F.P. Journe

Hi Journe fans,

It's been awhile since i'v posted here, and as some of you may know by now I recently got my camera!

I would like to share with you all my watch for today, the Chronometre Souveraine Black Label Boutique Edition.

I don't think any explanation is needed for this beauty, and i apologise because my photos do not do it justice! And the weather was NOT helpful at all in taking photos without flash. Another gloomy Tokyo winter day.

Just would like to add though that this baby is officially the MOST accurate watch that i have in my possession! It just doesn't deviate from it's rate at all no matter what! The only sad bit about this is that it doesn'T have a stop seconds function, so i almost can't set it according with the standard time. But as Monsieur Journe once said, the hack function of a watch can actually cause a movement to become imprecise, which is the reason why he chose not to put them in any of his watches even though he could. So it's kind of ironic i would say, that if he had put in a hack function, it would in turn cause the CS to probably be not as precise as it is now. Yet if he don't put it ( which is the reality), our CSs are very very accurate, but we can't set it to a standard time.

Well, one can't have everything in life as they say! ( other than that, this watch virtually meets all my criteria for a perfect watch, Hand-wound, 40mm,  platinum cased and platinum pin buckle, even what i did not ask for, but a power reserve in such a small watch!)

Here's some shots for your viewing pleasure! Hope you enjoy them!

Cheers and have a great Wednesday!

Stephen

 

Thanks for the pictures!  This is my favorite model from F.P. Journe.  The movement is gorgeous!

Cheers,

Daos

Hi Stephen,

Patek Philippe also refuses to make watches with a stop-seconds (hacking) function, the argument being that the lubrication of the contact points with the pallets can become disturbed. Another factor to consider is that one would be abruptly stopping and starting the entire escapment! That is one reason I am not a fan of tourbillons, where this happens to the cage. But haven't PP just come out with a stop-second tourbillon, the first of its kind in the world?

However there are a few watches out there (Blancpain?) where hacking can be done without actually having to stop the escapement. Obviously these require more parts that become a complication in their own right, less well suited to a "simple" watch. Journe says that ANY complication will decrease the precision, and who am I to argue with that?

Actually I appreciate just a few seconds deviation on my CL. That means I can keep very close to atomic or radio time merely by changing the positions. That also spares any wear on the crown and the likelihood that dirt or humidity will enter the watch. One interesting point, my CL actually gains in a vertical position, loses in the horizontals. That doesn't happen in any other watch I know. Maybe I should let it run down completely and then wind it up completely. I think this is recommended by Journe for new owners. But then, it is so close to atomic time right now I am not sure I care to risk it becoming spot-on - but 30 secs off, if you get my drift!

I would be interested if you wind yours once a day or once every two days, or keep the power reserve set somewhere inbetween. A power reserve indicator can be very useful for checking performance.

My Lange RL was gaining about 0.4 secs per 24 hrs for the last two weeks, in any position it was left in, until I re-hacked it at noon on Jan. 31. Now it appears to be gaining twice as much! I'll try leaving it crown-down for a while - of course when not wearing it.

Why hacking? Because it is more a scientific observation watch than a "gentleman's watch". That's just what I like about it, and of course a whole lot more.

Winding a watch TWICE a day to see how well it performs is something I am prepared to try - but only at home! I think Roger Smith actually recommends this for his Series 2.

Not for lucky, lucky you!

Hearty congratulations,
Amery

Sorry all, I meant CS not CL, and the thread was meant to be placed right beneath Stephen's. Guess I'll put salt in my coffee the next time.

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1ts mistake though, were you referring to Lange when you said about the world's 1st stop tourbillon? LoL, it's not a Patek, but Lange's Cabaret Tourbillion!

It's interesting how you mentioned about watches that can hack without stopping the escapement, i'm never heard of that before, so could any pros out there who knows of the exact pieces provide some insight? That'll be an interesting item to look into.

I do wind my watch daily Amery, so it's in full torque in the morning.

Looks like your RL has got a very very good precision too! A few gains is really good already Amery!

Thanks my friend for your kind words, i definitely treasure my CS and RL very much!

Cheers

Stephen

Thanks to YOU, Stephen, for setting me straight on the Cabaret Tourbillon!

I am going to have to put more than salt, like Kikkoman or Tamari into my koohii . . . But never, never into the Single Malt just under my nose.

Yes, please let's somebody track down the Hackable Unstopables and tell us how they work - and how well.

Both the CS and the RL are such a pleasure to wind, that it's hard to think about the Octa Chrono and Calendrier with their five days of power reserve. I wind them daily about twenty, thirty turns by hand, by feel, because of the WARNING about winders from F.P. Journe. Do you have either of these? Sometimes I miss RDMs, which I find are especially useful for automatic watches with long power reserves if they are not worn daily. Taking notes on these would drive me crazier than I already am.

Talking about going crazy, I actually GAVE my Résonance to my business partner, whom I see every day. He has the fingers to wind it. Come to think about it - I miss winding it myself - and we both enjoy seeing each other's watches across the distance of a coffee (that word again!) table. We talk more about horology than almost any other subject, when the business (high-end audio) is not doing too well - like all the time A true horologicalo friend.

