As we mentioned on last Sunday’s article named A Passage to Sapphire Watches, sapphire watches are in more fashion now. Hublot has just introduced Bing Bang Tourbillon Automatic Orange Sapphire.
If there’s one area where Hublot’s own “Art of Fusion” is expressed in all its boldness and radiance, it’s definitely that of cutting-edge materials, particularly manufactured sapphire. Over the years, the brand (which has its own Metallurgy & Materials laboratory) has already released numerous very illustrious watches where the sapphire cases and dials, available in novel colours, act as transparent settings for sophisticated mechanics – such as the Big Bang Unico Sapphire (transparent), All Black Sapphire, Big Bang Unico Red Sapphire and Blue Sapphire, and the recent Spirit of Big Bang Yellow Sapphire.
Today, Hublot continues to innovate with this extraordinary material by reinterpreting the Big Bang Sapphire Tourbillon in an entirely new orange shade – a world first for a through-tinted sapphire – achieved thanks to the incorporation of titanium and chromium in a skilful manufacturing process. This surprising and dynamic colour is a breath of fresh air for haute horlogerie, and is in perfect harmony with Hublot’s culture of excellence. The fascination of the translucent bezel and case in finely polished orange sapphire is enhanced by the technical tone of the six H-shape titanium screws that characterise the iconic Big Bang design.
A revolutionary case with an innovative movement. Hublot illustrates its unrivalled watchmaking expertise – and its mastery of the tourbillon, which has been constantly developed since 2007 – by accommodating an entirely new tourbillon movement at the heart of the orange sapphire, completely designed and produced by the brand. Unlike traditional tourbillon movements, equipped with manual winding, this exceptional calibre makes a name for itself thanks to its self-winding system ensuring a minimum power reserve of three days (72 hours) – a very noticeable improvement for the wearer. It is equipped with ceramic ball bearings and the latest Hublot technical advances in its winding system. The manufacture has also reasserted its uniqueness by reconstructing the movement in its entirety in order to make the micro-rotor visible from the dial side. This innovative layout not only represents an additional technical challenge for the designers, but also breathes new life in aesthetic terms, by strengthening the spectacular appearance of the dial and its very contemporary design. The perpetual movements of the micro-rotor set at 12 o’clock echo the rotation of the tourbillon, its regulating organ, positioned in perfect symmetry at 6 o’clock. The grey 22-carat gold micro-rotor is set off by exquisite decoration (bevelling, sunray-brushing and sand-blasting), as well as by signature Hublot openwork in the precious metal.
Hublot has also continued in its quest for transparency by using more sapphire in the movement itself. The manufacture calibre on the Big Bang Tourbillon Automatic Orange Sapphire is equipped for the first time with three sapphire bridges – a barrel bridge, an automatic bridge and a tourbillon barrette. The lightweight effect of the skeleton work is accentuated by heavily open-worked and sandblasted platinum. The tourbillon cage at six o’clock, revolving on its axis every minute to compensate for the pull of the earth on the movement’s direction, is distinctive for its pure geometry affording a glimpse into the mechanical heart of the model. The legibility of the open dial is enhanced by hands and indices with a luminescent coating. The transparent orange rubber strap with a lined relief – with a patented express One Click interchangeability system and titanium deployant buckle – completes the cutting-edge look of this limited edition release of 50 pieces.
For those wanting technical style and audacity in other futuristic materials, Hublot is offering the Big Bang Tourbillon Automatic in a limited edition of 100 pieces with a case and bezel in Texalium® , an exclusive lightweight and ergonomic material that combines carbon fibre and aluminium. The brand also reaffirms its unique mastery of high-tech ceramic in a Black Magic 100-piece limited edition made from black ceramic. So many feats at the limits of possibility.
In its quest for perfect harmony between movements and cases, Hublot’s engineers and chemists sought a transparent material to enable the heart of the watch to be admired, whilst being robust enough to effectively protect the mechanics and resist the stresses of an active life. This is why the brand has established itself as an expert in synthetic sapphire, a high-tech material which was already available in innovative colours (black, blue, red, yellow) and which offers unique aesthetic effects in watchmaking – transforming each watch into a work of art.
Hublot stands out thanks to its complete mastery of the industrialisation of the sapphire, enabling it to produce series of several hundreds of watches – and not just a few special pieces. The main challenge involves obtaining a material with a uniform colour, without impurities, without bubbles, without cracks, the manufacture of which can be repeated in an identical fashion qualitatively and aesthetically. A complex and costly process. The extreme hardness of the sapphire also requires specific machining methods.
The price of the model is CHF 160,000.
