Friday, February 15, 2019

De Bethune – DB28 Kind of Gold USA Edition
















De BethuneDB28 Kind of Gold USA Limited Edition


On the occasion of Miami Watches & Wonders, De Bethune presents a USA Exclusive: The iconic "DB28 Kind of Blue" now available with an elegant Pink Gold case. Only 10 numbered timekeepers, reserved exclusively for American clients, will be produced.

Miami. The Magic City. The omnipresent blue. The Atlantic, with shades ranging from turquoise along the beaches to open water blue in the distance. Downtown, with the deep blue waters of the canals and marinas. And the sky. The entire city is bathed in all hues of blue. It is no coincidence that De Bethune chose the famous DB28 Kind of Blue to celebrate the second edition of the Miami Watches & Wonders event.

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The famous De Bethune blue. A color linked to the notion of infinity and harmony. As a tribute to this integral element of its identity, De Bethune unveils in Miami its iconic DB28 Kind of Blue timekeeper in a two-tone version with a case made of pink gold, creating a magical wholeness. A premiere for a very exclusive limited edition of 10 numbered timepieces destined only for clients in the US.

The hand and the fire

For its own blue, De Bethune uses a special technique that consists in tinting the surface by oxidizing it. It is based on a heat treatment invented in the 16th century to protect steel surfaces against corrosion. An expression of watchmaking excellence, it requires that each component first be meticulously polished before it is flame-heated by hand to create a natural, even and durable protective film while increasing the hardness of the component.


A number of fundamental inventions

On the inside, the mechanical caliber with manual winding is fully visible and integrates several fundamental technical inventions. The patented spherical moon-phase is positioned at 6 o’clock. Made of steel and palladium, it offers precision that varies by only one lunar day every 122 years.

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At the heart of the watch, the high-performance escapement developed by De Bethune presents a silicon annular balance, encircled by a white gold ring and a balance-spring with a flat terminal curve that is exclusive to De Bethune. It is protected by a triple pare-chute shock-absorbing system.

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Power is accumulated and distributed through two self-regulating barrels, also developed by De Bethune. The power reserve indicator can be read on the back of the plate, which is decorated with special concentric graining.

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All the finishes are done by hand with a motion work bridge in polished titanium, bridges with “Côtes De Bethune” decoration and rose-work grinding on the barrel ratchets. The hours are indicated by skeleton hands on arrow pointers made of rose gold.

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Water-resistant to 105 metres (10 ATM), the DB28 Kind of Gold USA is no exception to the strict rule of wearer comfort that De Bethune applies to its models in general and particularly to the DB28 collection. This exceptional comfort stems from a combination of the light feel of the titanium case, the softness of its hand-polished finish, the 12 o’clock crown position and above all the presence of the patented system of floating lugs that adapt to wrist size and movements.

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The model is deliveri with strap extra-supple alligator skin, lining in alligator and a pin buckle in mirror-polished grade 5 and blued titanium and lock ardillon in pink 5N gold lock.

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At once supreme and vibrant, the DB28 Kind of Gold, USA Limited Edition emits a singular radiance from the very material from which they are made. It truly advocates in favor of a color that casts a magical spell.

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TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Collection:  DB28

Name: DB28 Kind of Gold USA Edition

Reference: DB28BRUS  -  Unique Timepiece - Only 10 pieces

Functions:
Hours, Minutes, Spherical moon-phase indication at 6 o’clock,
Power reserve situated on the back
Movement:
Caliber DB2115V4
Type: Mechanical calibre with manual winding
Adjustment:
Winding and setting the time by means of the crown (2 positions)
Spherical moon-phase adjustment via a corrector

Technical features of calibre DB2115V4

Number of parts: 297
Jewelling: 39 jewels
Diameter: 30 mm
Power reserve: 6 days, ensured by a self-regulating twin barrel
De Bethune Innovation (2004)

