The Reason
A visible cam driven, retrograde seconds tourbillon.
The La Chaux-de-Fonds Petite Seconds Retrograde Tourbillon is an automatic timepiece with a 70 hour power reserve. The retrograde seconds' mechanism is viewed from the dial side as is the automatic rotor mass. The calibre, including balance spring and escapement are all manufactured in-house.
The total thickness of the case 13.70mm, diameter 44mm. Made from stainless steel. Water resistant to 50 meters. Calibre TSE 122.00. Thickness: 7.05mm and diameter 30.40mm. Power Reserve: 70 hours. Automatic winding.
Please move the cursor across the image below, (or by finger on a smart phone), to rotate the watch.
The case back with sapphire crystal is held in place by 6 stainless steel screws.
Views of the watch with the bezel and case back removed.
The movement removed from the case.
Close up showing the retrograde seconds mechanism.
Close up showing the bombé aventurine stone dial.
Full view of the movement. The aesthetic of the movement and dial comprises of decoration including Geneva strip, sand blasting, ‘black’ mirror finishing, straight graining and hand polished angling.
Move the cursor from right to left, (on a computer or finger on a smart phone) slowly across the screen below to see the retrograde cam system working.
The Tourbillon and automatic rotor sit partially under the principle dial. Together with the retrograde seconds’ system create animations that show the watch functioning, in essence ‘alive’, when the watch is worn.
The 3 hands removed from the watch.
Rear view with the dials in place.
The two green aventurine dials removed from the movement.
Polished brass hands, rhodium plated with Super-LumiNova® luminescent centres.
The main dial removed.
The small dial for the retrograde seconds’ removed.
The upper level of the aventurine dial support removed. The two sectors cut away around the centre of the dial are to allow the ratchet wheel teeth to be viewed.
The lower support for the dial removed showing the base movement also finished with a Geneva Stripe decoration
The bridge holding in place the retrograde hands, pinion removed.
Images of the cage.
The skeletonized snail shaped cam for the retrograde seconds’ is friction fitted to the upper pivots lower, wider diameter. The opening in the snail allow the upper section to be dismantled as well as reducing mass.
The lower pinion shown on the inverted cage drives the Tourbillon.
The balance wheel itself contains the brands logo finely machined instead of traditional balance arms.
The 3 pillars holding the upper and lower bridges are concave to allow balance wheels with timing screws to pass.
The upper bridge removed which both holds the Tourbillon cage in place, also acting as the lower bearing for the retrograde seconds’ pinion and associated spring.
The gold coloured ‘fixed’ wheel remaining where the Tourbillon sits is the wheel upon which the escape wheel pinion is driven.
The fine balance style spring is required to apply the minimum amount of friction possible onto the snail cam fixed to the cage.
The rotor mass lower section is made in tungsten carbide. The upper plate with the engraving is made from 22K gold.
The tungsten carbide rotor mass removed.
Also the steel ratchet wheel removed.
The mass is fixed on the vertical bar which inturn drives the automatic mechanism, (bi-directional).
The barrel bridge removed.
The barrel removed.
Recto-verso of the jewelled barrel bridge.
The automatic bridge removed showing the automatic gear train.
The wheels with multiple small pinions turn only in one direction and block in the opposite, allowing the rotor to wind in both clockwise and anti-clockwise movements of the rotor.
The automatic system completed removed from the main-plate.
The rear of the calibre with winding mechanism in view.
Central reversal bridge in place.
Central reversal bridge removed.
Diverse images of the assembled watch.
Summary
The La Chaux-de-Fonds Tourbillon follows Schwarz Etienne’s modular construction philosophy and shares design elements with other S-E calibres. The retrograde mechanism coupled to the Tourbillon, a visible automatic rotor seen on the dial side, and the offset hours and minutes indication centred on the barrel result in a balanced triangular aesthetic.
To learn more about Schwarz Etienne