Monday, January 16, 2017

GREUBEL FORSEY – Grande Sonnerie Titanium Edition


















GREUBEL FORSEYGrande Sonnerie Titanium Limited Edition


SIHH 2017: Greubel Forsey 
Grande Sonnerie in titanium

Eleven years of research and development. The assembly of no fewer than 935 parts. The filing of two patents. The development of an acoustic resonance cage producing an extremely pure sound.

The incorporation of eleven security functions ensuring maximum peace of mind... These few elements alone give an idea of the magnitude of the almost gargantuan task of creating the first Greubel Forsey Grande Sonnerie.

Click , to see the large size. BIG FOTO






































For every watchmaker even slightly fascinated by the history of watchmaking excellence, the Grande Sonnerie represents a culmination, a pinnacle that is often not reached in the space of a lifetime. Without a shadow of doubt, the Grande Sonnerie is one of the greatest of watchmaking complications. Since the very beginning of their partnership, Robert Greubel and Stephen Forsey have been thinking out what their own, resolutely contemporary interpretation of this regal complication could be. For eleven years, the Grande Sonnerie shaped their day-to-day life. Eleven years, during which they worked in the utmost secrecy to assemble the 935 parts of this timepiece, striving in particular to achieve absolute harmony between the movement, the exterior and the acoustics.

Click , to see the large size. BIG FOTO









































This timepiece represents the quintessence of their expertise and their ideal of watchmaking excellence. This Grande Sonnerie has powerful acoustics. It is water resistant to 3 atm. It is ergonomically designed for optimum ease of use, while an exceptional repeater power reserve enables it to run for about twenty hours in “Grande Sonnerie” mode. The timepiece is equipped with a silent striking regulator and a Tourbillon 24 Secondes, all housed within the standard dimensions of a Greubel Forsey case.

Click , to see the large size. BIG FOTO



























The most important elements and indications (such as the tourbillon, the cathedral gongs, the striking hammers, and the power reserve and mode indicators) were incorporated with the greatest care to ensure architectural balance. This was no mean feat – the watch designers succeeded in housing the 935 parts comprising this timepiece and its exterior in a space measuring 43.5 mm in diameter and 16.13 mm high. The Grande Sonnerie is well and truly Greubel Forsey’s most complex creation to date.

Click , to see the large size. BIG FOTO








































The movement is manually wound, but the striking mechanism features a self-winding system which provides about 20 hours of power reserve in Grande Sonnerie mode. The minute repeater and its addi- tional striking mechanism sounds the exact time on demand, down to the minute. The specific characteristics of this timepiece include, in particular: 21,600 vibrations/hour and a 72-hour chronometric power reserve.

Click , to see the large size. BIG FOTO









































This timepiece has three modes to choose from: Grande Sonnerie (which strikes the hours and the quarters in passing), Petite Sonnerie (which strikes the full hours in passing) and Silence (which does not strike in passing). The pure and rich sound of the Grande Sonnerie is enhanced by an acoustic resonance cage made from titanium.


Greubel Forsey is now part of the very exclusive circle of the few watchmakers offering a Grande Sonnerie.

Five to eight pieces of this timepiece will be realised a year.

--------------------------------------
Press release  - 2017
-------------------------------------------------
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 9254545
+41 32 9254502
----------------------------------------------------------------------
www.facebook.com - Greubel Forsey
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
www.GreubelForsey.com

Friday, January 13, 2017

H. MOSER & CIE. – Swiss Mad Watch























H. MOSER & CIE.Swiss Mad Watch Case Swiss Cheese/Composite - Unique Piece

H. MOSER & CIE. LAUNCHES THE SWISS MAD WATCH
NOT SWISS MADE BUT STILL 100
SWISS – HOLY COW!

The Swiss Mad Watch is unique, symbolic, and irreverent, but most importantly, 100% Swiss and proud of it. With the Swiss Made label for watchmaking revised from January 1st, 2017, to require 60% of components in a watch to be of Swiss origin, H. Moser & Cie. has soundly critiqued the shortcomings of this inadequate label and stands up for true independent Swiss watchmakers. For the Schaffhausen-based Manufacture, whose creations are over 95% Swiss, this label is too lenient, providing no guarantee, creating confusion and encouraging abuses of the system. For these reasons, H. Moser & Cie. has decided to remove the Swiss Made label from all new watches created from 2017 onwards.

