Hello Pifpaf, welcome back and thanks for this in-depth review. 
I believe pictures are not clear enough to show the beauty of the piece. Honestly, i don't like this piece so much to spend the required amount for it. but for sure there's a lot of passion in it and therefore, bravi!

Grazie Mille !

Love it, or hate it. But please, I don't want that this watch let you indifferent.

Hi friends,

You may have noticed it, I was absent from the forum in 2014, as I was writing chronicles about the NM adventure:  http://www.legardetemps-nm.org/

Le Garde-temps, la Naissance d’une Montre is aiming to safeguard and transmit traditional know how.

It has started a few years back, almost by accident, in a discussion between Robert Greubel, Philippe Dufour, Kari Voutilainen & Vianney Halter. As they were exchanging views, they realised the full extent of the erosion of know how...

The main reasons for this  lie in the different crises of watchmaking industry, especially that “of quartz” and the progressive robotization of industry by means of numerical controls. The leavings, the deaths and the race for profits were the primary vehicles.

As Philippe Dufour put in: “cemeteries are full of secrets”.

Aware of that problem, and facing the industry’s relative indifference, Robert Greubel decided to take the bull by the horns, initiating a preservation of know how project, on the modest scale of Greubel Forsey. The best way to tranfer knowledge is to have some teaching skills, and it’s even better to actually be a teacher.

So, in July 2010, Robert contacted a long-time friend: Michel Boulanger. The latter, motivated by learning, moved back to his workshop in Chartres, France, to teach in Paris. They had been considering collaboration for a long time, and this was a godsend for Michel. In order to stimulate his creativity, Robert asked him to think about a project that would reflect his vision of transmission.

Robert suggested Michel create a watch from start to finish, using traditional tehniques called “conventional” that would allow him to  become a learner again.
That also meant that Michel couldn’t use any numerical control machine. the whole production had to be either  done by hand with the appropriate tool, or with a lathe or a milling machine. However,  the design stage had to be run on a computer.

The intellectual maturation phase of the project had been quite long before the selection of the tool was made. During this phase, Michel presented some ambitious projects, perhaps too much, as he wasn’t yet aware of the inherent constraints.   

Indeed, La Naissance d’une Montre is one of the rare pieces produced on the basis of a brand new designing, which means that the mechanism was born from the imagination of Michel and developed by the NM team rather than being the copy of an existing calibre.

During that phase, Robert decided on two major aspects: le Garde-temps has to be a simple watch (HMS) with a traditional tourbillon, and Philippe Dufour must be one of Michel’s teachers.

Now that the stage is set, and before Michel tells you about the first years of the adventure, here’s a brief overview of the main players:

Robert Greubel : although relatively unknown to the general public, he’s the conductor of Greubel Forsey. In the middle of the 90’s, he founded CompliTime with Stephen. Then they commercialized their first invention,  le Double Tourbillon 30°, in their own names as no brand wanted it… The verdict of the collectors spoke: in only ten years, GF got tremendously succesful and the brand positioned itself at the pinnacle of  modern watchmaking...
Robert is the project manager of NM, he allows the members of the adventure to push back their personal limits.

Robert examining le Garde-temps at the SIHH
 

Stephen Forsey : he’s Robert’s partner and also the ambassador of GF and NM. During the long conception phases, he intervened to validate the main technical orientations. He started watchmaking early on, in the family workshop. Using pieces of meccano, he validated the technical concept of the Double Tourbillon 30°.


Stephen & Robert at Philippe Dufour’s birthday



Philippe Dufour : the master Yoda of watchmaking. In Japan, “ “a living national treasure”. He is so cult down there that he’s even portrayed in a school manual in the form of a manga.

By presenting the Simplicity in the early 90’s, Philippe pushed the finishing standards of watchmaking.

His knowledge is as vast as his hand is sure, and even excellent watchmakers such as Didier Cretin can hardly keep up.  This is the failure of Philippe, he hasn’t been flexible enough with his apprentices to transfer them all of his expertise. As Master Yoda, Philippe isn’t a whiz at teaching, but everything has changed with his Padawan Obi-Wan Boulanger.


Philippe in the swirling pipe smoke
 

Didier Cretin : a few years back, prior to working for GF, I have had the opportunity to meet Didier. We had spent over an hour talking about watchmaking. Didier is an enthusiast who have worked for the most prestigious  watchmaking houses, Breguet, Audemars Piguet, Philippe Dufour (he produced 18 Simplicities) and above all Greubel Forsey. He’s a designer at GF, and he’s also, as part of NM, the main acolyte of Michel, who validates the plans of the Garde-temps...   

Didier (right) & Michel, at the SIHH



Sévérine Vitali :  Those who know well Greubel Forsey have already met her. She undertook a classical watch training at the French border. She also worked for Renaud & Papi, prior to joining Greubel Forsey at the beginning of the adventure, in 2004 (remember,I talked about it in the interview of Nathalie Jean-Louis LINK). Since then, she has substantially honed her craft and she’s currently responsible for the finishing workshop at Greubel Forsey. Notably, she teaches the sand-blasting techniques to Michel.

 

Jean-François Erard : though not yet a household name, he’s an elite precision mechanic, who has worked a lot for the greatest manufactories. In particular, he designs gongs for striking watches. He changed the supply picture by developing monobloc gongs at Renaud & Papi in the 90’s. Jean François is about to retire, and the NM project is an opportunity to share his know how with Michel. He assists Michel with the design of the production procedures of the garde-temps’ components, in particular with Schaublin 70 & 102 lathes and the milling machine.

JF (right), Didier & Michel at the Greubel Forsey permises



Michel Boulanger : he’s “the hero of the adventure”. At 46, the six-foot-tall  watchmaker is litterally the tallest of his generation. Michel fell into watchmaking as a child, as his father owned a clock restoration workshop in the south of Chartres.
After obtaining watchmaking qualifications, he had a taste of Swiss industry, working at Renaud & Papi, where he met again Robert and was introduced to Jean François.
But Michel was interested in teaching, so he passed the  competitive examination of the French National Education, and he’s  been teaching watchmaking for many years now at the technical college Diderot, Paris 19th.

Michel and his coat « La Naissance d’une Montre »
 

The Schaublin 70 lathe :   any self-respecting hero has his super-tool: car, sword or gun in all good movies, novels or series. From Arthur and Excalibur to the dirty Harry’s 44.Automag, or the Michael Knight’s Pontiac Trans Am K2000.

The point is Michel’s 70 lathe is a lot more customisable than the latter, which however have caused scores of wet dreams among tuning fans. The 70 lathe is crucial in NM, as it’s Michel’s main tool, the one he uses two-thirds of the time ( and 90% of the “tool” time).

The 70 lathe was presented in 1925.  It was requested by the watchmaking industry, with a will to standardise the equipment, with a versatile lathe allowing to work on micro-scale. It’s  600mm long*120mm high for a tare weight of 13,5kg. It is particular in that it is still produced nowadays, and thus endowed with a plethora of accessories specially designed for a watchmaking-scale use. Any young watchmaker can purchase a second-hand 70 for 3000€, and fit it  with accessories as it goes along.

But the story of Michel’s 70 lathe is way more excinting. This lathe belonged to Robert, and he gave it to Michel in the beginning of the 2000’s, just when the GF adventure started. Within the context of NM, this handover  is hugely symbolical.


Le Garde-temps : this piece is something of a Holy Grail, as it is more of a pretext for an initiation quest through the lost paths of traditional know how rather than an end in itself. Intellectually, while a car or a pair of shoes have practical purposes,a watch is a pure abstraction, an artistic creation. This one will be the vehicle of the perpetuation of old contemporary watchmaking master’s expertise.

The production target is modest, 11 finalised Garde-temps. It actually means that Michel should probably produce triple, if account is taken of the rejected pieces and components retained to ensure the future after-sales service.

The Garde-temps will be round and will have a dimension of 45mmx32mm, for an approximate weight of 220 grams, with a frequency of 18000bph for a minimum of 36h of PwR, in the spirit of vintage pocket watches. It will be a simple piece with no stricto sensus complication, but however equipped with a large one-minute tourbillon of 18-mm diameter.

For the real watch enthusiats out there, it will also be fitted with the following devices:


●   Double click called “de la Vallée de Joux”, instead of the Breguet pinion. This system can be found on the Grandes sonneries. This implementation was a Philippe proposal.
●   No seconds hand on the frame.
●   Independant time-setting system (no motion-work system attached to the going train, the time-setting is connected to the barrel).
●   Wolf-tooth at the barrel level.
●   Bevel gear.

