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Zenith Adds Double Tourbillon to Defy Extreme

With the new Defy Extreme Double Tourbillon, Zenith extends the reach of one of its most technically complex movements, El Primero Caliber 9020, by placing it into two ongoing Defy Extreme designs.

The new Zenith Defy Extreme Double Tourbillon, here in a carbon case with rose gold.

The 1/100th-of-a-second high-frequency chronograph movement, with a seconds hand that races around the dial once per second, is already among the watchmaker’s defining technical achievements.

The new Zenith Defy Extreme Double Tourbillon, here in titanium, is now an ongoing Defy Extreme model.

Found previously powering special limited editions, the caliber utilizes two independent tourbillons, each regulating a different function. One tourbillon completes its rotation in sixty seconds to regulate the time display while the second tourbillon rotates in just five seconds to regulate a high-frequency chronograph. 

The new watch is now most complicated model in the Zenith Defy collection. And true to Defy’s sporty character, the new model is set in a hefty 45mm case and will be offered with two different executions.

One version features a titanium case with a mix of satin-brushed, polished and matte surfaces (including the titanium bracelet). The second model, offered on a black rubber strap, is cased in carbon fiber with sandblasted matte rose gold twelve-sided bezel and pusher protectors. Both offer open-work dials to better display the dual tourbillons and their star-shaped cages.

Zenith’s El Primero Caliber 9020, front view.

Zenith has finished the watch’s El Primero 9020 movement to emphasize its decidedly contemporary nature.

El Primero Caliber 9020, rear view.

Artisans have satin-brushed its bridges and coated them with a layer of black PVD. The finishing touch is a rose gold highlight meant to expose the various geometric shapes throughout the caliber.

Zenith is offering the new Defy Extreme Double Tourbillon as an ongoing model, in both versions, at retailers, Zenith boutiques and online Zenith boutiques.

Prices: $79,700 (carbon case, rose gold) and $69,600 (brushed titanium). 

 

Specifications: Zenith Defy Extreme Double Tourbillon 

(Reference: 12.9100.9020/78.I200, black carbon and rose gold) 

Movement: El Primero 9020, COSC-certified chronometer with 50 hours power reserve for the watch / 50 min for the chronograph. 

Functions: Hours and minutes in the centre. Double Tourbillon. 1 escapement for the Watch (36,000 VpH / 5 Hz – cage makes a turn in 60 second). 1 escapement for the Chronograph (360,000 VpH / 50 Hz – cage makes a turn in 5 second). 1/100th of a second Chronograph:  

– Central chronograph hand that makes one turn each second

– 30-minute counter at 3 o’clock

– 60-second counter at 6 o’clock

– Chronograph power-reserve indication at 12 o’clock

Special oscillating weight with satined finishings

Case: 45mm black carbon & 18-karat rose gold, water-resistance to 200 meters. 

Dial: Openworked, with gold-plated, faceted and coated with SuperLuminova SLN C1 markers and hands.

Strap & Buckle: Black Rubber with micro-blasted titanium triple folding clasp.

Price: $79,700. 

 

Specifications: Zenith Defy Extreme Double Tourbillon 

(Reference: 95.9100.9020/78.I001, in titanium) 

Movement: El Primero 9020, COSC-certified chronometer with 50 hours power reserve for the watch / 50 min for the chronograph.

Functions: Hours and minutes in the centre. Double Tourbillon. 1 escapement for the Watch (36,000 VpH / 5 Hz – cage makes a turn in 60 second). 1 escapement for the Chronograph (360,000 VpH / 50 Hz – cage makes a turn in 5 second). 1/100th of a second Chronograph:  

– Central chronograph hand that makes one turn each second

– 30-minute counter at 3 o’clock

– 60-second counter at 6 o’clock

– Chronograph power-reserve indication at 12 o’clock

Special oscillating weight with satined finishings

Case: 45mm brushed titanium, water-resistance to 200 meters.

Dial: Openworked, with gold-plated, faceted and coated with SuperLuminova SLN C1 markers and hands.

