PANERAI LUMINOR 1950 RATTRAPANTE 8 DAYS

Panerai is launching a more robust model.New models will be showcased  next year at SIHH 2013, including this rather distinctive looking new Luminor 1950 Rattrapante 8 Days Titanio.
This is definitely a new but strong Panerai proposal for the brand lovers witch will be able to add this piece to their collection.

In A Split-Second

Presented in a brushed titanium case with polished titanium bezel, the 8 Days Titanio is certainly no shrinking violet at 47mm  to join the oversize tendency. As with most Panerais the design is quite simplistic, yet still attractive in a stripped-back, bare-essentials kind of way. The sandwich-style dial features hours, minutes and seconds as well as chronograph indicators and linear power reserve indicator.



As the name suggests the 8 Days Titanio is a rattrapante, or split-second chronograph, featuring a vertical clutch and twin column wheels, hence the additional seconds hand on the dial.

Possibly recognizing that you will have probably spent the last few hours lying in the sun before feeling the urge to time something, like a boat race for example, Panerai has clearly labeled the chronograph pushers to remove any possibility of confusion. The first split-seconds timing hand is activated by the button at 8 o’clock (embossed “C” for ‘chronograph’), and the second is activated by the button at 10 o’clock (embossed “R” for ‘rattrapante’).



Powered by a manually-wound Panerai caliber p.2006, the movement also offers an impressive 8-day power reserve thanks to the inclusion of an additional 2 barrels, making 3 in total.
Official pricing and availability will be confirmed early next year.

This will definitely put Panerai in a test, as the traditional style remains, their is freshness on the dial on this one, lets hope that it have what it takes to overcome the competition and innovation in this segment.

THE PORSCHE DESIGN INDICATOR

PORSCHE DESIGN INDICATOR UNDER THE MAGNIFYING GLASS

Thanks to the arrival in Paris of Monsieur Ernst F. SEYR (president and Director General of Eterna SA) for the introduction of the brand new Porsche Design INDICATOR, we were among the first to test this revolutionary piece. The prototype of this entirely new chronograph was presented (without mechanism) at the last Basel salon. Now the Cote des Montres can try it out for you. First in line, on line, our exclusive Test Bench brings you this avant-première.

We tested the wristwatch in the very Italian design style setting of the new MURANO Hotel in Paris. Its movement is the most complicated ever designed for a production series, a world-first with no less than 800 pieces.

A SHORT HISTORY

Professor F.A. Porsche

In 1973, Professor F.A. Porsche took his passion for mechanics to the extreme by developing a wristwatch inspired by the dashboard of the mythical 911. He created the first black chronograph ever sold, and surprised the watch making world by bringing unprecedented legibility to market. Thirty years after it first entered production, like his fetish racing car, the chronograph still looks up to the minute.

A worthy heir to the brand, the INDICATOR is mostly made of titanium, a reminder that Porsche Design was the first to sell watches entirely made of the light, extremely strong metal.

CONTACT

Above all else, the brand new INDICATOR’s character is assertive and exclusive; it’s a monster of technology and unique design.
From case to dial, bracelet included, its appearance has nothing in common with any other known watch. Every design detail was inspired directly by the brand’s legendary savoir-faire in automobiles, and it owes much to the new Porsche Carrera GT.

INDICATOR, OR THE OUTER SIGN OF UNPRECEDENTED DESIGN

The INDICATOR is world first in mechanical watches. Not a watch created with just its external appearance in mind, but the fruit of functional internal design. Their perfect mastery of the technique gave the in-house designers total freedom to explore every imaginable option of form, colour and material.

