Luminox Launches Air, Sea, and Land Timepieces

Luminox is launching the Essential Gear Sea, Air and Land Series of timepieces. Luminox supplies military, law enforcement, SWAT teams, Navy SEALs, fighter pilots, and more, so the brand has created three models designed for the different domains in which these users operate. The models focus on durability and legibility, and they are designed for real world use. Each of the three models lists for $295.

All 3 models feature 44mm cases crafted from carbon reinforced polymer. Each model is fitted with a highly scratch resistant, specially hardened and tempered mineral crystal, and each is water resistant to 200 meters. Each also employs the proprietary Luminox Light Technology (LLT), a self-illuminating system that glows continuously 24/7/365 for up to 25 years.

The Sea model features a sunray blue dial and uses blue LLT tubes, because blue remains visible deeper under the water than any other color. A scuba flag above the 6 on the dial indicates the watch is meant for diving, as does the nylon Velcro fast-strap that attaches easily and dries quickly.



The Air Watch is a Search And Rescue (SAR): the dial is bright orange and all of the LLT tubes are blue and orange, like the alarm lights on rescue helicopters. The SAR initials are placed above the number 6 on the dial in blue.


There are two Land models in this series – both utilizing earth tones. One version has a black dial and the other is olive gray. These models use red light tubes for the LLT because, according to the SWAT teams the brand works with, red won’t compromise their team’s position while on an operation, but still provides perfect time readability to the user, all night long. The 12:00 illumination is colored dark blue so you can find the top of the dial easily in the dark. The turning bezel comes with an ice-blue LLT, for better readability. The same is true for the LLT on the hands.

Basel Preview: Corum Admiral’s Cup Minute Repeater Tourbillon 45

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Admiral’s Cup, Corum is launching the Admiral’s Cup Minute Repeater Tourbillon 45. The movement, caliber CO 010, took 12 of Corum’s best watchmakers 2 years to develop. Corum wanted to avoid the traditional slide to wind the repeater, fearing that on a sporty watch, it might catch on something and damage the mechanism. The solution was to wind the repeater via the bezel.

The repeater components were conceived and developed to guarantee the precision and beauty of the tone by considering its power (expressed in decibels), its precision (note correctness), its richness (expressed in number of partials), and its reverberation (duration of each note). The minutes-rack, placed at the heart of the ringing mechanism, is inverted compared to traditional minute repeaters in order to bring strength and precision to each note. It has also been enlarged to permit a wider lift angle to each tooth, extending the time between notes. The racks hitting the gongs are made out of ultra-resistant and hardened steel. Fixed to these racks, countersprings have been specially conceived to find the best balance of the hitting strength and speed. During the ringing, the rhythm is regulated through the rotation of an inertial flywheel, visible on the movement’s back. The gongs, manufactured from an alloy featuring a composition and thermal treatment that are a closely guarded secret, have been adjusted to strike the hours with an A note and minutes with a C sharp note. These two notes have not been chosen randomly, their specific sequence forms a major third (two tones) with a more cheerful harmony than a minor third (one and a half tones). The precision of the whole mechanism is guaranteed through a Tourbillon with Silicium escapement and pallets offering reliability and durability.

The hand-wound movement is 32mm in diameter and only 5.35mm thick with a 72 hour power reserve. Each surface is hand-finished: circular-grained components, black polished steels – in particular the strike-hammers and Tourbillon Bridge – circular-grained decoration of the plate and Côtes de Genève finish of the bottom bridges. The 45 mm diameter case 18kt red gold.

It takes a master watchmaker about 140 hours to assemble each movement, which consists of 319 components. An additional 10 hours is devoted to perfecting the repeater’s sound. Only 10 pieces will be produced in 2010. The suggested retail price is $290,000.

2009 Filled with Awards for A. Lange & Söhne

2009 proved to be a very successful year for A. Lange & Söhne. With a total of 21 international awards, it is in fact the most successful year in the history of the brand, which was re-established in 1990. Since the presentation of the first collection, the timepieces made in Saxony have won more than 130 prizes, including 81 first prizes.

The Lange Zeitwerk finished first in the category “Complicated Mechanics” at the MunichTime fair, which took place from October 30 – November 1. Both the jury and the public selected it as the winner. The new 1815 also won both prizes in the category “Classical elegance”. At ViennaTime, which took place November 13-15, an expert jury chose the 1815 as the winner in the category “Classical Elegance”, and the Zeitwerk finished second in the category “Intricate Mechanics”.

Lange was also the first non-Swiss brand to win the “L’Aiguille d’Or” (“Golden Hand”), the most prominent award of the Swiss watchmaking industry, at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève. In September, Lange was named Germany’s top luxury brand, finishing ahead of Mercedes, Porsche and BMW, among others. Lange watches also received awards in Germany, Mexico, Bahrain, Japan and Singapore during 2009.