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Parmigiani Fleurier Expands Unisex Tonda PF Series  

Parmigiani Fleurier adds two new models to its award-winning Tonda PF Automatic 36mm collection, expanding the series with a two-tone gold and steel bracelet model as well as a rose gold version on an alligator strap.

One of two additions to the Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda PF Automatic 36mm collection.

Both debuts extend the unisex collection, which in 2022 was awarded the Women’s Watch Prize at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève. 

Echoing the initial 40mm Tonda PF Micro-Rotor series, the 36mm models also feature stunning Grain d’Orge hand-guilloché dials but omit a date display and, with a traditional rotor powering the movement, are not quite as thin as the earlier 40mm debuts.

The 36mm two-tone debut, a first steel and gold mix within the Tonda PF collection,  features a rose gold bezel, crown and rose gold links within the steel bracelet.

The gold essentially brings extra attention to characteristics that Parmigiani Fleurier built into the contemporary Tonda PF design, namely the finely knurled bezel and the tapered bracelet.

Parmigiani Fleurier further emphasizes these architectural elements with a contrasting finish. Unlike the polished stainless steel links at the ends of the bracelet, the gold links are satin-finished. And note that as the line of gold and steel links nears the clasp, each link is slightly shorter than the previous link.

The gold-cased Tonda PF Automatic 36mm debut is more luxurious and dressier with its all-precious case, ruby-colored alligator strap and ruby red Grain d’Orge hand-guilloché dial decoration.

Both debuts feature a superb in-house PF770 automatic movement that boasts a sixty-hour power reserve and a skeletonized rotor fully visible from the watch’s clear sapphire back.

Prices: $26,200 (steel and rose gold case and bracelet), $40,400 (rose gold on an alligator strap).  

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The Watches

Hublot Celebrates Watches of Switzerland Partnership  

To celebrate their partnership,  Hublot and watch retailer Watches of Switzerland unveil the Big Bang All Black Green, a newly green version of an existing black ceramic design. The limited edition (of fifty) will be sold only in boutiques and online in the United Kingdom and United States.

The new Hublot Big Bang All Black Green.

The watch extends Hublot’s family of colorful ceramic Big Bang models, with a green ceramic bezel, familiar skeletonized dial and a 42mm by 14.5mm micro-blasted black ceramic case.

Inside Hublot fits it superb in-house Unico HUB1280 automatic flyback chronograph movement with its double coupling system and column-wheel both visible through the clear dial.

The movement also boasts 72-hours of power reserve and is protected with a 100-meter water resistance rating.

With its easy-to-use bracelet swapping system, Hublot includes matching straps with each Big Bang All Black Green. One is made of rubber black and grey green camouflage and the second is a black fabric Velcro strap.

Each is set with a matching buckle. The rubber strap includes a black ceramic and black titanium deployant buckle while the fabric strap includes a micro-blasted black ceramic sport buckle. 

Price: $24,800. 

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The Watches

Porsche Design Revives Military Chronograph 

Porsche Design revives a late-1970s military flyback chronograph with the new Chronograph 1 Utility – Limited Edition, the watchmaker’s first titanium carbide chronograph not connected to a specific Porsche sports car.

The new Porsche Design Chronograph 1 Utility – Limited Edition.

By making the new watch using a titanium carbide case instead of a steel case like the original model, Porsche Design makes the chronograph’s case more scratch-resistant, much lighter and hypoallergenic.

But by remaking the matte black dial and using same easy-to-read font of the original, the watchmaker has created a technically updated ode to that 1979 design. 

While the dial of the historical model (which was made for the flying squadron of the U.S. Air Force) featured a tiger’s head, the new watch offers a screaming marmot image between 4 o’clock and 5 o’clock.

The “Mankei” (marmot) name on the dial also refers to the Mankeiwirt, Ferdi Porsche’s newly opened destination for car enthusiasts located near Studio F. A. Porsche in Zell am See, Austria. 

In addition to the font and technical features, the Chronograph 1 Utility – Limited Edition also pays homage to its historical model in several other ways. 

A new “TiC” logo is placed in the characteristic position between 1 and 2 o’clock on the dial referencing the use of titanium carbide, and is a modern reinterpretation of the 3H symbol (for tritium) of the military model. Tritium is here replaced by bright blue SuperLuminova.

The watch also features the historic Porsche Design logo on the dial and winding crown. Two dots on the dial at 12 o’clock provide a clear orientation of the displays in the dark.

The new watch (right) with the original model from 1979.

There are few differences of course, most critically the new movement and the larger case size. Originally 38mm, the new watch measures 42.7mm in diameter.

The watch is powered by a COSC-certified Porsche Design WERK 01.240 chronograph caliber that retains the flyback function of the original watch.

The back of the the new Chronograph 1 Utility – Limited Edition, showing the aviation style leather strap.

Also new: a thicker seconds hand and a larger minute hand.

Porsche Design attaches the new watch to a slate grey ‘Bund’ strap made of Porsche vehicle leather with a quick-release mechanism. As an additional option, the chronograph also comes with a white textile strap with a badge on which the coordinates of the F.A.T. Ice Race are printed.

The watch also comes with a white textile strap with a badge on which the coordinates of the F.A.T. Ice Race are printed.

Collectors can pre-order the Porsche Design Chronograph 1 Utility – Limited Edition now for $13,000. The watch will be available in stores starting January 15, 2024.

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The Watches

Chronoswiss Launches Titanium Opus

Chronoswiss lightens its groundbreaking Opus skeletonized chronograph with the new Opus Chronograph Titanium, a modernized update of the original Opus, a watch Chronoswiss introduced in 1995 as one of the first serially-produced automatic skeletonized chronographs.

