The Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime Ref. 5175

As for you followers of our Facebook or Patek Philippe fans already know Patek Philippe has turned 175 years old nearly 2 weeks ago today.

Patek Philippe, of course, went all out and unleashed a new timepiece to reign supreme over other timepieces.

This timepiece is the Grandmaster Chime Ref. 5175.

This Grandmaster Chime has an outstanding 20 complications which I have listed below.

• Grande Sonaire
• Petite Sonaire
• Minute Repeater
• Strikework Mode Display (Silent,Grand Sonaire, Petite Sonaire)
• Alarm with Time Strike
• Date Repeater
• Power Reserve Indicator 
• Strikework Reserve Indicator             
• Strikework Isolater Display 
• Dual Time
• Day Night Indicator
• Instantaneous Perpetual Calendar
• Day of Week
• Month
• Date, Date for Dual Time
• Leap Year Cycle
• Four Digit Year
• Moon Phase
• Crown Position Indicator
• Sub-Dial

How many parts were needed to assemble this 2 sided 20 complication work of art?
The answer is no less than 1,366 parts.

Now this is a tad baffling as a 1,000 piece puzzle takes some time to assemble, this timepiece has 1,366 pieces. These pieces are all inside of a case with a diameter of 47.4 mm and 16.1 mm tall!

But the story doesn't end there oh no! Patek Philippe went all out the entire case was hand crafted with such detail and precision that the Mona Lisa envies it

Only 7 of these timepieces will be made and only 6 will be sold the 7th one will be kept at the Patek Philippe Museum. 

The Patek Philippe 5975 is another timepieces released to celebrate their 175th anniversary, Patek Philippe released 10 timepieces 6 for men 4 for women. Most were overshadowed by the 5175 which of course is understandable. 

I'll leave you guys a link to a video showing the Patek Philippe 5175 being assembled.

Opus X

It seems to be a Harry Winston kind of week.

Now my significant other has actually written about the other opus models but today I will.

I choose the Opus x to start of with.

I actually made up my mind while writting this that I will write about every single Opus model until the release of the Opus XIIII which I will of course review and then end the Opus saga for now.

Ok now back to the Opus X

The Opus X was made in a very limited amount only 100 pieces have been made.

The Opus series as of now has 13 different models

With a power reserve of 72 hours

46 mm case in White Gold

Displays Hours,Minutes, and Seconds using Modules

There is also a 24 hour rotation 

This timepiece is very beautiful and intricate 

On the back of the Opus X you have a see through case, a power reserve display and an inside look to the movement.

Harry Winston has marveled the entire world with the Opus collection 

They did that yet again with the elegant Opus X the beautiful module display makes this timepiece very appealing, not to mention the complication that goes behind there timepiece.

Harry Winston Withstands Mike Tyson

Sorry I haven't had time to post the last few days.

But I do have something nice to start off today.

I got a chance to visit Swiss Watchmakers & Co. 

I've gone there a few times either to have a timepiece fixed or just to see if they have a nice timepiece for me to review.

I have to admit these are very friendly and professional people, just the fact that they let me bug them while they work is very kind.

Not to mention that they share my posts on Facebook and Linkedin.

When I went they had a Harry Winston that seemed to have gone through a fight with Mike Tyson

I went back a few weeks later and they had already finished the timepiece.

A few weeks to complete a Harry Winston in mist of other repairs, that had to be some kind of record because from what I know Harry Winston takes 2+ months.

Well anyhow they told me that the client wanted full service and a matching strap.

Now the watch needed to be "cleansed" before being sent out and I couldn't touch it after that.

But I did get a shot prior to that and the timepiece looks stunning.

Well anyhow that's the first post for today I'll make a few more as the day progresses.

Swiss Watchmakers & Co,

Quick video of Swiss Watchmakers at work, this video was actually in their old smaller facility they've recently expanded and moved into the historic DuPont Building.

They offer luxury watch repairs at affordable prices.

They Repair Audemars, Hublot, Longines, Omega, Patek Philippe, Rolex, Tag-Heuer and many other brands.

The Happy Diamond

Another ladies watch, this what is a very happy one.

This watch has "Happy Diamonds"

Enjoy the Chopard Happy Diamonds video below

Now we all know that diamonds can make nearly any woman happy, but making a diamond happy is a completely different story.

The case is made of stainless steel 

It has a date display between 4 and 5 o'clock

Roman Numerals for 3rd hour marks on a silver tone dial.

