The quintessential sports tourbillon, the Richard Mille RM 027 RN, officially debuted at the 2010 French Open on the wrist of that year’s champion, Rafael Nadal. It was specifically created to stand up to the punishment of the tennis court. Now Richard Mille introduces the RM 27-02, which is even more high-tech, mechanically resistant, and expensive than the first edition. Read on to find out why.
The Bulgari Carillon Tourbillon has three gongs playing a three-note tune. While the dial-side gongs and the tourbillon are the headliners to this show, the real superstar is the repeater movement that you see when you flip over the watch and get a view from the back. With some careful observation one could even understand the entire system simply using one’s own two eyes. Have a look!
While we see Polaris as the North Star for now, our descendents 20 generations down the road from now will not. This is due to an astronomical process called precession. There is something that mimics precession that you can wear on your wrist and pass on to those descendents: the Jaeger-LeCoultre Duomètre Sphérotourbillon Moon, the most recent addition to Jaeger-LeCoultre’s already stacked Duomètre collection.
Ulysse Nardin was expected to introduce the Ulysse Anchor Escapement in a production watch. And with the Ulysse Anchor Tourbillon, the brand did not disappoint. In fact, this constant-amplitude escapement is now housed within a one-minute tourbillon for an added pinch of technical virtuosity.
The Le Garde Temps, Naissance d’une Montre project separates true lovers of watchmaking from the chaff: there is no big brand name on the dial, celebrity ambassadors, or expensive marketing campaign. It is pure watchmaking for it’s own sake to perpetuate traditional crafts and skills. There is, right now, in this universe, a watch that features the names Greubel Forsey and Philippe Dufour on its dial.
When I first saw photos of the Angelus U10 Tourbillon Lumière I liked the technical aspects and thought it an audacious design likely to ignite heated debate in the passionate Angelus collectors’ community, but I wasn’t won over by the watch itself. I liked the fact that it existed, but it wasn’t really to my taste. But after I had seen and handled the U10 Tourbillon Lumière “in the metal,” I got it.
The Vanguard Gravity checks all the boxes for Franck Muller awesomeness. It begins with the now-famous Cintrée Curvex case and the way that the curved case stands so proud yet feels so comfortable on the wrist, setting Franck Muller watches apart and doesn’t end with its triple-axis tourbillon’s amazing size.
Manufacture Royale’s most controversial, and undoubtedly most incredible, piece is the highly complicated Opera, which features a minute repeater, tourbillon, and, most anachronistically, a hinged telescoping case. Basically, it’s big, it’s bold, and it rocks. And like the opera (theater), the Opera (watch) is not for everybody. But those that like it love it. I love it.
We now live in an age of technology that is very advanced – and getting more advanced every day. One incredible example of modern technology that could have been mistaken for magic in olden times is the nanometric optical disc of Revelation watches. These dials mechanically change from transparent to completely opaque with a twist of the bezel. My personal favorite is the R01 Double Complication Tourbillon.
Released in 2010, the RGM Pennsylvania Tourbillon made a pretty big splash among those who have educated themselves about such things. It is, after all, the only serially produced tourbillon made in America and is simply an increditastic watch from any perspective. Design, function, and finishing: it is at the head of its class.