SIHH: IWC Portuguese Hand-Wound

IWC Portuguese Hand-Wound


For IWC, 2010 is the “Year of the Portuguese” and fans of the brand will be happy to read that the manufacture is offering two beautifully simple 44mm models in stainless steel cases, each with an original pocket watch movement of the type that the first pocket watch-style wristwatch appeared with seventy years ago.

Two models are available. The first is stainless steel with a black dial, rhodium-plated Arabic numerals and the characteristic feuille hands with a silver-plated seconds subdial featuring a distinctive “60” in signal red. Its sibling model with a silver-plated dial and rose gold-plated indices and hands stands out with its seconds subdial in light gray, also with a small red “60”. Features common to both are the typical chapter ring in the traditional railwaytrack style and, as the drive mechanism, the IWC-manufactured 98295 caliber with stylistic echoes of the first Jones movements, such as the nickel-silver three-quarter bridge and the elongated index to facilitate precision adjustment of the effective length of the spring.

The Portuguese Hand-Wound will be priced at $8300. It will be in IWC boutiques in June with broader distribution beginning in September.

Additional details appear below the image, which you may click to enlarge.

IWC Portugueser Hand-Wound

Features

Mechanical movement, balance with high-precision adjustment cam on the balance arms, Breguet spring, plate and nickel-silver three-quarter bridge, elongated precision adjustment index, special decoration (Geneva stripes), small hacking seconds

Movement

-Caliber 98295
-Beats 18,000/h
-Jewels 18
-Power reserve 46 h
-Winding hand-wound

Case Materials

- stainless steel with black dial and black alligator leather strap, pin buckle in stainless steel

- watch in stainless steel with silver-plated dial and black alligator leather strap, pin buckle in stainless steel

Glass

Sapphire, arched edge, anti-reflective coating on both sides

Back

See-through sapphire-glass back
IWC,
Water-resistant: 3 bar

Height: 10mm

SIHH: Girard-Perregaux 1966 Full Calendar

Girard-Perregaux 1966 Full Calendar


The 1966 collection has quickly become one of Girard-Perregaux's icons. The collection is named for the Neuchatel Observatory's Centenary Prize, awarded to GP in 1966 for its achievements in the field of chronometry. The 1966 Full Calendar is available in red gold, and in a limited edition of 199 pieces in palladium. The displays include date, day of the week, month and moon phases. The 40mm case has a sapphire back revealing the GP033M0 mechanical self-winding movement designed by the Manufacture.

Palladium is a very white metal that is part of the platinum family and twenty times less abundant than gold. It does not require any rhodium plating, and it does not tarnish. The Full Calendar is priced at $19,800 for either the palladium or red gold versions and deliveries to retailers should begin around June.

GP Full Calendar in palladium

Technical specifications

Palladium case
Diameter: 40 mm
Antireflective sapphire crystal
Sapphire case-back
Water resistance: 30 meters

Girard-Perregaux movement GP033M0
Mechanical with automatic winding
Calibre: 11 ½’’’
Frequency: 28,800 vibrations/hour (4 Hz)
Power reserve: minimum 46 hours
Jewels: 27
Functions: hour, minute, central second, full calendar with date, day of the week, month and moon phase indicators

Alligator strap with pin buckle

Breitling’s Chronomat B01 With Manufacture Movement

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Breitling is practically synonymous with chronograph, and on May 28, 2009, Breitling will officially launch the Chronomat B01 with their new in-house automatic-winding chronograph movement, known as Caliber B01. Initially the watch will be available at only about 35 retailers in the U.S., with additional retailers coming on-line quickly. As of late March, about 2000 pieces had been produced. Production will eventually reach about 50,000 pieces annually.

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Caliber B01 has been in development for 5 years, and its launch coincides with Breitling’s 125th anniversary. A new, four-story addition to Breitling’s facility at La Chaux –de-Fonds houses the caliber’s construction. The movement incorporates a column-wheel switching mechanism and a vertical clutch, two hallmarks of a well-made chronograph. The vertical clutch assures that the chronograph seconds hand does not jump when the chronograph is engaged. The B01 has central chronograph seconds, continuous seconds at 9, and a jumping 30 minute totalizer at 3. The instant-change date is located at 4:30. The date can be changed at any time, including near midnight. The movement includes a patented system for adjusting the start, stop and reset hammers. The 47 jewel movement uses a flat hairspring and a smooth balance wheel. A single barrel provides 70 hours of power reserve. The B01 ticks along at 28,800 vph, and as with all Breitlings, the Chronomat B01 is COSC-certified.

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At Basel, Vice-President Jean-Paul Girardin said that Breitling decided to produce Caliber B01 to satisfy market demand for a manufacture movement, and to assure Breitling’s future. The company felt that it must have a reliable supply of mechanical chronograph movements, as this type of watch accounts for 55% of Breitling’s sales.

The Chronomat B01 measures 43.5mm in diameter and it will be available in four versions: all steel, steel with a steel bezel with four gold quarter-hour markers, steel with a gold bezel, and solid 18K (4N) red gold. A total of 18 different dials will be available The unidirectional bezel turns smoothly with 240 teeth. The sapphire crystal is anti-reflective coated on both sides. Steel and two-tone models are water resistant to 500 meters, while the all-gold model can be taken down to 100 meters.

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The Chronomat B01 starts at about $6500 for a steel model on a leather strap. The opening price for the two-tone version on a bracelet is $7770. An all-gold model on a strap will start at $21,610. The B01 tops out at $44,125 for the red gold and diamond version on a red gold bracelet.