It has decorated crown.

This magnificent timepiece is actually under the $10,000 mark.

28,800 VPH 

25 jewels in the movement.

This timepiece is lovely for any woman who likes an interesting timepiece on her watch or any woman who like diamonds, happy diamonds are just a bonus.

Thunderbolt on your wrist

MB&F: Horological Machine No. 4 Thunderbolt

This time piece really catches the eye! It sure caught mine!

This watch is very neat, to put it bluntly. 

It comes in along with a collection of MB&F watches. 

It will cost you about $158,000 to have this gadget on your wrist.

The HM4 Thunderbolt simply tells time like a traditional wristwatch. It includes a power indicator display in one window and another display of the current hour and minutes.

Now to dig deeper into the HM4 Thunderbolt's Components and Specifications.
There are two crowns, as shown in the image of the movement above.
The complete watch has five sapphire crystals.
The case is made of Grade 5 Titanium and Sapphire. With a total of 65 components in the case, one is a sapphire crystal.
The engine, developed by MB&F, is composed of 50 jewels and a total of 311 components. The power reserve lasts for 72 hours.
The strap which is a hand-stitched calfskin strap has a titanium/white gold or red gold custom designed folding buckle connected to articulating lugs.
The gorgeous addition of the hand-stitched calfskin strap makes this watch all the more remarkable in my book.
Having that watch on my wrist would get me into that slicked-back-hair, cool-guy greaser mood. It reminds me of an old '50s car.

Click here for our professional Watch Repair site!

G+1 our blog :)

James Bond 007

Omega and James Bond

 Agent 007 has always seen sporting a Omega timepiece, sometimes with spy modifications.

This super spy has been wearing a trusty Omega for about 2 decades. A watch good enough for a super spy now that says something about Omega.

An Omega timepiece has appeared since 1995 in Golden eye up until the latest movie Skyfall (2013)

IWC Let's you see the stars from your wrist!

This timepiece is a true work of art it took a great amount of time of research and development, 10 years to be exact.

This timepiece is actually customized to the owners specifications the client can choose the location of the night sky they want displayed and IWC makes it a reality,

This timepiece can show around 500-1000 stars which is an outstanding amount.

The sky disc rotates in a clockwise or anticlockwise direction, depending on whether the chosen geographic location is in the northern or southern hemisphere.

The horizon can be identified by the yellow ellipse.

Then the red arrow points to solar time.

This timepiece can be made in either a red gold case, white gold case or platinum.

It has an outstanding 96 hours of power reserve and it is displayed at 4:30 on the timepiece.

At 9 o'clock you can see the tourbillon and small seconds as well which looks stunning.

Sidereal time is displayed at 12 o'clock, the timepiece uses anti-glare sapphire glass on both sides.

On the back it displays a Perpetual calendar with leap year and absolute day of the year

Celestial chart showing the horizon, ecliptic and celestial equator

Indication for day, night and twilight

Display for sunrise and sunset

Coordinates of chosen location
The timepiece case size is a cool 17.5 mm high and has a diameter of 46 mm

It uses a 94900 Calibre 

Which has over 500 components with 56 jewels

it produces 18'000 VPH

The tourbillon and astronomical module have been made beautifully on this movement.

IWC:

"The Portuguese Sidérale Scafusia is the most exclusive and most complicated mechanical watch ever created by IWC Schaffhausen."

Check out another night skywatch here Patek Philippe Celestial

Wear the Titanic on Your Wrist

Romain Jerome's marvelous watches with Titanic DNA. Below is The Octopus - Modus Operandi

On the back it features an octopus from the deep. Quite astounding. Named after the ocean giant in Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea, there is an urban legend that an octopus attacked the titanic.

The rust look is derived from melting the Titanic's corroded steel! Yes! THE Titanic!

The ship that sunk back in April of 1912. You'll be wearing that piece of history on your wrist. 

Rust has been the enemy of watchmakers, except for this beauty. With this watch, the rust is essential. It gives the watch so much character! It is quite a sight, I must say. 

The water resistance of this watch is greater than 1.0 MPa (10 atm), the equivalent of 100m, or 330 ft. It is water resistant to 888 ft. Amazing! Plus it can handle seawater, no worries.

It has thick watch crystals and you can read it under water when there is little light with its illuminated markers and dials.

