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Vacheron Constantin Replica

Replica VACHERON CONSTANTIN : Metiers d’Art MecaniquesGravées

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During this, the year of their 260th anniversary, Vacheron Constantin have added to their Métiers d’Art collection with two new platinum replica watches with hand-engraved in-house movements – calibres 22601/1 and 4400/1. What these two pieces share in common are the engraved acanthus leaves on their time only and tourbilon movements respectively.

The first Mécaniques Gravées model is time-only, containing the manual-wind Calibre 4400/1 with a power reserve of 65 hours. The replica watch itself is 39mm in diametre, 8.5mm thick, and made from 950 Pt with hands in white gold and a slate great minute minute track.

Now for the special part – both the front and back of the movement, including plates and bridges, are hand engraved with an ornate pattern of acanthus leaves. It takes a master engraver more than ten days to complete each movement, delicately cutting away at it by 0.2 mm or less, with the most shallow sections less than 0.35 mm thick.

The other new Métiers d’Art model has, as its skeletonised based, the Calibre 2260 also found in Vacheron’s Patrimony Traditionnelle Tourbillon 14 Days, hence its name ‘Métiers d’Art Mecaniques Gravées 14-Day Tourbillon’. The manual-wind Cal.2260 is composed of 231 parts, has a 336-hour power reserve and beats at 18,000VPH.

The 14-day tourbillon Mécaniques Gravées also has white gold hands and a platinum case. The tourbillon cage at 6 o’clock doubles as a seconds indicator, and there is a power reserve indicator at 12 o’clock with scale markers to indicate each 12-hour period of the fourteen days ‘printed’ on the crystal. As is the case with any skeletonised replica watch, to see this may require a little peering for some. There is a similar printed circular scale around the tourbillon, whose cage is the Vacheron Maltese cross. The replica watch has a diametre of 41mm and is 12.35mm thick. Through the caseback you can see the two large bridges again engraved with an acanthus pattern.

Both pieces come on a hand-stitched dark blue alligator strap with a platinum buckle and as a bonus, a magnifying glass as well. In case you are wondering – yes the really quite exquisite decoration (especially that visible through the caseback) is engraved free hand.

For another example of Vacheron’s skeletonised replica watches go to this link, and for examples of dial artistry and skeletonisation, go to this post.

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Swiss Replica

LIVE PHOTOS : Replica De Bethune DB25TZodiac

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In my replica watch wanderings before the start of SIHH week it has become customary for me to visit De Bethune to see some of their pre-Baselworld launches. This time we had a new replica watch companion, London’s #thewatchnerd; be sure to check his website for an upcoming post on De Bethune called ‘The sky’s the limit’ that I know is in the works.

This new Zodiac model uses the standard DB25 case with its short openworked lugs – a 44mm white gold case with a thickness of 10.6mm, and is basically the same replica watch in a different manifestation.

Design wise it features one of the magical shades of De Bethune blue to represent the sky. This blued titanium forms the backdrop of the hand-engraved twelve zodiac signs. The dial so features silver guilloché in the centre, yellow gold hands a a blued seconds hand for the jumping/ deadbeat seconds and the movement indicator beneath 12 o’clock that is a feature of all DB25 models.

The zodiac figures are solid gold inserts and hand engraved by Master Engraver Michèle Rothen whose work can be seen on previous De Bethune pieces DB25 Imperial Fountain and DB25 Maya.

Hidden from view on the back is the manual-wind 36,000 VPH DB2109 movement with a silicon-titanium tourbillon with 30-second indicator. The tourbillon comprises of sixty-three parts which weigh between 0.0001g and 0.0276g. The movement itself consists of 320 parts with ‘Côtes De Bethune’ blued titanium bridges and parts, silicon/ white gold balance and a power reserve of four days.

For those who are interested, here is a short film (2011) from the FHH about Master Engraver Michèle Rothen. The Zodiac will be made in a limited edition of twenty pieces.

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Montblanc Replica

SIHH 2015 : Replica Montblanc Heritage Chronométrie ExoTourbillon Minute Chronograph

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It would be something even more than an understatment to say that Jerome Lambert’s tenure so far at stylish replica Montblanc has been an eye opener, but the subject of Horologium’s first SIHH 2015 Montblanc posts is not about something ‘new’ so much as a very attractive (arguably an improvement, aesthetically, but that’s a purely personal view) new Chronométrie ExoTourbillon Minute Chronograph. First introduced in 2010 and also appearing in 2013 in a rattrapante form, it features the in-house developed ExoTourbillon.

For those who are familiar with the Nicolas Rieussec models you will see a design continuity with this new model that perhaps wasn’t present with the previous ExoTourbillon. This is, in fact, an ExoTourbillon integrated into the monopusher column wheel chronograph movement of the Nicolas Rieussec, with a patented hacking tourbillon.