 

In order to narrate to you the first years of the adventure, I interviewed Michel:


Hi Michel Boulanger,

Hi Pifpaf,

PP : how did the adventure start for you?

MB : by the end of June 2010, I got a phone call from a member of GF. I didn’t understant what he wanted. I listened carefully and I said yes. Then I hung up, went on holidays and forgot about it...   


PP : like Gary Kildall who missed the MDSOS sale at IBM in 1980, you nearly missed the deal of the century too, didn’t you!! 

MB : yes and no, everything worked out, because Robert is much nicer than IBM, he called me back a month later and gave me the details of the project. I would have found it hard to believe if I hadn’t known what he is able to produce. I came to Switzerland and we discussed it in detail, and it  appealed to me immediately.  I wanted to take a step back from National Education. As a teacher, if you want to do the job well, you have to keep connected with the professional world to remain competent. I felt I had an opportunity here. Robert told me: “try to picture a handmade watch mechanism you’d like to produce conventionally”...   


PP : what did you have in mind?

Several complicated projects, including chronographs, countdowns, grandes sonneries… some stuffs that might not have worked. Besides,  some of them were focussing too much on watchmaking, and not enough on the learning process.
So we decided to go back to the beginning: I make the watch from A to Z (apart from a few elements, such as the rubies, the balance-spring and the barrel spring), with pre-quartz-crisis tools and alloys: watchmaker lathe (including the 70), spiromatic, mechanical calculator, profile projector, jig-boring machine, tap and die, ect… I work with tools from the 50’s, 60’s, 70’s 99% of the time, and most importantly, the constraint is the following: no numerical control machine (LINK the watchmaking farmer). Every action is manual: I push the chariot myself toward the chisel, and if I’m nervous or tired, I spoil my part.


Michel at the watchmaker lathe



PP : how did you manage to master all those old tools?

MB : Robert suggested that Philippe joins NM, which strenghtened my desire to move forward on the Garde-temps and I wasn’t disappointed. Philippe transmits openly, in full-hearted partnership. He’s very generous, the antithesis of  “taiseux” (for montain dwellers, the term refers to an individual who remains silent). He’s as communicative as he is difficult to work with, with a high level of demands, which is not unnecessary given the NM constraints.       


PP : can you tell us more about those constraints?

MB : the NM project combines as many constraints as possible: the use of old and little productive tools, diffucult to adjust , together  with the high level of demand required by GF and Philippe Dufour in terms of finishings, reliability, chronometry or level of interchangeability  of the parts. 
It is intrinsically very challenging to produce 11 pieces from A to Z in my own garage, with Robert and Philippe as excellence keepers. It’s a constant challenge to go beyond myself to reach the ultimate objective.

PP : When did you start the production?

MB : wooh, not so fast, we’re in septembre 2011. I got 100% involved in NM, it was the beginning of the adventure and the work sessions were full of people. We wasted a lot of time during the first year, because every one had an opinion (some said I should try to do like this, like that...). The postive side is that all this contributed to the tremendous evolution of the drawings. Compare the first version of the calibre and the one we have today, it’s like night and day. There have been around ten different drawings of the calibre and more than twenty of the tourbillon cage so far, mostly in 2011.

 
PP : here we are, early 2012...

MB : it was the SIHH: we presented NM to the public for the first time. Most of the people had come to see Philippe.  We hadn’t communicated much on the project, we’d just said that we were making a watch without any CNC intervention. It was well received, but the people didn’t really understand. They were still a bit sceptical, which is natural. It was difficult for them to picture what we had in mind, as we still hadn’t presented any concrete watch. 


PP : then you started the production?

MB: We continued the discussions from 2011. By confronting the theories of 2011 with the reality, we realised that they were obsolete, for lack of a  global vision of the production of a piece from A to Z with no numerical control. 

With Didier Cretin, we conducted historical research at the storeroom of the International Watchmaking Museum (thanks to Mr Piguet) and at the storeroom of the Musée du Château des Monts (thanks to Gerald Vouga). We only met really cool people who gave us complete accessibility. We consulted everything between 1750 and 1850.
Our discussions mainly focused on the production of the pieces, how many and what type of wheels, and the methodology of the traditional fabrication. This was a crucial step to push back limits of my mastery of the 70 lathe.


PP : destination SIHH 2013 ?

MB : we wanted to introduce the finalised tourbillon cage to the public. We made some mistakes in terms of production. Thanks to JF Erard, the drawings evolved considerably. I took two months to produce the first frame. At the same time, we continued to develop the winding/time-setting part of the Garde-Temps.
Once at the SIHH 2013, we had achieved our goal: the frame was there: partial case (bottom, top + the two carriage-bridges)+ balance, all installed on the plate. As it started to look concrete, we could feel a slight quivering, in particular because we communicated on the functions of the Garde-Temps.

The tourbillon cage, SIHH2013
 


PP : This is 2013, is the project taking shape now?

MB : we’re clearly at the heart of the action. Our objective was to hear “tic tac” from the movement at the SIHH2014, without targeting the chronometric accuracy. This was a huge challenge. Indeed, I had to produce 90% of the components (mainly the moving parts)and make it all work!

In addition, like every year, we slightly improved the plans… In particular, we removed an arm and a screw on the tourbillon cage, which reduced the weight by 30%.

This year was especially intense, because I thought that the plans were definitive. I produced some micro-series of 5 or 6 pieces.  The numerous videos on the Garde-Temps web site were made at that period.


PP : 2014, after three years of maturation, the first concrete result?

MB : the big issue for the SIHH2014 was to have this working movement… I worked very hard. Eventually, I was ahead of schedule, I could hear “tic tac” the saturday morning before the SIHH!!
And above all I was very proud because the mechanism, in its most basic form, worked during all the SIHH despite a simple glass dome covering it, and it’s still working today!!

The calibre of the Garde-temps, 2014
 


PP : were there any changes during the year 2014?

MB : well, indeed, Didier suggested an in-depth re-examination of the plans of the Garde-Temps, which Robert accepted, still with this orientation for excellence... it was complicated for me, I wanted to improve my movement, already produced in micro-series... additional constraint: I had to go back giving classes in september 2014, and lastly, I had to perfect the production of the Breguet-overcoil spring with Philippe. 
Finally, iI made a whole new movement. I saved a few parts, but most of it had to be revised, in particular the plate and the bridges . I remanufactured 60% of the parts that year.

PP : impossible task ?

MB : yes and no, because without the help of Jean-François Erard, I would have waste some time as the latter was becoming a rare commodity. His precious advices provided me a better understanding of the turning and milling, and I could produce and assemble the components. 
The case was another issue. We agreed to use a service provider, who had to respect our qualitative requirements and production constraints: no use of numerical control.
During the whole year, I juggled between many trips back and forth to Switzerland, especially to learn how to raise the balance-spring with Philippe… to give you an idea of the athmosphere: on Christmas day,  I was having lunch with my sister’s family in Picardie, and I hastily left at 2 pm to go back to my place and start working at 7pm...

Philippe Dufour on the balance-spring




PP : that’s crazy !! you even worked on Christmas day to present the assembled Garde-Temps at the SIHH? 

MB: Yes, but it was worth it, because I finalised the whole assembly of the Garde-Temps in extremis. The success was proportional to the stress, I couln’t take any lunch break during the show. I decided to accompany the Garde-temps wherever it was going. I thus attended the conferences, but also the meetings with the collectors and the retailers… And I have to say, it was kind of a strange feeling, when you have spent so many hours producing a watch in your cellar. Icing on the cake, I could bring two of my students with me, which was a beautiful symbol of the transmission spirit behind NM.   

MB: This copy of the Garde-Temps is going to be sold at Christie’s, in May in Geneva, as a school-watch, that’s to say without the finishings. This will be a good test of the enthusiasm of collectors for the Garde-Temps.

The Time Aeon foundation, which was at the origin of the project, has become the platform for knowledge-sharing of NM. Several institutions, retailers and watchmaking houses have joined us, and the project gets bigger as the Garde-Temps takes shape. For instance, the FHH offers us a whole little stand during the SIHH. 

Le Garde-temps set & functionnal




PP : what did you learn this year?

MB: The decoration, the last step! I approached it a bit differently, because I knew nothing about it. But to keep this experience fun, I wanted to keep a fresh eye.
In order to learn, I decorate and polish on my own, then I show the result to Séverine and Philippe so they can teach me their methods. The advantage is that failure provides an incredible experience: it’s tough, I spoil parts, but my learning isn’t linear, it’s more pertinent, I get a better understanding of the whys, and I recall information better. It also helps me perfecting my machinig skills: a well-machined component is easier to decorate.