The number 8 is reflected in the watch because of the number of legs. 8 rivets on each crown, 8 screws on the case, and 8 screws on the back.

 

Above is the Steampunk Black Watch by Romain Jerome. This watch is my favorite Romain Jerome I have seen so far, for sure.

Check out our professional Watch Repair site!

Like us on Facebook

G+1 this page :)

Win Rolex Fact

   In this quick blog I'll state 7 facts about Rolex.

1. Rolex has an output of 751,285 COSC movements since 2011

2. Their revenue is a massive 5.1 billion USD since 2010

3. Rolex employs about 2,800 people worldwide.

4. Rolex is one of the most counterfeited watches if not the most worldwide.

5. Rolex is one of the most renowned timepieces in the world, amazingly enough this popularity has given Rolex the saying "A Rolex watch is as good as cash"

6. Rolex produced the first waterproof watch in 1926. It was a Oyster model.

They also made the first watch with the first automatic changing date in 1945 it was a Datejust model. They also made the first wristwatch with two time zones a GMT model.

7. Rolex uses a different Steel from other watch brands they use a 907L steel. Which gives Rolex steel watches a better look and makes them more resistant.

History in The Making

Today I'll be going over the history of Vacheron Constantin.

Vacheron Constantin is one of the oldest watch manufacturers being founded in 1755 by Jean-Marc Vacheron.

Today Vecheron Constanting is part of the Richmont Group.

Vacheron Constantin has a small employee scale compared to that of Rolex, it only employs about 400 people world wide.

Vacheron Constantin made their first complication in 1770, 9 years after the first engine turned dial was invented by this marvelous company.

The name Vacheron Constantin came to be in around 1819 when then owner Jaques-Barthèlemy realized he needed help running the growing company. François Constantin became his assosiate and tats how Vacheron & Constantin came to have its name.

The watchmaking company has a motto and it states "Do better if possible and that is always possible".

In 2003 Vacheron Constantin introduced a new sports line called Overseas, and a collection called Egérie, the first to include watches for women.

In 2004 Vacheron Constantin opened its new headquarters and manufacture in Plab-les-Ouates, Geneva.

The Richmont Group named Juan Carlos Torres as the CEO of the company in October 2005. Vacheron Constantin is considered to be company that was able to create one of the most complicated wristwatches in the world entitled Tour de I'lle. It was created in 2005 to mark the anniversary of 250 years of Vacheron Constantin. The watch includes 834 parts and 16 horological complications. It was only available through the Vacheron Constantin shop in Geneva, Switzerland and sold for more than $1 million.

In 2007 Vacheron Constantin introduced the Metiers d'Art 'Les Masques' collection of timepieces featuring miniature reproductions of primitive art masks. The company selected twelve masks from a private museum collection and reproduced the masks on a small scale. The miniaturized masks are featured in the dial center of every watch from the 'Les Masques' collection.

See More of the Metiers d'Art 'Les Masques    More of Metier d'Art collection

Vacheron Consantin sells about 20,000 timepieces a year today.

Optic Marvel

Harry Winston Opus 11

Today I am writing about the Harry Winston Opus 11! It definitely has one of the most unique watch displays that I've seen so far.

The Opus 11 is limited edition with only 111 in the world.

The case, available in white gold, surrounds a sapphire-crystal dome.

The watch reminds me of a phoropter, the instrument used by an eye physician to check your vision.

The main circle (above) is where the hour is displayed with the peculiar, yet amazing arrangement.

The number in the middle of the hour circle gets reassembled every hour, then remains still for the next 60 minutes. 

There are 24 placards, that move and rotate to display the number in the center.

The top right circle (above) displays the minutes on a jumping disk for the tens place and a running disk for the individual units. An indicator points at the current time.

The bottom right circle (above) shows the beat of a big titanium balance-wheel.

The Opus 11 includes:

24 conical pinions

155 jewels 

566 components

The power reserve lasts for 48 hours until the crown on the top left corner has to be wound again.

The Opus 11 looks wonderful paired with a black leather strap.

Here is a video on YouTube of the Opus 11 that I stumbled upon:

The way the numbers rotate and assemble is completely ingenious!

Visit our professional Watch Repair site

Thank you for reading ladies and gentlemen! 

(-Priscilla)

Now This Is A Complication

Frank Muller Aeternitas Mega 4

With 36 complications the Franck Muller Aeternitas Mega 4 is one of the most complex timepieces ever.

