The sole legitimate gripe I feel merits the demonstration of the motion is that it only appears to take up 60 percent or so of their caseback. It’s typical for high heeled watch collectors to have cases sized around the motion (in this case the instance is 43mm wide and the movement is 33mm wide), instead of moves put into cases which are larger than necessary. This is a tricky discussion point because in the end of the day, Chopard (along with pretty much any other watch company), doesn’t wish to be limited in how they size cases based on the movement dimensions. With that said, there is a distinctive appeal in seeing a sapphire crystal display caseback on the back of the watch that takes up virtually the entire area — compared to situations in which the case size and movement do not necessarily appear to match. Again, this is a small stage that enabled me to simply discuss the subject. I really don’t think anyone will avoid purchasing this otherwise good watch due to the movement to case size ratio.A discussion of the Chopard L.U.C 96.13-L mechanical motion should begin with the fact that it is both COSC Chronometer certified for accuracy, in addition to certified with the Geneva Seal (Poinçon de Genève). The former is a more basic certification of movement performance and precision, whereas the Seal of Geneva is somewhat more complex in what it asserts about a wristwatch. In its most modern form, the Seal of Geneva in precisely the same time attests to the fact that a motion was created from the Canton of Geneva, Switzerland, abides by specific decoration criteria, and also conforms to certain performance criteria. In lots of ways, having COSC certification as well as the Geneva Seal is somewhat redundant. Though with both, Chopard has to include additional bragging rights to every piece, while printing “Chronometer” on the Lunar One’s dial.
Two years ago Chopard unveiled its first in-house, manually wound chronograph movement in the L.U.C 1963. True to the traditions of the L.U.C line – the jeweller’s range of high horology watches with admirable movements – the movement inside was impressively put together. Now it has received a major upgrade with the new L.U.C Perpetual Chrono.
The L.U.C Perpetual Chrono is powered by the calibre 3.10-L, essentially the chronograph movement from the L.U.C 1963 wristwatch with the addition of a perpetual calendar mechanism. Both complications are polar opposites – the perpetual calendar measures time in decades while the chronograph is concerned with mere hours and minutes – but together they form a complication cocktail that’s traditionally included in the repertoire of high-end watchmakers.
A sapphire case back reveals the intricacies of the chronograph movement, including the impeccably finished components. Though the movement decoration is traditional and elaborate, the chronograph is constructed in an efficient, modern manner.
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| The rear of the movement (left), and the side that is hidden under the dial. |
The power transmission mechanism of the chronograph, for example, is a vertical clutch that allows the chronograph to run continuously without affecting timekeeping. That contrasts with the more traditional horizontal clutch, found in most high-end chronograph movements, which creates friction that eventually slows the movement.
Precious but socially responsible
The dial is a disc of solid gold, given a radiating guilloche and coated a dark grey. It features an oversized date display at 12 o’clock, one of the key features of Chopard’s perpetual calendar mechanism, and the other calendar functions in sub-dials at three, six and nine o’clock.
A large 45 mm in diameter and some 15 mm thick, the 18k white gold case of the L.U.C Perpetual Chrono bears the Fairmined certification, meaning the raw gold was sourced from socially responsible mining cooperatives in Latin America.
Pricing
The L.U.C Perpetual Chrono is a limited edition of 20 pieces, with a price of S$121,890. That’s equivalent to about US$85,000.