Happy to be a sidekick - read Assistant Deputy Sheriff ?- to the Platinum Boy. I suggest to the others here to check out your articles at "Time Out". They are a revelation and an introduction to the Noblest Metal.

Of course I am a bit envious of the boutique models in ruthenium, black mother of pearl, etc. But not in your case. I simply share in your enjoyment, and your particular enjoyment of this CS!

Now when do I get a camera ...

One wag (or wit) once said, "To eat is human, to digest divine." In my case - to photograph and upload.

Amery

I'm here to help if you need any more info!

Wow, you sure are a great friend! You really GAVE your watch to your partner!?

That's incredible, and i hope he will treasure and take extra good care of it!

No, i don't own any Octa's, because they are automatics and i only buy handaufzug my friend!

Glad to have you as a sidekick Amery - you shall be the Executive Platinum Representative(Deutschland)-, the world of Platinum is indeed very deep, so we still have a long way to go! If you happen to come across any information on anything made out of or that contains platinum, please add it on TimeOut!

Thanks for the kind words my EPR, and be hearing from you soon!

Tschuss

Platinum Boy Stephen

Hi Stephen,

According the German Chronos, 1- 2008*, only GO offers such a device in its Calibre 100.

I found this by our very own Marcus Hanke at the Glashütte Original Gallery via the Forum:

Aug 09, 2005,02:14 AM

GO ?Senator? series, presented in Basel 2005

Presentation of the new Senator series and cal. 100 (2005)

"Back to the corrector pushers: Instead of a simple hack second, the cal. 100 has a very sophisticated mechanism, allowing an instant reset of the sweep second to zero, as soon as the pusher is pressed. Upon release, the second hand will restart immediately. This mechanism, which in fact is an elaborate vertical clutch system, decouples the seconds pinion from the train and thus the balance keeps running during this process. This avoids the inevitable loss of amplitude and therefore accuracy, which happens when the balance wheel has to be stopped and restart again."

It would be interesting to search for user experience, since this one has been around for a while.

amerix

* There was also a very favorable article on the Panerai P2003, with tests!

In fact, now that you mention that is the piece, i recalled to have handled it before at the GO boutique here!

It's the B-uhr of GO am i correct ? That has a push botton at the 7 o'clock position, and when you push it down and hold it down, the central seconds hand stops, and when you release it then it moves again!

But alas, very unfortunately it's an automatic movement!

Thanks anyways!

Danke schone!

Stephen

Thanks right back to you, Stephen!

GO is way out of my territory. After examining a couple of threads at the GO Forum, not every Purist is convinced, at least not theoretically, about the zero-reset with the chrono-like clutch. More parts for second starts!

What is really eerie, my RL is doing - and doing to me - exactly what you have described. Mine is just under plus one second in any position, it would appear, but I am still testing.

My CS would have been my favorite timekeeper for "keepin' da time" - until I read that you were wearing the RL more frequently!

So I had to find out for myself - by buying one.

Do I regret it? Oh - no, no, no!

Do I like Pt? - yes, yes and more yesses. And especially so the finish (surprise?) on the RL - but does it have a Pt crown, like on the CS?

Before I get completely silly, when I wind the CS daily up to its limit, sometimes the indicator fails to reach the Z-Spot, becoming just a little bit lower on subsequent windings. That disturbed me until I let the CS run somewhere beyond the 56 hours marker and then was able to wind it even a touch beyond Zero. Now I am going to let it run down completely - empty, then start all over again, just to be sure that the twin barrels are in synch.

And thanks for making it all the way down to what I feared had become a dead thread.

By the way, if I want to play Captain Nemo, I have only to take the Antiqua out of its winding box. Sure its an auto (and in RG), but the winding experience - by hand - is unequalled to anything I have ever experienced, although the VH Goldpfeil comes very close.

Vianney's timepieces (?) are in another world altogether - and are even precise! I refuse to compare them with anything else - including watches.

That is my territory.

Great beats to you!
Amery

The crown on the CS is NOT executed from Pt, almost no watches in the market are, even those with Pt cases. It is in gold, in our cases white gold, just like the RL. As far as I know, the only watch ( more like pocket watch though) on the market today that has a Pt crown is the Platinum pocket watch from this year's Collection Excellence Platine by Vacheron Constantin. I unfortunately don't have a photo, but was offered the piece before it's official release at SIHH ( even after SIHH i don't seem to see anyone doing a report on it, but trust me it's there). It continues the tradition of VC's collection, this year by making more parts out of Pt, so in this piece, the dial, the hands (another 1st in the world if i am not mistaken), and the crown, & naturlich the case are crafted out of Pt. It retails for nearly US$70,000, at least from the Yen to US$ conversion right now.

I am very happy to hear that your love and enthusiams for Pt is growing, that's why i'm glad to have you on board! And no worries for continuing the thread, for me, i would try my best to answer each and everyone, no matter how new or old the thread is. I have to take my hat off to you for reviving this thread.

