Daniel Roth announced a subtle shift in its direction with the recent Extra Plat Rose Gold Skeleton. While the brand’s prior models like the tourbillon were essentially remakes of models made by the brand in the 1990s, the Extra Plat skeleton is an entirely new model that shares practically nothing with historical designs save for the case shape.

Because the Extra Plat skeleton is, well, skeleton, it ably shows off the quality of execution on both sides. Beyond finishing, the movement also stands out for details that illustrate the taste of its constructor(s). It’s telling that the movement could have been done more simply without anyone noticing, but it wasn’t.

Initial thoughts

Daniel Roth’s resurrection got off to a strong start, underpinned by watches with top quality execution. The initial models, however, were remakes of 1990s originals. A brand with Daniel Roth’s ambitions (and well-resourced backer) won’t go very far with only replicas of historical models. The Extra Plat Skeleton illustrates the people behind the brand understand that.

The Extra Plat Skeleton, in contrast, is the first all-new model rolled out by Daniel Roth in its current form. It encapsulates all of the strengths of the brand, namely the capable, high-end watchmaking of La Fabrique du Temps (LFT) and the distinctive double-ellipse case.

While the Extra Plat Skeleton is powered by a movement derived from that in the Extra Plat, it is clearly a different calibre. And because the movement is skeletonised, the outstanding construction and decoration are glaringly obvious, more so than in the earlier models that had solid dials (and even closed case backs).

Many details in the movement are surprisingly artful, especially since it was created by a large company, rather than a one-man or small-scale independent maker. This is visible on both sides of the watch, showing the attention to detail that was paid to the top and bottom of each part, which is not always a given for a skeleton watch.

Equally surprising is the fact that the Extra Plat Skeleton is almost a full millimetre thinner than its solid-dial counterpart, resulting in a flat, elegant profile on the wrist. It really feels extra plat.

The Extra Plat Skeleton costs CHF85,000, which is also surprising, because in today’s market that is actually not so much in relative terms. The price is about the same as that of a time-only, non-skeleton watch by a newcomer independent, giving this credible value in comparative terms.

Slim and delicate

The Extra Plat skeleton sticks to the template established by the standard Extra Plat, yet it is surprisingly different. Like all current Daniel Roth models, this has the updated double-ellipse case that was artfully reworked by Matthieu Hegi, the design chief of LFT.

Though it has the same basic form, the new case has curved lugs and equilibrium in profile between the bezel and case back. These tweaks give the case a softer, more elegant feel, but otherwise retain the familiar look.

The case dimensions of the standard Extra Plat and skeleton are identical in terms of diameter and length, but the skeleton is substantially thinner. Doing away with the guilloche dial trims the case height by 0.8 mm, a reduction that is noticeable in person.

Eight-tenths of a millimetre might not seem like much, but the Extra Plat feels almost like a very, very slim dress watch of the sort that brands like Piaget specialise in. This is unusual for the double-ellipse case that was historically fairly substantial.

But the best thing about the Extra Plat skeleton is skeleton. The open-worked DR002SR inside is clearly based on the on the movement inside the standard model, but it doesn’t look like a calibre that was retroactively skeletonised. Everything feels cohesive, which indicates it was constructed simultaneously alongside the non-skeleton version.

The movement aesthetic is modern, with clean lines and straight-grained bridges, unlike the original generation of Daniel Roth skeleton watches that were typically 1980s in style with fancy floral engraving.

Though the movement is clearly 21st century in style, it has a classical aspect to the bridges that brings to mind historical pocket watch movements (and also a Daniel Roth-Bulgari skeleton tourbillon though I suspect the brand now prefers to leave the Bulgari association behind).

Many other details, like the Geneva-style stud carrier, are equally reminiscent of old-school, high-end movements, adding to its charm. Some details, like the keyless works, clearly demonstrate its creators have aesthetic sensibilities that go beyond the basic.

Though the moving parts are essentially identical between the two movement versions, the DR002SR is more precious – literally. The bridges and base plate are 18k rose gold, which is a thoughtful extra.

The gold bridges have been treated appropriately for such a watch. The decoration is clean and refined – on both the tops and undersides of the bridges.

But it’s not just the big, easy components that are treated properly, but also all of the smaller, less evident bits like screws, pins, and spokes. This underlines the high-quality watchmaking practiced at LFT, exemplified here.

Key facts and price

Daniel Roth Extra Plat Rose Gold Skeleton
Ref. DBBD02A1

Diameter: 38.6 by 35.5 mm
Height: 6.9 mm
Material: 18k rose gold
Crystal: Sapphire
Water resistance: 30 m

Movement: DR002SR
Functions: Hours and minutes
Winding: Manual-wind
Frequency: 28,800 beats per hour (4 Hz)
Power reserve: 65 hours

Strap: Calfskin leather strap

Limited edition: No
Availability: At Daniel Roth retailers
Price: CHF85,000 excluding taxes

For more information, visit DanielRoth.com.

