Ornatus-Mundi[Zenith]
7136
The L-Evolution Collection
May 27, 2012,12:31 PM
This recent addition to the brand’s portfolio is the prime reason why many think Blancpain has deviated from its identity while others applaud the fresh wind blowing. The former sentiment has been ‘helped’ by a slightly awkward introduction (remember, the Lamborghini watch was at one time placed within the L-Evolution collection and another time presented as a separate line).
L-Evolution Chronographe Flyback À Rattrapante:
It is the Lamborghini watch that takes the centre stage with a new Split Seconds watch.
Based on last year’s novelty with the carbon fibre bezel it takes the Lamborghini design cues…
… and adds the absolutely appropriate (i.e. in a racing context) complication of a split seconds chronograph…
… and a big date:
Design-wise it’s the best incarnation of the Lamborghini watch so far, and this is ironically due to the well-implemented addition of the instantaneously changing big date. Why ‘ironically’? Well if you look close its designed like a digital watch (and it changes within a fraction of a second so its ‘digitalness’ is even amplified).
On the back you can admire a rotor that resembles the wheel of a Lamborghini car:
Below you can see – well, not that much:
The Cal. 69F9 base-movement is the tried and trusted Piguet (oh, sorry, Blancpain!) movement that has received a well-dosed make-up treatment with blacking and roughened surfaces:
“Numerous stages were involved in achieving this result. The parts have been coated with a beadblasted two-tone material (5N red gold-plated or rhodiumed depending on the finish); while the straight graining on the NAC bridges features the anthracite appearance characteristic of this treatment.” [Press Kit]
Finally, also the buckle deserves some attention, its nicely designed with a carbon inlay:
Blancpain also offers a red gold version that presents a nice contrast even down to the movement. Unfortunately we could not see that one:
If you put the watch on the wrist its clear why we liked it: Its well balanced and almost a quiet ocean amongst its L-Evolution siblings:
L-Evolution Carrousel Saphir Volant Une Minute:
Blancpain really broke new ground with the Carrousel watch that got its finest implementation last year with the mystical Saphir version. The watch had its little secret with the extremely tiny ‘JB’ printing on the sapphire disks that served as movement plates. This year, Blancpain continued the secrecy with an excursion into the fauna:
Like the other version also here the unique carrousel is set apart from the remainder of the movement and masterfully accentuated by the transparent sapphire:
However, life is not all that positive here as the poor carrousel is trapped in a spider’s net, better visible from the back (note the blued inlays that kind of resemble the technique used by Hermès):
But where’s the spider? We need to get our loupe out!
Still not close enough? Well, there you go:
It’s a fun piece indeed and beautifully crafted. However, we can’t help to give it only a second place behind the full-sapphire Carrousel of last year. Also, we think the spider is somehow like an afterthought and does not really fit to the watch as a whole. Does this help to raise the awareness for the carrousel complication?