Richard Mille

AndrewD
[HoMe Moderator]
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Richard Mille RM052 Skull Tourbillon

When it comes to horology I travel on the traditional (and perhaps practical) side of the road. But I have always been a fan of Richard Mille timepieces; avant-garde in the use of materials and design, but traditional in terms of wearability and finishing. The RM range is so broad now that there is room for functional as well as art pieces and the RM052 Skull Tourbillon is a beautiful example, launched in 2012 in a limited edition of 15 pieces in titanium and 6 unique set pieces in rose or white gold. This watch feeds into my interest in memento mori [click here] and it was a pleasure to strap onto my wrist.

The RM052 is quite a large piece (50x42.7x15.95mm) but in titanium and with the rubber strap and deployment the trademark barrel-shaped case sits perfectly on the wrist. The case is also skeletonised and the edges are polished to a beautiful finish.

It would be flippant of me to describe the Cal. RM052 as a skeletonised movement, but in many ways it is. The bridges are fashioned out of titanium like the case and the jaws support the tourbillon cage. The movement is suspended in the case via 4 bridges that make up the cross bones of the old Jolly Roger.

The manual wind movement (Cal. RM052) has a power reserve of ~ 48h and features a fast rotating single barrel to provide constant torque. The tourbillon uses a free-sprung 9.12mm balance wheel (relatively large as the whole movement feels very compact) which beats at 3Hz (21600vph). Under a 10x magnification loupe the hand finishing on the movement is very apparent – it’s honestly a beautifully finished creation with all the traditional flourishes we expect in high horology pieces. Given the subject matter, you almost expect it to be rather roughly hewn, but it instead it is elegant and beautiful.

Skulls are not a new theme in horology [click here] but it has rarely been so well executed. And it shows another side of Richard Mille and the whole brand is better off for it.

Andrew

My sincere thanks to Rob and the Geneva RM Boutique for the opportunity to spend time with the RM052.