Sunday, December 17, 2017

The Vacheron Constantin Historiques Triple Calendrier - Winner Through and Through

The folks at Vacheron Constantin released two (or four depending on how you view it) versions of the Historiques Triple Calendrier in the form of the 1942 and the 1948.

The 1942 comes in steel and with 2 colour variants - the blue and the burgundy. Featured here is the burgundy version of the 1942.

By the time I got to the boutique, the blue version was already sold - and I can understand why. The pictures alone sets the heart fluttering - I love blue shades. Anyway, I digress.

Inspired by the original reference 4240, the Historiques Triple Calendrier pays tribute to timepieces from the 40s. The difference between the two variants are in the calendar display - either in burgundy or blue.

The Historiques Triple Calendrier 1942 displays the time along with a pointer date and the Day and month being displayed through a window.

The timepiece comes encased in a steel case of diameter of 40mm and with a two toned dial reminiscent of the watches of that era. Very elegant and vintage feel to the timepiece.

Being a triple calendar means that this is not an Annual Calendar or a Perpetual Calendar. This also means one has to adjust Day and Month window come those months with less than 31 days. This is done via the pusher at 10 and 2.

Next up is the Historiques Triple Calendrier 1948 which is encased in a pink gold case and also comes with two variants - one in burgundy and the other in blue. The original reference 4240L was released in 1948, hence the name.

The big difference between the 1942 and the 1948 is the presence of the Moonphase indication found in the 1948. Not just any ordinary Moonphase but one that is highly accurate. This is the blue version of the 1948.

The burgundy version is somewhat more attractive IMHO. Most Moonphase timepieces have the disc in dark shade of blue - to reflect the night sky... burgundy? This is a first I think. Something different. And the date numerals and day & month display in burgundy certainly blends well with the pink gold case too.

The windows of the the 1948 has a pink gold rim giving it a more distinct design. The 1948 comes as a limited edition of 200 pieces of each variant.

Now for the movement - the Calibre 4400.

Both the 1942 and 1948 uses the same base calibre, the manual winding Calibre 4400. The version in the 1942 is named Calibre 4400QC while the 1948 comes with the Calibre 4400 QCL, the L referring to the Lunar (Moon) module. Both beats at 28,800 vph and and has a 65 hours power reserve.

Personally, I prefer the Historiques Triple Calendrier 1942 for a couple of reasons - pricing being the main reason. The 1942 in steel is listed at S$28,600 (inclusive of GST). A great proposition for a Vacheron Constantin. Secondly, the watch feels right... The whole package works for me - the clean two toned dial, the Day & Month window, Arabic numerals and the pointer date - they come together as a very handsome package. For someone like me who needs reading glasses, pointer date (or large date) is preferred as a normal window date is too small.

But that is not to say that I don't like the 1948 - pretty in pink! The burgundy combo works for me - something different. List is S$51,300 inclusive of GST. These are traveling pieces and the straps on the 1948 comes with dark brown croc rather than those seen here.