To me, learning is a quest rather than a reproduction of knowledges.


PP : which aspects of the decoration have you worked on?

MB: The Garde-temps will be decorated according to the standards of the golden age of mechanical watchmaking, between 1750 and 1850, which therefore excludes the Geneva waves, typical of Switzerland (at that time, watchmaking was mostly based in London and Paris). Thus, I learned the roughening of the bridges, the axis polishing (arbors), drawing, circular graining, bevelling on the wheels, hand-polishing of the bridges flanks. This last part is innovative, because we try to find an expertise that had been lost since then...

PP : is the year 2015 much slower for you?

MB: Yes and no. The decoration part is super exciting, it’s great because the piece really gets magical at that point, it’s the culmination of the first phase.

PP : the first phase, isn’t the project completed yet?

MB: This is just the beginning. First of all, I have to finalise the production of the 11 Garde-temps, which is far from being done… Then, and this is the objective of NM, I have to train a few young watchmakers, so one day  some others will be trained by them. In a few years, I will probably be done with NM but, ultimately, the project is designed to outlive us all, so that the great watchmaking tradition will never again be forgotten .

Some news from the second subscription Vicenterra Luna,

As I predicted, it is obviously the Luna open dial which succeed with approximately 80% of subscribed watches. The prediction was not too risky; in my opinion the open dial is a bomb that outperforms other Luna.

The watch costs 11900chf representing a discount of 44% with a Vaucher caliber Seed VMF 3002. For the record, the rare combination of a Vaucher caliber & a barrel case is only used by Richard Mille, Parmigiani Fleurier and Vicenterra. The relative rarity of these movements can be explained by their price, about six times the price of an ETA Valjoux 2892 equivalent.

The Vaucher caliber is embedded in the complication module developed by Vincent Plomb. The effective height of the module is 2.85mm on 31.8mm diameter regardless flanks (which completely surround the Seed VMF 3002). The entire module is assembled thickness of 6.6mm, if we add the indications beyond, this explains a little better the size of Vicenterra Watches.

In this transparent view, we better understand the assembly of the globe and moon, a semi-hoop by sphere (invisible once cased), is anchored in the main plate. This image of the construction removes some of the mystery, but it guarantees impact resistance up to 5000G (FYI, the standard "Haute Horlogerie" is 3000G), this is possible in particular because Vincent fully controls the production made 100% in Switzerland (except the alligator that poorly acclimatized in the radioactive Lake Biel).

The tridimensional moon itself, if it looks a lot like the moon of De Bethune, will consist of two parts of equal size steel, only the blueing will make the difference.
The bridges of the Open Dial version are brushed & rhodium-plated to contrast with the main plate of the module, it will be treated in black.

The watchmaker content is very dense & (too?) cheap. You should also remember that the watch will make a leap of 10000chf in catalog version, with a retail price of 21250chf.

In my opinion the Vincent Plomb product approach is at the forefront of the future of watchmaking: reduced industrial margins (return to the real watchmaking, requires self-financing), semi-direct distribution, niche brand, micro-series, innovating products. The real question is, is it not too far ahead of its time?

The subscription ends September 30 and opens a new range of products in Vicenterra to be presented at Baselworld 2016. If you have the chance to go to Basel, Vincent will be happy to receive you.

Hello my friends,

I was absent from the forum in past year, as I was working for a watchmaking company, for which I was involved in preserving know-how projects.

But I missed my blog activities! I don't feel I am cut off to sit behind a desk, so I created a new website:
www.foudroyante.com

Let's talk about watchmaking, without complacency, and also about history and know-how. Here is a condensed version of an article I wrote recently about the Farmer-watchmaker, from 1380 to the beginning of the « glorious thirties ».

In Europe, Roman Empire collapsed by the end of the 5th century, but it left behind a continent more united than ever, using a single language, Latin, and a single religion, catholic Christianity.

This unity led to one of the longest period of deadlock in European history: the middle ages. Its economy was based on the clearance of vast forests that covered the continent. In these conflictual times of relative stability, the population
grew until the end of forest cleaning, in 1280. Contemporary Europe was less wooded than it is today.



Celtic and Gallic agricultural skills had been forgotten and the yields were minor: between 5 and 10 quintals per hectare.
The current productivity in comparison is 80-100 quintals per hectare in intensive and 40-50 in organic. It was only in the 17th-18th century that Europe started its first agricultural revolution, with new techniques of crop rotation, accompanied by forage plants.
Doubling yield were translated into savings on labor, and feeding several generations of scientists. One of them was
Christian Huygens widely regarded as the inventor of modern watchmaking concepts. This will be the beginning of the industrial revolution.



Let us return to the 14th century, the darkest period in Middle Ages history, which unfortunately tends to provoke a skewed vision of that period, yet relatively prosperous and peaceful.
Poor crop yields were hardly sufficient to feed the increasing population. In addition, in the early 14th century, a series of years of drought followed by years of torrential rains caused widespread famine in Europe. Malnutrition was a fertile compost for diseases, especially for the terrible black plague.

The tensions related to the resources led to a war series, in particular the one hundred years war. To finance wars, taxes rose disproportionately, provoking violent jacqueries. It is thus in this particularly dark context that ended the 14th
century.



Imier De Ramstein, Prince-Bishop of Basel was elected in 1382. His bishopric included the Canton of current Jura. Its debt remained huge at that time. Imier made repeated attempts to boost the local economy. In 1384, he published a ery innovative edict: a tax exemption for those who settle 1000 meters above sea level.

Many farmers, by the end of the century, weakened by a hundred years of shortages, diseases and violence, set out to conquer an environment famous to be inhospitable, even hostile.

In the year of our Lord 1384, the Canton of Jura wasn't completely wild, as evidenced by the village of Montfaucon, built in the early 11th century.
However, the nature remained particularly wild, probably unchanged since the last glacial era. Wolves and bears reigned supreme over the fauna. The common point of these species is their adaptability in the conditions of height, thanks to their coat, their muscular power, their overdeveloped vascular network or their large-scale wings. If this fauna prospered, it was because Jura was protected for a long time from the human presence, thanks to a rough microclimate and to a steep topography.



In spite of a modest maximum height (1720 meters), the drafts and the high perched valleys cause very low temperatures during the winter : in the Vallée du Joux, or, even worst, in the vallée de la Brévine, the temperatures
Sometimes dip as low as -40°C.



Nowadays, Jura is divided between Switzerland and France. The wars made the border move, notably during the 30 years war (1618-1648) and also during the Napoleonic wars (1798-1815). The imperial desires of the French autocrats
Sometimes overflowed on the future territory of the Swiss Confederacy, the people from Jura have always shown themselves to be extremely supportive, especially in the Franches-montagnes, where contraband (notably watchmaking) was wisely organized.



But in 1384, our « Franc montagnard » had to become established. As he often does, man changed his environment and farmer-watchmaker ancestors organized vast slash-and-burn, in order to increase the building and arable surfaces.
That is how a multi-thousand-year-old forest of broad-leaved trees disappeared. The inhabitants of Jura planted coniferous trees which push away much faster in extreme montain conditions.
This choice of essences made them precursors of sustainable forestry exploitation. With a view to preservation, fences were forbidden in « Franches montagnes » by the Bishopric of Basel. That explains the presence of these magnificent demarcation low walls in the fields.



It should be pointed out that contrary to common beliefs, until the industrial revolution, serfs in traditional society did not work a lot, three days a week in average. The rest of the time was dedicated to parties or celebrations (religious or not), household activities, collection in the forest, handiwork and wine.

But the farmers of Jura had to work a lot more. In order to gather enough provisions to get through the cruel winter, the brief six month sunny season was a period of intense work. Thus, in the summer time, they had to get up even earlier for long days of agricultural labor: do the transhumance, plant and collect cereals, fruits and vegetables quickly, cut hay, and take refuge with the hearth before the snowfalls. The agro-sylvo-pastoral balance was particularly fragile in such a hostile context. Moderation, patience and precision were essential to the survival mountain farmers. They also needed those virtues for craft sector, and even more for watch-making.



From the beginning of the 15th century, the « Franc-montagnards » farmers knew the torments of contemporary work pattern, with the stress of a "deadline", literally!

At this beginning of the Renaissance, the leisure society was still distant. The future farmer-watchmaker were about to spend their winter time making crafts.