This stunning timepiece has 25 complications visible.

This timepiece has a monstrous 1,483 components with 99 Jewels.

Arguably the most complicated wrist watch ever made this timepiece fetches a price of 2.7 million USD

Calibre FM 3480 QPSE

Frank Muller

"Mechanic Tourbillon, Carillon Westminster on 4 hammers and 4 gongs, Chronograph with fly-back mechanism and only one push-piece, Perpetual Calendar Secular, Equation of time, Two additional time zones, Automatic self-winding mechanism for the movement and the Westminster carillon."

This movement measures 34.4 mm x 41.4 mm x 13.65 mm

Which might seem large but taking count of sheer amount of components and complications is actually small.

This amazing Movement also has a power reserve of 3 days/strike 24 hours.

18,000 VPH

You can see this timepiece in 3 different models below!

Heres a bit more on what Frank Muller has to say about this outstanding timepiece

AETERNITAS MEGA 4

"The Aeternitas Mega – the most complicated wrist-watch - is the pinnacle of success in the art of watch-making in terms of complexity and complications. A grandiose work of art culminating in the design of the most complex wrist-watch ever made in the world thanks to the multifaceted skills of our watch-makers and constructors. Each of the 1,483 components was designed to give the watch an elegant design in the pure traditions of the old “cadraturiers” of the Vallée de Joux, Switzerland. This watch inspires countless emotions and make it simply unique in the eyes of lovers in the art of fine mechanics and luxury watch making.

From the very beginning, the Mega was incorporated into the Aeternitas project and is, indeed, the culmination of this project. The Aeternitas Mega 4 is the only “Grand Sonnerie” time-keeper in which the Tourbillon is visible on the dial side, which limits the space available for the “Grand Sonnerie” mechanism and thus makes the design even more complicated.

The glass sapphire case back enables the harmoniously chiselled and decorated pieces that overlap to be admired in a stunning combination as a dazzling ballet. This masterpiece was entirely designed and manufactured by the Franck Muller group and once again demonstrates their vast array of skills and ability in the Art of Haute Horlogerie."

As you can see they have a lot to say about their timepiece and who wouldn't this timepiece is truly a milestone in Frank Mullers great history.

This magnificent timepiece is made in 3 different styles

All with a Case Dimensions of  42.00 mm x  61.00 mm x  19.15mm 

A Hand Sewn Alligator Strap

3 ATM Water Resistance which is about 30 meters.

Display: Hours, Minutes, 24 hours, Chronograph, Fly-back, Minutes counter, 

hour counter retrograde, two time zones, Movement power reserve 

Display of the chime: Grande or petite chime 

Chime or silence 

Chime power reserve 

Perpetual calendar display: Date retrograde, Day, Month, Year, Leap year (cycle of 4 years), no 

leap year (cycle of 100 years), leap year (cycle of 400 years), Equation 

of time 

Cintrée Curvex 8888

 18 carat white gold

Dial: Sun-stamped lacquered white dial with black Arabic numerals 

Cintrée Curvex 8888 

18 carat white gold 

Full set baguettes red rubies

Dial: Sun-stamped lacquered white dial with black Arabic numerals 

Cintrée Curvex 8888 

18 carat white gold with black PVD treatment 

Dial: Sun-stamped lacquered black dial with red Arabic numerals 

Like us on Facebook

Give us a +1 we will appreciate it

Batman/Bruce Wayne's Time Piece

What Watch Would Batman/Bruce Wayne Wear?!

Fiction Billionaire Bruce Wayne is actually one of the most famous billionaires in reality. But what time piece would this billionaire playboy/dark knight wear?

The answer is a Jaeger Le-Coultre 

More Specifically the Jaeger Le-Coultre Reverso Grande Taille 

Yup this billionaire crime fighter wears this classy timepiece.

You can see Bruce Wayne wear this timepiece in Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins

But lets go a bit further in time and you can see the Batman wearing this timepiece in Batman Forever by 

Here's the link to the scene. Batman Wears Jaeger Le-Coultre Reverso Grande Taille

The Jaeger Le-Coultre Reverso Grande Taille is very affordable compared to many other timepieces I've written about it is actually under the 10k range in most occasions. It has a Jaeger Le-Coultre caliber 822that has 134 parts 21 jewels with a power reserve of 45 hours.

This timepiece has a 3 bar about 90 meters of water proof 

Measuring 42.2 mm long and 26 mm wide

width is 9.3 mm.

