement and dials
Balance spring: traditional Breguet curve terminating with stud holder
Balance frequency: 18,000bph/2.5Hz
Number of components: 241 
Number of jewels: 44
Chatons: gold chatons with polished countersinks
Fine finishing: superlative hand finishing throughout, respecting 19th century style;
polished internal  bevel  angles  highlighting  handcraft;
polished  bevels;  Geneva  waves;  hand-made engravings 
Functions
Hours and minutes
Planetary differential transmits the average rate of the two regulators to the single gear train 
Case
Available in 18k red gold, 18k white gold, or platinum 950 in a limited edition of 18 pieces
Dimensions: 44mm wide x 20mm high
Number of components: 45
Sapphire Crystals: High domed sapphire crystal on top and sapphire crystal on back with anti-reflective coating   on both sides
Strap 
Black or brown hand-stitched alligator strap with 18k gold tang buckle to match case

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