And as the constraint makes the man, they adapted their crafts to logistic constraints, in a typical Darwinian logic. It takes a daytime to walk 15km in the mountains. This difficulty of access weighed against any manufactured product of consequent size, so they specialized in small accessories with high added value.

From the 15th to the 18th century, as the raw material was plentiful, they worked mainly the wood of conifer.
They began to excel at the following fields: The turnery, the white cooperage, the pipe, the toy...



But in spite of the sustainability of the model farmer-craftsman, history came into the mountains: by 1450, a goldsmith called Johannes Gutenberg improved an old Chinese invention: printing.

Gutenberg and his successors massively printed the Gospels, as the Bible was the only best-seller of this period. The holy word quickly spread to wealthier classes and then to working classes of the beginning of the Renaissance.
The possibility of interpreting freely the Christian writings without intermediaries led to a schism between the partisans of Roman clergy and the reformist’s partisans of a free reading of the Bible. Protestantism was born.

One of the founders of the Protestant thought, Calvin, sought refuge in the cities of the future Helvetic Confederation.
He lived in Basel and finished his days in Geneva in 1564, where he forbade notably the bearing and the sale of jewels. To by-pass this ban, Jewelers moved into the luxury accessory, watch cases in particular. The watch-making industry was born.



In those days, current Switzerland did not exist, but the current cantons existed under other names and were already more or less independent. By the 15th century, the social tolerance, particularly regarding religion, encouraged many great reformers, artists, philosophers, such as Calvin, Voltaire, Rousseau, Patrick Mac Goohan, ect... To settle in the confederation.

Therefore, numerous religious minorities, mostly protestant, streamed in the « cantons », and so did some Jews, running away from the commonplace judeophobia in Europe.
The reform offered a greater freedom as for money or work, just as judaism. Although wealth was frowned upon by
Catholics, the Protestants and the Jews were storekeepers, craftsmen, intermediaries... And every storekeeper needs a factory. Progressively, the Chaux de Fond or Neuchâtel became meeting places between the « Franc montagnards » producers and the merchants.



Thanks to those new outlets, the « Francs-montagnards » specialised even more in precision crafts, such as stone cutter, diamond worker, eyewear, pottery work...
It's an important step in watch-making farmer's history, because he left the wood processing sector to turn to strong value-added occupations.
In a more melancholic way, it is also the first time that the Franche-montagnes farmer's agro-sylvo-pastoral balance was disrupted.



As well as the Middle Ages were not so dark as we let it think, the Renaissance was not so flamboyant.
Golden from the Americas made a large majority of the imperial courts crazy, and the religious wars plunged the populations into inhumanity.

Thus, the revocation of the Edict of Nantes led many protestant refugees to flight to Geneva, including some talented watchmakers. Consequently, from the 18th century, Swiss Romandie became a major watch-making place.
Until the French revolution and during the first empire, the watchmakers benefited from a crucial role in society …
In this time, for the French, British and Dutch sovereigns, the key to maritime domination was the precise chronometers.



 The attraction represented by the technological skills made that the Genevan workforce was quickly overworked, so people from the mountains provided reinforcement.
From the 18th century, the craftsman farmer became farmer-watchmaker. This phenomenon accelerated after 1750 thanks to flat movement of Lépine. Jean-Antoine Lépine was born in the « Pays de Gex », at the end of the Jura chain, close to Geneva. He took advantage of the improvement of the quality of springs to put forward an innovative construction of watches allowing to reduce their thickness.

The watch-making technology progressively reached maturity and demand increased as watches were getting more compact and more precise. The rugged Franches-montagnes became fertile watch-making lands.



Every farmer-watchmaker's family specialized in the making of a single type of component, wheel, pinion or bridge.
The pieces were gathered at an « établisseur » who made the assembly and the possible endings.

At the time of autumn fairs, he took orders in the local village. The delivery was made during the spring fair.
Within a season, the farmer turned into a skillful assembler. The more windows a watch-making farm counts, the richer the farmer is: that meant he could afford to get a lot of family members working.



From cheese, wine and fodder productions, which allowed humans an animals to get through the winter, to education and craft, autonomy was imposed by the climate and the topography. And contrary to what one might suppose, farmer-watchmakers were extremely efficient. The educational level was very high from the 18th century. Most of the
Francs-montagnards were able to count (essential to produce watch-making components), read and write. Mothers played a crucial role in basic skills learning process, and they were at the root of the creation of a craft elite.

This anarchist social organization (in the original sense) was close to the libertarian thought of the American pioneers, with this fierce will of independence, this cult of the free enterprise, this autonomy... And the end arrived subtly precisely from the United States of America.

By 1850, the American watch-making industry woke up in a thundering way. The Americans from Waltham led the watch-making production to a new era: industrialization.
In their manufactures, they imposed standardization: all the parts were to be exchangeable, which was in contradiction with the tradition of “appairage”.



As the distribution methods had also been modernized, American watches killed the market. Swiss watchmaking had to reform to remain competitive.

Step by step, Switzerland industrialized too, but the investments were expensive and it was necessary to cover them.
After 1870, the situation gets really tricky. The Americans almost started with a clean slate, and their workers were very flexible.
To the contrary, Switzerland had an enormous watch-making heritage, and this powerhouse of skills and also the long history were a burden to the scientific organization of work. Farmer-watchmaker had to become an employee.
The rural exodus and the employer’s' pressure on ébauches prices jeopardized the farmer-watchmaker activity.

The 14-18 butchery had an unexpected consequence on watch-making: the small wristwatches. Soldiers wore them in the trenches in order to coordinate the artillery barrages.
This led to an unprecedented miniaturization: watchcases moved from about 60mm to 35mm. As a consequence, the average size of movements moved from 20 to 10 lines. For the Watchmaking famer, it was almost an impossible task to adapt : all the precious tooling, passed down from one generation to the next, had to be replaced to produce twice smaller components according to traditional methods.



As always, Americans adaptation was quicker, but it did not last long, because the 1929 crisis brought to an end the good old days. The impact of the crisis on the old continent was limited, as France and Switzerland remained rural and their financial centers were not yet fully developed. It provided respite to our Farmer-watchmaker from Jura; they kept on feeding the market with pocket watches...
While European industry was bled dry because of the hostilities, Switzerland worked twice as hard to supply the
belligerants (the GI were often equipped with Swiss watches).

Finally, as Worl War II was ended, discoveries of nuclear energy and computing were made. It was a fantastic technological leap forward, just as it was after the First World War.

As regards watch-making, it was a paradigm shift, as wristwatches were no longer a fashion: they were watch-making.
Indeed, pocket watches seemed old-fashioned and their demand was in freefall.

Europe was euphoric, as a result of the Marshall plan. The glorious thirties began. In the United States, the American
Way of Life was born. American laboratories created the digitally operated machine tool.

In the early fifties, the first numerical controls were presented in the USA. It was certainly at this moment that the last farmer-watchmaker went out of business.

Until the next time my friends!
Pifpaf.

Carrera MikroPendulumS concept.

Before examining this design-watch in detail, let’s have a flashback of 2010, when the first design Pendulum rhymed at 6Hz had been presented. You have noted above that the implementation stage of this first prototype has been relatively long (3 years).

If the problematic caused by the first Pendulum introduced in 2010 is examined in detail, one will get close enough to the problematic encountered by the blued steel paleo-balance-springs (18th and 19th Century), namely:

•   Resistance to magnetic fields.
•   Stability on the thermal amplitude range.
•   Torque’s linearity all along the power reserve.

In addition to this classical problematic, another layer of problems linked to the pendulum’s magnets’ materials is further added. Moreover, contrary to traditional horology, it is almost-impossible to mask an average quality of alloys through an excellent pairing and regulating work.

The problematic is so new and so far-off hammer blows that one had to go to the atom’s heart to develop the MikroPendulum.

For the amateurs, the ferromagnetic used is of the «hard» type; meaning that they are strongly charged with energy, presenting a great stability in time and have to yield to an electromagnetic charge at least equivalent to the one laid up during the manufacturing to be neutralized.

The alloy of magnets constitutes Cobalt, Samarium and Gadolinium (these two last materials are referred to as «rare earth»).

The Samarium-Cobalt complex is well-known in the magnetism world. It is currently the alloy enabling obtaining the highest resistance to magnetic fields. It is used in all fields: IT, military, aeronautics as well as, in a more astonishing way, in the medical field: pacemaker projects consisting of Co-Sm magnets exist.


