Vacheron Constantin "Les Historiques" Chronograph Review

Amanico provides an in-depth review of the Vacheron Constantin "Les Historiques" Chronograph, detailing his personal journey to acquire this specific model. He compares it to other exclusive chronographs and earlier VC models he owned, highlighting the aesthetic and historical significance that led to his ultimate choice.

In the world of Exclusive Chronographs, there are a very few Competitors...

People have immediately in mind the A.LANGE Datograph, the Patek Philippe 5070, The new to come JLC Duo Metre à Chronographe, and least but not last...The Vacheron Constantin, in the Collection " Les Historiques " or in the Malte Collection.

Well, the decision was tough, as I wanted to add a VC Chrono in my collection, but had a hard time to finally choose the good one, for me.

At the beginning, I owned this one, the Chrono Malte in WG: ( Pic borrowed to Fernando )



I sold it to fund another big purchase, and regretted it, as I was fond of the case, the lugs, but not that much of the dial, because of its guillochage, which got me rid of this piece, and I was hoping, at the same time, to fall on the Platinum Version:



Here, no more problem with the Guillochage of the dial, which is superb, BUT, there is a BUT, this small writing " pt 950 " between 4 and 5 is a bit " too much ".

Then, I remembered that before the Chrono Malte, there was in the VC catalogue from 2001 I got somewhere in my house, a small Chrono in the " Les Historiques " Collection, and I was beginning to do my home work...

Here, in Paris, I never saw one in the flesh, and went here, on our VC forum, to study a bit the case...

What I saw pleased me a lot, the finish, the shape of the lugs ( delicious ), the volume, the case back, the dial, with only a small reserve and doubt about the hands...

Till I was able to see one in the flesh, thank to Jerome who wanted to go to a special shop, here in Paris...

And there, it was love at first sight...Even the hands were not anymore problematic, 0 doubt, 0 reserve, my decision was made!

" Les Historiques "...

What a beautiful name for a Watch!

And very " à propos "!

Produced from the middle of the 90ies till 2003 include, this Chronograph respects the long tradition of the VC Chronos.

Pics Taken on the net, Don't know who to credit for...





There were 4 diiferent " Les Historiques " Chronographs...

1 in Yellow Gold pic to be credited to one of us ...)



This version has an obvious very retro look, with this silver dial which nicely contrasts with the Yellow Gold case.

And 3 in Platinum:

A rare bird, the rarer, in fact, of all the Platinum " Les Historiques " Chrono, comes with a guilloché Black dial, and was available in a LE of only 25 pices, for Taiwan, if i'm not wrong...



Really a stunning and awesome Combo, which blends Strengh and Elegance at the same time.

The Second one, which I'd call the " Regular " one, is the platinum Chrono with the Silver
Dial:





( Last pic to be credited to one of us ).

Very Sober, Very Elegant, This is a really good catch,too.

And the last one is amybe the more mysterious, as it comes with a salmon dial, and a very few were made, I'd say around 50 or 60, while the others ( with the exception of the black dial, were made at around 4000 pieces, YG and platinum included, of course ).

Did you already guess which one of the 4 I took?

A small hint:



The Salmon Dial!!!

This is, for me, my favourite combo, as the copper dial is much more original than the classic white or black dials.

Also, I already own some true beasts with a White Dial ( the U.N Chrono Mono Pusher, and the JLC Duo Metre in platinum to come ), or with a black dial ( Rolex Daytona and Lange Datograph )...

It's true that I also have in my collection another Salmon Dial, the very rare and elusive Breguet Type XX in platinum, but this small and thin VC is so lovely like that!





You'll notice that these 2 Salmon dials don't have exactly the same color, even in the natural light.

The Salmon or Copper Dial is not the first to be put in a VC Chrono, as in the past, VC already used this kind of dial on another of their Chrono:



So, now, let's have a closer look at this beast...

1/ The Case:

37mm big, and around 11mm Thick, these proportions plead for a nice homogeneity.

While the Malte Chrono is 41 mm, this " Les Historiques " Chrono is more playing the card of the Retro Look, and is not small at all.

The whole watch is perfectly balanced, evne when you look at the bezel, which is of a perfect size, not as thin as other models, like the UN Cghrono Mono Pusher, but less thick than a Lange Datograph.

The Lugs are a pure Masterpiece of design, which make this Chrono so particular, compared to all the other Chronos of this level, adding a lot of charm, elegance, and a certain dynamism, and at the same time, a lof of this Retro elegance.

