Exceptional….

Not to be overshadowed by its opulent celebration of “Ten Years of Opus” (I highly recommend Ian Skellern’s coverage of the event), Harry Winston is set to release a new model in its Midnight collection — the Midnight Chrono Tourbillon.  Interestingly, this model follows the Midnight Minute Repeater that I previewed about this same time last year.  What to say –I love these watches.  The piece is of course a limited edition — 50 pieces in each of white and pink gold will be produced — more details below.

Harry Winston Midnight Chrono Tourbillon

42mm pink or white gold case, manual wind movement with 72 hour power reserve,  black alligator strap with matching metal clasp

The overall design elements are faithful to the Harry Winston’s “look”, while certain finer details such as the deep blue marker on the chronograph minute counter and a sapphire tourbillon bridge remind watch fans that no detail goes overlooked for a Harry Winston timepiece.  As for the finer details, though, my favorite part of this watch are the gracefully-styled two-piece chronograph pushers — the “openworked” effect is simply beautiful!

The Harry Winston “Premier” collection was launched in 1989 with the world’s first bi-retrograde perpetual calendar.  The collection has continued over the years with a series of fantastic watches that strike a creative balance between aesthetic and technical design and are unmistakable Harry Winston timepieces.  In 2010, two new models are being introduced into the Premier Collection — the Premier Perpetual Calendar for men; and the Premier Lady Chronograph for women.  I’ll give you an overview of the men’s Perpetual Calendar here — to see the Lady Chronograph, you can click through to the official press release.

Harry Winston Premier Perpetual Calendar 2010

41mm white gold case, automatic movement, anthracite dial with silver “Côtes de Genève” decoration

excentered hours and minutes, second time-zone, perpetual calendar bi-retrograde (date and month) and leap year, moon phase indicator

The watch comes on a black alligator strap with matching white gold folding buckle.  It is also available in rose gold.

This watch follows in the footsteps two prior perpetual calendar models which released by Harry Winston (1989 platinum and 2007 white gold), which you can see here. This new 2010 variation is my favorite of the three.  Price upon request.

The Opus collaboration continues…

In the collaborative tradition of Opus, the names of both partners – Harry Winston and watch engineer Jean-François Mojon – are marked on the bottom of the case.

46mm white gold case, limited to 100 pieces, full specs below

Jean-Francois Mojon

Fascinated by engineering from a very early age, Jean- François was introduced to the watch making trade through his father, who worked in the technical watch business. After earning his diploma in engineering and microtechnology in Le Locle. Mojon joined the industry working on research and development of movements and new complications for several international timepiece brands, including Swatch Group and IWC. In 2005, he began his own company, Chronode SA. Specializing in the development of high complication movements, the company is based in Le Locle, Switzerland. The historic heart of Swiss watch making, the industrial epicenter sits at the cross roads of timepiece tradition and modern innovation – the perfect place to continue the Opus experience.

Reference: 500/MMJFMWL.K
Movement: Mechanical movement with manual winding
Functions: Display of time by modules for hours, minutes and seconds mounted on a platform
Continuous movement of the platform rotates in twenty-four hours
Twenty-four hour second time zone indicated in the periphery
Linear power reserve indicator on the case back
Case: 46 mm white gold
Strap: Black alligator
Buckle: White gold
Power Reserve: 72 hours
Water resistance: 30 meters
Limited edition: 100 pieces

Project Z6 In 2010!

In 2004, Harry Winston Project Z was developed to create original and limited edition watches which would bridge heritage and modernity, high technological innovation and fine watch making tradition.  Project Z watches – actually part of Harry Winston’s Ocean collection – represent a subtle blend of sport and high-tech, and utilizes a unique metal alloy called Zalium – a Harry Winston exclusive and watchmaking first (more about Zalium below the jump).

Until now there have been 5 Project Z watches, and now we have Project Z6 – with a hand-wound, 24-hour alarm clock movement developed specially for Project Z6 and exclusive to Harry Winston.  Project Z6 will comprise of just 350 pieces – 250 with anthracite dial and 50 with silver dial (exclusively available at Harry Winston salons).  The watch has a 44mm Zalium case set on on a rubber strap, thus maintaining the sportiness of the watch.  You will also see another design feature unique to the Project Z watches – a small shuriken shaped disk whcih on the Z6 indicates the seconds rotation.   A shuriken is the traditional ninja throwing star and in the Projedt Z series is intended to underscore the series’ cutting-edge sports design.  You may also notice the “W” shape of the crown guard – another signature HW design element.  Check it:

Now, about Zalium because I know you are all curious.  Zalium was developed by Ronald Winston, a noted chemical engineer, and also a man who like his father – Mr. Harr Winston himself – “knew how to distinguish a great diamond from a good one” (source:  Harry Winston).  Zalium, harder than titanium, is a zirconium-based alloy.  Zirconium is used in aeronautical engineering (jet and rocket engines) as well as for surgical implants and instruments.  As Zalium, (a registered trademark of Harry Winston), its hypo-allergenic and corrosive resistant properties allow for the creation of watches with ultimate durability and design.   Ronald Winston name Zalium for the zirconium and allium lily.

The Harry Winston Project Z6 Watch Movement (hand wound)

Here are some more details on the watch, per Harry Winston Timepieces:

Producing a crisp sound, the alarm clock is set with the crown and activated by using a repeater-style trigger positioned on the case at 4 o’clock. Designed to be seen — not only heard — a visible hammer is fixed to the case to show the alarm ringing and enhance exterior sound transmission. The monobloc bell is crafted from one rectangular piece, resulting in better sound amplification. When the movement is fully wound, the alarm will last approximately 20 seconds. Further emphasizing the practical functionality, the double barrels guarantee a 72-hour power reserve and ensure the complication will not disrupt the movement timekeeping. The two barrels can be wound at the same time, for added convenience. The excentered dial features two overlapping disks displaying the primary time and the alarm clock, each with separate day and night indicators. Both hour/minute time and alarm time are conveniently set by using the crown, and can be wound clockwise or anticlockwise. Composed of 18 layered parts, the complex dial uses five different finishes to create a highly dimensional design: Côtes de Genève, silver vertically brushed, slated brushed, blued steel and satin finished.

Highly coveted watch (and jewelry) manufacturer Harry Winston just announced an interesting new watch, the Midnight Minute Repeater.  The watch has a special aperture (marked with a diamond), through which the repeater mechanism can be viewed by the lucky wearer of this watch.  The Midnight Minute Repeater  is limited to 40 pieces in white gold and 40 pieces in rose gold (with the option of a black or silver dial.  The case is nicely sized at 42mm.  The watch comes on a black alligator leather strap with match gold folding clasp.

If you did not know, a “repeater” function consists primarily of a hammer and gong (or multiple hammers and gongs).  At specified intervals, the the hammer strikes the gong producing a pleasing chime to alert the wearer.  In the case of a “minute repeater”, the interval is one minute.  The minute repeater is one of the most complicated and I think interesting complications that a watch can have – the challenge lies not only in the mechanics of the function but also getting the “chime” to emit a pleasing sound.

The Midnight Minute Repeater’s function can be activated on demand by pressing the button located at 8 – there is a distinct chime for the hours and minutes.  If you study the closeup image closely, you can see that this watch has 2 cleverly engraved hammers – the one on top is engraved with a “H” and the one on the bottom with a “W”.  I’ve highlighted these in the photo below: