5 Favorites from the Geneva Watch Days

The watch of the year, a record-breaking watch with the world's thinnest tourbillon, the best marine chronometer wristwatch, the coolest sport de luxe in a titanium case, and the most interesting cutting-edge versions of iconic watches: and all of them – part of the GWD-2020.

The daring watch companies that made it into the top ten were Bulgari and the Gérald Genta brand it has revived, as well as Breitling, Girard-Perregaux, Ulysse Nardin, De Bethune, H.Moser & Cie, MB&F, Urwerk and Bernhard Lederer. It is interesting that Breguet, Cartier, Seiko, Longines and other watch brands which did not take part in the Geneva Watch Days had nevertheless anticipated the surge in press coverage of watch-related news, and therefore tried to introduce their latest pieces before the event got underway.

Watch of the Year: Bernhard Lederer Central Impulse Chronometer 

This magnificent watch by brilliant independent watchmaker Bernhard Lederer has earned this title. The German who settled in Switzerland launched his legendary BLU (Bernhard Lederer Universe) watch brand at the very beginning of the 21st century, and now runs his own company called MHM (Manufacture de Haute Horlogerie et Micromécanique), which invents sleek complications for larger manufacturers.

His Central Impulse Chronometer model is one of the most precise mechanical watches, which combines the most pivotal principles conceived by Abraham-Louis Breguet and George Daniels (natural escapement with two escapement wheels), John Harrison's 's constant-force remontoire, and modern inventions by great manufactures Ulysse Nardin (Dual Direct escapement concept) and Jaeger-LeCoultre (the perfected "two-wing" movements in the Duomètre collection).

Like all things ingenious, the Central Impulse Chronometer has aimed for maximum simplicity, and is both practical and eye-catching. Its hand-wound 9012 caliber with a 38-hour power reserve essentially consists of two completely independent movements, each with its own mainspring barrel, gear train, escapement and constant-force remontoire.

An anchor invented by Lederer with an additional ruby in the middle is the connection that harmonizes the work of the two independent movements. It advances the moment of contact between the escapement wheel teeth and the balance wheel impulse pallet, minimizing the internal friction of the escapement, and averaging out the result of both escapements to an almost perfect arithmetic mean.

The remontoire d’egalité is the constant-force device for each gear train, equipped with its own short spiral spring, which is wound from the respective barrels through the gear train, and automatically released every 5 seconds. This how the module evens out the driving force directed to the balance in order to provide a perfectly uniform torque.

In this way, Lederer has achieved an almost perfectly smooth transfer of  energy, optimizing the geometry of the escapement parts and reducing the internal friction of the anchor mechanism to a minimum. Yet the most surprising thing is that the complicated 9012 caliber fits rather comfortably into a case which is 44 mm in diameter and 12.2 mm thick, i.e. a couple of millimeters thinner than a regular chronograph.

The pink-gold version has a quintessential classic look with an opaline dial. In contrast, the partially openworked dial on the white-gold version reveals the caliber from 6 to 12 o'clock. Of course, both models have a sapphire caseback. Each of the models are priced at 128,000 Swiss francs.

Best Marine Chronometer Wristwatch: Ferdinand Berthoud Chronomètre FB 2RE

Co-President of Chopard Karl-Friedrich Scheufele marked the fifth anniversary since the launch of the Ferdinand Berthoud brand named after the Swiss master watchmaker by releasing the long-awaited second marine chronometer wristwatch.

Ferdinand Berthoud, a native of Fleurier in the Swiss canton of Neuchâtel, was appointed master watchmaker to the French royal court to make what were the most advanced pieces of clockwork at the time — marine chronometers — without which explorers at sea would have been unable to calculate longitude. In 1770, Berthoud managed to create his Marine Clock No. 6, which was successfully tested by sailors at sea.

 The main criteria it needed to satisfy for the  French Navy was about cost, i.e. the clock had to be cheaper to make than the to build a ship, and it had to be possible to assemble it within the space of a few months rather than years. For this masterpiece, the watchmaker was awarded the title of Clockmaker and Mechanic by appointment to the French King and Navy. Thus, the Ferdinand Berthoud Chronomètre FB 2RE can be considered an anniversary watch.

When the first chronometer was released in 2015, it was equipped with a conventional lever escapement enclosed in a tourbillon, rather than a détente escapement. The second chronometer wristwatch named after Berthoud also uses fusee-and-chain transmission invented by Leonardo da Vinci, which ensures constant force for the escapement.

However, instead of a tourbillon, it has been furnished with another remontoire d'égalité in the form of huge balance wheel with an extra spring, which was invented in 1741 by the author of the first true marine chronometer – the great British clockmaker John Harrison (the first spring constant-force device was used in his H2 model, and was also used in Harrison's first "sea watch", now known as H4). The FB 2RE has held onto the lever escapement.

What sets the Chronomètre FB 2RE apart from the first model is its appearance. The octagonal case has been replaced with a classic round case, which is 44 mm in diameter and 14 mm thick. Its creators have also abandoned the regulator layout, and the hour, minute and jumping second hands are now all on the same central axis. As far as looks are concerned, the chronometer with its enamel dial is a serious classic watch for men, the kind typically worn at black-tie events. 

