As the newest addition to the Historiques collection, the bold character and sculptural lines of the Historiques Aronde 1954 captures the creativity and savoir-faire of Vacheron Constantin.
Featuring a rectangular case, hand-made guilloche dial, double-rounded curve on the case flanks reminiscent of wings, and a domed sapphire crystal, the Historiques Aronde 1954 is an iconic creation from the Vacheron Constantin collection.
Perfectly suited to accent the wrist of any gentleman with an appreciation for daring design and mechanical excellence.
It is indeed a beautiful watch housed in 18K Pink Gold, featuring a handwind 1400 AS movement with the Geneva Hallmark:
Reference: 1400 AS
Energy: manual
Thickness (mm): 2.60
Diameter (mm): 20.65 (9”’ )
Number of parts: 98
Number of jewels: 20
Frequency: 4 Hz (28’800 v.p.h.)
Power-reserve (hours): 40 approx.
Indication: hours, minutes, small second
Certification: Hallmark of Geneva
I’ve had this guy for a while, but never really wrote up a review on it. I did post a video review of is a ways back, but never got around to posting the real deal. I shot some photos of it with my dSLR and just ran into them while sorting my photographs this morning and figured this would make a nice Sunday Morning post.
The color is a bit off on these first two photos, and isn’t a correct representation of the true color like the last two photos are. I generally do prefer the Stainless models but the Titanium is quite slick with its darker color and its not every watch you see that’s available in both Titanium and Stainless so sometimes its good to get something different.
The case measures a healthy 42.5mm, and has non-standard lugs, so only bracelets and straps designed for the Ingenieur specificially will fit on it. The thickness is 14.5mm, so it does have good wrist presence. The watch wears quite large for its measurements in my opinion, and feels similar in size to a Breitling Chronomat 44.
Another shot of the pusher side of this watch shows the unique pushers which are hinged on one side so only push in near the middle. A nice subtle touch. The watch also features an IWC Calibre 79350 movement, which is a modified ETA (Valjoux) 7750 movement, with the seconds moved to the 6 o’clock subdial and the date removed. The Chronograph measures seconds and minutes only. This watch keeps excellent time, within 1 second per day and is anti-magnetic as well.
From the size you can see IWC’s bracelet removal system for the Ingenieur, which allows the bracelet to be removed with two toothpicks if you wanted to. Very nice system. The AR coated sapphire crystal is flat, and provides fantastic visibility in bright light. Lume, on the other hand, is nothing to write home about.
Clasp is a fold-over style with hidden button release on the side. A very nicely articulated titanium bracelet, very smooth and comfortable – so comfortable that I would say this is possibly the most comfortable bracelet I’ve ever worn and I’ve worn a lot. In general this watch is an absolute joy to wear and put on. While lighter because of the titanium, it is not as light as many titanium watches such as the Breitling Aerospace. This one is a keeper!
Breitling’s Ambassador, Herbert “The Flying Fish” Nitsch, is aiming to set a new record for free diving. His previous record of 700 feet set in 2007 still stands, but he continues to push his own limits.
From Breitling:
“Herbert Nitsch freedives towards an 800-foot record
Herbert Nitsch, airline pilot and extreme record man, went down in history on June 14th 2007, off the Greek island of Spetses, by freediving to a depth of 700 feet (-214 m). This incredible feat put him way ahead of his nearest competitors and has yet to be superseded. Since then, he has kept right on pushing his limits. Closely linked with Breitling, “The Flying Fish” is currently engaged in the preparatory phase for his next record: freediving to 800 feet (-244 m), scheduled for summer 2012. To test his physique and nerves of steel, he has once again chosen the waters of the Aegean Sea, in the magnificent setting of the isle of Santorini. The highly successful trials have provided the opportunity to check the performance of the “torpedo sled” facilitating the champion’s descent and ascent, complete with its underfoot ballast system, as well as the overhead inflatable buoy for bringing the diver back to the surface – all on a single breath. This is super high-tech and ultra-reliable equipment, exactly like the Breitling that partners his accomplishments. Highly focused on safety, Herbert Nitsch intends to perfect his physical and mental training during the next few months, and finalize the development of the whole procedure of diving to the 800-foot threshold, before setting the “Breitling Extreme 800” record next year. All of which will bring him one step closer to his ultimate objective of breaking the legendary 1,000-foot (-305 m) barrier.”
