Wednesday, July 16, 2014

ARNOLD & SON - HMS Beagle Set

















ARNOLD & SONHMS Beagle Set  Limited Edition NEW


A trio of timepieces marking Charles Darwin’s voyage of discovery: Arnold & Son proudly announces the HMS Beagle Set
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HMS Beagle undertook three survey voyages in all, but it was the second one, with naturalist Charles Darwin on board, that guaranteed its place in history. With this set of three watches, each featuring an exquisite hand-painted miniature of HMS Beagle, Arnold & Son pays tribute to one of the most celebrated ships in the history of exploration.

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The Beagle’s second voyage is best known for a five-week stopover in the Galapagos Island, which gave Charles Darwin the foundations for his theory of evolution. The voyage’s express purpose, among other things, was to establish a chain of linked reference points with known longitudes that could be used by future navigators to set their chronometers precisely. For this purpose the ship carried an unprecedented 22 marine chronometers, five of which were by Arnold and associates. The large number of timepieces was necessary because of inevitable malfunctions and imprecisions, when a collection of chronometers guaranteed better average values.

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Philippe Boven, of Arnold & Son, explains the reason for a unique limited edition set that will appeal to collectors and connoisseurs alike:John Arnold and his son made an enormous contribution towards the development of the marine chronometer, so honouring HMS Beagle with this set seemed a fitting tribute.

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The set comprises three timepieces each with a different Arnold & Son in-house movement: the HM, with the ultra-thin A&S1001 movement with over 90 hours of power reserve; the TB, with the self-winding A&S6103 movement with integrated true beat seconds system; and the UTTE, featuring the ultra-thin tourbillon calibre A&S8200 with a one-minute flying tourbillon and over 90 hours of power reserve.

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The movements are housed in 18-carat white gold, 18-carat rose gold and 18-carat red gold cases, respectively, with black alligator straps.

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A feature common to each of the watches is a finely detailed, hand-painted miniature showing HMS Beagle at some stage of its second voyage. Set against silvery-white and silvery opaline dials, the paintings are based on illustrations of the ship taken from documentation of the voyage. The art of painting miniatures by hand calls for infinite patience and consummate skill. The tiny brushstrokes and texturing gradually build up entire images with an astonishing richness of detail and underscore Arnold & Son’s mastery of the decorative arts.

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The magnificent HMS Beagle timepieces are available in a limited edition of just eight sets of three watches each.

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Technical Characteristics

References: 
1LCAW.S08A.C111W - 18-carat White gold
1ARAP.W05A.C120A - 18-carat Rose gold
1UTAR.S07A.C120A - 18-carat Red gold

Calibre: A&S1001
Exclusive Arnold & Son mechanical movement,
Hand-wound, 21 jewels,
Diameter 30 mm, thickness 2.7 mm,
Power reserve over 90 h, 21,600 vibrations/h
Functions: hours, minutes

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Calibre: A&S6103
Exclusive Arnold & Son mechanical movement,
Self-winding, ceramic ball bearing, 30 jewels,
Diameter 30.4 mm, thickness 7.79 mm,
Power reserve over 50 h, 28,800 vibrations/h
Functions: hours, minutes, true beat seconds

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 Calibre: A&S8200
Exclusive Arnold & Son ultra-thin tourbillon movement,
One-minute flying tourbillon, hand-wound, 29 jewels,
Diameter 32 mm, thickness 2.97 mm, tourbillon cage diameter 14 mm,
Power reserve over 90 h, 21,600 vibrations/h
Functions: hours, minutes, tourbillon

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Dial:
Hand-painted miniature, silvery-white and silvery opaline
Case:
18-carat white gold / 18-carat rose gold / 18-carat red gold,
Diameter: 40 mm /44 mm / 42 mm,
Cambered sapphire with anti-reflective coating on both sides,
Case back: see-through sapphire
Water-resistant: to 30 m
Strap: hand-stitched black Alligator leather
Limited edition: 8 sets of 3 timepieces

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Marketing & Sales
Boulevard des Eplatures 38
CH – 2300 La Chaux-de-Fonds
Switzerland
info@arnoldandson.com
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 www.ArnoldandSon.com - Media
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 www.Arnold&Son.com

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

ZENITH – El Primero Stratos Flyback Rainbow

















ZENITH El Primero 410 Stratos Flyback Rainbow Limited Edition NEW

THE LEGEND LIVES ON

Well accustomed to technical challenges, Zenith built the Rainbow Flyback model in 1997 based on technical specifications established for the French Air Force. The result was a rugged, high-performance timepiece capable of standing up to the most extreme conditions. The brand with the guiding star now draws inspiration from this high-precision instrument in presenting an eminently sporty version named El Primero Stratos Flyback Rainbow.

