As 2013 draws to a close, I was tasked with listing my 5 Best Watches of 2013.
In the context of a guest commentator amongst a slew of erudite other watch ‘enthusiasts’, this was not an easy task.

I have not seen and touched all the ‘novelties’ introduced over the year.

Do I focus on the most esoteric and EXTRAVAGANT from a fantasy wish-list?

Do I include those from the 2014 crop that were leaked ‘accidentally-on-purpose’ to the yearning public during the dying embers in the 2013 fireplace?

Redolent with the fumes of post-prandial Armagnac and Christmas turkey, I had to set the parameters for some semblance of order; seeking PuristS’ perfection in an imperfect world; and yet mindful that real people reside on Earth One and not some Asgaardian realm of phantasmagoria.

Luxury watch brands resigned themselves to fighting for market share in 2013 rather than real growth as the global economy is still recovering. That meant appealing to a larger segment of the market. Many brands have highlighted their brand legitimacy, craftsmanship, technique and integrated manufacturing. Some have reversed their trend of big watches thus attracting Asian customers and also to reduce material costs. When the price of gold reached its peak, even a gold disc for the dial could cost US$2000. This is for a dial that would be covered with lacquer or enamel or galvanisation with no visible gold anyway.

“True luxury is being given the option of choice”. To this end, my shortlist comprise of timepieces that can be realised. This does not mean that they are ‘cheap’ or as the luxury marketers like to call “affordable”. It means that with some effort, we have a reasonable chance of procuring one. Not for me the pipe-dream timepiece crafted by elves out of unobtainium under blue moonlight nor special editions assembled by a doyen watchmaker for his best buddies.

I chose watches that ‘regular Joes’ in medium sized cities could buy with plain-coloured credit cards. I chose watches that the makers cared about and wanted to sell loads to customers who cared about buying some more.....in other words: collectors.

I chose watches that marked either a pinnacle or a turning point or, at worst, a milestone for the makers.

Chopard L.U.C. Perpetual Calendar Tourbillon – technical and aesthetic Excellence

For 2013, Chopard introduced the L.U.C. Perpetual Tourbillion. If this watch had been presented thirteen years ago, it would have been celebrated as the absolute highlight of the Baselworld show. Unfortunately, the watch industry today has been spoilt by the easy availability of production technology. The market has been flooded with basic tourbillions from new and unknown brand names; and that has ruined the prestige.

Almost no manufacturer sends their tourbillion watches for independent COSC tests but Chopard makes it a company rule that every tourbillion must obtain an independent test certificate.  Chopard tourbillions are amongst the finest pieces ever made in series production, and together with one of the best perpetual calendar movements available, the L.U.C. Perpetual Tourbillion is one of the highlights of 2013.

Note: The PuristS collectors' group awarded Chopard Co-President Karl-Friedrich Scheufele with the first PuristSPro Purity Prize in 2009 honouring “the pursuit of perfection in an imperfect world”. The award was a crowning recognition for the five proprietary movements developed by Chopard Manufacture within 10 years, and above all for the “technical and aesthetic excellence” of the L.U.C Lunar One, a perpetual calendar with complete moon-phase display.

Cartier Tank MC – masculine reinterpretation of an icon

The new Tank MC shape definitely takes it high in the all-time Cartier Tank rankings. We still yearn for a Cartier ultra thin movement in a classic Tank LC case but until that happens, this combination of the masculine yet sensuous Tank MC shape and the Cartier 1904MC movement makes it my favourite available Cartier Tank watch.

The Cartier silver-white dial with railway minute track is 'de rigueur' so I suspect it will be the most popular variant. The steel case version gives the most practical and economic advantages for daily use.
This is the watch that Cartier needed to introduce Cartier fine watchmaking to the masses on four continents. This is the Must de Cartier of our era.

Montblanc Rieussec Rising Hours – real watchmaking for the masses

Montblanc already set a new course before Mr Jerome Lambert became the new CEO. Although keeping the Montblanc Villeret facilitiy as the research institute and bespoke ultra watchmaking workshop, the brand focus will be on the middle to high range of watch products. This is an area that Montblanc understands well, having captured the lion’s share of the same demographic for ‘writing instruments’ for more than a century.

