The Lange Datograph is an icon and the Datograph Perpetual made it more drool worthy. Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon? Well, that goes into the realm of dream worthy!
The folks at Lange know one thing - how to make an exciting and beautiful chronograph movement. Add on a perpetual calendar and the beautiful 3D movement is stunning but the latest iteration where they added a Tourbillon to the movement adds a different dimension to the whole piece.
The layout of the dial is proportionate and surprisingly legible. The perpetual calendar also features a moon phase that is accurate for more than 100 years. And the instantaneously recognisable large date that is a hallmark of the Datograph series is also evident. The case is a very wearable 41.5mm.
Most brands would want the Tourbillon as their centre piece but the folks at Lange prefer the discreet approach preferring to keep the Tourbillon to the back.
But the Datograph is always about the movement. ALWAYS!
The column wheel chronograph movement is more than 700 parts and comes with a diamond end stone.
The Datograph movement is already an impressive movement. With the Tourbillon at the back, my attention was drawn immediately to the Tourbillon. Impressive indeed! There is a lot to like about the movement - the blue screws and the rubies add a splash of colour to the three dimensional hand wound movement.
The power reserve is around 50 hours and this example is a prototype - 000/100. The platinum case beauty is made in a limited edition of 100 pieces. The diamond end stone is located above the Tourbillon. Lange made history when they unveiled the Cabaret Tourbillon - the first Tourbillon which could achieve a stop second. What this means is that when the crown is pulled, the Tourbillon cage will stop and allow the time setting to be more accurate. With the traditional Tourbillon, the stop second feature was not possible until the Cabaret Tourbillon was released. The same feature is available on the Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon.
What makes the Datograph special is the jumping counters - instant jumps. And the Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon is no different. All the indicators of the perpetual calendar and the date changes instantaneously which is a technical feat in itself. Because of the gear arrangements and the perpetual calendar modules, most perpetual calendars will have their indicators change between 10pm and 4am with the watch fully "correct" by 4am the next day. But not so with the Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon which jumps instantaneously - not many movements are able to achieve this.
Technical feat aside, the Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon is an incredible timepiece. I am sure this timepiece will feature in many collectors' "Dream Watch" list. It sure is on mine! If only I could afford one.
Thanks to Patrick at the Lange Boutique at Ion Orchard for arranging the pieces availability and also to Gaetan Guillosson for hosting the event. Watch out for more reports on some other awesome Lange timepieces.
P.S. - I have been looking at the timepiece over and over again and it is just so easy to overlook the chronograph function of this Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon. The perpetual calendar feature on the dial is so complete that one can be easily forgiven when they overlook the column wheel chronograph that the Dato is so famed for.
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