First turns of the wheel
At the end of 2000, Ernst F. SEYR, president and managing director of Eterna SA (owned by Porsche since 1995) suggested the idea of a super chronograph by Porsche Design/Eterna. As an amateur pilot fascinated by mechanics, the new head of the group knew how hard it can be to use a classic chronograph in real-life, and how stress, poor light or vibration can make them almost impossible to read.
The next step from there was to envisage the development of a real instrument that could be used as a chronometer at a glance without having to decipher minute auxiliary dials.
That’s where the INDICATOR came in. At the end of 2000, Porsche Design gave engineers the go-ahead for development, and entrusted a feasibility study of the INDICATOR project to the Master watchmaker Paul Gerber. A year later, a dozen engineers, technicians and watchmakers from Eterna undertook the development of the revolutionary chronograph’s first prototypes and limited series production. After three years of relentless effort, the first INDICATOR saw the light of day.

Perfectly legible in any circumstances
The finely studied detail of the dial and hands on the INDICATOR is designed for perfect legibility whatever the circumstances.
The semi-skeletal hands, coated in superluminova, obscure the main indicators as little as possible to give a precise reading, even in poor viewing conditions. The figures and hours are also coated in superluminova.

Design directly inspired by the Porsche Carrera GT The slightly domed 42mm sapphire crystal, in built motion work, clear and simple dial structure, easy-to-handle elongated push buttons with transverse grooves in Porsche drive mechanism, and 9mm screwed down winding crown… all of the elements of the new Porsche design are reminiscent of the Carrera GT. On the back of the case, a sapphire crystal base secured by six magnificent screws lets you admire the winding crown’s splendid rotor in the form of a Carrera GT wheel rim. The titanium rotor wheel offers an excellent resistance/volume ratio, and the solid red gold exterior rotor supplies the requisite energy to the INDICATOR’S four spring drums.

The INDICATOR is fitted on a solid black rubber strap that has the Carrera GT’s Michelin tyre tread on its inner surface. Grooves on the strap’s outer surface help reduce perspiration and improve comfort and ease of wear. The strap is fastened with double tongue buckle, and finished with two elegant titanium loops.

TECHNICAL DETAILS

The caliber that drives the INDICATOR was developed from an ETA base. As well as a new main plate and house-manufactured bridges, it incorporates over 400 new components in the cage. A real mechanical masterpiece, it comprises almost 800 pieces in all.

This plate of this impressive movement is 36mm in diameter, which is the right vital dimension for good legibility of the digital display. Four spring drums provide it with energy. The first drives the basic movement. There are three others (whose force is controlled by three centrifugal brakes) for the display mechanisms’ chrono-digital functions. The indicator disks are commuted in two tenths of a second and returned to zero by an “engine drive.”
In other words, they are rest to zero the classic way, by a simple action on the lower push button.

THREE PRIMARY FUNCTIONS:

[1] Chronograph indicator
Essential function of the INDICATOR, situated at 3 o’clock. Iindicated mechanically in digital mode by rotating disks (hours from zero to nine, in units and the ten minutes). Seconds count indicated in analog display from the centre.) After nine hours 59 minutes, like the flag-out warning for flight navigators, the “out of service “signal appears in the hour window.

[2] Power reserve indicator
The design of the common power reserve display for all functions is protected by a special patent. The INDICATOR’S power reserve shows how much residual power remains in the four spring drums relative to the state of activation of the four winding springs. The colour-coded display enables immediate reading of the watch’s power reserve.

[3] Functions control indicator
Porsche Design envisaged an innovative functional control with the basic caliber. The movement function is controlled second by second with a new “mechanical flash display. Three dial windows show a disk with red and white segments whose alternating colours indicate the movement is working as it should. With this new style of display, you can see immediately whether the instrument is ready to fulfill all functions.

The INDICATOR comes in two versions, natural grey titanium or titanium with black finish. The exterior measurements and complex mechanics of this monster of technology are frankly impressive: 49 mm diameter, 18mm thick, water resistant to 50 meters. Produced in very limited edition (a total of 50 worldwide) the INDICATOR is already an exceptional piece that only very few, very rich enthusiasts will ever have the chance of getting hold of. Even they will have to sign up to join the waiting list at one of the rare retailers Porsche Design has selected to represent their new watchmaking jewel.