The Co-Sm alloy thus enables solving the major problematic of the parasitic magnetism; it may be referred to as the equivalent of the Invar for the classical balance-springs. However, as it is, the temperature alterations pitfall determines a precision of +/- 45 seconds per day…



To counter the thermal amplitude effects, one had to add another element, which was much more specific: the Gadolinium. During a rise in temperature, while the materials were expanding, the magnetic fields tend to increase their influence zone. As the magnetism effect is exponential as one gets closer to the source, the expansion effect is disastrous on the isochronism. It is at this moment that the Gadolinium intervenes: this metal has the propriety of being an atomic «sponge»; it absorbs the surplus of particles generated by other chemical elements and thus enables the neutralization of the thermal amplitude effects.

To solve the linearity problems of the torque, the Co-Sa-Gd magnets have been subject to a more watchmaking-oriented work, with a regulation of the elements’ geometry.



With the solution to this problem found, the Pendulum’s « v1.0 » enables obtaining a precision of +-1/sec per day, the best which can be obtained with an Elinvar balance-spring.

It is necessary to understand that it is a « v1.0 » and that with the feedbacks of the alloys’ (the Gadolinium proportion in particular) refinement experience and the improvement of the geometry, the system should improve in precision in the coming years.
This is so as the Tag Heuer research is characterized by a permanent laboratory aspect, a prototype chasses another prototype and the last innovation is immediately integrated in a commercial watch… All this happened very very quickly: we thus went from a MikroGirder of 1/2000 seconds during the 2012 SIHH to a MikroGirder at 1/10.000th of a second at BaselWorld 2012, that is, a multiplication by five in three months’ time.

Which naturally brings us to the latest Tag Heuer prototype, the MikroPendulumS. It is basically a MikroTourbillonS (described in this article LINK), with the Pendulums instead of the balance-springs.



On the visual level, the MikroPendulumS brings three major modifications with regards to the MikroTourbillonS. The abandoning of the Côtes de Genève for brushing like the ones found on the MikroGirder, a 90° movement rotation and a modification of the tourbillon bridges, the indications and functions keeping the status-quo. This implies a « Bullhead » configuration of the push-pieces, which can be found at the 11, 12 and 1 o’clock positions. This year, this configuration has obviously been reviewed on the Jack Heuer. The MikrotourbillonS or the Mikropendulum (without the « S ») configuration, seems more harmonious and is more consistent with the Carrera history.

However, the main question is the technique; and here, just like with the advent of a new prototype, the Tag Heuer laboratory extends the boundaries of the possible.

If henceforth the case’s design is known, the same cannot be said of its material. Here, reference is being made to a Chrome-Cobalt alloy, usually used in «aeronautics», for the turbines’ blades. The volumic mass of the Cr-Co is equivalent to that of steel and bronze, that is, slightly less than 9 times water’s mass.



If there is no significant mass gain, the gain is made on the proprieties’ side: this alloy is more resistant to all types of constraints, more lasting and harder, 530 Vickers, that is the double of the majority of steel alloys used in horology.

The Cr-Cro is manufactured by laser sintering, which is the industrial technique from which the 3D printers are inspired: a powder is fused layer by layer at 1300°C, which enables obtaining finish shapes and levels inaccessible to the traditional CNC… Will this open the door to new possibilities in the movement outlines field?

For the time being, the metals used in the automatic movement of the MikropendulumS are more common. However, it is not the case for its architecture. The calibre measures 15 ¾ (that is, 35.8mm), for 9.84mm in width; it is composed of 454 pieces and 75 rubies.

The escapement unit reserved to time count is equipped with a Pendulum tourbillon of 12Hz (that is, 86400 vibrations per hour) for a 24-hour power reserve (the more the frequency is high, the more the autonomy diminishes) and its frame makes 3 turns per minute (thus it is a 20 seconds tourbillon).



The escapement unit reserved for the chronograph is a Pendulum tourbillon of 50Hz (360000 vibrations per hour) and its tourbillon frame makes 12 rotations per minute (it is thus a 5-seconds tourbillon) for a 60-minutes power reserve (it is less than the Mikropendulum, a tourbillon consumes a lot of energy).

Like the MikrotourbillonS, the MikropendulumS tourbillon chronograph launching is remarkable, it goes like a ground-to-ground missile, or rather like a sports car equipped with an integral transmission and of the launch control. It goes right down, immediately and very quickly. Once again, the MikrotourbillonS is slightly more demonstrative. In any case, we are in a post –horology field.


Conclusion:

Initially, the Carrera, sports chronograph, was barely derived from classical watches of the 50s. This Swiss style of the 50s, functionalist-but-elegant, was still influenced by the 30s’ modern art; Swiss people, with their proverbial precaution, are often lagging behind on trends.

Thus, the first Carreras were streamlined; however, in the course of the 60s, these chronographs will rapidly run wild, integrating more and more exotic movements following display needs. Indeed, one of the particularities of the Carrera series is indeed to have adapted displays and movements to the needs of the final users.

Thus, instead of just producing railways or bezels dedicated to a specific usage, Heuer has often reviewed the whole mechanics to better adapt to needs.

To that effect, Heuer’s quest was to adapt the tool to one need, rather than asking the human to adapt themselves to one tool. Nowadays, it would be termed as « user-friendly ».

The dials equally benefitted from a great variety of finishes and styles, always in view of adapting oneself to the final users’ needs. However, it is also in the will to adapt oneself to another human need: the taste of beauty.

This aesthetic will is also found in the cases; the first case of the 60s unquestionably remains the purest: at the time when one knew how to make cases, which appeared very fine while the movements were relatively thick. Later on, aesthetics was given privilege over fashion; today, solidity is privileged…

The Carrera history is so rich and complex that it merits a book. These watches consist of an almost-exhaustive catalogue of mechanical sports timing in these past 50 years. Thus, obviously, this history is a bit chaotic and the connecting thread is not as evident as it is for other mythical watches. But this chaotic aspect is what precisely constitutes the Carrera range richness, an original soup, an Amazonian forest, a horology culture medium, the founding watchmaking chaos.

Despite the purchases, the hand changes and even the integration in a big luxury group, the successive CEOs of Heuer, then TAG Heuer, have continued to believe in innovation and even daily applying the TAG from the 80s: Technique d’Avant-Garde.

The current team, directed for a long time by Jean-Claude Babin (recently replaced by Stéphane Linder) needs a special acclaim since it has had the courage to give carte blanche to the team directed by Guy Sémon to maintain a high innovative level.

It is in no way easy for a great horology brand to maintain a high level of research and development. Inertia and feebleness are colossal in the great watchmaking firms; they prefer investing enormous amounts of money in institutional communication rather than giving money to the laboratory. And even if the R&D services are well equipped, the innovations end up in a drawer, the industrial will for risk-taking being absent.

On the one hand, this can be explained, as you know, by the Heuer innovation tradition, but equally by the bureaucratic structure of Tag Heuer: the firm is directed like an SME, the administrative, commercial and marketing departments all in all count approximately 50 collaborators. As a contrast, the R&D department consists of 45 persons and there are millions of employees in the various manufacturing subsidiaries which manufacture watches…

Eventually, this creativity is reflected in patents about high frequency: today the La Chaux-de-Fonds brand has got a head start by introducing various major advances in the space of a handful of years. This constitutes a historical revenge for Heuer since in its days, the Calibre 11 had progressively been distanced by its competitors.

Today, the Mikropendulum distances the competition in a flash, while having the cheek to be sold at an ultra-aggressive tariff with regard to its exceptional mechanics. Quite like the Muscle Cars design.

If the Carrera’s 50 years assessment is made, the bet initially launched by Jack Heuer has incontestably won.

1963. A pivotal year in horology history. It is the year that undoubtedly marks the last great epoch of the “utilitarian” mechanical horology. At this time is created the legendary chronograph Heuer Carrera.

Jack Heuer transcends the Helvetic neo-classicism of the 50s to introduce functionalism into the chronograph. The reason behind this decision? Mechanical sports.

