Following the revival of Daniel Roth with the launch of the limited edition Tourbillon Souscription last year, the brand is now building its catalogue with the Tourbillon Rose Gold, which will be a regular production model.

The Tourbillon Rose Gold is a variation of the original with tweaks to the decoration and material, but most significantly, the new tourbillon is fitted with a display back that shows off the DR001 movement.

Initial thoughts

It was expected that Daniel Roth would follow up with a regular production tourbillon, so the Tourbillon Rose Gold is not surprising. Like the Souscription, it has an obviously high quality of make in construction, finishing, and details.

Both the dial and case are 5N rose gold so it is strikingly pink, giving it a stronger presence than the Souscription, which in comparison is low key.

It was a shame that the DR001 movement was hidden in the Tourbillon Souscription because the calibre is worth admiring. The movement is high quality in both design and finishing, boasting many details that enthusiasts now regard as key elements of haute horlogerie.

The quality of finishing is impressive. In fact, the movement decoration is as good as some small-scale independent brands, reflecting the attention to detail that has characterised the resurrected Daniel Roth brand.

Admittedly, such fine finishing isn’t as rare as it once was, since it is now sought after by enthusiasts and specialist subcontractors have sprung up to cater to that demand. But the DR001 is notable for coming from what is essentially a big brand; although Daniel Roth makes a few dozen watches a year at most, it is backed by Louis Vuitton and LFT. This bodes well for upcoming Daniel Roth creations, which might be less complicated and more accessible.

The Tourbillon Rose Gold costs CHF155,000, slightly more than the Souscription. Though it’s a big number, the price is fair relative to the wider market, where even startup independents with iffy longevity charge a similar number for a tourbillon.

Or rose

The Tourbillon Rose Gold retains exactly the same form as the Souscription, while the case metal is now 18k rose gold instead of yellow. This also means it’s almost exactly the same as the 1990s originals, save for a few tweaks to the design.

According to its designer, Matthieu Hegi, the case was reworked to be more harmonious, so the angular lugs of the original were replaced with curved lugs with rounded ends. The ratio of bezel-to-back thickness was also improved, so the case has a more balanced profile.

As was the case with the Souscription, the dial quality is noticeably superior to that on the originals. The linear guilloche is finer, as are the fluted borders of the applied chapter rings.

The dials are made by Comblemine, the arm of Voutilainen that specialises in dials and cases. Although Comblemine supplies guilloche dials to a great number of small brands, they vary in complexity and sophistication. The Daniel Roth dials are amongst its better work.

The feature has the markings in black, along with black-coated hands

The applied chapter rings are solid silver while the dial is rose gold

The best bit of the new tourbillon is the back, which has a sapphire window. In contrast, the Tourbillon Souscription had a solid back that stayed true to the 1990s original. Excepting the engraved examples, the originals did not warrant a display back because the view on the rear was uninspiring.

The new tourbillon next to the Souscription with its solid back (left)

Here, however, the DR001 looks good. The same movement was found in the Souscription, but concealed. It’s manual wind with a long power reserve of 80 hours.

Developed by La Fabrique du Temps (LFT), the movement-making arm of Louis Vuitton’s watch division, the DR001 has a classical appearance. LFT was also responsible for other high-end tourbillon movements in the past, so there are shared genetics between the DR001 and LFT’s past creations.

The LFT emblem on the base plate

The movement has a traditional layout with the barrel at 12 o’clock and the tourbillon at six, but is still recognisable as a modern movement that was designed to show off finishing.

Most of the moving parts are held in place by two large bridges that are striped on the top and bevelled on the edges, with additional fine detailing on the smaller parts. The largest jewel, for instance, is secured by a wide, polished gold chaton.

The decoration is impressively high quality and equivalent to the artisanal finishing found in some examples of independent watchmaking.

A black polished steel cock

Key facts and price

Daniel Roth Tourbillon Rose Gold
Ref.

Diameter: 38.6 mm by 35.5 mm
Height: 9.2 mm
Material: 18k rose gold 5N
Crystal: Sapphire
Water resistance: 30 m

Movement: DR001
Features: Hours, minutes, seconds, and a one-minute tourbillon
Frequency: 21,600 beats per hour (3 Hz)
Winding: Manual winding
Power reserve: 80 hours

Strap: Calfskin strap with pin buckle

Limited edition: No
Availability: At Daniel Roth at retailers
Price: CHF155,000 excluding taxes

For more, visit Daniel-roth.ch.

The race towards nothingness in ultra-thin watches has picked up in the last years, with brands like Bulgari and Richard Mille outdoing each other in the thinnest-watch stakes. Now Konstantin Chaykin wins the race with his ThinKing, a prototype that comes in at a staggering 1.65 mm in back-to-back thickness — making it the thinnest mechanical timepiece today.