Retail price: 78,000 € 

This article was shared by www.Thewatchquote.com

NEW HAUTLENCE HL 2.0

When it comes to ‘wow’ watches, the HL2.0 from Hautlence is definitely up there, which is why this is the second time we’re featuring the HL2.0 on Wow Watch Wednesday – this time with an updated video! Visually the timepiece is breathtaking, defying convention with its unusual design and the bold use of sapphire that lays bare the inner workings of this complex machine. And yet complex seems to be an understatement, not nearly doing justice to the groundbreaking movement that takes center stage every time the hour changes.  Of course, you don’t have to take my word for it, check out the amazing video from Hautlence after the jump and you can judge for yourself.

The HL2.0




Like all Hautlence pieces, the HL2.0 at first glance appears more focused on unusual design and complex mechanics, as opposed to legibility and wearability but nothing could be further from the truth.  Like another brand we greatly admire – URWERK – Hautlence does not compromise when it comes to its timepieces fulfilling their most basic function; i.e. telling the time. Yes, it’s unlike anything you’ve ever seen before, and yes it is completely mesmerizing but tear your eyes away from the suspended escapement for just a few seconds and you will notice an incredibly legible time-display right next door.
Let’s face it though; the real star of the show here is the incredible automatic, double-barrel calibre, made completely in-house by Hautlence. In a ground-breaking development (meaning a genuine first in watchmaking, and not simply a rehash of an old concept) the complete escapement system, including the plate, bridges, and wheels move to a new position each time the hour jumps, making four complete 60° rotations every single day.
According to the brand this has been done to counter balance the effects of gravity on precision, much like a tourbillon supposedly does. Whether this makes any real difference to accuracy I will leave up to you to decide, what I can tell you though (having been fortunate enough to see one in person when the movement was still in the final stages of development) is that it looks amazing. There is a saying that goes something along the lines of “don’t wish your life away” but trust me, you will literally be hanging out for each new hour to pass.



Production is limited to just 28 pieces each in white gold and rose gold, and you can expect to pay at least US$200,000, making it an inaccessible dream for most. Of course if you are playing in that ballpark already then this is definitely a piece worthy of your consideration, not least because it brings a highly unusual artistic beauty to watchmaking. Plus you’ll never get tired of looking at it!


Please be sure to visit their official website for more information: www.hautlence.com.

RICHARD MILLE RM 022 CARBON LIMITED EDITION

Richard Mille is at again, this time announcing the release of a highly limited, super cool, new RM 022 Carbon timepiece. And when we say highly limited, we mean highly limited! Just five of these futuristic marvels will be available for sale from July 2012 at selected retailers in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Russia, so if you want one you better act quickly.


The RM 022 Carbon
Released earlier this year the RM 022 tourbillon “Aerodyne” Dual Time Zone features an orthorhombic honeycombed titanium aluminide and carbon nanofiber baseplate (talk about a mouthful!) According to the brand orthorhombic titanium aluminides are new group of alloys, developed from the main class of titanium aluminides and are characterized by a high level of stiffness, low thermal expansion coefficient and exceptional torsion resistance. In other words they are extremely strong and rigid.
For the RM 022 Carbon edition the titanium case has been replaced with a specially designed case created by the injection moulding of carbon nanotubes under high pressure into a black polymer. This process produces a robust composite that is extremely strong (200 times stronger than steel) whilst still remaining remarkably light, and is capable of absorbing far stronger impacts than traditional carbon fiber due to its excellent surface-volume ratio. This has allowed the brand to increase the size of the original case somewhat, from 40mm x 48mm to 40mm x 50mm.



