Posts Tagged ‘Tourbillon’
Jade Dial FP Journe Tourbillon Souverain
I always laugh a bit, quietly to myself, when first point of interest someone mentions about their watch is rarity. Rarity is great, market-marking even, but not interesting. FP Journe created Black Label, which I always thought was a Johnnie Walker for masochists, to reward their clients with something less common. Boutique exclusives for VIPs,…
Read More3357 Breguet Classique Tourbillon
Swatch Group haven’t managed to fuck up every one of their brands just yet. The day a Swatch x Breguet ‘collab’ arrives will be the day I lose faith in modern mainstream watchmaking. Some things weren’t meant to be distilled. Breguet stands for watchmaking quality above all else. Even if a tourbillon has never made…
Read MoreHaldimann H1 Flying Central Tourbillon
There’s no CNC machine at Haldimann, an independent whose philosophy is about as far from Rolex as watchmaking gets. The most modern machine they have is an optical microscope from the ’60s. I suspect if you showed an iPhone to Beat Haldimann he’d shout witchcraft and report you to the church immediately. Haldimann’s workshop and…
Read More740.056 A. Lange & Söhne Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon
I’m old enough in watch years to just remember a time when old Swiss men on the internet would call Lange ‘not as serious’ a brand as Patek Philippe. The comparison is useless, the two manufactures approach watchmaking with such distinct philosophies. But, if there were any remaining doubt, surely this ref. 740.056 puts it…
Read More3350 Breguet Tourbillon in Yellow Gold
The tourbillon makes no sense in the modern context. It’s designed to counteract the pull of gravity, down, on a balance. In a pocket watch, that’s great, because it’s always vertical. But in wristwatches, well, it’s about as useful as a chocolate teapot. Nonetheless, a rotating tourbillon cage does provide quite the visual drama and…
Read MoreFP Journe T30 Tourbillon Historique
Albert Camus once wrote that ‘a true masterpiece does not tell everything.’ There is beauty in artistry, but perhaps even more in mystery. Journe’s T30 has a magic about it, not because of what is revealed at first glance, beautiful though it is, but because of its unimaginable depth in engineering, finishing, and story it…
Read More0023 Blancpain Villeret Flying Tourbillon
Nineties Blancpain is a distinct beast entirely, from all of horology. Famously, toward the ceasefire of the quartz crisis, Blancpain ran ads claiming ‘since 1735, Blancpain has never produced a quartz watch and we never will.’ Jean-Claude Biver and Jacques Piguet may not have quite singlehanded dragged Swiss mechanical watchmaking into the modern era, but that…
Read MoreDB28TRS De Bethune Tourbillon
The DB28 is modern De Bethune’s halo offering. It has won all the awards, sustained market interest, and was perhaps the brand’s most audacious project of all time. In the wake of that success, De Bethune have been iterating and, year on year, offering slightly more niche DB28s in smaller quantities. De Bethune are an…
Read More3357 Breguet Tourbillon in White Gold
Breguet: the name itself is enough to weaken the knees of those who care about history. Yet, when I said Breguet, what came to mind? Chances are it was one of two things: either the Marie-Antoinette pocket watch and other unimaginably unattainable relics of horology’s blossoming or things like the Chaumet-era 2310 chronographs. Perhaps even…
Read More1 of 20 H. Moser & Cie ‘Funky Blue’ Endeavor Tourbillon ‘Concept’
If you’re going to be an expert of marketing, you’d better be able to back it up. Thankfully, the work of H. Moser & Cie is about the furthest thing from a façade possible. Possibly best known as being masters of the gorgeous fumé dial, Moser back up the aesthetic with beautifully-finished, technically-competent calibres. If you take…
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