In watchmaking tradition, “regulator” watches were special pendulum clocks, used by watchmakers in their workshops to set the exact time and therefore to test the precision of smaller watches.  They were also used in science whenever extremely precise time indicators were needed, like in the field of astronomy or nautical navigation.  In addition to sitting on the watchmakers bench, regulator pendulum clocks of this sort also stood in the offices of harbormasters in all of the world’s major ports.

While this is new Montblanc Nautique Regulator is an interesting watch of this type, I find that there is unfortunately too much to interpret on the dial.  The Natique Regulator doesn’t have a regulator dial of the sort that’s frequently used on watches of this type, but instead there are eight different indications (home time, local time, day and night display, chronograph, 30-minute counter, small seconds, and combined power-reserve and winding-zone display).  Compared to what I would consider more traditional Regulators (e.g. Glashutte Original Regulator or the Milos Zetios Regulator), this watch seems as if it would be quite difficult to read at a glance — and thus use in the traditional sense.

This Montblanc Nautique Regulator is a limited edition set of just sixteen pieces – eight sets with red gold wristwatch chronographs and eight more with wristwatch chronographs in white gold cases.  Each set consists of a wristwatch chronograph with regulator dial and two time zones, along with a large navigational clock which, in addition to showing three time zones on its main regulator dial, also includes a world-time indicator.

If you are interested in learning more, there a full press release can be found here at HH Magazine.

via Monochrome.nl:

Montblanc launches a special project in collaboration with a young watchmaker, every two years. The previous Timewriter, the Metamorphosis, really brought shockwaves to the watchmaking industry.   This year’s new Timewriter II Bi-Frequence 1,000 (a mouth full) is equally astonishing. It records times up to 1/1,000 th of a second!  We know that TAG Heuer showed a prototype that was capable to record as precise as 1/1,000th of a second as well, but its chronograph had a power reserve of only a minute or so.   What Montblanc shows is a working prototype with a power reserve of 45 minute, yes forty five minutes, and it’s based on an entirely different technical approach.

More to come…

Montblanc Timewriter II Bi Frequence 1,000

Last year the Montblanc Timewalker Twinfly got a manufacture made chronograph movement.  This year it is “GreyTech” i.e. grey on grey color scheme.  The case is titanium, 43mm, with skeletonized lugs (reminiscent of some of Linde Werdelin’s work) and a mixture of matte, satin, and sandblasted finishes.

Montblanc Timewalker Twinfly Chronograph “GreyTech”

Limited edition 888 pieces

43mm titanium case, automatic mechanical Montblanc caliber LL1100 (column wheel, flyback chrono)

A Splendid Chronograph

SIHH 2012:  With watches like this, it is not surprising that Montblanc watches may soon outsell its iconic pens (BusinessWeek via Wall St Journal).  The Montblanc Vintage Tachydate is part of the Collection Villeret 1858 collection.  This elegant new timepiece is the first chronograph+date display in the collection and features a new in-house caliber developed specifically for the watch.  I am in love with this watch — it is one of the most graceful chronograph designs that I have ever seen.  Most watches with a tachymeter scale are usually very sporty or part of a racing collection (think Chopard Mille Miglia or TAG Heuer), but not this piece.  As well, on sporty/racing chronographs that have a date window, it is almost universally a date window, but not this piece.  The double-ring tachy scale is elegantly laid-out on the dial (not the bezel as is often the case), and the date on this Montblanc is shown via a small sub-dial at 6 o’clock.  The dial also has painted numerals/markers on the ivory lacquer surface, and a very cool “Minerva 1858″ notation at the very bottom (see close-up below).  The Vintage Tachydate will be available Spring 2012.  Price TBD.