Powering this new beast is the Caliber RM022, a manual winding tourbillon movement with hours, minutes and dual time zone on a transparent sapphire crystal disc, which comes into view when suspended above the light colored field located at 3 o’clock. It also hosts a power reserve indicator (70 hours) between 11 and 12 o’clock, a torque indicator that shows the main spring’s internal tension and a function selector to show the watch’s state in each of the positions for winding, neutral and handsetting. In spite of all of that this is still, in my opinion anyway, one of the more legible of the Richard Mille timepieces.
Pricing estimate: expect to pay well into six figures, probably around the $250k – $300k mark, assuming you can get your hands on 1 of the 5 pieces to be made.


For more information please be sure to visit the official Richard Mille website: www.richardmille.com

MARCUS ANNIVERSARY "UNIQUE MASTERPIECES" EXHIBITION

Tomorrow marks the opening of a very special exhibition in London hosted by a very special retailer. I am of course talking about the Marcus Anniversary “Unique Masterpieces” Exhibition that is scheduled to run from the 4^th of July until the 2nd October 2012, and is a must see for any luxury watch enthusiast who finds themselves even remotely close to the UK in the coming months.

The exhibition has been timed to coincide with the Olympic Games and celebrates three major events in the life of the store’s owner, Marcus Margulies: his late father’s arrival in England 80 years ago, the opening of the Marcus store 10 years ago, and his 70th birthday.

For those not familiar with the Bond Street icon, Marcus has built an exceptional reputation in London, and indeed across Europe, as a premiere retailer and is well known for its exceptional customer service and awe-inspiring line-up of high-end brands.

The exhibition will feature specifically commissioned “Unique Masterpieces” and a collection of “Haute Joaillerie” by a number of well-known Swiss watch manufacturers including Audemars Piguet, Blancpain, Breguet, Hublot, MB&F, Urwerk, Greubel Forsey, Richard Mille, Franck Muller and Piaget. In addition a very rare collection of seventy vintage Audemars Piguet timepieces dating from 1899 to 1970 will also be on display, a worthy event in itself.

For their part MB&F have created the gorgeous HM4 Piece Unique in black titanium you see pictured throughout this article, which I must say I am very much looking forward to seeing in the flesh

Stay tuned, as we will be publishing all the images of the “Unique Masterpieces” in the coming days as they become available. 

Anyone else getting a cool “The Dark Knight Rises” vibe from this pic?

For more information on Marcus please visit their official website: www.marcuswatches.co.uk

THE NEW BOND, JAMES BOND. 

OMEGA SKYFALL EDITION

The newest installment of the James Bond series, SKYFALL starring Daniel Craig, is set to hit cinemas later this year and as we have come to expect from the maker of Bond’s most essential on-screen accessory, Omega has created a limited edition Seamaster Planet Ocean to celebrate.

The SKYFALL Edition

Possibly one of the coolest looking ‘007’ editions so far (in my opinion at least) the new Planet Ocean “SKYFALL” is presented in a 42mm brushed and polished steel case complete with matching bracelet. Although the dial is matte black, the horizontal lines etched into it combined with the contrasting touches of red and white give it a sense of depth that is visually quite attractive.

White Super-LumiNova, which emits a light blue glow in the dark, has been applied to all indices on the dial, along with the hands. As a subtle point of distinction however the minute hand and the dot on the diving bezel glow green instead. Whether that makes any difference from a legibility point of view is probably contestable but it still looks cool nonetheless.

The James Bond references aren’t overt and really the only giveaway that this is a special edition timepiece is the trademark ‘007’ logo at 7 o’clock. Similarly on the reverse side, a black-varnished engraving of the ‘SKYFALL 007’ logo on the rotor of the automatic Omega co-axial Caliber 8507 movement is the only indication that this timepiece is something a little more special.

As is standard on all Planet Oceans, the SKYFALL edition also features a helium escape valve and is rated to 600m of water resistance.

Given that Omega will be producing 5,007 of these special timepieces – that’s significantly more than some smaller brands’ annual production – it is a bit of stretch in my opinion to classify them as limited editions. Still, the new Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean “SKYFALL” Edition is a great looking timepiece with a top-quality engine and undoubtedly Bond fans the world over will be thrilled with this latest release.

