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Up close with Richard Mille's RM 004 prototype (images)...
Yesterday afternoon I had the immense pleasure of meeting Richard Mille. All I can say is this man's vision, execution and philosophy are all amazing. No wonder Jean Claude Biver, Magali Metrailler, Max Busser, Georges Henri Meylan all say he is one of the most exciting individuals in the industry.
Without further delay here are some scans of Mille's incredible RM004.
When I first heard 100k euros for a rattrapante I thought it was a little extreme, but having handled te watch in the flesh I'm won over completely.
Things that make it distinct are the selector switch and the dynamograph or torque indcator. There arms of the split second brake are simply the coolest things, like small robotic apendages. Apparently a lot of r and d went into getting them to apply equal pressure at exactly the same time on the split second wheel. There is also a phenomenal double bridge for the balance.
Initally I thought the layout of this movement resembled the split second mechanism in AP's cabinet piece number 1 but then I noticed there was not "pivoting finger" above the column wheel.
The trusty rose gold AP is a little awed by this beauty. I had the privledge of learning a bit about the RM 007, RM 009 and RM 010 and all I can say is.... "brilliant."
Thanks to Theodore for laying down some of the ground work for this interview.
I have 2 copies of a Singapore watch mag with the RM 003 on the cover autographed by Richard Mille for the first two Singapore purists that want them!
Cheers
Wei