The new Chronoswiss Opus Chronograph Titanium, also available with green accents.

It’s hard to overstate the influence of the original Opus, which graced watch publications (including this one) and collector wrists worldwide in the years after its debut. Its transparency exposed a new generation of aficionados to the artistry and technical beauty of mechanical watchmaking.

The industry saw a general uptick in skeleton-dialed debuts from a wide range of watchmakers for years following the Opus debut.

Chronoswiss is now offering a contemporary take on the classic Opus design, casing two variations in grade-5 titanium.

The same levers, gears and cams remain as visible as ever here, with Chronoswiss adding a CVD-coating to the watch’s caliber C.741S, an ETA Valjoux-based integrated chronograph movement.

With galvanic black skeletonized bridges, the movement retains its mesmerizing allure to enthusiasts while adding a stealthy modern twist. Look for two color options, green and blue, each of which frame and complement the movement’s web of blackened and CVD-coated gears and levers. (See specifications below).

Offered in steel within the current Chronoswiss collection, the modern Opus Chronograph has not previously been made using a titanium case with the exception of a customized thirty-piece collection created with the Singapore-based Grail Watch.

“The new Opus Titanium arrives just in time to mark our 40th anniversary,” explains Oliver Epstein, CEO of Lucern-based Chronoswiss. “This watch is not just a product; it’s a statement of our relentless pursuit of innovation and our respect for tradition.”

Price: $14,500. 

Specifications: Chronoswiss Opus Chronograph Titanium

(References CH-7543T.1S-BL2 and CH7543T.1S-DGR) 

Case: 41mm by 14.80mm, solid 23 pieces, grade-5 titanium, with satin finish and polished, bezel with partial knurling and curved, double coated anti-reflective sapphire crystal, screw-down case back with satin finish and sapphire crystal, onion crown, water resistance to 100 meters, screw-in lugs with patented Auto bloc system. 

Movement: Chronoswiss Caliber C.741S, automatic (ETA Valjoux-based), skeletonized, 4 Hz., 28,800 vph, power reserve of 46 hours, skeletonized and CVD-plated rotor with Côtes de Genève, ball bearings; polished pallet lever, escape wheel and screws; skeletonized bridges and base plate with perlage, galvanic black.

Dial: Skeletonized, blue or green CVD-coated matte finish, Breguet lozenge-shaped hands, rhodium plated. 

Strap: Textile cordura. 

Price: $14,500

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On The Wrist

On The Wrist: Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda PF Micro-Rotor Steel Slate 

When Parmigiani Fleurier debuted its first set of Tonda PF watches just a few years ago, the watchmaker called the then-new series sartorial, with a look inspired by fine clothing design.

Wearing one of the earliest models to emerge from the collection, the Tonda PF Micro-Rotor Steel Slate, gave me a new appreciation of that reference and a clearer idea of why the description so aptly applies.

The Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda PF Micro-Rotor Steel Slate.

On the wrist the watch feels lighter than you might expect from a solid steel bracelet watch, especially one with a relatively weighty platinum bezel and a solid platinum micro-rotor. Both these flourishes of high-end watchmaking weighed more on my psyche than on my wrist.

Knowing that this rare and highly coveted element was built in to my (borrowed) timepiece conveyed a warm feeling of luxury. This is in part intended I presume, considering Parmigiani Fleurier rightfully humble brags about using platinum on and within the Tonda PF series.

Notes of the precious metal enhanced my enjoyment of the many details Parmigiani Fleurier builds into its watches. Wearing the Tonda PF Micro-Rotor for a week, I also enjoyed other built-in details, some sartorial and some technical, that added to the pleasure.

For instance, after staring at the slate-colored matte guilloché dial for some time I was delighted to realize that the date window perfectly matches the dial’s minute track. The longish hands, cut from real gold, are open-worked to nicely expose the slate dial.

The watch’s gently knurled platinum bezel reflects the ambient light and provides a distinctive yet subtle  – yes, sartorial – frame for the hands, date and dial.  

As the 40mm watch is only 7.8mm thick thanks to the space saving micro-rotor powering its automatic Caliber PF703, the Tonda PF Micro-Rotor Steel Slate slips easily under a long sleeve. (Note that even the newer, smaller (36mm) steel Tonda PF Automatic 36, at 8.6mm thick with a traditional full-size rotor, rests slightly higher on the wrist than this earlier example.)

Wearing the watch during a warm summer, I didn’t quite try out this particular attribute, but I’m confident that the Tonda PF Micro-Rotor Steel Slate would slide nicely under even a tight-fitting cuff. 

Parmigiani Fleurier updated the Tonda bracelet when introducing the new Tonda PF collection two years ago. Now wider near the bezel and narrower along the length, the bracelet is silky smooth and feels slimmer than it appears. It offers an eye-catching horizontal-satin-finished surface that perfectly echoes the upper surface of the lugs.

I enjoyed wearing the Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda PF Micro-Rotor Steel Slate very much and would happily recommend it to any collector in search of a comfortable steel dress watch with loads of genuine luxury detail. Price: $22,900.

Specifications: Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda PF Micro-Rotor Steel Slate

Movement: Automatic Caliber PF703 with platinum micro-rotor and 48-hour power reserve, 21,600 vph.

Case: 40mm by 7.8mm steel with platinum bezel, anti-reflective sapphire crystal and sapphire back. Water resistance to 100 meters. 

Dial: Slate grey Guilloché Grain d’orge, delta-shaped custom hands, rhodium plated applique markers. 

Bracelet: Steel with horizontal satin finish.

Price: $22,900. 

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