First launched in 2009, when the A. Lange & Söhne Zeitwerk was first presented everyone was wowed by its digital display unlike any other mechanical watch out there. Now in 2022, A. Lange & Söhne presents two new versions of their award-winning mechanical digital watch in platinum and in 18K pink gold. Thanks to the evolution of the calibre L043.6, this exceptional timepiece now has a power reserve doubled to 72 hours and offers even greater convenience.
The new Zeitwerk maintains its case diameter at 41.9 mm but the new model is now slimmer with a thickness of 12.2 mm instead of 12.6 mm. The 18K pink gold model features a black dial and a time bridge made of untreated German silver and is delivered on a black alligator strap with a pin buckle in 18K pink gold. Meanwhile, the platinum model has a rhodié dial made of solid silver with a time bridge that is black rhodium and the watch is delivered with a dark brown alligator strap with a pin buckle in platinum.
The Zeitwerk has a patented mechanism with three jumping numeral discs that make a glance at the watch a special experience. The hours and minutes are displayed from left to right by large-format numerals that are 2.9 mm high and 2.3 mm wide. The harmonious arrangement of the curved time bridge and the size of the displays ensure superb legibility. Additionally, this aesthetically original and technically elaborate display endows the dial with vibrancy and verve because the underlying mechanism switches the three numeral discs —one displays the hours, the other two display the units and the tens digits of the minutes— within fractions of a second.
Powered by a revamped movement, the manual wound Lange calibre L043.6 is composed of 451 parts and 61 jewels —two of them in gold chatons— and is the second generation of a mechanical masterpiece. Thanks to a patented barrel design with two mainsprings, it was possible to double the power reserve from 36 to 72 hours. When fully wound, the Zeitwerk now has sufficient energy to perform 4,320-minute jumps or, more precisely, 72 jumps with all three discs, 360 jumps with only two discs, and 3,888 jumps with only one disc. Another improvement versus the predecessor model is the simplified setting of the hour.
A pusher at four o’clock can now separately advance the display, which is particularly useful when the time zone changes during a trip. The pusher is of an inverted type and nothing happens when it is pressed but the display switches forward when the pusher is released. The integration of a pusher for correcting the hour indication, first introduced in the Zeitwerk Date, required considerable constructional effort. To enable the correction independently of the switching cycles of the time indication, a patented vertical clutch uncouples the hour ring from the jumping numerals mechanism each time the pusher is pressed. The setting of the minute indication in both directions is still performed with the crown at two o’clock.
In its second generation, the A. Lange & Söhne Zeitwerk also features an oscillation system with its own balance spring and patented beat-adjustment system. It oscillates with a frequency of 18,000 vph. Through the sapphire-crystal case back, connoisseurs can admire the hand-engraved balance and escape-wheel cocks, the solarised winding wheels, the 59 jewels, and the intricate, straight-grained remontoir bridge that accommodates two recessed, screwed gold chatons.
The most prominent element is the time bridge made of German silver. The material, traditionally used by A. Lange & Söhne for frame parts such as bridges and cocks, makes it clear that it is an integral component of the movement.
In the new Zeitwerk, the time bridge was subtly reworked to make more room for the subsidiary seconds dial at six o’clock. In the scale of the power-reserve indicator on the opposite side, harmoniously positioned above the round of the time bridge, the last twelve hours are now marked in red to clearly indicate that the tension of the mainsprings is gradually waning.
The new A. Lange & Söhne Zeitwerk Second Generation is exclusively sold at A. Lange & Söhne Boutiques worldwide.
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