The RL just oozes out pure perfection, and the CS honestly doesnt come close to it in many respect. I often say that the CS is the best watch from an independent maker, but even it cannot beat the RL. You own both like i do, i'm sure if you examine them objectively, you will know what i'm talking about. That's why the RL sees more wrist-time on important occasions.

About the minor problem you find on your CS, that is common on virtually ALL CS, including mine, so if you want to see the Power reserve point to below the 56 hour mark, you have to wind it 1st to the maximum, even if the arrow stops already but you still can wind it, wind till it stops. So don't stop even when it's pointed at 0.

Then let it run down completely, it should go down below the 56 hour level this time. But that was what i used to do during my "running in" period, after that, you should actually wind it everyday to keep it at maximum torque for maximum accuracy.

You into Vianney huh? Well, i can't comment much about him because for me i have a strict policy about not having auto watches, so i'm not interested at all in them (oops). But if you enjoy them yourself, that's whats most important at the end of the day in this passion of ours.

Tschuss!

Stephen "Midnight Blue Nuclear Submarine Captain whose marine chronometer for the wrist is a Richard Lange"

 

 

 

A call to F.P. Journe confirmed that all crowns in the platinum series are made from WG, the reason being that Pt is too hard and brittle for the crown to sustain (shudder!) a sidewards shock. Maybe they found out the hard way!

The smooth plate with the two holes sure does LOOK like Pt though, as compared to, say, the lugs on THAT part of the case. Unless it is made from WG as well...

One of the obligations of a Purist is to combat rumors and disinformation, in this case coming from the Internet. Here's one of numerous examples offering a "F.P. Journe Tourbillon Souverain Mens Wristwatch Model: TS.PT.40.TB" with "Crown: Platinum, hand-worked, knurled". Another says "machine-turned", etc.

Hat's off to you, Stephen, except if I had a Borsalino - did once - I would put it on and tip the brim in your direction!

I'll search out the VC you mentioned. But snooker (a kind of billiards) is coming up soon, and I spend precious - but never wasted hours - watching it on TV. It has a lot to do with the precision and passion of watchmaking. It is also highly addictive!

Thanks for the other tips and infos.

By the way, which is your favorite Panerai?

Amery

Guten tag!

No suprise that many watch lovers sometimes don't even know what they are talking about, and not to mention the flippers who try to sell a watch they hardly know anything about, for the sake of money. Very sad to see that.

A Borsalino would look great my friend, and I thank you for the salute! Much honoured.

As for your question about my favourite Panerai, what do you refer to? Among the Panerais that i currently own? OR my most favourite piece among ALL Panerai every created, vintage, pre-V and Richemont?

Well just to answer you in advance,

1). AMong the panerais that i own, my favourite has got to be my 309.

2). Among all Panerais ever created, my favourite has to be the Ref. 2533, otherwise known as the VERY 1ST PANERAI every created!

 

Tschuss!

Stephen

Glad you liked it!

Cheers!

Stephen

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The hands are crafted out of white gold, and they are well, white/ as in silver!

Hope you get your CS soon!

Cheers

Stephen

How thick is this piece stephen, i would love to get this black dial thx for sharing with us.

This piece measures in at 8.6mm thick!

All the best in acquiring it my friend!

Stephen

Does the Richard Lange still get the majority of wrist time? I'm still waiting for my blue strap to arrive.

Warm regards,

iAn

Um actually my Radiomir Titanium ( of which you will notice on the Panerai forum that i have been doing quite a few posts on it recently) has seen the most wristtime of late, partially due to the fact that my kanojo is in love with it, and she likes me wearing it...

I know you aren'T interested in Pannies, but please, just go to that forum from time to time, and even right now, to check out some of the pieces, they are really really interesting, and come on, if they can even attract a guy like me who is into serious stuff like RL PLM, they must have some merit to be able to do that right? Who knows, even you may just fall into the virus... Never say never buddy!

Good luck on your strap Ian!

Cheers

Stephen

...

Just got my camera not too long ago!

Glad you enjoyed them!

Cheers

Stephen

I've been traveling a month and you can be sure that one of the watches I brought with me was the black label CS. It's not only stunning to look at as your photo's clearly capture but also incredibly precise, easy to wind, and appropriate to wear under any conditions (casual, formal, day, night, .... ) ! I really like the strap you chose. Reminds me of the strap that comes with a PP6000G which has the light grey stitching. Congrats on the great watch and thanks for sharing the photos!

Thanks for your kind words!

I'm glad that you enjoyed my humble photos!

The CS BLB is indeed one of those simple watches, but yet is superlative in virtually every way!

Thanks for looking!

Stephen

 

...captured the dial really well.
Tim

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Great photos of a great watch. Thanks for sharing.. Stephen. I'm green with envy. Cheers/Teetann

It's been awhile since i'v heard from you, how have you been doing?

Thanks for the comments, and for viewing it too!

Glad you enjoyed them!

Stephen

Fantastic piece.