Independents

For years I've been hoping for a larger sized Lemania 2310/2320, to fill out a contemporary watch case. So I'm starting as a huge fan of this watch. The finishing is adequate for 40,000 of today's CHF, but the concept of a larger movement is the star feature. There are some details that need to be corrected though.

As we have seen with the Montblanc Villeret Tachydate, the date register can always be larger, in order to read off the specific date. Unlike a 30 minute register, 31 days can't be easily divided, so numbers are necessary. I'm somewhat pained by the scale cutting off the entirety of the chronograph subseconds register. For me, a version free of this register (and the associated button) would be welcome.

The biggest issue is of course the 1/5th seconds scale, which works with a 2.5 Hz or 5 Hz movement. For a classic chronograph like this, I want the designers to really put themselves in the shoes of somebody who was designing a chronograph to be used as a stopwatch, when better digital alternatives were not common. A scale that did not match the movement's operating frequency would not be a hallmark of a premier product from an industry leading manufacturer, regardless of whether the precise scale was actually needed for most day-to-day measurements (e.g. manufacturing counts, cooking a steak). The lack of attention to detail may manifest itself in more serious ways, such as movement reliability.

Vacheron had the same issue with the platinum Cornes de Vache*, which was corrected in subsequent versions. For this reason, I'm confident Manufacture Fleury will correct the mistake and I look forward to seeing more great chronographs from this promising brand.

* In my opinion, the modern Cornes de Vache is steel remains a reference piece in the 25,000 - 50,000 CHF price range for classic chronographs. Correct scales, good legibility, beautiful case, well finished (and modernized) movement.

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