Montblanc Collection Villeret 1858 Vintage Tachydate

Limited Edition 58 pieces white gold, 58 pieces red gold

43.5 mirror polished white or red gold case, solid gold dial with ivory lacquer finish (silver finish on the white gold model) with painted numerals, alligator strap

The Montblanc Collection Villeret 1855 is powered by a newly manufacture caliber developed specifically for this watch, the MB M16.32.  It is a mono-pusher chronograph (start/stop/all functions controlled through the single integrated crown pusher).  The watch does have a sapphire crystal display back, but unfortunately at this time I do not have any pictures of the movement — but I would guess it is very eye-pleasing.

close-ups:

note:  1) red-tipped hand in the date window, 2) “Minerva 1858″ notation at bottom of dial (Manufacture Villeret was formerly known as Minerva)

“Montblanc logo” on end of crown

Perpetuelle SIHH 2012 Previews >>> IWC Top Gun Miramar Pilot’s WatchRalph Lauren Slim Classique, Richard Mille RM037, A. Lange & Sohne Datograph Up/Down Watch, Cartier Skeleton Pocket Watch, Cartier Rotonde de Cartier Minute Repeater, Baume & Mercier Capeland Flyback Chronograph,  Audemars Piguet Royal Oak 40th Anniversary Watch, Panerai PAM 422, Girard-Perregaux 1966 Small Second, Piaget Altiplano Skeleton Automatic, Cartier Cadran Lové Tourbillon

My ONLY Watch 2011 previews roll on with the one-of-a-kind Montblanc Villeret 1858 Pulsograph watch.  I’ve written about various Pulsograph watches over the years, including the Montblanc Villeret 1858 Pulsograph watch (debuted at SIHH 2011) and my personal favorite the Eterna Heritage Pulsometer watch (pulsometer being a synonym for pulsograph).  The aforementioned rose gold Montblanc Pulsographe has a black enamel dial – but this “piece unique” definitely looks better and more legible with its unique white enamel dial.  Note also that the movement on this watch is a monopusher chronograph — what a beautifully sculpted movement!

Montblanc Villeret 1858 Pulsograph for ONLY WATCH 2011

Unique Piece

 39.5mm red gold case, white “Grand Feu” enamel dial, red gold hands,

Did You Know?

The Pulsograph

Eighty years ago, artillery officers and physicians numbered among the first users of wristwatch chronographs: the soldiers relied on their timepieces to perform ballistic calculations, while the doctors used theirs to measure patients’ pulse rates without having to continue feeling the pulse for a full minute. A physician wearing a wristwatch with a pulsograph’s scale could start his timepiece’s chronograph function the moment he began to palpate the patient’s pulse. If the scale was calibrated for thirty pulse beats, he would continue counting the throbs until he had felt the thirtieth pulsation, whereupon he would stop his chronograph: the tip of the designated hand would indicate the point along the pulsograph scale corresponding to the patient’s pulse rate per minute. This saved between thirty and forty seconds per patient and was a convincing reason to own such a watch, especially if the physician’s ward rounds required him to measure the pulse rates of fifty or more patients. Wristwatches with pulsograph scales soon earned fame as so-called “doctor’s watches.”

While their functionality has been seriously surpassed by modern technology (in fact couldn’t the same be said of most any modern mechanical watch?), I really like  “pulosgraph” or “pulsometer” watches for the benefit they provided to Physician’s back in the day.

Measure the beats…

Let’s go back-to-back with another new watch from Montblanc today!  While I did hint at another new 2011 piece from the brand at a more affordable price point than the ~$12,000 Montblanc TwinFly chronograph I showed you yesterday, this particular watch is not it.  As part of Montblanc’s elite “Villeret 1858″ collection, only 58 pieces of this new Montblanc Villeret Pulsograph watch will be made and the price will be substantial.

Features of note on this watch is its modest case size (39mm), its beautiful enamel dial (black or white), an in-house (“manufacture”) movement (Montblanc has done great things with the Minerva workshops it took over in 2008), monopusher chronograph (one-button controls start-stop-reset) functionality, and of course the pulse rate measuring capabilities (I tell you how a “pulsograph” watch works, below).   With watches like these, it’s looking to be a very good 2011 for Montblanc!

Montblanc Villeret 1858 Vintage Pulsographe

close up

I think the red gold model you see below is a beautiful watch though I would probably prefer the white gold version (not pictured).

Did You Know?