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When he decided to create the most reliable and accurate watches of his era, Georges Favre-Jacot brought all the watchmaking professions under one roof in 1865 in order to contribute to the advancement of production methods. The first watch Manufacture in history was born and thus forever sealed the destiny of Zenith, which would be focused on chronometric (precision-timing) performance. Almost 150 years later, the brand remains true to its founder’s visionary spirit. It is the most titled brand ever in the field of chronometry, with no less than 2,333 prizes to its credit. Its creations have laid milestones in the history of contemporary watchmaking, with over 300 patents registered for an array of more than 600 movement variations developed and produced within the Manufacture.

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The world’s most accurate series-produced chronograph
In 1969, Zenith definitively put its name in the history books by presenting El Primero, the first ever integrated automatic watch, also beating at the exceptional speed of 36,000 vibrations per hour and thus displaying 1/10th second precision – an achievement that makes it the world’s most accurate series-produced chronograph to this very day. Zenith therefore naturally responded to the bid for tender launched by the French Ministry of Defence which was seeking to develop a watch for fighter pilots, especially since the brand had earned an impressive reputation in the field of aviation right from the start of the 20th century. The technical specifications to be met by the Manufacture were unequivocal: the goal was to develop a watch capable of maintaining excellent precision even in extreme conditions of use – including violent accelerations from 9 to 11 g’s, variations in pressure and temperature, as well as vibrations and magnetic fields. In rising to this demanding challenge, the Manufacture once again pushed back the boundaries of reliability and resistance to present the Rainbow Flyback model in 1997.

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Reinterpreting an iconic model
Today, the brand with the guiding star draws inspiration from this landmark model in offering a reinterpretation: the El Primero Stratos Flyback Rainbow, driven by the El Primero Calibre 405 B automatic movement. While this chronograph naturally beats at the frequency of 36,000 vibrations per hour enabling 1/10th second precision, it is also equipped with a date display, a telemetric scale, and above all with the famous flyback function. Closely bound up with the world of aviation, the latter enables pilots to stop, start and restart the chronograph at a single press on the push-piece, compared with three presses required for a standard chronograph.

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The 45.5 mm steel case is topped by a rotating bezel bearing an aluminium ring. The rounded sapphire crystal is shaped like an astrodome – the dome located on the fuselage’s dorsal ridge to enable astronavigation. The equally transparent engraved sapphire case-back reveals the fascinating mechanism of the world’s most accurate series-produced calibre.

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On the dial side, the minutes counter at 3 o’clock appears in colours enabling night-time readings in infrared-lit cockpits, exactly like the first model developed in cooperation with a fighter pilot, while the hours are displayed at 6 o’clock and the small seconds at 9 o’clock. The white superluminova hour-markers make a striking contrast with the black of the dial and case, while the chronograph sweep seconds hand stands out in red. The inner bezel ring bearing a telemetric scale creates an overall depth effect. The eminently virile and stylish El Primero Stratos Flyback Rainbow is fitted with a steel bracelet.

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TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

El Primero Stratos Flyback Rainbow  
REFERENCE: 03.2061.405/21.M2060
  • A descendant of the Zenith military chronographs
  • STEEL CASE
  • Automatic column-wheel chronograph with flyback function
MOVEMENT
El Primero 405B, automatic
Calibre: 13 14’’’ (diameter: 30 mm)
Thickness: 6.60 mm
Components: 331
Jewels: 31
Frequency: 36,00 VpH – 5 Hz
Power reserve: min. 50 hours
Finishing: oscillating weight with
“Côtes de Genève” pattern
FUNCTIONS
Hours and minutes in the centre
Small seconds at 9 o’clock
3-counter chronograph:
– Central sweep seconds hand
– 30-minute counter at 3 o’clock
– 12-hour counter at 6 o’clock
– Telemetric scale
Date window at 6 o’clock
CASE, DIAL AND HANDS
Material: steel
Unidirectional rotating bezel with black aluminium disc
Diameter: 45 mm
Opening diameter: 35 mm
Thickness: 14.10 mm
Glass: domed sapphire crystal glareproofed on both sides
Case-back: transparent sapphire crystal
Water-resistance: 10 ATM
Dial: black with 30-minute counter in original colours
Hour-markers: Arabic numerals in SLN C1 superluminova
Hands: rhodiumed, faceted and coated with SLN C1 superluminova
Strap
Steel bracelet
Clasp: Steel triple folding clasp

Press Release
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MANUFACTURE ZENITH
Maud Tiberti - Rue des Billodes 34-36 - CH-2400 Le Locle
Tel. +41 (0)32 930 65 84
E-mail: maud.tiberti@zenith-watches.com
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