Speake-Marin London Chronograph Triple Date (Price, Pictures and Specifications)
The Vintage Collection is now part of Speake-Marin DNA to revive old iconic movements from the past. For its latest novelty, Speake-Marin tackles an incredible movement from the fifties: the Valjoux 88.
The use of vintage movements is indeed part of Speake-Marin’s strategy to develop and to exclusively work with exceptional movements.
For this new limited edition, Speake-Marin pays tribute to one of the most loved chronograph models of the 20th century: the Valjoux 88 Calibre. It will please the watch connoisseurs eager to see one of their favourite chronographs Calibre in a new timepiece. The Valjoux 88 is often seen as the finest manually-wound chronograph ever, thanks to its column-wheel and its three counters.
Inspired by the Valjoux 23 base calibre, the Valjoux 88 Calibre appeared in 1953 with 13 lignes and offered the perfect layout for great chronograph legibility:
· Two pushers
· Three subdials: one for real-time seconds, 30-minute chronograph, and moon-phase indicators
In addition, the timepiece has a triple date complication:
· Week day displayed in the counter
· Month displayed in the counter
· Day of the month displayed thanks to the black outlined hand with a SuperLuminova layer.
The sublime Valjoux 88 has been very popular thanks to its pushers equipped with column-wheels, which brings a unique softness when activated. This timepiece has a hand-wound mechanical movement.
Although these calibres were produced in large quantities in the second part of the 20th century, these movements are very rare nowadays. The movement components used for the London Chronograph were stored in a safe for many years and it took time for Speake-Marin to find working pieces. Once checked, the components have been assembled, decorated and controlled within our Speake-Marin workshop near La-Chaux-de-Fonds.
For these two new limited editions, the London Chronograph is housed in a 42mm titanium case with a three-dimensional dial. The dial is indeed in three dimensions with two floating black counters – 30-minute counter at 3 o’clock and real time 60-second counter at 9 o’clock – and a moon phase counter at 6 o’clock.
The chronograph function can be easily read thanks to the red colour code, which you can find on the following elements:
· Hours counter at 6 o’clock
· Minutes counter at 3 o’clock
· Central second hands.
Two dial versions are available: one in blue and one in light brown. Both have vintage looks to remind us of the free spirit from the car racing world of the fifties. The red colour of the chronograph function is indeed a tribute to sport racing counters, while the silver colour is used for the Hours Minutes Seconds function.
Last but not least, the subdial at 6 o’clock gives a double indication: 12-hour chronograph function with the red hand, and a Moon phase indication in the two hemispheres.
This collection is a 30-piece limited edition.
Speake-Marin London Chronograph Triple Date
Technical specifications:
· References: Blue: 514208010 | Beige: 514208050
· Movement: Valjoux 88, mechanical
· Indications: Hours and Minutes, Triple date, Chronograph, Moon phase
· Power Reserve: 44 hours
· Case: Iconic Piccadilly case in titanium (grade 5); Front sapphire crystal, treated with anti-reflective coating
· Diameters: 42 mm
· Water Resistance: 3 bar (30 metres)
· Dial: Black counters; Blue or beige indexes
· Hands: Heart-shaped silvered hands
· Strap & Buckle: Blue or beige Nubuk leather; Folding buckle in titanium
The price for the Speake-Marin London Chronograph Triple Date is CHF 20,950 excl. tax and is limited edition of 15 pieces for each reference.