The connivances between mechanical sports and Tag Heuer are old and intimately linked to the La Chaux-de-Fonds’ brand history. This adventure began before the Great War. In 1963, Tag had already been manufacturing pocket watches dedicated to sports timing for more than fifty years. For instance, the “Mikrographe” vintage was manufactured at the start of the 20th Century or, some years before the Carrera, the “Rally Master”, a dashboard chronograph.
As an opposition to what the neophyte may presume, the Carrera name is not linked to Porsche; it was rather inspired by the mythical race of the 50s, the Carrera Panamericana AKA “Pan Am”. What can be seen as an astonishing paradox is that before 1963, this event had not occurred since 1955, following a decision of Mexican authorities. This interruption was the result of the psychological trauma caused by the tragic accident of the Mercedes 300 SLR at the 24H of the Mans 1955… However, Jack Heuer turned out to be a visionary by betting on the resurrection of this anthology race... The event is back on track since 1988.
It is this vision, this intuition, this understanding which are the forging factors of the Carrera history…


Heuer Carrera 45 Dato "Cobra Shelby" 3147


Likely to be seen as something minor nowadays, one was aware that even the most minor detail was relevant in performance research at the time.
Heuer applied the solutions giving a maximum readability to military watches of the interwar period to sports watches: greater aperture and black dial for a maximum of contrast.
The first reference of the Carrera is the 2447. Bicompax, panda or full black, it is a round watch of 36mm (which was relatively big for the time). Animated by a Valjoux 72, a standard movement during the after-war; its frequency is at 18000 vph for 45 hours of power reserve.



It presents numerous similarities with the Rolex “Pré-Daytona” ref. 6238: the calibre, the dial and the push-pieces. What is even better is that the future 6239, just like the Carrera, will adopt the name of an automobile event across the Atlantic: Daytona.
However, even if the Daytona and the Carrera started off at almost the same point (in the 60s, the products were less “identity-oriented” than today) and were presented in the same year (the Daytona also celebrates its 50 years this year), they had diametrically opposed destinies.
On the one hand, the Daytona evolved very little, as much in terms of motorization as aesthetics, since Rolex privileged reliability and durability above all.
On the other hand, the Carrera became a permanent, aesthetic and technical laboratory.

Here, we have to make reference to the Heuer Carrera 45 Dato « Cobra Shelby » 3147. In fact, in 1963, it was rare to have “branded” watches (the 70s and 80s were the Golden Age of the “branded” watches).
It is thus due to the logo of the British constructor that the 3147 will be of more interest to us than the 2447.
Despite the legitimacy and the explosive potential of a partnership between the AC Cobra and Tag Heuer niche constructor, the Dato 45 was not a commercial watch.
In the 60s, Carol Shelby, ex-racing driver (he won the 24h du Mans in 1959 Mans with Aston Martin), decided to create the American racing car; he turned to Ford, which was able to supply the motor and the money and was helped by AC, a British constructor which owned the European know-how in terms of chassis.



The AC Cobra was born; it would know a qualified success: sales during the 60s did not exceed 1000 copies, divided into diverse versions.
The car is too early and too pointed, it precedes the Muscle Cars era; however, the latter will aim higher in the objective set by the Cobra Shelby: be as powerful as the GTs of the moment for much less money.
Shelby had opted for a compromise between the dynamic qualities of the automobile and its cost. The Muscle Cars would be much more radical, leaving behind all equilibrium in terms of behavior, in favor of atmospherics V8s under steroids, at dumped prices…

To motivate sales forces, the Ford group asked Jack Heuer to manufacture its Dato 45, declined into two series : the first (1966-67), Bicompax and the second (1968-69) more radical, Monocompax, the latter consisting of the AC Cobra initials.



It is obviously this version which will be of interest here since it prefigures various heavy trends through its aesthetics. First and foremost, the automobile/horology partners which are henceforth the forgotten passage of any large-scale watchmaking firm.
The dial is decorated with an automobile brand’s logo (a first?!) And what a logo! AC’s Cobra is incredibly aggressive and perfectly corresponds to Shelby’s sports vocation: combine the best of European and American automobile.
Then, the watch proposes a big date and a big white timer of graduated minutes up to 45. Obviously, everything is done in the scope of a maximum readability: with its great aperture at the dial, the watch cuts more than the announced 36mm.
The case is the embodiment of simplicity; its horns are very long which is logical given its size. Besides, the current Carreras will conserve this characteristic but with a greater-sized case.
Furthermore, the watch is motored by an unusual caliber (in the Carreras only; it was relatively common at the time) of manual chronograph: the Landeron 189, 31mm in diameter for 6.85mm in width. It has a frequency of 18000 vibrations per hour for 42 hours of power reserve.



It is to be noted that the steel case resonates quite a lot and that the sound characteristic of 2.5Hz is quite audible for such a small watch.
If the Heuer Carrera 45 Dato “Cobra Shelby” is almost impossible to find by chance, you may find a 45 Dato without logo for approximately 3’500 CHF…
Which is much less expensive than an original Cobra Shelby, because let’s admit it, it is much more simple (and economic!) to wear a vintage watch than to drive an appropriate car.


Heuer Skipper 7754 « Skipperera »


Another model which is slightly off-beat but very much iconic of the creative medium that defines this series is the Skipperera. The Skippers are a bit difficult to classify in the Heuer lines, as they are sometimes Autavia and sometimes Carrera. Experts air varying opinions about it…



As far as the aptly named “Skiperrera” presents a Carrera case, one can consider that it is a full Carrera.
The interest of this watch lies in its aesthetics. It neither distinguishes itself by its case, which is the standard version of the Carreras, neither by its calibre, a Valjoux 7730.
However, before focusing on the dial, it is useful to linger on this calibre a bit. The Valjoux 7730 is a calibre of manual chronograph having a frequency of 18000 vibrations per hour for 45 hours of power reserve, it measures 31mm on 6, that is, almost the same dimensions as the Landeron 189.



One will note that at the time, the size ratio of the caliber/size of the case was different from that of today. Back then, like sports cars’ motors, big calibers were cased up in small cases, at shoehorn.
What makes the particularity of this 7730 (which is probably the reason for his choosing this Skipper) is that it offered the possibility to display 30 or 45 minutes on the sub-dial at the 3 o’clock position. And here, Heuer had driven this function into a corner: by modifying a wheel, it was possible to display only 15 minutes by thirty jumps of thirty seconds.
Why is that? The answer is, as always, that it was for this famous countdown of the regatta launching. One will equally note that the minutes’ timer is graduated in the inverted direction: it is launched 15 minutes before the regattas start, the last third indicating the “warm-up” of the event.



However, the main interest of the watch does not concern the above but rather the dial, which is one of the most beautiful that I have ever held. The dials from that epoch are of a great quality and are no less appealing than the current productions. The reliefs are qualitative, the textures very clean and above all they grow old in a very good way, of which the good quality of the epoch’s lacquer is proof.
The colour scheme of this Carrera 7754 is perfect: night blue, almond green, orange, in ideal proportions. In a visionary way, it synthesises everything that was best made in sports and summer dials of the next 40 years. Night blue for looking good, orange for relaxation and almond green for nostalgia.

Moreover, the very streamlined context of the Carrera (white railroad, index and simple hands) further highlights the colour scheme.
The collectors are not wrong; it is approximately quoted the double of a Carrera from that time, often as from 7’000 CHF.




Heuer Carrera « Automatic 70’ » 110.253, Côte de Genève


Directly moving on to the year 1978, we will interest ourselves with the Heuer Carrera 110.253 since the latter joins numerous emblematic elements of the 70s’ Carrera.
The first major change was the case: it became barrel, was enlarged by 2mm and lost its long horns, very characteristic of the 70s. For the purists, it is undoubtedly slightly shocking; so much as this model distanced itself from the 60s’ models. However, in opposition to a Daytona, which is monolithic by vocation, it is a laboratory; it is thus legitimate that its creators attempted to change the shape of its case.



From a personal point of view, I prefer the 60s’ case due to the fact that its streamlining seems completely achieved to me. Here, the case is very sympathetic, very funky but slightly clumsier than the one from the 60s. While the 60s’ case was the avatar of Jack Heuer’s modernism passion, the 70s’ case ensued from a simplification wish of a case already very streamlined, of postmodernism all in all… Consequently, the case called “automatic 70’” has two advantages: its more solid horns and its superior diameter; as a result, these Carreras seem much bigger on the wrist than their predecessors.

It seems that Tag Heuer has made the same choice for its contemporary watches, in preserving the 60s’ case shape (this will further be developed at the end of the article).

If the case has been named «Automatic 70’», it must be known that a good deal of the watches it equips are manual!

In fact, the 70s are the time at which automatic chronographs appeared right in the middle of the quartz crisis… Between financial and suppliers problems, reliability issues of the automatic chronographs, a great deal of the Carreras from the 70s were equipped with manual movement.



However, this is not the case for this 110.253, which is equipped with a variant of the legendary Heuer Buren Calibre 11: the vintage calibre 12.

The calibre 12 is thus an automatic chronograph with 21600 vibrations per hour, contrary to the vintage calibre 11, with an intermediary frequency of 19800 vibrations per hour. The caliber has a 42-hour power reserve and measures 31mm for 7.7 in width.