This watch is the new "big" novelty for 2013 building upon the tremendous success of the Nicolas Rieussec Collection. The iconic face is still there but with new indications:
Hours and minutes on off-centre dial, Digital hour display with integrated day/night indication, Day and Date shown by disc display, and Power reserve indicator on case back .

The Rising Hours is available in three different case metals: platinum (28-piece Limited Edition), in rose gold and in steel.

In the spirit of the common man, my choice is the steel version to match my Montblanc Rieussec Chronograph GMT.  

Piaget Emperador Coussin Automatic Minute Repeater – always do better than necessary

Piaget set another double record for ultra-thin with their first minute repeater; 4.8 mm movement and 9.4 mm case heights. The cushion-shaped 1290P movement is entirely conceived, developed, produced, decorated and assembled by Piaget. It is adorned with the highest finishing. The founder’s motto is the new hallmark of top models from Piaget. “Always do better than necessary” is engraved proudly on the dial in French: Toujours faire meux que necessaire...

As one of the rare fully integrated Haute Horlogerie manufacturers, Piaget has created 35 movements, including 11 complications in the last 14 years. With this new movement, Piaget has mastered 4 of the 5 classic major complications – with the added complication of being ultra-thin.

Zenith Academy Christophe Colomb Hurricane Grand Voyage – one brand’s return journey

When I first saw the original Zenith Academy Christophe Columb with the bulbous sapphire crystal, I could not understand its function, form nor size. Where were they going with this concept? 

The follow-up Zenith Academy Equation of Time looked huge and with al lot of white space on the dial. 

Now, the Academy Christophe Colomb Hurricane Grand Voyager makes sense with the case size, sapphire crystal bulb, movement modules and decorations combined harmoniously in one timepiece.
The technical part addresses three of the main horological challenges:-
1. Influence of gravity: gyroscope suspension or ‘gravity control module’.
2. Isochronism: fusee and chain or ‘constant force mechanism’.
3. Precision: 36,000 vph escapement.

The chain alone accounts for 2/3 of the parts count. The watch presents traditional finishing and decoration methods that have been cultivated for over 150 years at the oldest Swiss watch factory.

The back may be more gorgeous than the front........

Gustafsson & Sjögren Winter Nights for PuristS

Finally, with a tinge of pride, I mention the Gustafsson & Sjögren ‘Winter Nights for PuristS’ 10-piece limited edition watch that GoS made and dedicated to PuristS – truly a fusion of materials and Arts.

Their first proprietary movement developed with Martin Braun with hand-forged main-plates and enclosed in a hand-forged case.

Sweet Interactive Endings

That is my eclectic selection of ‘5 best watches from 2013’.

Those of you with superior numeracy will have counted six watches, for which, I apologise and suggest that every list must contain a watch that the reader may dismiss according to THEIR personal choice!  Good luck with dropping one of the above; I had no success doing so........

Spare a thought for a watch that can never be for the common man since there is only one piece:

Valerii Danevych – complicated wood watch

Valerii Danevych is a wood cabinet-maker from Ukraine. In 2012, Mr Danevych was nominated as a candidate of the Académie Horlogère des Créateurs Indépendants (AHCI). For 2013, the Ukrainian master presented a complicated wooden wristwatch as further proof of his claim for the AHCI membership – Retrograde Flying Tourbillion.

The watch is handmade from 188 components, of which 154 parts make up the movement and hands. The smallest wooden parts are a pinion (8-teeth gear wheel) with 0.9 mm diameter and a bearing pin with 0.12 mm diameter. There are 8 springs in the watch; 4 are made of metal and 4 are of bamboo.  The four metal springs are the only metal parts in the watch!

This watch renewed my admiration for handicraft but is really a timepiece for the mind rather than practical use.

HAPPY NEW YEAR fellow PuristS

May the new year 2014 bring health and peace to you wherever you may be.

MTF