Bracelet & Buckle: Titanium bracelet with titanium folding clasp.

Price: $69,600. 

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The Watches

Nomos Adds Roman Date Option to Ludwig

Nomos adds a stylistic flourish to its Ludwig Neomatik 41 with a display that shows the date in Roman numerals.

The Nomos Ludwig Neomatik 41 Date features an unusual Roman numeral date window.

While existing Ludwig models feature a date window with standard Arabic numerals at the 4 o’clock position, the new Ludwig Neomatik 41 Date  offers this second, equally elegant, option that also just happens to perfectly match the Roman markers around the dial.

While I’m not aware of other Roman numeral date displays, I suspect they exist. And while it’s unusual to use Roman date language, Nomos has moved the date window itself to the more traditional 3 o’clock position on the dial. The choice by Nomos here speaks to its dedication to providing stylish options for its fans.

Nomos can offer this option thanks to its use of the DUW 6101 proprietary movement that seamlessly powers a date ring while also remaining fairly flat (7.7mm thick) and elegant.

The Nomos automatic caliber DUW 6101 with date function is just 3.6 millimeters thick.

Indeed, Nomos utilizes the same movement throughout its collections when novel date displays are required, such as on its Autobahn, or when a date ring features into the designs, such as on the Nomos Tangente Update and Metro Update.

Assembly of the patented date mechanism on the DUW 6101 caliber.

The automatic movement is visible through the sapphire back of the 40.5mm steel watch. The view exposes the movement’s Glashütte three-quarter plate finished with Glashütte ribbing, tempered blue screws and perlage on the mainplate.

The Nomos Ludwig Neomatik 41 Date arrives on a black Horween leather strap equipped with a stainless steel clasp.

Price: $4,000.

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The Watches

Frederique Constant Darkens its Worldtimer

Frederique Constant celebrates the tenth anniversary of the Classics Worldtimer Manufacture collection by offering an all-black edition of the watch, one of the Geneva watchmaker’s best-selling designs.

Frederique Constant’s new Classics Worldtimer Manufacture Globetrotter Edition features a black PVD-titanium-coated case and a black dial.

 

Limited to 300 pieces, the new Classics Worldtimer Manufacture Globetrotter Edition features a black PVD-titanium-coated case and a black dial. For the first time, the names of the twenty-four reference cities featured on the city disc have been replaced by the airport codes at the cities.

The watchmaker accentuates the dial’s global display by embossing the continents and depicting the oceans using a sunray finish. The sunray guilloché subdial at 6 o’clock displays the date via a hand-polished black hand that matches the hour, minute and seconds hands. 

The only white elements on the dial are the airport codes on the city disc, the day indication on the 24-hour disk and the applied indexes. All are filled with a generous helping of luminous material.

Easy to use

Part of the watch’s success since its debut in 2012 is how simple it is to operate. All the features (hours, minutes, date, Worldtimer) can be adjusted using the crown thanks to an Frederique Constant’s own three-notch system. The first click winds the watch, the second adjusts the date (upwards) and the reference city (downwards) and the third adjusts the time in the central display.

To read the dial is equally straight-forward. The local time (with the central hands) and home time (via the moving flange) are automatically synchronized with each other. Day and night time zones are noted by their dark or white hues.

Frederique Constant has decorated the watch’s FC-718 movement with fine perlage decoration visible through a sapphire crystal caseback. Note the caliber’s blued screws and rose gold-plated oscillating weight adorned with vertical satin-finishing and “Frederique Constant Manufacture” engraving. 

Price: $4,495. 

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Alpina

Alpina Blackens Pilot Heritage Automatic Monopusher

Alpina expands its Startimer Pilot Heritage mono-pusher chronograph collection with the Startimer Pilot Heritage Automatic Chronograph Blackout, two black-cased models that offer a choice of dial: black or silver. 

The pair adds a bit of darkness to the existing blue and silver models that characterize this impressive vintage-tinged pilot series.

