Vacheron Constantin

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V&C and shaped movements

In 1931 Charles Constantin documented the advantages of shaped movements in his Annales; "It was a matter, among other things, of creating a tonneau movement for a man's wristwatch that would allow greater power, a larger escapement, and thereby, better results with a lower cost than the round 9-lignes." Indeed they had introduced several oval calibres in the late 1920s and, in 1935, Constantin commented that the form movement had become standard for wristwatches. V&C purchased a dedicated machine and produced five tonneau movements from 7 to 9 calibres into the 1940s. You'll find pictures at the end of the article Best of The Hour Lounge: Vacheron & Constantin Tonneau Wrist Watches. Amazingly, the historic calibre 1005 "baguette" movement from 1919 was still VCs go-to for their slender haute joaillerie creations into the 1980s.