So for any Batman fan this is the watch to get!

Like us on Facebook

Give us a +1 we will appreciate it

The Celestial

Today will be the first Saturday blog I've ever done, to start off I would like to recommend WatchFacts.com

Watch Facts is the carfax of the watch industry they certify that a timepiece you have bought has not been stolen and of course if its all original.

Ok so lets start this off my beloved watch lovers.

Today I will be speaking about another timepiece I dream to have.

It is a Patek Philippe Grand complication

Quick fact Patek Philippe made the first wrist watch in 1868

The grand complication was the celestial particularly ref 6102

A dream upon the stars, yes indeed this timepiece is.

This timepiece is a start gazer to say it can be looked at just like the beautiful night sky.

Patek Philippe uses their 240 mechanical movement on this timepiece.

Illustrating the hours and minutes of solar time

a beautiful sky chart with the phases as well as the orbit of the moon.

It gives you the time of the meridian passage of Sirius and moon.

And a hand for your date.

Composed of 315 components 45 jewels

with a diameter of 44 mm

It has power reserve of 38-48 hours and produces 21,600 vph

Of course the name Patek Philippe is respecting in the watch industry but they always seem to take simplicity and complication one step closer.

This timepiece is truly something that shines but without all the aesthetics other watchmakers use

Patek Philippe instead uses a beautiful dial with outstanding functions to capture the attention of anyone just how the full moon catches your eye in the night sky.

Truly exceptional.

I truly admire Patek Philippes work and especially this timepiece.

I truly do believe they try to simplify the complicated and make it into something magnificent.

They use a shiny navy alligator strap with square scales that goes perfectly with the color scheme of the timepiece.

I'm short on time today since it is my birthday so I'll had to make this one short.

Remember I will gladly accept any of my dream watches as a gift.

Like us on Facebook

Follow us for more interesting watches

Cartier Vice President had an Accident!

It's mid week and I thought I should write about a ladies watch for a change.

I don't believe I've ever reviewed a ladies watch on this blog up to date.

I've choosen to write about the Cartier Crash

Why? Well because I found it strange that I haven't written about a ladies watch yet so I decided to write about a watch I found strange.

With a price tag of about $70,000 that could have been spent on the car that instead hit the watch.

 

This watch comes in a 18K pink gold or white gold case set with brilliant-cut diamonds, beaded crown set with a brilliant-cut diamond, silvered opaline dial , blued-steel sword-shaped hands, 18K pink gold bracelet or white gold and if that isn't enough there's one with diamonds, wrist size: 170 mm, mechanical Manufacture movement with manual winding, caliber 8970 MC, Case dimensions: 38.5 mm x 23.1 mm. Thickness: 8.8mm.

Cartier themselves don't have much to say about the latest crash timepiece, I mean who could this watch is.. well strange. But anyhow this is what they said.

Cartier:"Created in 1967 in the heart of Swinging London, the Crash watch captures the incredible energy of the city at that time. With its asymmetrical dial, it revolutionized the esthetic codes of watchmaking history. Consistently released in a very limited series, this legendary piece carries the prestige of its rare nature."

Ok so ladies and gentlemen the history for this timepiece is even weirder. The story goes that a Vice president from the Cartier offices in London, was involved in a fatal car crash. A fire ensued and the occupant along with his watch was caught up in the flames, furthering along the fatality and "melting" the watch on his wrist, a Cartier Bagnoire Alongee, which is shaped like an elongated oval. The watch being melted and mangled took on the shape of a surrealistic watch from a Dali painting. The powers that be at Cartier, found this "watch design" actually inspiring, and decided to introduce is as a new design, and as a tribute to their fallen colleague. Thus the "Crash" watch was born.( in Great Britain the slang for a car accident is "crash")

A few decades after its creation the Cartier Crash became a limited edition timepiece the latest crash model only has 267 limited watches. Odd number of course.

Cartier is known for making beautiful artistic timepieces and indeed this is an artistic timepiece but I still find it strange.

So Cartier took their destroyed Bagnoire Alongee and simply launched it as something new and called it artistic. But it has seem to have caught on and sold well since it's launch in 1967 once it was turned into a limited edition in 1991 it truly caught on with Cartier collectors.

What Watch Should I Write about next?
	Patek Philippe
	Jaeger LeCoultre
	Breitling
	Rolex
	Another Watch Brand