Specificities:
Titanium balance wheel with white gold inserts, optimized for temperature differences and air penetration De Bethune Patent (2016)
"De Bethune" balance-spring with flat terminal curve De Bethune Patent (2006)
Silicon escape wheel
Spherical moon-phase indication accurate to a degree of one lunar day every 122 years – De Bethune Patent (2004)
Triple pare-chute shock-absorbing system De Bethune Patent (2005)
Frequency: 28,800 vibrations per hour
Adornment:
Concave polished grade 5 titanium plate cover
Hand made mirror-polished grade 5 titanium motion works bridge
Barrels bridge decorated with De Bethune stripes and “microlight” engraving
Open worked and hand sailed barrels
Rhodium power reserve indicator background decorated with “De Bethune” circular graining Blued and engraved ring
Steel parts beveled and polished by hand
Display:
Hands in hand-polished rose gold 5N
De Bethune 30″ ultra-light tourbillon in silicone and titanium at 6 o’clock – De Bethune Innovation (2008)
Hours ring in polished rose gold 5N and blued titanium with pointers in pink 5N gold
Minutes ring in grade 5 satin-polished and blued titanium
Hands: in hand-polished rose gold 5NDial:
Blued grade 5 polished titanium hours ring with rose gold hour-markers
Moon-phase bezel in polished blued titanium and pink 5N gold
Hand-polished rose gold 5N
Case
Case material: Pink Gold + Polished grade 5 titanium
Case diameter: 42.6 mm
Case thickness: 9.30 mm
Lugs: Short or long floating lugs in polished grade 5 titanium
De Bethune Patent (2006)
Crystal: In sapphire crystal (hardness of 1800 Vickers) with double anti-reflective coating
Case back: Screwed case back in grade 5 polished titanium that opens on a linear power reserve indicator in blued steel
Sapphire crystal (1800 Vickers hardness) with double anti-reflective coating
Sapphire crystal (hardness of 1800 Vickers) with double anti-reflective coating
Water resistance: 3 ATM
Strap:
Extra-supple alligator skin, lining in alligator
Buckle: Pin buckle in mirror-polished grade 5 and blued titanium and ardillon in pink 5N gold


Year: 2019

Limited Edition  to only 10 pieces


* Manufacture De Bethune innovations and registered patents

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Press release -- Geneva 2019
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De Bethune Geneva Office 
25 Grand-Rue 1204 Geneva
Switzerland
Tel: +41 22 310 22 71
Fax: +41 22 310 33 40
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www.DeBethune.ch

Thursday, February 14, 2019

VACHERON CONSTANTIN – Les Cabinotiers Minute Repeater Perpetual Calendar - Pièce Unique

















VACHERON CONSTANTINLes Cabinotiers Minute Repeater Perpetual Calendar Gold 42 mm - Pièce Unique

SIHH2019
Les Cabinotiers Minute Repeater Perpetual Calenda

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  •     A one-of-a-kind model created by the Les Cabinotiers department
  •     Calibre 1731 QP: a revisited Grand Complication movement exclusive to Les Cabinotiers collection
  •     An elegant and refined design perpetuating the Vacheron Constantin style
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In the 18th century, the most experienced Geneva watchmakers exercised their talent in light-filled workshops called ‘cabinets’, located on the top floor of the city’s buildings. Crafting extraordinary complicated bespoke watches, these alchemists of time came to be known as ‘cabinotiers’. Accomplished masters of their art, they cultivated a blend of technical and manual skills backed by vast scientific knowledge and curiosity for new ideas, nurtured by the philosophy of the Age of Enlightenment.

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In response to the highest technical, aesthetic and artistic challenges, the one-of-a-kind Vacheron Constantin models now crafted in its Les Cabinotiers department, heir to this prestigious past, are a delight to the most demanding connoisseurs of Haute Horlogerie. The new Les Cabinotiers Minute Repeater Perpetual Calendar, driven by an unprecedented calibre, is a further illustration of this exclusive approach.

A Fine Watchmaking movement 
inspired by a legacy of historical calibres

The one-of-a-kind Les Cabinotiers minute repeater perpetual calendar is equipped with a revisited movement: Calibre 1731 QP, combining minute repeater and perpetual calendar functions at the heart of a delightfully slender 42 mm-diameter gold case.

