The Wind Up – Watch News #331

Welcome back to The Wind Up, our weekly series highlighting the newest watches of the past seven days, and what a week it has been! Alongside a suite of stunning new high-complication models from the world’s biggest and brightest watchmakers, there were a few surprise announcements that landed this week.

From dive watches and sports timepieces to the latest in classy dress watches and grand complications, the last few weeks have offered no shortage of stand-out announcements. What’s more, it isn’t over yet. This week, the world’s biggest watchmakers—and a few budding independents—kept the good vibes rolling. In this latest instalment, we’ll be featuring some of the coolest new watches, including pieces from the likes of Vacheron Constantin, Breguet and Glashütte Original. Happy reading, fellas, and I hope you have a great week ahead.

Vacheron Constantin Les Cabinotiers Temporis Duo Grand Complication Openface

• Brand: Vacheron Constantin
• Model: Les Cabinotiers Temporis Duo Grand Complication Openface
• Reference: Ref. 9750C/000R-215C
• Diameter: 45m
• Thickness: 16.40mm
• Material: Pink gold
• Movement: Calibre 2757 S
• Power Reserve: 58 hours
• Price: Piece unique

Vacheron Constantin is at its very best when it explores high-complication watchmaking, and in the case of the Les Cabinotiers Temporis Duo Grand Complication Openface, we have yet another absolute masterpiece. Ridiculously complicated and bursting at the seams with unique functionality and design elements, the piece unique features a tourbillon, a minute repeater, and a rattrapante, alongside the usual time-telling indicators and a power reserve.

According to Vacheron Constantin, the latest grand complication comprises around 700 individual components, making it one of the most complex (and ultimately hefty) timepieces ever produced by the Maison. Best of all, the stunning calibre 2757 S is revealed through the sapphire dial and the sapphire back of the 45mm 5N pink gold (750/1000) case. According to Christian Selmoni, Style & Heritage Director at Vacheron Constantin, the combination of functions, minute repeater, chronograph and tourbillon, is very rare in wristwatches, essentially for reasons of volume and precision.

“More usually, in grand complication wristwatches, we see minute repeaters associated with perpetual calendars,” Selmoni said. “That configuration certainly requires a great deal of expertise but the chronograph, with its clutch and column-wheel system, which on this piece is duplicated for the rattrapante, is an even bigger issue in terms of miniaturisation.”

The Les Cabinotiers Temporis Duo Grand Complication Openface is perhaps the ultimate expression of true haute horlogerie, and in this beautifully warm pink gold guise, there really is nothing like it. Immensely complicated, immensely exclusive and equally as immensely expensive, the Les Cabinotiers Temporis Duo Grand Complication Openface is just supreme.

Breguet Classique Tourbillon Sidéral

• Brand: Breguet
• Model: Classique Tourbillon Sidéral
• Reference Number: 7255BH/2Y/9VU
• Diameter: 38mm
• Thickness: 10.20mm
• Material: Breguet gold
• Water Resistance: 30 metres
• Movement: Calibre 187M1
• Power Reserve: 50 hours
• Price: CHF190,000 (Limited to 50 pieces)

Much like Vacheron Constantin, iconic watchmaker Breguet continues to expand on its illustrious history through its enviable high-watchmaking prowess. The Classique Tourbillon Sidéral continues the Maison’s 250th anniversary celebrations and once again serves as the perfect reminder of the underlying technical brilliance that is Breguet. This time around, however, there is a brand-first.

The Classique Tourbillon Sidéral is, somewhat surprisingly, the brand’s very first flying tourbillon model. The original tourbillon movement was famously pioneered by the maison’s founder, Abraham-Louis Breguet, in 1801, so it does seem shocking that it’s taken over 200 years for Breguet to work on a floating iteration. Thankfully, it was well worth the wait.

Perched inside an elegant cage on the dial face, the complex mechanism differs from its traditional counterparts through the absence of an upper bar. It thus appears suspended in space as if untethered to the laws of gravity. As our own Jacob OSborn wrote on its release, this particular iteration goes one step further by eschewing a pivot at the top to anchor all the support at the base, resulting in better balance and improved adjustability.

Limited to just 50 units worldwide and paired with a beautiful aventurine enamel dial, the Breguet Classique Tourbillon Sidéral is perhaps the watchmaker’s most triumphant celebration yet. The combination of the deep blue dial paired with the warmth of the Breguet gold case and dial accents makes for a stunning aesthetic. Spectacular.

Glashütte Original PanoLunarTourbillon

• Brand: Glashütte Original
• Model: PanoLunarTourbillon
• Reference: Ref. 1-93-03-01-03-xx
• Diameter: 40mm
• Thickness: 12.70mm
• Material: Platinum
• Water Resistance: 50 metres
• Movement: Calibre 93-03
• Power Reserve: 60 hours
• Price: €125,000 (Limited to 50 pieces)

Last but certainly not least, this week is the new PanoLunarTourbillon from Glashütte Original. This new limited edition variant of the much-loved timepiece sports some beautiful aesthetic changes to the dial and case, however, still features that stunning flying-tourbillon in the bottom left quadrant of the dial.

This time around, Glashütte Original has eschewed the traditional gold case in favour of something slightly more dazzling. The 40mm platinum design is lovingly finished with a mixture of polished and brushed textures, creating a refined and dynamic aesthetic that feels innately premium. Admittedly, as the 47mm lug-to-lug measurements might indicate, this PanoLunarTourbillon is no small number, but what it lacks in subtlety, it makes up for in stellar design and functionality.

The German watchmaker has fitted this latest release with the new calibre 93.03; a movement that powers a stunning moonphase complication, the iconic Panorama Date (which uses two separate discs on a single level) and a much-coveted flying tourbillon. And then, of course, there is the dial.

For this, Glashütte has introduced a special galvanic treatment to create a rich and textured salmon hue. The main section is grained, while the hours and minutes have a snailed texture, which works to add a certain level of depth to the piece. The result is a watch that is already super appealing, made that much more intriguing.

Armin Strom Gravity Equal Force Ultimate Sapphire Blue

• Brand: Armin Strom
• Model: Gravity Equal Force Ultimate Sapphire Blue
• Reference: Ref. ST24-GEF.BLU
• Diameter: 41mm
• Thickness: 12.65mm
• Material: Stainless steel
• Water Resistance: 30 metres
• Movement: Calibre ASB19
• Power Reserve: 72 hours
• Price: CHF27,500 (Limited production of 25 pieces per year)

From Armin Strom, we have the latest version of its esteemed Gravity Equal Force Ultimate, this time with an icy blue look. Inspired by the cool glacial lakes and Alpine light found in Switzerland, the Gravity Equal Force Ultimate Sapphire Blue boasts all of the same tell-tale signs that are very much becoming of its flagship status, aside from some small, visceral changes.

The first is a blue PVD main plate complete with a guilloché pattern and a lovely blue nubuck leather strap. From there, you’ll also spy a horizontal clutch and a compact micro-rotor within the watch’s architecture. These additions, visible from the dial side, not only provide constant force timekeeping but do wonders for the unique timepiece’s aesthetic credentials. The Gravity Equal Force Ultimate Sapphire Blue isn’t an evolutionary update; rather, it expands on a collection that is already super successful and adds some more variation to the family.