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In a tourbillon the escapement rotates in the tourbillon cage. The larger the balance, the larger the tourbillon cage has to be. This automatic movement Calibre MB R230 (50 hour power reserve) with its patented one-minute ExoTourbillon with stop-second mechanism (that directly halts the screw balance by means of a tiny spring, thus stopping the balance) has a tourbillon with a large balance that is outside (exo) the tourbillon cage. Montblanc states that this means that there is approximately one-third energy saving to the tourbillon’s functionality.

The date is indicated by a small centre hand on the same axis as the hour and minute hands. The semi-circle chronograph sectors are for 60 elapsed seconds (left) and 30 elapsed minutes (right). The chronograph’s monopusher is at 8 o’clock and the hour-hand can be independently set.

In addition to the regular production piece in a 44mm 18K red gold case there is also the Montblanc Heritage Chronométrie ExoTourbillon Minute Chronograph Vasco da Gama in 18K white gold edition, limited to sixty pieces. This version features a very elegant aventurine dial that depicts the nightly sky with a Montblanc diamond at 12 o’clock and a satin-finished lower section of the dial. The non-limited edition is in 18K red gold that comes with an ivory grainé upper dial and vertical satin-finished silver dial lower dial, faceted indices, red gold plated number, hour, minute and date hands (the latter with a red crescent tip).

Both of these very good looking models come on leather straps made at the Montblanc Pelletteria, the Maison’s leather manufacture in Florence. The caseback of the limited edition model has an additional design of the Sao Gabriel that Vasco da Gama captained during his voyage to India.

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Swiss Replica

SIHH 2015 : Replica Vacheron Constantin ‘Harmony’ TourbillonChronograph

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Harmony of form and function, harmony in music, of thought, of companionship, of the tastebuds. A common word, but perhaps unexpected as the name of the new Vacheron Constantin collection introduced at SIHH 2015 to mark their 260th anniversary.

As is to be expected the six models which form part of the Harmony collection are limited. For those who were fortunate enough to see the Vacheron Constantin chronograph exhibition at the Museum as we did (more in a later post about this visit, but in the meantime go to #thewatchnerd for an introductory post) it all falls into place, as they are inspired by a cushion case shaped chronograph introduced in 1928.

This new model contains the in-house manual wind Calibre 3200 with hand-engraved bridge, tourbillon and monopusher functions as per the name, all in a 950 platinum case measuring a pretty decently sized 42mm x 52mm (12.81mm thick) and a limited edition of twenty-six numbered pieces – there is not just ‘No. X/ 26” on the case to mark the limitation, but also “260th Anniversary”.

Those familiar with high quality replica Vacheron Constantin will know of the American 1921 model in terms of their modern interpretations of cushion-case vintage pieces.The case itself consists of a curved middle, a square bezel and a round replica watch glass.

As mentioned above, the special anniversary Calibre 3200 features a bridge hand-engraved with scrolling patterns with what is called a ‘fleurisanne engraving’, inspired by decorations that were on the balance-cock of the oldest pocket replica watch belonging to the Maison and signed by Jean-Marc Vacheron in 1755.

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Swiss Replica

REPLICA THOMAS PRESCHER : the Mysterious Automatic Double AxisTourbillon

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Would I like to see a ‘simple’ replica watch from Thomas Prescher? When I met Thomas and Heike Prescher earlier this year and was asked this question by Heike, I was momentarily struck silent, as my mind tried to quickly think of what options ‘simple’ in the world of Prescher might actually mean. Very possibly still something that I would not be able to get my head around at first glance. Very possibly something that I would need to sit down and think about.

Well it turned out that I was correct. I didn’t quite get my head around it at the time, and it has been periodically surfacing in my mind since then. I admit hesitation about doing this post, as the photographs weren’t taken under ideal lighting conditions, and I don’t wish to do the replica watch an injustice, but the more I thought about it, the more I realised that it was better to share it. So here it is, the Mysterious Automatic Double Axis Tourbillon, the ‘simple’ replica watch. You can wear one too, if you wish. Or if you are looking for something more ‘complicated’, how about the Triple Axis Tourbilon Sport?

Thomas Prescher speaks of time in terms of vision and sculpture. These are terms that pop up regularly when the sources for replica watch design inspiration are discussed, but they are never quite done in this sort of a way. For this model, his focus was on visibility – visibility of the tourbillon, visibility of the calendar, visibility of the oscillating weight.

There is a lot of ’empty space’ in this replica watch, but it serves a purpose – to draw the eye to the remarkable swinging object. What is this object? Well the idea was to create an automatic movement with a horizontal swinging oscillating weight, with the movement hidden on the left and right sides of the case, inside the bezel.