The Pulsograph

Eighty years ago, artillery officers and physicians numbered among the first users of wristwatch chronographs: the soldiers relied on their timepieces to perform ballistic calculations, while the doctors used theirs to measure patients’ pulse rates without having to continue feeling the pulse for a full minute. A physician wearing a wristwatch with a pulsograph’s scale could start his timepiece’s chronograph function the moment he began to palpate the patient’s pulse. If the scale was calibrated for thirty pulse beats, he would continue counting the throbs until he had felt the thirtieth pulsation, whereupon he would stop his chronograph: the tip of the designated hand would indicate the point along the pulsograph scale corresponding to the patient’s pulse rate per minute. This saved between thirty and forty seconds per patient and was a convincing reason to own such a watch, especially if the physician’s ward rounds required him to measure the pulse rates of fifty or more patients. Wristwatches with pulsograph scales soon earned fame as so-called “doctor’s watches.”

While their functionality has been seriously surpassed by modern technology (in fact couldn’t the same be said of most any modern mechanical watch?), I really like  ”pulosgraph” or “pulsometer” watches for the benefit they provided to Physician’s back in the day.

If you are interested a Pulsometer watch at a more accessible price point, you should give the Eterna Heritage Pulsometer watch that I wrote about back in October a look.

Continuing with the SIHH 2011 previews…here is one from Montblanc.  This one is actually a very limited edition piece (only 300 to be made) with a price to match (about $12,000), but don’t worry there is at least one other new watch coming from Montblanc that I think you will like even more and it will be more accessible, price-wise. This particular watch is a flyback chronograph with an interesting dial design.  In fact as I look at the dial and reflect upon the “TwinFly” name of the watch, I think this may be a double flyback chronograph, although I’m not sure as I because I don’t yet have the full specs (ahh, the beauty of being a blogger and not a journalist).  Read more of my thoughts on this below.

Montblanc TimeWalker TwinFly Chronograph

43mm black DLC steel case, automatic movement, 100 meter water resistance, comes on a black leather strap

You can see what appear to be the two “flyback” second hands (the one large/one small  red/white hands) — that surmise are each operated by one of the upper and lower chrono pushers.

Did You Know?

A flyback chrono works as follows:  first push of the chrono button starts the seconds hand.  Second push causes the seconds hand to reset to zero and continue timing.  This is opposed to a normal chrono which requires two chrono buttons and four “pushes” in order to achieve the same result as a flyback chronograph.

I blogged earlier about the Montblanc Metamorphosis watch, but here is another good video as produced by Montblanc – except in this video we get to see a good review of each watch it presented at SIHH 2010. If you want to see pictures of these watches, click HERE.
Enjoy the video!

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I wrote a few days ago about an intriguing new watch presented at SIHH 2010 by Montblanc (see here) – the “Montblanc Metamorphosis” – and I promised to be back with more details about it.   Well….I now have more information about this most curious and clever watch. 

Basically, by moving a slide down or up, the dial of this timepiece changes from a wristwatch with hour, minute, second display to a chronograph and vice versa.   Four wings in the lower half of the face open, slide under one another, and finally disappear to the left and right beneath the dial’s middle bar. A similar sequence transpires with two wings on the regulator’s hour dial at the “12.” After all the wings have opened, a subdial rises like the floor of an elevator at the 6 o`clock position, an aperture in this rising disk “swallows” the date-hand. The newly risen rotating disc is the minute counter of the chronograph. This fully mechanical, elevator-like function will no doubt evoke the admiration of aficionados of the fine art of watchmaking who witness this unprecedented transformation. Whoa!

I would like to point out that this watch is credited in large part to two obviously very gifted and creative talents, Johnny Girardin and Franck Orny.  They used methods from the traditional art of “automatons” construction (basically, the art of making old school mechanical “robots”) with great modern day application!  Nice work guys! 

Now – if you want to see the “metamorphosis” in action, check out this video from Montblanc:

One face of the Montblanc Metamorphosis……

…and the other…the same watch, mind you (not 2 different watches!)

 Also, you can read more and in depth about this watch here on our SIHH Forum / Montblanc stream.

p.s. – I still don’t like the droopy shape (“teardrop” Montblanc calls it) of the watch.  Cool mechanics, though!

Can’t say that I’m the biggest fan of design of the Montblanc watches, but here is one that definitely has me wanting to see more.  Looks like a pretty cool concept ie a dial that transforms itself into a new dial.  Not entirely unprecedented, I think de Grisogono and maybe others have executed similar concepts, but anyway I’m trying to run down more details on this one and will update accordingly.  Even so, that droopy looking dial shape….not for me….you?