Independents

There are a lot of very talentous french watchmakers: François-Paul Journe, Denis Flageollet, Vianney Halter, Christophe Claret... but they all work for compagnies based in Switzerland. One of the most interesting French watchmaking projects takes place i...  

I'd certainly be curious if I saw it on a gent's wrist. This message has been edited by Mostel on 2010-02-28 09:42:17

I remember his watches at the SbM, but he's quite a shy man, I never got to ask about them I am fascinated by the lathe in the last picture, it has the same style bed that I have seem often in American lathes, but rotated 90degrees. On an American it woul...  

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Many thanks for the report. The movement is very 3-D and striking. Do you have more information on the clock? It reminds me of something I've seen elsewhere (Janvier...Leroy...???) but I can't think what. nick

Astonishing movement. Thanks. Vte

I have a lot of sympathy for his thoughts behind the watch - very clever. I also like the "absence of dial" the combination of modern ad classic values are very clever and appealing. Hovever im not to shure about the look. I know its a proto but it looks ... 

This will be a very potential candidate for my next purchase. Currently , I'm just waiting for the release of the RogerSmith/George Daniels creation but I must say this one has potential. I like the feel of the watch, very antiquated, a similar kind of se... 

i love the watch , though i don't like the presence of purplish dark navy dotted with gold, ....another let down for me is the case size its 38mm , i mean 40mm would be FAIR , FINE with MEN wrists. would love to see the finished one , and would love if th... 

The prototype just bowls me over. What beauty - but no incablock, please ... Thanks for that report and those photos, FrX ! Now I will be reading all I can about Untergunther. amerix

report, now another option for inde

especially at this level. One question though, who is the French military officer framed behind Jean-Baptiste Viot in the last cliché ?

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Not de Gaulle, and not Joffre or any of the other obvious ones I can think of. The problem is that ALL French generals had moustaches and were photographed or painted in 3/4 profile looking sternly into the middle distance, so hunting for the image will n... 

Alors s'est qui en fait ?

it needs a dial or be skeletonized. No shock protection as the default seems troubling ot me.

Thx for the report!

something of the modern and the old. I sincerely hope he does well and with the price point being reasonable, I can imagine that he will receive a number of orders. Cannot wait to take a closer look. Thanks for the very interesting article. Andrew H

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The blue outer ring with gold dots reminds me of a celestial watch with the seconds gear like the sun and all that night blue.....very Alice in wonderland......beautiful and poetic.To be seen live .....

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It's an attractive watch, and I admire Viot's addressing the long-term serviceability of his creations head-on. In a way, it is a contract with the buyer that is the opposite of that implicitly offered by, say, Rolex and Omega, or in an earlier time, Elgi... 

front and back. i'm guessing the Case Diameter is around 40mm???! thanks for the report Tony

I was not so impressed by the looks of this very techno piece. But when I saw the wristshots, I loved it. What a difference that makes to get the right idea about a watch, that one has not seen in the flesh. Thanks for the post Foversta, great read. GEO

The design and horological aesthetics of this watch are the most compelling I've seen in quite a long time. Thank you for the review. Best, Douglas

Special Kudos to Jean-Baptiste Viot. I only learned about German watch making about five years ago. I'm pleased to now know that there is a French watchmaker (who isn't Swiss-French) who creates watches in France. The watch looks very interesting, I hope ... 

I love the watchmaking philosophy and the actual design of this watch. Would love to learn more about it and hope to see it in person one day.

I will contact Jean-Baptiste to get news from him. Fr.Xavier

It's got that inside-out quality to which I'm so very attracted (other watches that fit into this category for me: GO PanoInverse, Breguet La Tradition, AP Jules Audemars with AP escapement). What a romantic watch. I'd love to see a finished version in th... 

It's nice to hear that we can agree so strongly on a concept or a design. In fact, I have already ordered mine this morning, but without the anti-shock protection - which Jean Baptiste was relieved to hear, since he feels it is more "genuine" this way. Ch... 

How wonderful, Amery! I cannot wait to see your wristshots! It's a fine, artistic, romantic piece. I particularly like the "scrambled stripes" finishing, as Fr.X has reported in his post! I do think you and I both have a deep appreciation for the unique v... 

FrX, Thanks for the update. Your photos pose an interesting (to me) question : Why do most, if not all, hand-wind quality movements have a mainspring barrel with same diameter as balance wheel? Regards, MTF

...but it has been my understanding that in a basic wristwatch caliber, the two things to make as large as possible are the balance diameter and the spring barrel diameter. The first for better stability of rate/timekeeping, and the the latter for longer ... 

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Going down the road less traveled, another Independent watchmaker taking the plunge to create valuable micro-mechanical art for those appreciators of this genre. Kudos to Jean-Baptiste Viot. Cheers, Tim

like Daos, i am a fan of the 'inside out' and no dial watches. this is a good example of such a piece, but with a more exclusive feel to it due to it being hand made. the blued parts go well with the perlage steel pieces. in my eyes it works well. thankyo... 

That's what Jean-Baptise's Chronomètre and Kari's Observatoire have in common. Either way, it is an exceptional basis caliber that I would recommend exploring. With the Chronomètre you can still get one !!! Worlds of thanks to Franz Xavier for drawing my ... 

I just re-read FrX's post - with the greatest of pleasure! - and discovered that had already mentioned this.

If i pull on this piece it's solely for that Blued Hairspring! Stephen

Excellent post. And intriguing watches...

Caution, satire !!! Here's one for Basel. Say you were promoting Incablock. I know exactly what Incablock is supposed to do, how it is put together, and every part of its construction. The same goes for KIF. They are good! We start with an Original Inca b... 

Yesterday, I made a short visit Drawing of a clock, carried by Jean-Baptiste For the only contest organized by the House of Breguet > >...  

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