Here, the whole watch:





There, under different angles, to appreciate the Beauty, and the approrpiate porportions of this remarkable time keeper:



The Crown and Pushers side:

You will notice the " Croix De Malte " delicate signature on the top of the crown, and the ovoid / rectangular pushers, which are IMO, nicer than the round pushers of the Malte Chrono...



2/ The Dial:

Another strong point of this " Les Historiques " Chrono is its dial...

Smooth ( for the Yellow Gold, or the Platinum Silver Dial ), or guilloché ( for the Black or Salmon Versions of the Platinum ), in each cases, the dials are perfect examples of true, pure classicism, and can really be compared with the best Chronos of this category, IMO.

All these dials are a step forward the Chrono Malte, as I previously said, whose dial didn't convinced me with this less nice and worked guilloché...

Depending of the light, and the angles, you will spend a lot of time admiring it...

Here, quite smooth:



There, the Guilloché is more evident...Allowing to notice its perfect execution and finish...







The Guilloché is not the only beautiful thing with this dial...

Look at the applied markers, numbers and VL Croix de Malte Logo, symmetrically disposed, and at the different finish of the sub dials , which are smooth, playing the contrast with the guillochage of the main dial.

The Sub Dials are circled, too.

On these macros, the level of the finish is obviously great!

















The only thing I don't know is in what material are made the dial, the indexes, the numbers, the Logo and the Hands...

WG, Copper, Brass, SS???

But one thing is sure, this is one of the most refined, well finished, and nicest watch of the Category!

3/ The Movement:

To be honest, this is not the best point in this watch.

Nice and well finished, YES.

But the PP 5070, the Lange Datograph, and the JLC Duo Metre play in another League!

The closer movement, beyond these prestigious Chronos, is of course the 5070, as it is the same base, a Lemania 2320,the same than on the Omega Speed Master..

Here, a nice pic taken with Mech's kind permission:



Here, a pic from Nork:



But while PP entirely reworks the Lemania, VC finish the movement following their own tradition, and go less far than PP...

So the Caliber is referenced 1141, which receives high standards of finition, in due respect of the VC Tradition:

Anglages, Cotes de Geneve, polished screw, the result, if not at the level of the other quoted competitors, is really great.



Under different angles, the apparence is not the same, a play of light, levels, materials, shade, well, very appealing!









Some macros?

Here you go!



















The Sapphire Case Back seems to be Anti Reflection Coating, while the Sapphire glass on the dial side is not.

4/ Strap, Buckle and wrist shot:

The Strap is a nice crocodile one, with a superb platinum simple buckle ( fro the Platinum Version of the Chrono ), respecting the thema of the Maltese Cross.

Here, a pic focusing on the Case Back:



And here, focusing on the buckle...



Refined till the buckle!!!

As for the Wrist Experience, a great one, for sure.

Once on the wrist, you know that it is a keeper, as it perfectly falls on the wrist, IMO, easier than the Malte Chrono, but this depe,nds on the size of your wrist, of course.

A Watch to wear with casual suits, or more dressy, it works with all!



5/ The" Les Historiques " among some of its Competitors:

PP 5070: Pic Credit ignored, but a Purist Friend, of course )





In Terms of proportions, the VC is, at least for me, a bit above...

The Lange Datograph:





Outstanding Finish and quality, but maybe a bit too thick for its 39 mm diameter...

The JLC Duo Metre:





Here again, an outstanding finish, and the superiority of an in house movement.

Maybe the lugs on the Duo Metre are less sexy than on the VC which is hard to beat, on this ground.

A special guest, the Ulysse Nardin Chrono Mono Pusher, in WG or RG, Limited or not, the difference being that on the non LE, you have a solid case back, with Mr UN's face engraved on it, while the non LE has a sapphire case back, which let amdire the Jaquet Movement, reworked by Mr FPJ:

The LE





The Non LE:





A real big charm, due to its old style onion crown, and the co axial monopusher, which gives a lot of purity to this watch, even if the movement is less well finished than on the VC.





And to end with the competitors, the Platinum VC Chrono Malte :





Very nice grainy dial, 41mm, nice lugs, even if I find them less sexy than on the " Les Historiques " Chrono, more angular one the new one, but if you have a big wrist, this is a serious competitor!

As to conclude this review, The " Les Historiques " Chrono is a delicious example of fine craftmanship, a perfect demonstration of the VC Expertise on making gorgeous watches, beside this Chrono, the Mercator and some exceptional pieces like the " Cabinotiers ", and indeed one of the 4 aces ever made in the History of Exceptional Chronographs.

Hoping that you had pleasure to read and view this topic,

Best.

Nicolas