Space-themed watches represent a sizable proportion of the luxury watch industry. In fact, there are so many that at times it seems like the Space Race itself might have been contrived solely as a marketing concept for luxury watches. But with a story this good, who can say no? Of course, it helps that the Raketa Baikonur is an appealing watch in its own right with convenient dual-time functionality and an attractive instrument-like 24-hour dial.

Initial thoughts

“They’ve got a man up there! It’s Gagarin!” Even though this imagined line was written for the 1983 film adaptation of Tom Wolfe’s The Right Stuff, it sums up the tension that underpinned the Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union. The statement refers to Soviet Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, who became the first human in space in 1961, orbiting the Earth in 108 minutes. It’s a suitably dramatic event to commemorate with a wristwatch, especially from Raketa, a brand named in honour of Gagarin’s flight.

Instrument-like dials can be boring, but the designers at Raketa did just enough to keep it interesting, referencing the brand’s emblematic Big Zero at noon and midnight, without taking it too far. An internal rotating flange offers an auxiliary 24-hour scale, adjustable by the second crown. This facilitates keeping track of two time zones with full AM/PM resolution, something that’s actually quite rare. The dial also positions noon at the traditional 12 o’clock position, which is welcome.

The 42 mm stainless steel watch is ostensibly designed for use in low Earth orbit, but its robust 200 m water resistance will probably be more useful at sea level. It’s a thick watch at about 14 mm, but the size works for its chunky, tool-like persona. Like other Raketa watches, the Baikonur is powered by a Soviet-era mechanical movement that is made entirely in-house in St Petersburg.

The Baikonur is not inexpensive, but it offers a compelling value proposition nonetheless. Though not made to the same clinical standards as similarly priced Swiss watches from mainstream brands, the Baikonur offers access to an altogether unique story and design language for a reasonable price of €2,400.

Cosmonaut dial

Most watches tell time on a 12-hour scale, taking it as a given that the user knows whether it’s day or night. But the seven astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) at any given time orbit the Earth 16 times per day, experiencing the same number of daily sunrises and sets. The difficulty of telling day from night under such conditions emerged almost as soon as humans started contemplating manned space flight. The Soviet Union was the first to encounter this issue, sending Yuri Gagarin into orbit in 1961 wearing a Moscow-made Sturmanskie wristwatch with a typical 12-hour dial.

Around the same time, Mercury Seven Astronaut Scott Carpenter, later the fourth human to orbit the Earth, asked Breitling to build a 24-hour variant of the Navitimer that later became the first Swiss wristwatch in space, flown aboard the Aurora 7 mission. Naturally, the 50th and 60th anniversaries of this event were commemorated with limited edition Navitimers, each with a 24-hour dial.

Though Raketa, which means ‘rocket’ in Russian, was named in honour of  Gagarin’s 1961 achievement, the brand didn’t produce watches with 24-hour dials until 1969. That was when another mission was taking shape, specifically the 16th Soviet Antarctic Expedition, which faced a similar problem of telling day from night during the interminable polar days and nights of the antarctic region. Even though Raketa’s 24-hour dial was originally conceived for terrestrial use, the concept is no different than what is useful for space flight.

No-frills calibre

Mechanical watch movements are, almost by definition, anachronistic. This is especially true of Raketa movements, which, for better or worse, are still made using antique machines leftover from the Soviet era. This explains the outdated specifications, including the 40-hour power reserve and slow 2.5 Hz beat rate.

But that’s largely the point. Without CNC machines and other conveniences, the watchmakers at Raketa are more hands on. This imbues the watches with a sense of place and character that is missing from many modern watches, even those that reference historical traditions.

Despite being deprived of modern technology, the watchmakers at Raketa adjust the cal. 2624CA movement to a range of -10 to +20 seconds/day, which, for the sake of comparison, is tighter than the -15 to +25 seconds/day that Seiko specifies for the cal. 6R5x that powers the Presage collection.

Key facts and price

Raketa Baikonur
Ref. W-14-16-40-0325

Diameter: 42 mm
Height: 14.05 mm
Material: Stainless steel
Crystal: Sapphire in front, mineral on the back
Water-resistance: 200 m

Movement: Cal. 2624CА
Functions: Hours, minutes, and seconds
Winding: Automatic
Frequency: 18,000 beats per hour (2.5 Hz)
Power reserve: 40 hours

Strap: Nylon strap with additional leather strap included

Limited edition: No
Availability: Direct from Raketa
Price: €2,400 excluding taxes

For more information, visit Raketa.com.