Currently the ThinKing is a concept watch in its second prototype stage, constructed and executed by the Moscow-based independent watchmaker, with three pending patents linked to its development. 

Initial thoughts

While the technical merits are impressive, the watch seems bland on its face, or at least face-on. It appears to be a large, flat piece of steel with a dull finish, sporting twin eye-like registers for the hours and minutes.

The ThinKing doesn’t have the visual flair of Richard Mille RM UP-01 Ferrari or Bulgari Octo Finissimo Ultra. But it is easily recognisable as a Wristmon, the brand’s signature collection of “rolling eye” watches. Since it is only a prototype and the aesthetics are not yet refined for commercial production, the ThinKing’s appearance can be overlooked.

The brand name engraved in an arc resembling a smile

The ThinKing is absurdly thin at 1.65 mm. This makes it 0.05 mm thinner than the previous record holder for the thinnest mechanical watch, the Bulgari Octo Finissimo Ultra Mark II.

Although imperceptible to the naked eye, the minute reduction is amazing from a technical point of view. It is especially impressive since it was conceived and produce entirely in-house by a small-scale independent watchmaker, as opposed to big brand with resources as well as the help of specialist suppliers (the movement in the Bulgari was developed by Concepto).

A thin and planar movement

In tackling ultra-thin watches, watchmakers have either turned to specialised modern materials that can be machined to extreme tolerances while keeping their structural integrity, or at rethinking core horological concepts and movement architectures.

Being the inventor that he is, Mr Chaykin radically rethought the classic movement layout. He realised that in a conventional movement, the components of the going train, from barrel to oscillator, can built on a bare minimum of two levels: one for the coaxial wheel and a pinion mobile. 

Mr Chaykin worked to reimagine the entire going train on only two levels, which is particularly difficult to do with the balance and mainspring barrel, since their function typically requires a multi-levered construction. The result of his unconventional thinking is the ultra-thin calibre K.23-0, which is spread out and built into the case of the ThinKing. 

One component that Mr Chaykin completely redesigned was the barrel. He dispensed with the classic barrel covers, ratchet and click. He then moved the ratchet inside the barrel arbour, which means the winding works take up the unused space at the barrel’s centre. The barrel is as thick as a conventional pinion-and-wheel mobile, meaning it fits with the “two level” concept of the movement.

This invention brought down the barrel thickness without compromising on reliability. The ThinKing runs for 32 hours on a full wind. 

The second component that was fundamentally redesigned was the balance. Conventionally, a balance has four levels: the impulse pin, security roller and dart, the rim of the balance and lastly the hairspring itself.

For the ThinKing, Chaykin “unfolded” the balance, distributing its various functions over two balance wheels geared to one another. The Swiss lever escapement interacts conventionally with the first balance wheel, which in turn engages the second balance wheel. The hairspring is fixed inside the thickened rim of the second balance wheel and makes the whole assembly oscillate at 2.5 Hz. 

This reinterpretation of the balance wheel allows the escapement geometry to be left intact, with all the suitable angles and security implements — unlike the Richard Mille RM UP-01 Ferrari, where the optimal escapement geometry is compromised by the construction choices. 

The time telling is done by two large wheels geared to the going train, visible through 0.35 mm thick sapphire widows. The watch has no crown, because the time-setting and winding are done through a special carrier case dubbed PalanKing. The PalanKing fits over the case back on the ThinKing and connects to the barrel and time-setting yoke. 

The PalanKing has a crown, through which the user can wind and set the time on the ThinKing and also a micro rotor, which can wind the ultra-thin watch automatically. The ThinKing can be worn on the wrist with the PalanKing carrier on — which might be convenient because of the automatic winding module and the impression of increased rigidity it gives. The mechanics inside the Palanking form a movement of sorts, the K.23-1.  

The 40 mm diameter case of the ThinKing Prototype 2 is made out of an unnamed, proprietary stainless steel alloy. The case is built to also function as a main plate for the movement, a fairly customary practice in the realm of ultra-thin timepieces. Without the strap, the ThinKing weights only 13.3 g.

Because of the inventive movement and gear train architecture, Chaykin was able to use classic jewelled pivots and stayed away from ball bearing fixings, which he considers unreliable. As a result, the K.23-0 runs on a total of 51 jewels. 

The last invention particular to the ThinKing is for the strap. Such a thin watch is admittedly more susceptible to shock-induced damage, so Mr Chaykin came up with a dedicated strap with titanium fixings and elastic inserts which take any torsional stress away from the case and dampen any shocks. 

