Richard Mille - The Art of Time
WORLDTEMPUS - 22 June 2012
"We're building our own case making facility," general manager Yves Mathys explains as we ask about the big cranes visible from the windows of Horometrie SA in the small Swiss village of Les Breuleux. This is the home of Richard Mille and the place where most of his extraordinary watches are assembled. Others are assembled down the road at Audemars Piguet Renaud et Papi in Le Locle, and until recently many of Richard Mille's watch cases were made just across the street at case maker Donze-Baume.
When Richemont took over Donze-Baume in 2008, Richard Mille was given a five-year grace period to find a new case maker. In the end, the little company decided to build its own case making factory, which will open the end of 2012, just a stone's throw from the present location. However, the knowhow required for the incredible RM 056 Felipe Massa Sapphire Tourbillon Split-Seconds Competition Chronograph introduced earlier this year at the S.I.H.H. in Geneva was something extraordinary. It, however, was made by a different supplier - and not actually a case maker.
Luxurious sapphires
The cases of the RM 056 are made by sapphire crystal manufacturing company Stettler Sapphire AG in Lyss. "We produce 80 percent of all sapphire crystals in the luxury watch business," head of sales and marketing Hans Studer explains when we pay the company a visit to get an intimate look at the process of making the transparent case of the RM 056. "Basically, we are the main supplier for watch companies producing watches costing 2,000 Swiss francs and more," he says while showing trays full of sapphire glasses made for brands such as MB&F (Maximilian Busser & Friends), Rado, Patek Philippe, and Rolex.
Record-breaking sapphires
Stettler made the 14.3-millimeter thick crystal fitted on the Rolex DeepSea Challenge that is water resistant to 12,000 meters. "We made a total of five crystals for the Sea-Dweller DeepSea Challenge model," Studer says, though he declined to reveal whether Rolex actually also produced five watches for the record-breaking dive of 10,898 meters made by film producer James Cameron in March 2012.
Even if Stettler is used to tough assignments, the case of Richard Mille's RM 056 was something else. "For Stettler it was an incredible experience to develop this sapphire case," Studer continues. "Each of the three parts made of Kyropoulos sapphire takes weeks of finishing and we have a CNC machine dedicated only to the production of the RM 056 cases," he says showing the brand-new cutting machine that runs 24 hours a day in order to meet the demand of the five people who ordered the RM 056 during the fair in January. "The case back alone takes five weeks to finish, which means it will take a whole year to finish all five cases," Studer says matter-of-factly.
Mutual invest
Leaving the Stettler premises, I can't help thinking that one could have the impression that Richard Mille and his suppliers "R&D" each other, pushing the boundaries for modern watchmaking in an otherwise rather conservative business. The innovative and unconventional mind of Mille demands a lot from his suppliers and without their skills, machinery and ? last but hardly least ? flexibility, many of Mille's timepieces would never have made it onto the wrists of their owners today.
Art of time
After the visit to the Richard Mille boutique in Geneva, Horometrie and Stettler, it also occurs to me that in fact the ultra-light RM 027 adorning tennis player Rafael Nadal's winning wrist and its white counterpart, the RM 038 that sits on golfer Bubba Watson's wrist, are much more than just innovative timepieces. They are ticking pieces of art and would fit in just as well at Art Basel as they do at S.I.H.H. in Geneva.
When you acknowledge this fact and consider Mille's watches as art you don't just buy one of his watches. You invest into his artistic and creative mind, just like you invest in a Warhol, Prince or other contemporary art that pleases not only the eyes, but also seem to justify the exuberant prices asked. And as an added bonus, Mille's watches show the time too.
Rolex - Explorer II on the Wrist
Rumor has it that the new Rolex Explorer II was ready for presentation in 2010, but that Rolex did not present this new face-lifted version of the sporty watch until 2011 - 40 years after the first Explorer II was launched.
For many years, Rolex has been respected as well as ridiculed for its conservative approach to case sizes: 40 millimeters seemed to be the biggest case diameter offered in the sports collection. In the last few years, we have seen more and more models with a tendency toward growth: Yacht-Master II and Sea-Dweller DeepSea both come in a case of 44 millimeter diameters, and now the Explorer II also offers a diameter of 42 millimeter.
The Explorer II has never been the most popular reference made by the famed Swiss watch brand. The Submariner and GMT models have been the favored siblings, but even these two models still offer a moderate case diameter of 40 millimeters. Maybe Rolex wanted to push needed attention towards the Explorer II, hence the extra two millimeters?
Large watch
42 millimeters may seem like a large watch. However, since many parts and details of the new reference have grown, the visual size does not seem that radical. The case, hands, crown and hour markers are in other words dimensionally on par with the new case diameter. Visually, that is.
Wearing the watch, however, does challenge the visual impression. The Explorer II is a large watch. Comparing this to Reference 1655 or Reference 16570, which came out even later, the size difference is almost shocking. As mentioned, this will please those who have not yet bought a Rolex because they thought the watches looked too puny on their wrists.
Inspired by the past
One of the obvious details on the new Explorer II is of course the orange 24-hour hand. "Freccione," as Italian Rolex collectors long ago named this hand, means "arrow". This is a feature taken directly from the Reference 1655 Explorer II launched in 1971. The 24-hour hand was not separately adjustable on the early version, though. It merely functioned as an AM/PM indicator. However, bezel design looks more like the bezel of the short-lived Reference 16550 that was introduced in 1985 and face-lifted already four years later.
Phantom hands
The hands of the new Explorer II sport a so-called phantom effect, which means the lower part of the hour and minute hand is painted black. This little detail makes the hands look like they float free of the arbor. This works well on the black dial version, and merely represents a great contrast on the white dial version.
Latest movement update
Reference 216570 is outfitted with Caliber 3187, which features the latest technical updates like Paraflex shock absorbers and the non-magnetic Parachrom hairspring, which "ensures unparallel reliability, and shock resistance," according to Rolex.
White dial winner
The white dial version, even if it does not correspond perfectly to the 1971 version that was only offered with a black dial, gets my vote as favorite of the two dial versions. The b, graphic black/white contrast makes it stand out as this watch brand really does not offer a lot of white-dial sports watches. Actually, only the Daytona and Yacht-Master II come with a white dial, but the GMT, Submariner and Yacht-Master models do not.
Oldies but goodies
This said, I admit to favor not only Reference 1655, but also the 16550 or even the 16570. Not only due to their case diameters of "only" 40 millimeters, but also because these earlier versions have a more tool-ish approach to horology. And this is, after all, where the Explorer II started - as an instrument watch for cave explorers.
Rolex Explorer II Reference 216570 is offered with black or white dial and has a suggested retail price of 6,400 euros.
[Rating: 5 / 5 stars]
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