For more information please visit the official Omega website: www.omegawatches.com

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RECREATING THE UNIVERSE, THE REAL MOON 1980 BY CHRISTIAAN VAN DER KLAAUW

The Netherlands has an age-old tradition in the field of traditionally-made timepieces. The traditional techniques are passed on from generation to generation. These technical skills are combined with great creativity. The Dutch province of Friesland is famous for the technically-ingenious and stunning clocks that are designed and made there. In the picturesque Frisian village of Joure, Christiaan van der Klaauw started designing and making exclusive hand-made astronomical timepieces in the early nineteen-seventies. Christiaan van der Klaauw received his education at the instrument-maker school founded in 1901 by Nobel Physics prize winner Prof. Heike Kamerlingh Onnes. It was at this school that helium gas was liquefied for the first time in 1908. Some contemporaries who worked for the same laboratory were Albert Einstein, Niels Bohr, H. Lorentz and W. Röntgen. During his education, Christiaan did his apprenticeship with the oldest observatory in the world, founded in 1633. The world-famous astronomer Prof. J.H. Oort (discoverer of the Planetoid belt named after him) was attached to this observatory. During his apprenticeship, Christiaan became increasingly interested in everything connected with astronomy, which showed later on in the production of his Frisian clocks, table clocks and, eventually, his watches.

The well-known astronomer from Leiden, Christiaan Huygens, maker of the first Pendulum clock, inspired Christiaan van der Klaauw to design his first timepieces. The bracket clocks made early on in his career were technically very complicated and had, even at this early stage, ingenious astronomical applications. The timepieces from this period are real collectors' items nowadays. In 1990 Christiaan van der Klaauw presented a true masterpiece: the Astronomical Clock. This clock was one of the reasons why he was asked to become a member of the Académie Horlogère des Créateurs Indépendants (AHCI).

In 1992 Christiaan van der Klaauw won the prestigious gold medal at the watch fair of Basel with his 'Pendule Variable', which won him a definite place among the great contemporary masters.

THE MASTERPIECE real moon 1980

With the Real Moon 1980, Christiaan van der Klaauw presents one of the most attractive and interesting watches of the past year. In the Real Moon 1980, the year refers to a famous clock that Christiaan van der Klaauw made in 1980 and that contained a beautiful miniature Moon. With this watch, Christiaan van der Klaauw has combined a number of ingenious complications in a wonderful creation.

At the six o’clock position on the dial of the watch, a true-to-life ‘miniature’ Moon depicts its actual phases. At the 12 o’clock position, the height of the Sun in relation to the horizon can be read by means of a fine moving Christiaan van der Klaauw logo. The axis of the Earth’s rotation is tilted with respect to the position of the Sun. The result of this phenomenon - called declination - is that at places where the Earth is tilted towards the Sun, it is summer. Where it is winter, the Earth is tilted away from the Sun, and it is colder. The three o’clock position is reserved for the so-called Eclipse hand. When the Eclipse hand moves within the indication marks, there is an eclipse of the Sun or the Moon somewhere on the Earth. Finally, there is the nine o’clock position. Here, the phase of the Moon and the date can be seen.

In the upper part of the face we have a zodiac indicator.

With this surprising and innovative combination of complications, Christiaan van der Klaauw proves once again that he belongs to the elite in the world of ‘haute horlogerie'.

Some specifications of this masterpiece:

Movement: CK 1094 modified self-winding movement with in-house Real Moon 1980 module.

Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds, day, month; moonphase, declination of the sun; eclipse hand indicates solar and lunar eclipse.

Case: Rose gold, ø 40 mm. anti-reflection sapphire crystal; transparent case-back.

Dial: Silver with blue indexes.

Hands: Blued steel.

Strap: Black alligator leather.

Buckle: Logo engraved rose gold buckle.

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