The Arnold & Son HM Dual Hemisphere Perpetual Moon’s crystal is anti-reflective sapphire and the case back allows for more precise adjustments to the moon stage by showing a third moon during eight different stages. Once set, the precision should hold for 122 years, after which a simple adjustment will ensure it to get another 122 years. The hand-wound movement is an Arnold & Son fabrication A&S1512 which defeats at 21,600 bph with a 90-hour power reserve. The motion itself is 5.35mm thick and features 27 jewels, while the instance is rated for 30 meters of water resistance. As if the situation back weren’t beautiful enough, the C?tes de Genève revealed during the movement is merely lovely.The Arnold & Son HM Dual Hemisphere Perpetual Moon comes with either a black or brownish hand-stitched alligator strap and is sure to grab the eye of many a watch buff. The Arnold & Son HM Dual Hemisphere Perpetual Moon watch is priced at $30,500. When attempting to fix a problem, the start is always a fantastic place to start. That is precisely the process followed by Arnold & Son in their endeavor to eliminate isochronal error from among their newest bits, the Arnold & Son Constant Force Tourbillon. Arnold & Son’s heritage exists in the legacy of John Arnold and his son, a couple of the most important watchmakers to ever come out of England. Having packed his son off to learn in the back of the Swiss maestro, Arnold turned his attentions to the problem of these times: the pursuit for chronometric precision at sea.
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| The ebauche of the future? |
Hirota Masayuki, the eminent Japanese watch journalist of Chronos Japan magazine, provided an insightful analysis of Citizen’s surprising recent acquisition of Prothor Holding SA, which owns La Joux-Perret (LJP), Arnold & Son and component maker Prototec SA.
Hirota-san has a unique perspective, being intimately familiar with both the Japanese and Swiss watchmaking industries. I thought it is worth reproducing in full here. Many thanks to Hirota-san.
– SJX “These years, Japanese watchmakers are seeking to provide raw movements (ebauche) to Europe. Seiko Instruments Inc (SII) previously supplied cal. 4L movement via Soprod. Officially Seiko denied it, but some in Seiko Corp unofficially admitted that Soprod A10 (“A” indicates “Altanus”, meaning alternative) is based on the Seiko cal. 4L. But acquisition of Soprod by a Chinese maker [the now defunct Peace Mark of Hong Kong] fractured Seiko’s attempt. Swatch and Seiko were not welcome to supply raw movements to Soprod cause of maintenance of confidentiality. That’s the why Richard Mille produced in-house movement this year, instead of Soprod automatic based on ETA automatic. On the contrary, Citizen has good experience in ebauche business. Citizen is one of the largest suppliers of quartz movements. And now, they exports Miyota automatic movements to China and Germany. Fairly speaking, what feeds Citizen now is not watch but ebauche business. Considering their position, it is natural that Citizen wants to expand ebauche business in the luxury field. A person in Citizen explained the acquisition of LJP: “[The] shareholders wanted to sell LJP and offered [the firm to] some companies including Richemont and Citizen, maybe LVMH also. But Citizen won.” We can figure out why Citizen acquired LJP. 1. Yen is very strong. 2. Citizen has Bulova for mid range watches. 3. Citizen has one of the largest hairspring factories in Tokyo. It is not difficult to suppose that Bulova soon will carry interesting movement by LJP. And in the near the future, Citizen will supply Tokyo-made hairsprings via LJP, I suppose. Some in Switzerland may get nervous on hearing the news, but I am personally very optimistic because watch industry of Switzerland has been the biggest customers of micromechanical machines made by Citizen. It is completely inadvisable for Citizen to get Swiss watch industry nervous. HIROTA, Masayuki of Chronos Japan”