The Admiral 45 Openworked Tourbillon

From Corum -

Courtesy of Corum

This is the latest, and I have to admit rather exciting iteration of Corum's Admiral collection.

The case measures 45 mm in diameter and is of carbon with gold inclusions.  The movement is listed as Corum's CO 298.  It is self-winding (automatic) and the complications include power reserve, a 3 minute counter and flying tourbillon (open worked).  

Limited to only 48 pieces.

ADMIRAL 45 OPENWORKED TOURBILLON Limited Edition: 48 piece(s)

MOVEMENT
Movement number  -  CO 298

Winding system: Automatic

Functions: Hour & Minute • Flying tourbillon • Power reserve • 3 minutes counter 
Power reserve: 72 hours

Frequency:  3 Hz, 21’600 vph 

Dimension:  12 1/2’’’ 

Rubies:  37

DIAL
Colours:  Black
Material:  Brass
Distinctive features:  5N gold-toned brass flange

CASE
Shape:  Dodecagonal 

Dimension:  45 mm

Thickness:  14.30 mm

Case material:  Carbon with gold inclusions

Bezel material:  Carbon with gold inclusions

Crown material:  5N 18k rose gold 

Crystal:  Sapphire crystal with anti-reflective treatment
Back type:  Open back cover in titanium grade 5 

with black PVD treatment with glare proof sapphire crystal

Water-resistance:  100 meters / 10 ATM

HANDS
Hour and minute:

Dauphine-variant • 5N gold-toned • Skeleton • Black superluminova

BRACELET
Material:  Bi-material

Interhorn/Buckle: 23/20 mm

Buckle type:  Triple folding clasp

Buckle material:  Titanium grade 5 with black PVD treatment

The Admiral AC-ONE 45 Chronograph

From Corum -

Courtesy of Corum

This one is a bit special, and might have flown in under the radar for some of us when it first dropped.

The case is in the eponymous Admiral Dodecagonal shape. It is of titanium and measures - you guessed it, 45 mm in diameter.  It is rated to be water resistant to 300 meters. 

You will also notice the bracelet is also of titanium, ant it has a pretty dope pattern engraved in the middle links. I am assuming that it is meant to replicate the detail on the dial, which is described as “Grenadier fendu”. Now as my friends Sven and Rod will attest, French is not my strong suit, but Google Translate informs me that this translates as "split pomegranate". I encourage anyone out there to offer a more accurate definition. Having said that, I do like pomegranate, and in truth kinda' like that idea for a naming convention.

The movement is the CO 132 which provides hours, minutes, seconds, date and a chronograph.  As the dial will attest, a try-compax with the date between the 4 o'clock and 5 o'clock indices.

Here are the pertinents -

ADMIRAL AC-ONE 45 CHRONOGRAPH

MOVEMENT

Movement number:
CO 132

Winding system:
Automatic

Functions:
Chronograph • Hour & Minute • Second • Date

Power reserve:
42 hours

Frequency:
4 Hz, 28'800 vph

Dimension:
12 1/2'''

Rubies:
39

DIAL
Colors:
Silver-colored

Material:
Brass

Distinctive features:
Hourly nautical pennants transferred on the flange

HANDS
Hour and minute:
Dauphine-variant • Rhodium-coated • Skeleton • Black superluminova

BRACELET
Material:
Titanium

Interhorn/Buckle:
23/20 mm

Buckle type:
Triple folding clap

Buckle material:
Titanium grade 5

The Admiral 42 Automatic Bronze

From Corum -

Courtesy of Corum

The case is of bronze and measures 43 mm in diameter. Water resistant to 50 meters. The movement is the CO 395.  Hours, minutes, small seconds and date at 3 o'clock.

Available in blue or green.

The ADMIRAL AC-ONE 45 Chronograph

This is a new take on the ADMIRAL, the ADMIRAL AC-ONE 45 Chronograph, from Corum -

Courtesy of Corum

Courtesy of Corum

Courtesy of Corum

Courtesy of Corum

Here is all of the info, by way of the press release just as it was received:

The new urban warrior unleashed

Corum injects modernity and athleticism into its Admiral collection

The Admiral is one of the pillars of Corum’s heritage. Unveiled in 1960, five shortyears after the brand’s creation, it embodies the Swiss watchmaker’s idea ofmaritime-inspired watchmaking. Although it has always been loyal to its artistic fibre, it has never been afraid to set sail for distant shores. This year, it gives its Admiral AC-One 45 Chronograph a facelift so as to modernise the collection while lending it an urban sportiness.