Alpina offer the Startimer Pilot Heritage Automatic Chronograph Blackout with a black or silver dial.

The new contemporary color touch again serves to highlight how this cushion-shaped mini-series differs from its mostly round brothers within the Startimer Pilot Heritage collection. 

Here with a polished and brushed black-PVD case, its vintage-inspired single-pusher and bicompax subdial layout set the watch further apart both within its own brand and from the vast majority of other Swiss-made aviation chronographs available.

The fact that Alpina fits the watch with a customized single‐push‐piece chronograph designed by La Joux‐Perret enhances its interest among collectors, especially given the watch’s $2,995 price tag. 

The chronograph measures short time intervals (30 minutes) and also offers a 55‐hour power reserve, nearly 45% more than its predecessor.

Both variations of the watch offer a case that is polished black on the sides and satin‐finished on top. Circular guilloché counters assist light diffusion while sturdy hour and minute hands are topped with SuperLuminova.

Alpina is offering each version (black and silver-dialed models) as a limited edition of fifty, so expect some competition. 

Price: $2,995. 

Specifications: Alpina Startimer Pilot Heritage Automatic Chronograph Blackout Edition

Movement: Alpina AL‐727 caliber, automatic mono‐pusher chronograph designed by La Joux‐Perret, 55‐hour power reserve, 28,800 alt/h. 

Case: 42mm x 40.75mm by 14.5 mm black PVD coated stainless steel 2‐part. Scratch‐resistant and convex sapphire crystal, water‐resistant to 100 meters, engraved case back, screw‐in crown and case back, chronograph pusher at 2 o’clock. 

Dials: Silver-dial model: Silver dial with sunray finishing and applied silver indexes filled with white luminous treatment, black outer ring with tachymeter graduation, silver hour and minute hands filled with white luminous treatment. Black seconds counter at 9 o’clock with sunray finishing and white hand, black chronograph hand and black minutes chronograph counter at 3 o’clock with sunray finishing and white hand.

Black dialed model: Black dial with sunray finishing and applied silver indexes filled with white luminous treatment, black outer ring with tachymeter graduation, hand‐polished silver hour and minute hands filled with white luminous treatment, black chronograph hand,
silver-color seconds counter at 9 o’clock with sunray finishing and black hand, silver color minutes chronograph counter at 3 o’clock with sunray finishing and black hand. 

Strap: Black leather strap with white stitching.

Price: $2,995. 

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The Watches

H. Moser Sets Sapphires into Streamliner

H. Moser & Cie. sets a glamorous rainbow of sapphires around the bezel of two of its Streamliner Tourbillon models.

The H. Moser Streamliner Tourbillon Rainbow, here in red gold.

The already spectacular watch, which highlights an eye-catching one-minute flying tourbillon at the six-o’clock position, can now be purchased as the Streamliner Tourbillon Rainbow with its tourbillon framed by a sparkling selection of sixty baguette sapphires set in either a red gold or steel cushion-shaped case.

The H. Moser Streamliner Tourbillon Rainbow, here in steel.

The red gold edition is matched with the brand’s famed über-dark Vantablack dial while the steel version is set with an H. Moser signature fumé dial. Each watch is blessed with the same Streamliner integrated three-blade bracelet, a comfortable, brushed-finished beauty in either the steel or the red gold iteration. 

A luxurious detail here involves an extra-helping of the H. Moser gradient treatment. Not only do the sapphires gradually echo the colors of a rainbow as they circle the dial, their varying sizes nicely underscore the Streamliner’s retro-luxe cushion-shaped case.

Those familiar with the H. Moser one-minute flying tourbillon set in the watch’s HMC 804 caliber know that is equipped with a double hairspring designed and produced in-house by H. Moser & Cie.’s sister company Precision Engineering AG. As Moser explains, the matched hairsprings mean that the movement’s friction errors are minimized immediately, significantly improving accuracy and isochronism.

Prices: $119,900 (steel) and $175,000 (red gold).

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