Click , to see the large size. BIG FOTO





























Created in Switzerland, by Swiss watchmakers and using Swiss materials: the Swiss Mad Watch has symbolic value, tackling Swiss Made debate head on to reveal the truth behind this label. With this unique watch, H. Moser & Cie. demonstrates the importance and urgency of returning Swiss Made to its former heights. Echoing the absurdity and the ridiculous change to the Swiss Made legislation, H. Moser & Cie.'s satirical comment on the issue highlights an alternative resource, 100% natural and entirely Swiss, one of the most precious Swiss resources that exists: cows.

Click , to see the large size. BIG FOTO








































The case of the Swiss Mad Watch is created from real Swiss cheese as a base material, a Vacherin Mont d’Or médaille d’or, added to an innovative composite material, itr2©, then machined and polished with the H. Moser signature finishes. For the strap, Swiss cowhide was the obvious choice. The watch is finished with a red fumé dial and doubled indices at 12, 3, 6 and 9 o'clock, subtly reminiscent of the Swiss flag. The result? Stunning, irreverent, astonishing...and completely Swiss!

Click , to see the large size. BIG FOTO





































Disruptive? "Definitely," responds Edouard Meylan, CEO of H. Moser & Cie. "Our Swiss Mad Watch sends a clear message to the Swiss watchmaking industry, the authorities and watch enthusiasts: the Swiss Made label is meaningless. Worse than this, it gives credibility to the worst abuses in our industry. Our response to this lax and insufficient label is derision. At H. Moser & Cie., we produce watches that are truly Swiss, watches that are steeped in watchmaking tradition and centuries of experience. The quality of these pieces speaks for itself and dispenses with the need for a label. We are no longer "Swiss Made", but we are Swiss. 100% Swiss, in the case of the Swiss Mad Watch, and over 95% Swiss for all of our other models," concludes Edouard Meylan.

Click , to see the large size. BIG FOTO





























The Swiss Mad Watch will be presented during the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie (SIHH) from January 16th to 20th, 2017. This is the perfect opportunity to admire this unique watch, whose price of 1,081,291, in Swiss Francs of course, references the signing of the Swiss Federal Charter on August 1st, 1291. All proceeds from the sale of this watch will be used to create a fund to support independent Swiss watchmaking suppliers currently suffering under the difficult economic situation and outsourcing to Asia. These are the very artisans who keep traditional Swiss watchmaking alive and who help it to continually evolve.




Join our campaign – #MakeSwissMadeGreatAgain – to bring back value to the Swiss Made label.


--------------------------------
TECHNICAL FEATURES

Model: SWISS MAD WATCH

Reference 8327-1400, model made with Swiss cheese, red fumé dial,
Swiss cowhide leather strap, unique piece

Case
Cheese integrated with itr2 © composite material
Diameter: 42.0 mm, height: 9.4 mm
Sapphire crystal
See-through sapphire crystal case-back
Crown adorned with an “M
Dial
Red fumé with sunburst pattern
White lacquered applique indexes and hour and minute hands in the shape of a swallow's tail
Movement
In-house, hand-wound, mechanical HMC 327 calibre
Dimensions: 32.0 mm or 14 ¼ lignes, height: 4.5 mm
Frequency: 18,000 Vib/h
29 jewels
Power reserve: minimum 3 days
Moser teeth for all wheels and pinions
Original Straumann Hairspring® with stabilised Breguet overcoil
Functions
Hours and minutes
Power reserve indicator on movement side
Strap
Hand-stitched cowhide leather strap
Steel pin buckle, engraved with the Moser logo

---------------
CONTACT
Nathalie Cobos, T +41 76 319 03 09
---------------------------------------------- 
Press release - 2017
----------------------------------------------
H. MOSER & CIE.
MOSER SCHAFFHAUSEN AG
Rundbuckstrasse 10
CH-8212 Neuhausen am Rheinfall
Switzerland
TEL.          +41 52 674 0050
FAX          +41 52 674 0055
E-MAIL      info@h-moser.com
----------------------------------------------------------------------
www.facebook.com - Moser Watches
----------------------------------------------------
www.H-Moser.com