Maître Cabinotier retrograde armillary tourbillon

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Maître Cabinotier retrograde armillary tourbillon - Vacheron Constantin
Four patent applications have been filed for this unique model.

The Maître Cabinotier retrograde armillary tourbillon model was produced by the three master watchmakers who created Ref. 57260  - the most complicated watch ever made, unveiled last September. It contains two of the complicated features of the superwatch: the armillary tourbillon and the double retrograde indication.

The retrograde function governs the hours and minutes while the tourbillon revolves on two axes and has a spherical balance-spring.

Double retrograde system

The manually wound calibre 1990 movement developed and manufactured by Vacheron Constantin features retrograde hours and minutes indications with instant flyback. The hands flick back to zero at such a speed that the special attention is needed to ensure a precise indication and such lightweight and resistant materials as the titanium used in the hands.

Armillary tourbillon

The elegantly structured armillary tourbillon operates as asphere perpetually rotating on two axes under a sapphire crystal dome at 9 o'clock. It’s called an armillary tourbillon because it is based on an armillary sphere like the one incorporated in an astronomic clock made by the French clockmaker, Antide Janvier, in the 18th century. The spherical balance spring, which was first developed by Jacques-Frédéric Houriet in 1814, is particularly rare in today’s watches. The shape ensures the concentric development of the spring and consequently the isochronism of the balance wheel. The tourbillon carriage, made of lightweight aluminium alloy, incorporates Vacheron Constantin’s Maltese Cross emblem, which forms up every 15 seconds as the tourbillon rotates. This ongoing spectacle may be admired every 30 seconds through a sapphire crystal opening on the side of the case.

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High-precision movement

The armillary tourbillon achieves remarkable timekeeping precision. It is fitted with a new type of escapement, developed and made by Vacheron Constantin that has the escape wheel and lever in silicon with diamond pallet stones for resistance to wear and long life. The escapement, made as lightweight as possible by the use of high-tech materials, contributes significantly to the performance of this watch, which greatly exceeds the requirements of the Swiss Official Chronometer Testing Institute (COSC).

Contemporary styling and finish

Another feature that makes the Maître Cabinotier retrograde armillary tourbillon watch original is the modern styling applied to the architecture and finish of the movement. The calibre 1990 is electro-plated with an NAC treatment in a dark anthracite colour creating a mirror-polished effect.

On the dial side the movement displays its modern architecture with sharply cut bridges tempered by a sunburst satin finish and Geneva stripes. The back presents a more conventional look, finished with Geneva stripes. The painstaking work of chamfering all the edges took more than 130 hours.

The indications are shown on two dials that partially cover the baseplate so as to reveal the outlines and contemporary finish of the movement. On the right, the retrograde minutes and hours hands describe a semicircle over a sunburst satin finish punctuated by applied white-gold hour markers and a black minutes scale. Placed symmetrically, the tourbillon carriage carries the seconds pointer around a scale on a silvered disc. The Poinçon de Genève hallmark is exceptionally also engraved on the dial side above the inscription “Armillary Tourbillon”.

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Four patents are pending for the calibre 1990 inventive features

1. The instantaneous retrograde system

The minutes cam alone determines when the hands for the minutes and the hours fly back. The retrograde action of both hands is thus synchronised at noon and at midnight.

2. The collet

The collet fixing the spring to the balance staff is made in lightweight titanium to improve the isochronism of the balance.

3. The multi-carriage tourbillon

The tourbillion is made up of two carriages, one inside the other. As they rotate they form a Maltese Cross every 15 seconds.

4. The lever

The silicon lever can be fitted with movable pallet stones so that the watchmaker can adjust them as in a conventional pallet lever. The diamond coating of the lever makes it stronger and more resistant to wear, while the friction between the fork and impulse pin is markedly reduced.

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