It has been nicknamed «Chronomatic» and the oscillating mass will not be visible on the photos: which is normal since it has been hidden by the chronograph’s mechanism.
Like the Calibre 11, the vintage calibre 12 is a Buren 1281 with a Dubois Depraz 8510 chronograph module.
Nevertheless, if it is more classic in its frequency, it is also more legitimate: a six jumps per seconds basis is the most legitimate in a sexagesimal time system.



Last detail, the crown has been fitted at the 9 o’clock position but the push-buttons (less protruding than that of the 60s’ models, alas) are in their usual position, namely at the right of the case. The contrary might have been more ergonomic, it seems more instinctive to activate a chronograph with the right hand’s thumb rather than with the index…

On the dial’s side, like the other vintage Carreras, it is sportive classicism with a touch of madness, the whole served by an execution level which is no less appealing than the most beautiful current productions.
Proof of this? The dial is crossed by three big blue Côtes de Genève, very well made, the black sub counters almost break its harmony. In fact, the latters are flat and matt with white indexes. However, despite the beauty of its dial, this Carrera 110.253 is a tool watch, thus the functional aspect prevails.

Besides, the whole of the index/hands remains very classic, polished steel, streamlined design. Priority is given to efficiency.

It is not very hard to find one at approximately 2’500 CHF, which isn’t much if the dial’s execution quality and the embedded legendary movement are taken into consideration.




Heuer Carrera « Automatic » 510.511, military aviation.


Just like the Skipperera, the 510.511 is a rarity, outside the Carrera series. So why is this piece being described?

Contrary to the Skipperera, it is not the most beautiful of the Carreras, but its technical interest is enormous.

As an introduction, it is worth knowing that this watch has a false twin, the 510.513, identical with a dial presenting blue Côtes de Genève arranged horizontally. Unfortunately, this piece was not available at the Tag Heuer museum where the photos of this reporting have been taken.



The watch exists in two versions: one in steel (ref 510.523), and one in PVD steel, this latter finish reinforcing its military aspect. The case takes up the design of the « Automatics 70’ » (even if the watch dates from 1984), but it is slightly bigger, with 40mm in diameter. The watch is water resistant to 100 meters and the push-pieces are of the right size.

This watch’s interest resides in its caliber: back then, Lemania was not in the Swatch Group circle (Lemania’s industrial tool served to build the Breguet firm) and produced numerous watches and calibers to the destination of armed forces.

Thus, the legendary Lemania 5100 which equips this Carrera 510.511 is an automatic chronograph mechanism of second generation intended for military aviation, including fighter pilots. It is why this movement presents an extraordinary resistance to the accelerating forces (11G) and to strong decelerations (7G).

It may be used for several years without service and is exceptionally robust. Its construction is unusual, the movement is structured around pillars, like a building and has some nylon pieces (which was trendy at the time…)



It has a frequency of 28800 vibrations per hour for 48 hours of power reserve and measures 31mm for 8.2, thus slightly bigger than a 7750.
Many wrote that it is not very beautiful. It is certainly not the incarnation of sex-appeal, but apart from the El Primero (Calibre 36 at Tag Heuer), the automatic chronographs’ movements from the years 70-80 were much less beautiful than the manual chronographs’ calibers of the after-war.

Moreover, this movement has several functions. The most noteworthy and playful is the central minutes’ timer, materialized by the aeroplane-shaped orange hand. The watch has four hands which pass through the central cannon: hour, minute, chrono second and chrono minute.
In addition to the 60 seconds and minutes at the center, the chronograph indicates the twelve hours cumulated at the 6 o’clock position, the 24h time at the 12 o’clock position, the small second at the 9 o’clock position and finally the date at the 3 o’clock position. Even if it is relatively charged, it is no less readable.

A relatively rare and totally mythical watch, which can be found at approximately 3’500 CHF, which is completely correct given the product’s quality. I cannot advise strongly enough the 510.513 if you bear it an interest, less military-aviation in its look and more Funky-Carrera.

estetica discutibile....però dentro.....

 

Parmigiani Fleurier’s SIHH is taking the opposite course of the current trend: the Show-Off.
SIHH being the high mass of Haute Horlogerie, especially this year, we witnessed an abundance of scenography stands. Hostesses were praising the virtues of ultra-visual complications whereby the regulating organs were evolving all through the case.

When approaching the PF stand, one could see the contrast set by the muffled atmosphere. Discretion was the day’s motto and visual abundance was rather to be found in its minimalist aspect.

Just as for the SIHH2012 let’s have a look to the highlights of the 2013 edition, rather than going through a fastidious exhaustive review.

The Transforma CBF

For the uninitiated, let’s have a reminder of Transforma concept: the case is removable (a « watch head », as per the brand denomination) and may be fitted into two types of receptacles: the pocket watch or the wristwatch support. Here is the perfect opportunity to buy this magnificent and extremely expensive three-piece from this Italian tailor.

Until now, a Transforma at Parmigiani was thus a watch head and two receptacles. Up till now…

The Transforma CBF pushes the design further by adding a second head and an additional container. The third receptacle is a «table watch»; in fact, it is a very beautiful watch-winder which will have the capacity of welcoming the other four elements of the set:

•   Pocket support
•   Wrist support
•   Annual calendar watch head
•   Chronograph watch head

In everyday life, it will be useful in winding the annual calendar to the colours of the Confederação Brasileira de Futebol.

Yes, this Transforma set is dedicated to the CBF, the manager of the famous Seleção, the most titled football team in the world. Until now, the series dedicated to the CBF was inspired by the Pershing series sports case. However, the classical style of the new case transforms the partnership into a clearly more dressed aspect. This is a quite surprising and praiseworthy choice since it dissolves the cliché of the football fan who never wears a suit at work and who wears tracksuits throughout his life and chants in stadiums. Parmigiani introduces a watch for the discreet fans of the Brazilian team.



For example, the annual calendar displays the five stars (corresponding to the five World Cup wins) of the CBF’s flag on the moon phase!
The watch is uses the PF339 calibre already seen in the Tonda Quator QA. This movement is based on the PF331, the module adds an annual calendar and a retrograde date.

The calibre is makes approximately 12’’’ (lignes), that is, 27.1mm for 5.5mm in width. It has a frequency of 28800 vibrations per hour for a 50 hours power reserve, supplied by two barrels. The plus factor of this configuration resides in the fact that it guarantees an optimum couple on the power reserve as a whole.




The pink gold case is 43mm in its biggest diameter. At first glance, the utilisation of pink gold might seem unnecessary since the two steel shafts cover it almost entirely once the watch is cased up.

However, the heart of the piece is not to be found here.

What strikes immediately having the watch in hand is the exceptional quality of the dial’s finish. Of course, details such as the green or yellow hands subtly remind one of the set’s theme; it is however the intensity of the blue colour which remains most memorable.

Apart from the Pershing Abyss below and the famous blue De Béthune obtained following an entirely different technique (oven bluing), the dial of this CBF Seleção is the most beautiful one that has ever decorated a watch.



According to light intensity, it oscillates between magenta and midnight blue without being aggressive; it is the embodiment of a purity and smoothness never seen before. The other «watch head» of the box set is a chronograph with a 43 mm carbon case. The atmosphere is here very different and much more sportive than on the annual calendar.

The movement is the PF 334, 13’’’1/4 (30mm) for 6.8mm in height. It also runs at 28800 vibrations per hour for 50 hours power reserve, once again ensured by two barrels. Having a module, it is extraordinarily fitted, with 68 rubies.

This price of the box set is 56900€, which is reasonable for an annual calendar and an Haute Horlogerie chronograph, accompanied by all the necessary accessories …



Pershing Tourbillon Abyss

Another watch equipped with a one-of-a-kind blue dial is the Pershing Tourbillon Abyss.

Nowadays, the watch market of more than 20k€ is divided in several categories, which can be classified into two sociological families.

•   Watches for the well-informed, who join traditional and independent Haute Horlogerie. Most of the time, the brand’s name makes itself discreet to leave complications, finishes and tradition in the spotlight.
•   The «Show Off» watches, which join average brand-name watches, strongly set, and the very distinctive «Jet Set» watches. The finishes and beautiful watchmaking leave the stage to a maximum amount of show-off: name in bold, gleaming stones, emblematic design.

Until now, the attempts in reconciling traditional Haute Horlogerie and « show-off» have not been very numerous.

With the advent of the Pershing Tourbillon Abyss, Parmigiani Fleurier registers itself in this ecological niche.