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The challenge for the in-house watchmakers lays in pairing two of the most sophisticated horological complications within an ultra-thin movement measuring just 5.70 mm thick, while ensuring precision, reliability and user friendliness. Among the technical feats accompanying the origins of this watch, the Maison’s Les Cabinotiers department developed a perfectly silent strike governor serving to control the cadence of the hammers in striking the gongs.

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No less than 438 components, some of them no thicker than a hair’s breadth, compose this sophisticated horological ‘alchemy’ within a mechanical manual-winding movement.

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Beating at a frequency of 21,600 vibrations per hour (3 Hz) and endowed with a 65-hour power reserve, it drives the full set of hours, minutes, day, date, month, leap-year indication, moon phase and minute repeater functions.

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Being the world’s oldest watch manufacturer in continuous activity also means possessing an incredibly rich heritage. It is by drawing on this past and basing itself on the transmission of horological excellence and stylistic research that the Maison consistently defies time.

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Any new Vacheron Constantin creation begins with imagining watches bearing a real technical and aesthetic signature.

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The new Les Cabinotiers Minute Repeater Perpetual Calendar model is thus the latest in a line of watches that have made their mark on their respective eras. In 1992, Vacheron Constantin presented reference 30020, an exceptional creation combining an hours, quarters and minutes repeating mechanism with a perpetual calendar.

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In 2013, the Maison launched the famous Calibre 1731, whose name pays tribute to the birth year of Jean-Marc Vacheron: an extremely slim manual-winding minute repeater movement inspired by historical calibres.


Pure lines, mechanical complexity

Despite the complexity of this watch, Vacheron Constantin was determined to make it a model cultivating the elegance, discretion and other aesthetic values that have become its signature. The 42 mm-diameter case in white or pink gold features extremely pure lines. Only the minute repeater slide on the left-hand side of the case expresses the complexity of this model and testifies to its ability to set an audible cadence for time.

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The gleam of the precious polished metal beautifully frames the deep colour of the midnight blue or brown dial, depending on the version. The day, date and month indications, appearing in the upper part of the dial, are displayed in an extremely legible manner, and thereby leave plenty of space for the gold Moon to pursue its poetic dance amid the stars, against a beautifully understated backdrop.

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This arrangement of the various dial indications ensures a pleasingly balanced and elegant watch face, while the blue and brown colour lends a dynamic and modern touch.

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TECHNICAL DATA

LES CABINOTIERS


Minute Repeater Perpetual Calendar - Pièce Unique

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REFERENCE 6610C/000G-B511
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REFERENCE 6610C/000R-B510




MOVEMENT
CALIBRE 1731 QP
Developed and manufactured by Vacheron Constantin
Mechanical, manual-winding
32.80 mm diameter, 5.70 mm thick
Approximately 65 hours of power reserve
3 Hz (21,600 vibrations/hour)
438 components
36 jewels
Hallmark of Geneva certified timepiece
INDICATIONS Hours, minutes
  • Perpetual calendar (day of the week, date, month, leap year)
  • Moon phases
  • Minute Repeater
CASE  
  • 18K white gold
  • 18K 5N pink gold
42 mm diameter, 10.44 mm thick
Transparent sapphire crystal caseback
DIAL 
  • Blue opaline dial
18K white gold hour-markers
Moon in 18K white gold
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  • Brown opaline dial
18K 5N pink gold hour-markers
Moon in 18K 5N pink gold
STRAP 
  • Dark blue 
  • Dark brown
Mississippiensis alligator leather, hand-stitched, saddle-finish, large square scales
BUCKLE
  • 18K white gold folding clasp
  • 18K 5N pink gold folding clasp
Polished half Maltese cross-shaped

BOX Les Cabinotiers winding-box made of Makassar ebony wood, interior in Nabuka
ACCESSORIES Delivered with a corrector pen


Unique timepiece - One-of-a-kind timepiece
“Les Cabinotiers”, “Pièce unique”, “AC” hallmark engraved on caseback



#VacheronConstantin
#VCSIHH
#SIHH2019


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Press Release - 2019
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Vacheron Constantin
Press Department
10, Chemin du Tourbillon
P.O. Box 95
CH-1228
Plan-les-Ouates/Geneva
Tel. +41 22 930 20 05
Fax +41 22 930 20 06
press@vacheron-constantin.com
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