It was this which lead to my utter confusion when I saw this replica watch – swinging bits, things that I couldn’t get my head around. Oh and it’s also a double axis tourbillon with constant force, too. So yes – only the time, the tourbillon, calendar and oscillating weight are visible.

Thomas Prescher wouldn’t be Thomas Prescher if there wasn’t at least a double-axis tourbillon, and so it was in the design and realisation of this replica watch – a flying double-axis tourbillon with constant force would be added, as would the calendear. In his words, the idea to add a calendar to this creation came whilst observing how people getting onto a giant swing could move on its surface. Why not create an oscillating weight with integrated calendar indications and allow simple gravity to ensure the calendar on the oscillating weight is always horizontal?

With the calendar located on the flat side of the oscillating weight this indication is always facing upward. This means that it can always be read regardless of which side of the replica watch is up. You will note the presence of two crowns – one is for winding and the other, for time (right) and calendar setting (left). You may also notice their placement – they build the main symmetry axis.

This theme of ‘symmetry’ then appears again, with a three-dimensional moon placed between the two barrels indicating hours and minutes. The hours and minutes are on a rotating barrel.

Finally, the bi-axial tourbillon is placed on a turning axis, held by a carrying arm and rotating around itself.

There are replica watches for which the immediate response is a variation on the theme of ‘wow’ but that you can ‘get’ immediately, or within a few minutes. Then there are the replica watches where your response is ‘wow’ and the more you learn about it, the more the volume of ‘wow’ increases. This is one of those replica watches. It is only with time, learning, and repeated exposure (yes I would love to see it again if the opportunity arises) that the achievement is fully realised, and as I do not yet feel fully confident that I do understand the intricacies of its operation, I am hoping that my path will again cross with the Preschers.

It is a mindboggling work of horology, and as a friend of mine says – “that replica watch is seriously nuts, I have no idea how it works”. As for the ‘specs’, this 36.75mm wide, 41.20mm high and 16.50mm thick replica watch comes in platinum 950 or 18 carat gold. Inside is an in-house 38 hour power reserve Calibre MANDAT NO1 automatic movement that is hidden on both sides of the case. The replica watch consists of 250 components. The plates and bridges are grey rhodium plated. The one-minute revolution tourbillon is 13.5mm high and weighs 0.347g.

Oh and yes, you will notice that it is numbered 00/25. That’s because it’s Heike Prescher’s.

[20 July 2015 : to see the ‘mystery’ behind the ‘Mysterious’, click on this link.

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Vacheron Constantin Replica

HANDS-ON :Replica Vacheron Constantin Malte TourbillonOpenworked

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Earlier this year we covered the new Métiers d’Art Fabuleux Ornements replica watches from Vacheron Constantin, featuring some of Vacheron’s delicate open-working skills. Aside from these, there was a general theme focusing on new open-work replica watches at SIHH 2014, and one of the skeletonised centrepieces was the Malte Tourbillon Openworked.

This is not the first openworked Malte Tourbillon, but the tonneau-shaped Cal. 2790 SQ (‘SQ’ for ‘squelette’ i.e. skeletonised) is new, with tourbillon, power reserve and date functions. The Cal. 2790 SQ measures 27.37mm x 29.30mm x 6.10mm and is in a Platinum 950 case measuring 38mm x 48.24mm x 12.73mm. It has a 45 hour power reserve.

Not only is the movement skeletonised, but it also features a significant amount of engraving – if you look carefully you will see that there are lots of triangles and rectangles, as well as ‘Vacheron Constantin’, and both a small Vacheron Maltese Cross and the shaping of the tourbillon cage as the same cross. The hand-engraving work for each replica watch takes almost a week to complete.

A rather modern feature of the skeleton Malte Tourbillon is the sapphire dial, onto which the date, power reserve and sub-seconds are printed – the date is at two o’clock and the power reserve display, at ten o’clock. You might not see them all them at first glance, especially the power reserve indicator, but if you look at the dial more closely, or at an agle,  you will be able to see it.

I acknowledge that skeletonised replica watches are not to everyone’s taste, especially for those who want a quickly legible dial on which they can see the time at a glance out of the corner of their eye. For them, and for those who prefer simple clean dials, this, and any other openwork piece, will not be for them. The Malte cases have a strong presence, and so it is with this replica watch.  If you are familiar with the line, then you will already know how it feels on the wrist, but if not, it’s large but sits slim and low.

Regardless of whether skeletonisation is your ‘thing’ or not, there is no denying the immense skill that goes into the beautifully detailed skeletonising of a movement, so even if this is not the luxury replica watch for you, you might find it interesting to read more about how Vacheron approach this art here on their website .