I just wanted to take a moment to publicly thank the advertisers here at Perpetuelle.com.  Aside from our ad network, Perpetuelle has a small but diverse group of watch brands/dealers who advertise here, and I encourage you all to consider them if you are in the market for a timepiece.  Specifically I am referring to Clerc Geneve, Xetum Watches, The CGA Company, Frederique Constant and Alpina – Thank You all for choosing to bring some of your finite advertising budget to Perpetuelle and our audience of watch owners, collectors & enthusiasts.   By the way — if any of you Perpetuelle readers haven’t yet entered Frederique Constant’s contest for an all-expenses trip paid to Geneve, you should enter now (winner chosen on April 30th)!

The CGA Company

“Watches That Stand the Test of Time”

Authorized dealer for:  Lum-Tec, Luminox, Kennett, ArmourLite, Caliber, Volta Winders and more

Lastly, please know that anytime one of the Editors here (myself included) writes an article about or feature a watch from one of the above mentioned sponsors, this is clearly noted at the bottom of the article.

Longines Column-Wheel Single Push-Piece Chronograph 180th Anniversary Limited Edition Automatic

limited edition 180 pieces

40mm rose gold case, automatic mechanical movement (ETA A08.261), on brown alligator strap

Baselworld 2012: Regatta complications have never been my forté, but the Louis Vuitton Tambour Spin Time is rather interesting.

The Tambour Spin Time movement uses cubes at the hour indicators that tumble to show a blank side or a numbered side that can be used to time race countdowns.

The Tambour Regatta America’s Cup Automatic and the Tambour Regatta America’s Cup Quartz are the two new watches for the collection and are in 44 mm steel case and molded rubber that encloses a regatta function and V Dubois Dépraz caliber fully configured to time any regatta event. The Tambour Regatta America’s Cup Automatic is limited to 720 units.

Given this watch has cubes for hour markers, you should be able to narrow the countdown time to the square minute.

A new piece from Bulgari, who has teamed with Maserati to present this piece.  I appreciate the retrograde counters and the nice cushioned calfskin strap, but the “Maserati grille” theme on the dial requires some imagaination.  Yea, it’s no Hublot Big Bang Ferrari, but if you like Maserati and you’ve got money to burn, put it on your list.

Bulgari Octo Maserati Watch

45mm steel “Octo” case, automatic mechanical movement, retrograde minutes/date/chronograph hrs/mins/seconds (6 o’clock)

Video

2012 is the year of the “Pilot” watch for Zenith, with three new Pilot models out this year.  Shown here is the Zenith Pilot Doublematic, featuing the “world time” function shown clearly on the outer flange of the dial.  Personally, I have never been a big fan of worldtime watches, but no doubt the watch market has seen many many “world timer” watches launched by many different brands the past year or two (particularly this year, it seems).  Anyway…a few things to note on this Zenith Pilot Doublematic:  in addition to the world time capability, there is also a chronograph and an alarm function.   The alarm is activated and set by a pushpiece button and crown at 8 o’clock. On the dial, a pierced Ruthenium black and red hand shows the time set for the alarm, while an opening at 8:30 confirms that it is turned on (alarm power reserve also shown).  Personally, I’d go for the new Zenith Big Date Special (which I will show you soon) or theMontre d’Aeronef Type 20 Pilot’s Watch over this piece, given a choice.  Thanks to my watch friend Lukasz who runs Chronos24 for the “live shot”, below.

Zenith Pilot Doublematic WorldTime Watch

45mm pink gold or steel case, automatic mechanical El Primero 4606 (two barrels — time and alarm)

picture:  Chronos24

Baselworld 2012: A gorgeous perpetual calendar that Breitling has introduced for 2012, the Breitling Transocean QP.  This is not the type of watch most people associate with Breitling, is it?  But believe it or not they do offer some high complications!  I’m not sure if the movements for such pieces are developed in-house or not, that’s something I’d like to know a bit more about.  But no matter for now, let’s just appreciate this beautiful perpetual calendar (“QP” stands for just that, in French:  “quantième perpétuel“), cased in rose gold.   This timepiece is available in two 25-piece limited series, one with a black dial (pictured) and the other with a silver dial.

