FP Journe Repetition Souverain

It’s been so long that almost everyone has forgotten, but in 2008 this Repetition Souverain was a world first. Or perhaps, as it predates almost all watch media, it’s been forgotten. In any regard, this was at one point the world’s thinnest minute repeater. FP Journe likes sketching new things into existence. In 2008, he came up with a rather clever and entirely new way to do a repeater. In fact, compared to the Chronometre Souverain we all know and love, the calibre 1408 is just .3mm taller with double the component count. That’s not engineering, that’s obsession.

The key change here was a unique design for both the hammers and gongs which was considerably thinner than previously done. In fact, they’re so thin that they’re mounted directly to the base plate, hence the opened dial. The gongs don’t circle the entire dial as is traditional, but rather have more of a sickle shape, also above the base plate, and run 1/3 the way around. This creates a louder but slightly less resonant tone, which is the only real criticism that can be levelled at the ‘RS’. It is a triumph of uniquely mad, unbridled engineering over romance, which is rather fitting for FPJ’s broader approach to most watchmaking. Oh, and the governor which regulates the speed of the repeater’s strikes is one of the better finished components of any FPJ calibre. Unusually, it’s in steel, which was chosen only for its acoustic properties. Lighter metals ‘ring’ more, who knew.

Since 2008, the RS has been revisited with a sapphire dial, which does tend to capture most attention these days. But the original guilloché does hit just as hard for me, it’s softer. In complexity, they are identical. The RS followed hot on the heels of what was then the most complicated FPJ, a Grande Sonnerie. The Repeater, though, was the one which broke records. Maybe I’m romantic, but that does add appeal. Particularly when it means that, at a glance, once could mistake this for a ‘mere’ CS. It shows an unwavering dedication to proportion and wearability, to the manic exclusion of everything else. As a proportion appreciator, I salute you Mr. François-Paul.

This example appears worn, but nothing more than lightly. The case is lightly worn, with some marks you can see but nothing remotely distracting. It comes with a certificate from FPJ from a well-regarded Californian retailer.