However, the wearer could feel incredibly tempted to flip the watch over and wear it with the caseback side facing up to show off the magnificent hand-wound caliber FB-RE.FC movement, which has a frequency of 18,000 vph and a 50-hour power reserve. Ten pieces have been released so far, in a white-gold case with a silver dial, and in a rose-gold case with a slate black dial. The model is priced at CHF 210,000.

World Record: Bulgari Octo Finissimo Tourbillon Chronograph

Back when the current Bulgari CEO Jean-Christophe Babin was still running TAG Heuer, he made it a tradition to delight fans of watchmaking every year with mind-blowing concepts, from a watch driven by belts instead of conventional wheel-driven clockwork, to balances that run at a frequency of 3,600,000 vph. Since arriving at Bulgari in 2014, he has been pursuing the goal of setting a new world record for the thinnest watch every year.

This year he presented the thinnest automatic tourbillon chronograph wristwatch. The case of the Octo Finissimo Tourbillon Chronograph is only 7.40 mm thick! It has therefore broken the previous record held by the 11.7 mm thick Vacheron Constantin Traditionnelle Tourbillon Chronograph for the thinnest chronograph-equipped tourbillon watch, along with the record previously held by the 13.2 mm Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Tourbillon Chronograph Openworked.

The most interesting thing is that the new automatic Bulgari caliber BVL 388 is no hybrid of the BVL 318, used in the world's flattest chronograph Octo Finissimo Chronograph GMT, which has not been combined with the BVL 288 from the world's thinnest automatic tourbillon, Octo Finissimo Tourbillon Automatic. It has an almost completely unique design.

The watch has what could be described as an non-flying standard tourbillon with a traditional bridge, and the chronograph works with its horizontal clutch lever and column wheel are not positioned above or below the tourbillon carriage, but are wrapped around it instead.

This original design is actually what made it possible to create the ultra-thin 3.5 mm Bulgari caliber BVL 388. The balance operates at a frequency of 21,600 vph with a 52-hour power reserve. The watch is wound by a peripheral rotor made of heavy hallmark 925 gold.

Another hidden innovation can be found in the push-piece functions on the side. The Octo Finissimo Tourbillon Chronograph is in fact a single push-piece chronograph. The stopwatch start, stop, and the reset function to return the hands to their original position are controlled by clicking the pusher at 2 o'clock three consecutive times.

The pusher on the side at 4 o'clock is only a crown-function selector. The crown is still responsible for winding the watch and correcting the position of the hands, but it cannot be pulled out, and its function is changed by pushing the piece at 2 o'clock. This has been done in order to keep the wind-up arbor design as thin as possible. The 42 mm case made of satin-polished sandblasted titanium is another miracle of micromechanics that costs 130,000 Swiss francs.

The Coolest Sport De Luxe: Greubel Forsey Balancier S

Frenchman Robert Greubel and Englishman Stephen Forsey who joined forces to form a watchmaking duo have also set their own world record of sorts by creating the coolest titanium sport de luxe watch. The two partners entered the sports watch category for the first time last year, introducing the Greubel Forsey GMT Sport. Their interpretation of what a sports watch is was admittedly rather loose. But the new Greubel Forsey Balancier S is the real deal! And there are no complications.

 It has the most fascinating 45-mm circular-ovoid titanium case, which changes shape when looked at from different angles, and can appear to be circular, ovular or even triangular. It is guaranteed to be a watch you will never get bored of looking at.

Its hand-wound manufacture movement has a 3-day power reserve. The remarkable 30-degree inclined in-house balance wheel system minimizes errors due to the effects of gravity with variable inertia, and has six gold mean-time screws.

At the same time, the double suspended arched and shockproof bridge holds an inclined gear train and curved central hour and minute hands, almost like Breguet's pare-chute. At 195 000 Swiss francs, this is certainly the most expensive watch in its class. Even the previous record-holder, the De Bethune DB28 Grand Sport, was only a third of what the Balancier S costs. Nevertheless, the 18 pieces are sure to find new owners.

Bridges of the Past Teleported into the Future

The amount of experimentation with the design of bridges currently taking place is so great that it could easily be considered a distinct trend in watchmaking, and one that is steadily growing bigger and stronger. This is what the Girard-Perregaux manufacture has essentially built its entire new collection on.

The Cosmos Infinity Edition are the watches we are talking about, which have a tourbillon, a zodiac calendar and a day/night indicator. The Free Bridge and Free Bridge Infinity Edition are also leading this trend, which are technically simpler, yet rather bold models in terms of design.

However, the most impressive pieces are the Quasar collection's fully transparent models in sapphire cases, the Quasar Light, and the Quasar Azure, which has made the biggest impression. The Quasar Azure is a highly modernized reincarnation of the classic Tourbillon with Three Bridges from the 1860s.

It has a 46-mm blue sapphire case, and the movement's skeletonized bridges are made of grade 5 titanium with the cutting-edge protective and decorative NAC treatment. It is wound by a micro-rotor, and has a tourbillon carriage with 80 components weighing a mere 0.25 g.

All of this comes with a price tag of 274,000 Swiss francs. Everything is so modern, yet premised on the solid traditions forged by the grand history of haute horlogerie. After all, only on bridges built in the glorious past can we transition into a magnificent future.