The watch is in fact covered with the imposing titanium 45mm case from the Pershing series, water resistant to 100m; even if 300m would have been preferable for such a sportive watch. An impressive pink gold bezel is on top of the case… The horns are prominent and when one is having a drink at a luxury hotel in Monaco, the watch will not lose face in front of a ROO, a Big Bang and the likes. The titanium ensures comfort. Whether we like it or not, this very distinctive case is the main characteristic of this style exercise.

What makes the dial even more impressive is that it steals the spotlight from the tourbillon which is a rare (or even unique ?) feat !!! The «wave» finishes calling upon two levels of blue are astounding, magic, and with as much varieties of reflections that can exist in lighting conditions.



In the context of pure texture, the annual calendar’s powder is slightly overboard; here, the brushing hardens somewhat the light, but the waves are just fa-bu-lous since they make everything that one may have seen pertaining to this theme simply obsolete !

However, the fact that the escapement is eventually side-lined becomes problematic; and yet, it is an Haute Horlogerie tourbillon (the use of this term pertaining to Parmigiani is not demeaning). At the 12 o’clock position one can identify the power reserve hand, graduated up to the 7 o’clock position and at the 6 o’clock position is the tourbillon.



It is clocked at 21600 vha, has a 168h power reserve and performs a rotation in 30 seconds.

The case housing the calibre measures 15’’’ in width for 5.55mm in height, with 30 rubies. Those are particularly unusual dimensions, the world seeming to be divided among the 11, 13 and 17’ calibres…


The finish, the tourbillon’s bridge in particular, is of high quality, the blued silicon of the escape wheel is quite magical in the marine context of the piece.

This hybrid watch is a great success as making it a true mission to increase the general level of watchmaking is important, even at the wrist of the most uninitiated!




Marquetry 15 days Clock

Another piece equipped with the exceptional «blue dial» is the marquetry 15 days Clock. Yes, Parmigiani manufactures a table clock.

In wristwatches’ universe, it is always slightly off-beat to manufacture a beautiful table watch. Generally, only the most prestigious Swiss firms launch themselves into such an exercise.

A clock’s large volumes and surfaces give leeway to creative liberties, which cannot even be imagined in a wristwatch.



This type of piece has marked out the watchmaking pathway of Michel Parmigiani. In the 70s, students from watchmaking schools were working on school clocks very close centring-wise. In the last decade of the 20th Century, when Michel Parmigiani moved from restoration to the manufacture of modern pieces, his first creations were small clocks. Manufacturing table clocks has become of one the hearts of jobs of PF, just as recently illustrated by «Le Chat et La Souris», «Le Dragon» and the brand new «Le Faucon et l’Outarde» (included in the family named «exceptional pieces»).

The clock owns a mass volume close to that of water. The rhodium-plated sterling silver case and the spaces between the glasses and the movements have compensated the calibre’s weight and its heavy barrel’s.

This mass (around one kilo) is equally useful for stabilizing the piece while being wound up. In general, particular attention is given to the user’s sensations, which are well present: it is quite heavy and one requires some strength to wind the barrel, so that the experience of the bi-monthly winding is as amazing as ever.

One piece of advice: don’t use it in the bedroom, it makes quite a lot of noise… The advantage is that its low frequency of 18000 vibrations per hour and its big barrel compose a perfect tuning-fork clock.



The manufacturing of such a watch takes about four months, counting the accumulated working hours. The pressing and finishing operations are distributed among the exterior craftsmen and the firms of the Parmigiani Fleurier industry, namely the Manufacture Horlogère de la Fondation (MHF). The metallic elements are first machined and decorated; then, they go through several treatments, in particular an electrochemical polishing.

The decoration is exceptional. The unusual scale of the finishes disturbs the finishers. Even the supposedly simplest finishes, such as basic anglings, are in fact more complicated due to two factors: on the one hand, it is very delicate to perfectly angle on large surfaces and on the other hand, this work requires a craftsmanship and endangered boxwood buff wheels.



Once the pieces are completed, the next step is the assembly and the exquisite development of the powerful energy system. This work is fully assured by one and only one watchmaker, who will take two weeks to assemble its clock. At the technical as well as security level, the challenge is the big barrel assembly.

It has to be admitted that generally, watchmaking is not a risky profession. The pieces are light, the rare machines are small and harmless and Val de Travers (Fleurier’s lies) is one of the safest places on earth; it is unlikely that one will be attacked by a hooded buff at a red light.

As a precaution against accidents, the movement has been equipped with a technology typical of the 21st Century: a barrel flanging system through a Geneva drive allowing it to progressively unwind.

This Geneva drive has many tricks up its sleeve: obviously it ensures the increase in chronometrical performances while guaranteeing the arrival of controlled energy.

However, its most important asset resides in the fact that it paved the way for the development of a new power reserve system display as exclusive through its technical procedure as through the positioning of its four hands.  Spider hands overlap the barrel cylinder to allow the power reserve to be visible whatever the angle.

The result is paradoxical since Parmigiani has designed a complex, exclusive and patented system (composed of 13 pieces for the whole of the spider hands) to obtain the simplest power reserve display!



To ensure utmost precision of the ancient architecture clock, the Geneva drive regulation system has been lined with a constant force escapement system. Well-trained eyes will see a second balance-spring on top of the escape wheel.

To sum it up, it is a technical feat, which consists of making steam engine function with the punctuality of a TGV.

This version, dedicated to music (Parmigiani is in partnership with the Montreux Jazz Festival), has been ornamented with a representation of musical instruments in Pietr Mondrian’s style, famous for being one of the pioneers of abstraction. Marquetry consists of assembling pieces of natural or stained wood veneer to obtain motifs. Each piece is cut and stained individually before being assembled; a task as precise as the assembly of a watch movement!




Parmigiani Toric Tecnica Minos

The SIHH2013 has been the opportunity for many prestigious companies to introduce quite innovative great complications, with the three-dimensional escapement being the central theme. However, Parmigiani has secretly introduced a more-than-classical great complication: the Toric Minos.

This watch will however only be on display since it had been a custom order and is thus already sold. It is marvellous as much for its technicality as for its aesthetics.

Let’s focus on the technique first. Being a great complication, it combines:
•   A minute repeater.
•   A perpetual calendar
•   A tourbillon (even if it is not exactly a complication)
•   A power reserve display



At the 12 o’clock position, the watch displays the date and the power reserve. The day of the week is displayed at the 3 o’clock position and the date at the 9 o’clock position. As for the tourbillon at the 6 o’clock position, it rotates in 30 seconds.

The movement measures 13 lignes for 12.3mm width. Its frequency is 21600 beat per hour for a 43 hours power reserve.

The dial’s finishes are part of the elements contributing to making this watch extraordinary. For example, the dial embodies the labyrinth of the mythological Minotaur. The maze walls are in locked polished white gold, a contrast with the ground made in sanded white gold. The edges of the Perpetual Calendar indicators are made in satiny pink gold.

The combinations of contrasts among these elements make up an exceptional visual with the dial shimmering under the light and the amazing tourbillon are a true pleasure for the eyes. One of the greatest dial ever produced !




For the movement’s part, the «labyrinth» motif is slightly less demonstrative, but usually one will be absorbed by the hammers’ repetition work. The sound is both clear and musical and the volume is quite correct.

Using gold for the case turns out to be not quite penalizing as it would first seem. In fact, the metal’s density is not the only factor affecting the resounding vibration. The other factor concerns the essence of the alloy, which ensures a good sound diffusion: the pink gold consists of copper as well, metal equally adapted to resonance.




Moreover, an interior milling ensures the hollowing out of matter on the inside of the case, to further improve resonance…

The demarcating line between this watch and other watches of great complications is that it perfectly fits one’s wrist. Everything is just fine when you wear this watch from the case’s dimensions to the labyrinth decoration, which extends up to the middle.



As for the dimensions, the two glass sapphires are ultra-fine because the watch measures only 13.2mm in width for 45mm in diameter. Despite its dimensions, it perfectly fits one’s wrist!

A homogeneous, equilibrated, complete piece, which above all is equipped with a fabulous dial!

Conclusion

This SIHH2013 is for Parmigiani undoubtedly a power display of the Quadrance (the dial part of Parmigiani) finishing work as well as the workshop Haute Horlogerie of Parmigiani Fleurier. While others are favoring sensationalism, the Fleurier firm stays connected to continuity and perpetuate horology history through a contemporary prism. A firm which prefers interacting with informed watchmakers over «prestigious» brands’ zealots.