Blancpain

jkingston
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A Tale of Moon Phases. (lots of photos)

I have a particular fondness for Blancpain's, now classic, complete calendar moon phase watches.  This is almost certainly because my first "serious" watch was a 34mm calendar moon phase watch that I bought some 18 years ago.  Mine was in yellow gold with a yellow gold bracelet.  When I first saw the watch I was blown away by its beauty, complexity and classicism (even if I did not then have a good sense of what was or was not classic).  Sadly, I sold the watch many years ago when I decided that gold bracelet watches belonged on the wrists of football coaches and like and not serious watch collectors.  Compounding the stupidity of that decision, I did not have a digital camera in those years and have no photos of this first Blancpain.

Nonetheless the lure of the Blancpain complete calendar/moon phase layout (with the day of the week and month in windows, the date shown in an outer ring, and moon at 6 o'clock) remained strong and over the years I have acquired a long string of these watches.

After that first 34mm moon phase, next to arrive was a rose gold, limited edition half hunter Blancpain.  This watch had a lot of improvements over the first version, principal among them was a 4 day power reserve thanks to the introduction of the 1150 base caliber.  Again, I failed to photograph the watch (before I sold it to a friend), so have to make do with this photo of a white gold non-limited edition, half hunter moon (the limited edition had romans on the dial, whereas this version has arabics). 

Next I found a weekend watch--a military dial version of the complete calendar moon phase.  This one was purchased from an AD in Paris, which you might gleen from seeing that the watch "speaks" French with its day of week and month indications.  What I love about this piece is the fact that you really have to look at it closely to see that it is something more than a standard time only military dial watch.

If you see a trend here it is that the same indications in the same arrangement can have such diverse visual personalities.  My next in the series came in 2003, which was the limited edition Anniversary moon, which celebrated the 20th anniversary of Blancpain's 1980s introduction of moon phases.  Two limited editions were offered, one in rose gold, the other in platinum.  I opted for rose gold.

The next to come along was not for me but my son.  For his college graduation watch, I picked the Leman Moon Phase.  Again a unique aesthetic for the watch, but with a new substantive twist.  This version of the moon phase was the first to offer Blancpain's patented under lug correctors.  This is a neat feature.  No messy correctors on the side of the watch.  No need to fumble for a tool to set the indications as the correctors can be actuated with a finger tip.  Indeed, when I gave him the watch in his dorm room we set it with our fingers.

So all of this history with the complication builds up to today's chapter.  My Christmas present was the new Blancpain L-evolution Phase de Lune 8 Jours.  The base line for this watch is the same--a complete calendar moon phase with the indications arranged in Blancpain's classic way--a lineage going back to the early 80s.  But after those words are out of your mouth, everything else changes.  The aesthetics are vastly different and the movement is from the ground up entirely new.

Start with the movement, the caliber 66R9.  This for the first time brings an 8 day power reserve to this complication.  As far as I know, this is the only watch in the world offering both an 8 day power reserve and a complete calendar/moon phase.  Blancpain left no stone unturned in the movement.  It has a titanium free sprung balance with gold regulation screws, three main spring barrels, extra large jewels, a new form of decoration called cote parabolique and an entirely new calendar mechanism.  Owners of complete calendar moon phase watches know that you cannot set the calendar indications whenever you want.  The manufacturer always stipulates that there are certain times when the indications cannot be set.  This is because during certain times the mechanism is engaged in making a daily change and manual adjustment during that time would damage the movement.  So we have all developed the habit of checking the owners manual to see when an adjustment is permitted.  That ritual goes away with the 66R9.  You can adjust any indication at any time whether or not the watch is in the course of changing it.  This is a fully secure calendar mechanism, which was newly developed for this watch.  Yes it is complex.  40% more components than its predecessor.  Nearly as many components as a full perpetual mechanism.

The look offers a brand new alternative to my collection.  I have said it many times.  This is a watch that you need to see in the metal.  Somehow photographs do not capture it well.  The depth of the open dial and the organic nature of the forms of the case just get lost in a photo, but not on the wrist.  Here is my best attempt to capture it.

More photos to come.

Jeff