First introduced into the brand stable as the Admiral’s Cup AC-One 45 Chronograph in 2013, the masculine-looking watch has always been a combination of power, elegance and performance with a huge dose of inspiration from the sailing world. The new Admiral AC-One 45 Chronograph retains the essence of its sporty predecessor except for a few minor tweaks. The“60” hour marker at 12 o’clock has been replaced by the Corum key and brand logo, which have been slightly enlarged to give better brand visibility. Another benefit from this minor design modification is the introduction of more breathing space on the dial—the watch face of the previous incarnation felt busier and with this small change, the Admiral AC-One 45 Chronograph looks sleeker and more contemporary.

Corum also worked on the case shape of the watch. While it follows strictly to the case shape of the legendary Admiral watch, there is a marked difference—the Admiral AC-One 45 Chronograph features a more angular dodecagonal bezel compared to its predecessor, which boasted more rounded corners in a bid to create a more sophisticated aesthetic. For the new variant, Corum has also included two titanium inserts between the bezel and case so as to offer the option of playing with colours and materials—the possibility of mixing and matching is boundless and is something that the Swiss watchmaker will experiment with in the future. The result lends a more powerful and athletic presence on the wrist, which also makes the watch highly suitable for the rigours of everyday wear.

For the chronograph display, Corum stuck to the same tri-compax arrangement but what has changed is the dial design. The watch face comeswith a “Grenadier fendu” motif, which is a unique pattern worked on by a teamof experienced designers back at the Corum manufacture in La-Chaux-du- fonds. This also means that the dial is only unique to the brand. And instead of monochromatic dials as with the predecessor, the Admiral AC-One 45 Chronograph comes with black or white dials with contrasting sub-dials. On the former are white sub-dials framed by either white or rose gold rings, while the latter features black sub-dials encircled by white or rose gold rings.

While the previous versions were offered with either the rubber strap or metal bracelet, the new Admiral AC-One 45 Chronograph comes with a vulcanised rubber strap that features a triple folding clasp, which replaces the old tongue buckle. Corum will also offer the watch with either a titanium or rose gold bracelet.

The 12 nautical pennants, which are synonymous with the Admiral collection, remain on the flange as hour markers albeit without the bright colours so as to allow the watch to look sleek and modern. Powering the chronograph is the highly reliable Calibre CO 132, a self-winding movement that beats at 4 Hertz and boasts 42 hours of power reserve, 100m water resistance and decorative finishes specific to Corum. Turn the watch over to appreciate the finer details and finishing through the screwed-down open-worked caseback.
The Admiral AC-One 45 Chronograph is available in 2 dial colours of black or white. The black dial version comes available in either 5N 18kt rose gold or titanium grade 5 with black PVD treatment; while the white dial is available in titanium grade 5 or 5N 18kt rose gold. All versions come with a sapphire crystal with anti-reflective treatment, which makes reading time a cinch from any angle.

While the Admiral AC-One 45 Chronograph may not have undergone major modifications, it is important for the watchmaker to tweak an icon to suit modern tastes and offer product longevity to the end-consumers. With these changes, the chronograph will now speak to a wider audience that run the gamut from sailing enthusiasts to sports watch lovers to corporate eagles looking for fuss-free horological cred on the wrist.

The Admiral Legend 42

From Corum -

Courtesy of Corum

The case is stainless steel and measures 42 mm in diameter, 9.5 mm thick.  Sapphire front crystals fore and aft.  Water resistance is rated to 50 meters.

Courtesy of Corum

The movement is the CO 395.  Automatic with hours, minutes, sub seconds (at 6 o'clock) and date.

Introducing Karl Breitner Watches

As we are gearing up towards BaselWorld it seemed like a good opportunity to introduce some of you to a brand you may not know - Karl Breitner.

Courtesy of Karl Breitner

This is the Admiral, a 42 mm chronograph powered by ETA's 7750, and very reasonably priced at 1785 €.  

For those of you unfamiliar with Karl Breitner, their production/assembly is based in Slothurn, Switzerland.  They offer six different product families ranging from inexpensive quartz to this self-winding chronograph.


www.karlbreitner.com