Key facts and price

Konstantin Chaykin ThinKing 
Ref. K.23-0

Diameter: 40 mm
Height: 1.65 mm
Material: Stainless steel
Crystal: Sapphire
Water resistance: No

Movement: K.23-0
Functions: Regulator-style hours and minutes
Winding: Manual, but self-winding with PalanKing attached
Frequency: 18,000 beats per hour (2.5 Hz)
Power reserve: 32 hours

Strap: Black alligator leather with titanium supports and elastic inserts

Limited edition: One-off prototype
Availability: Serial production of a refined version expected in the future
Price: Not applicable

For more information, visit Chaykin.ru

The Maxigraph is powered by a proprietary automatic, monopusher chronograph caliber that features a 10-minute regatta countdown timer, as well as a running indicator.

In general, regatta timers represent a fun, quirky alternative to ordinary chronographs, and the Maxigraph takes this a step further. While most regatta timers continue to run until stopped by the user, endlessly counting down over and over, the Maxigraph stops promptly at the 10-minute mark to avoid any ambiguity in reading the elapsed time.

Despite the founder’s day job as Head of Innovation and Marketing at Sellita, the movement is not sourced from the Sellita catalog. Instead, it’s a proprietary caliber designed by Dr Chaulmontet that utilizes components from both Sellita and third-party suppliers.

The movement shares some of the basic architecture of the classic Valjoux 7750, but features several refinements. For example, the tolerances have been reduced and the pinions have been shortened, resulting in a movement that is 16% slimmer than a stock cal. 7750 (while offering a 33% longer power reserve). These refinements mean that the Maxigraph movement cannot be produced in the same industrial manner as a typical cal. 7750 or Sellita SW500.

The architecture of the chronograph pusher has also been revised for smoother operation, but this has yet to be confirmed with a hands-on review. Overall, the Maxigraph offers an usual degree of technical differentiation for this price range.

Key facts and price

Albishorn x Massena LAB Maxigraph

Diameter: 41 mm
Height: 13 mm
Material: Steel
Crystal: Sapphire
Water resistance: 100 m

Movement: Maxigraph
Features: Hours, minutes, regatta timer, and chronograph running indicator
Frequency: 28,800 beats per hour (4 Hz)
Winding: Automatic
Power reserve: 64 hours

Strap: Rubber strap

Limited edition: No
Availability:Available at Massenalab.com beginning September 12 at 10:00 am EDT
Price: US$4,995

For more, visit Albishorn-watches.ch.

MB&F’s sculptural clocks made by L’Epee 1839 have ranged from sci-fi spiders to robots. And now the pair have debuted their most elaborate and expensive desk clock to date, the Albatross.

Inspired by the airship of the same name in the Jules Verne novel Robur the Conqueror, the steampunk Albatross does more than tell the time. The clock also incorporates an hourstriker as well as a propellor automaton that activates alongside the hourstriker.

Initial thoughts

The Albatross is more interesting mechanically than MB&F’s past collaborations with L’Epee, which were mostly about the form of the clock. This, on the other hand, incorporates mechanics into the design with the propeller automaton linked to the hourstriker. Coupled with the chiming and spinning propellors, the sheer size – 60 cm high and some 17 kg – makes the Albatross a truly impressive object.

But the Albatross costs about CHF120,000 before taxes, which is a big number even considering its complexity. While the impressive mechanics and careful construction of the clock arguably justify the price, the price tag puts it in competition with a lot of compelling watches, at least for a watch collector. For someone looking for an impressive desktop object or the ultimate in home decor, this has arguably less competition.

Jules Verne’s airship

Made of steel, brass, and aluminium, the Albatross contains two separate movements. The first is a twin barrel, eight-day movement for the timekeeping and hourstriker functions, with one barrel to power each function.

The second is a single barrel movement that drives the automaton. Both movements are wound by propellers, the first movement via those on the front, and the second movement via the propellers on the back.

The hourstriker chimes the number of hours at the top of each hour, along with a single note at the half-past mark. The propeller automaton can be set to run when the hourstriker starts, or also turned off entirely. Similarly, the hourstriker can also be turned on or off.

The propellors rotate in pairs, with those on the left of the clock turning in one direction, and those on the other side going in the opposite direction. According to MB&F, the propellors rotate at a relatively slow pace of 14 seconds per full revolution, “that they always remain visible and don’t create any wind.”

Available in blue, red, green, champagne, or black, the Albatross is limited to eight in each colour.

Key facts and price

MB&F x L’Epée 1839 Albatross

Dimensions: 60 cm long, 35 cm wide, 60 cm high
Weight: Approximately 17 kg
Material: Aluminium, brass, and steel

Movement: L’Epée 1839 movement
Functions: Hours, minutes, hour striker, and propellor automaton on the hour
Frequency: 18,000 beats per hour (2.5 Hz)
Winding: Wound via propeller
Power reserve: 8 days

Limited edition: 8 pieces in each of the five colours
Availability: From MB&F boutiques, online store, and retailers
Price: CHF119,000 excluding VAT

For more, visit MBandF.com.