Greubel Forsey doubles the feat with the Double Balancier à Différentiel Constant
After years of meticulous research, Greubel Forsey has successfully outwitted the limits of timekeeping in crafting the new Double Balancier à Différentiel Constant
Since its inception in 2004, Greubel Forsey has been rocking the watchmaking industry by making a name for creating some of the most outrageously complex tourbillon watches the watch world has ever seen. This 2016, Robert Greubel, Stephen Forsey, and their team of watchmaking experts have redefined again the limits of chronometry in the latest novelty that Greubel Forsey presented at the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie (SIHH): The Double Balancier à Différentiel Constant.
It is a remarkable piece of horology that features an exclusive movement with two oscillators viewable within a half-circle aperture by the dial. Taking a cue from the Baselworld 2009-release Double Balancier Incliné which boasted a fixed oscillator, the new Double Balancier à Différentiel Constant has now two inclined balance wheels – previously positioned one above the other – that occupy distinct and separate three-dimensional spaces to optimise performance in stable positions. The two balance wheels are set on two separate escapement platforms, each of which comprises 71 components. These platforms have been inclined and installed in a way that they are each at a 30° angle with the plane of the movement plate. This new configuration is responsible for improved chronometric performance, while the Differentiel Spherique Constant cuts the margin of error in half thus providing more steady amplitude.
Aesthetically, this timepiece presents an “augmented” architecture – both understated and yet complex. The eye-catching wide aperture with powerful three-dimensional aspects extensively reveals the heart of the mechanism. With the GF04 hand-wound calibre guaranteed to provide 72 hours of power reserve, this extraordinary timepiece has 285 components that include nickel silver frosted plates and bridges as well as a silvery dial with long and generously proportioned hour and minute hands end in large, Super-LumiNova coated tips. Meanwhile, special functions, such as the chronometer, are placed strategically on smart areas on and beneath the half-crescent backdrop.
The Double Balancier à Différentiel Constant stands out by virtue of the extreme attention paid to its finishing, with each and every component on the front and back have been truly painstakingly finished and decorated. These include the three-dimensional, geometric lugs and the raised, polished engraving on a hand-punched background.
Further deeper into details would show an 18-carat white gold 43mm-wide and 13.38mm-thick case with black alligator leather strap and an engraved deployant buckle in 18k white gold to match.
A handsome fitting timepiece on a gentleman’s wrist or a collector’s safe, this unique edition is comprised of 33 pieces in white gold, which will be followed by other, non-limited versions.