Breitling Transocean QP (Perpetual Calendar)

limited edition 25 pieces in each of black dial and silver dial

43mm rose gold case, Breitling Caliber 29 perpetual calendar (date, day, week, month, season, leap-year cycle and moon phases)

Here is a nice look at the new Devon Works “Tread 2″ watch, courtesy Hodinkee.   I never covered Devon’s first piece, the “Tread 1″, but now seeing the Tread 2 it is clear that Devon is on to something special.  The Tread 2 is not yet finalized — what you will see is a prototype — but no denying that this is one damn cool watch!  In addition to the price, numerous improvements have been made most notably in the form factor — the Tread 1 always looked a bit big and boxy on the wrist — the Tread 2 is somewhat smaller and more stylish.  he Devon Tread 2 price will be around $10,000 ($7,000 less than the Tread 1), so keep an eye out for it on the market later this year.  http://www.devonworks.com/ for more on the company.

Devon Tread 2 Overview

Baselworld 2012:  With its L.U.C 8HF watch, Chopard is the latest to join the likes of Breguet (10Hz), De Bethune (Resonique), TAG Heuer and others (that’s all that come to mind right now) with an ultra high-frequency escapement.  Ultra high-frequency escapements are slowing gaining ground, led by advancements in precision technology; there is no doubt that many elite watchmakers are dabbling in this area.  The primary value of high frequency in watchmaking applications lies in a significant improvement in the precision timekeeping properties of a calibre, particularly in terms of rate resumption and stability.  A higher number of vibrations of the balance means less sensitivity to disturbances — at least in theory.  Though the long term reliability of high frequency movements is often questioned, Chopard and its L.U.C 01.06-L caliber can at least lay claim to the first 8Hz escapement to obtain COSC certification.  The 8Hz (57,600 bph) is double the speed of most movements (28,800 bph).  Of note with this caliber are its 60 hour power reserve derived from a single barrel, as well as the use of silicon for certain pieces of the escapement (see photo at bottom).

Chopard’s L.U.C 8HF has a 42 mm-diameter case made of titanium, further distinguished by its crown at 4 o’clock (also titanium). The date appears in a pointer-type display at 5:30, while the red small seconds hand at 6 o’clock travels far more smoothly than on ordinary watches thanks to the high-frequency escapement and its 57,600 vibrations per hour.  A magnifying glass built into the half-closed case-back is positioned just above the high-frequency escapement, providing a chance to appreciate its finer details.  The L.U.C 8HF is fitted onto a hand-sewn matte black alligator leather strap with a cognac-coloured alligator lining, with matching titanium pin buckle.  A little funky and somewhat futuristic looking, but I suppose that is the point.

Chopard L.U.C 8HF Watch

limited edition 100 pieces

42mm titanium case, L.U.C 01-06-L 8Hz movement

Baselworld 2012:   Following 2011′s attractively styled Hamilton Pan Europ watch, Hamilton has released another exciting vintage inspired watch at Baselworld 2012.   The Hamilton Khaki Navy Pioneer is a homage to the marine chronometers that Hamilton made for the US Navy in the 1940s (see picture below), and can be worn on a strap or displayed in a marine chronometer-style box and used as a table clock (and conversation piece!).  Be sure to watch the video below for a walk through of the watch.  The retail price will be approximately $3,000, certainly an attractive option to other higher end marine chronometer-inspired pieces out there (e.g. Glashütte Original’s Senator Chronometer Marine Chronometer set or Montblanc’s 1858 Régulateur Nautique set).

Hamilton Khaki Navy Pioneer Watch

limited edition 1892 pieces

46.5mm steel case, manual wind Unitas 6498 movement

an Original Hamilton Marine Chronometer:

VIDEO

Baselworld 2012:  I showed yesterday the Breitling Superocean Heritage models (Heritage 42 and Heritage Chrono 44) which are available with red gold bezels.  Here also are the Breitling Superocean 44 and Superocean Chronograph II with the 18k red gold bezels.

Speaking of Breitling, I have a several new models for 2012 that I have been sitting on — will be posting them here shortly.

Breitling Superocean Red Gold Bezels