Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Chronograph versus. Montblanc Rieussec

Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Chronograph versus. Montblanc Rieussec

Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Chronograph versus. Montblanc Rieussec

One manufacture chronograph is unassuming another is unconventional. Both of them are elegant. But what's best? We compare the Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Chronograph and also the Montblanc Nicolas Rieussec Chronograph Automatic within this test feature in the WatchTime archives.

What’s your type? Could it be classic or modern? Eye-catching or understated? Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Master Chronograph, in the brand’s manufacture in Le Sentier, Europe, is classically elegant and understated.

It debuted this year. Everything is handsome and absolutely nothing is flashy or questionable. Its design embodies the peaceful feeling of order present in traditional watch construction, that makes it an ideal companion to put on in the office and for gala occasions. Its cost ($10,000*) isn’t very high, so when you put on it, you will not seem like you’ve lost touch with reality.

The 2nd watch within our test, Montblanc’s Nicolas Rieussec Chronograph 

Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Chronograph versus. Montblanc Rieussec

Automatic, is elegant too, and contains an identical cost ($10,700*). But it’s difficult to further classify this watch. Its materials and colours are subdued, however the unusual style of its dial draws attention. It debuted this year like a further growth and development of Montblanc’s first manufacture caliber, the MB R100, that was launched within the 2008 Nicolas Rieussec Monopusher Chronograph. Although Montblanc relies in Hamburg, Germany, its watches are created in the brand’s own ateliers in Le Locle, Europe.

Is Montblanc’s chronograph classic or modern? This is difficult to reply to. The off-center dial, with chronograph disks rotating under ashared bridge, looks very contemporary. But, actually, this unusual arrangement for that stopwatch mechanism recalls a historic predecessor.

In 1821, Nicolas Mathieu Rieussec, who had been watch manufacturing company towards the royal court of France’s King Louis XVIII, invented a “chronograph” within the truest feeling of the term because his revolutionary device was indeed a “time author.” (Chronos means “time” and graphein means “to write.”) Rieussec developed a tabletop apparatus having a wooden situation that contained a set of buttons and 2 rotating dials: one for that seconds, another for that minutes. Above these dials he attached a slender hands with ink-filled nibs mounted on its tip. Rieussec unveiled his timing device in a horse race around the famous Champion de Mars in Paris. As the dials from the device switched, the timekeeper pressed a control button the moment a horse entered the conclusion line, resulting in the hands to the touch the dials and then leave little ink marks in it. The very first time ever, a timekeeper could capture the important occasions of horses within the race if you don't take his eyes from the action. The occasions could later be read in the disks. Afterward, he simply easily wiped a lot of it from the disks and it was prepared to time the following race.

Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Chronograph versus. Montblanc Rieussec

Montblanc’s Rieussec watch has similar rotating disks along with a shared bridge over the dial. Both of them are distinctive options that come with the Nicolas Rieussec watch collection. But instead of depositing ink, the bridge from the watch holds rotating counters and stationary hands to exhibit the passed seconds and minutes.

Although the style of Montblanc’s dial is in the past inspired, it appears innovative. The model we tested is easily the most streamlined and stylish from the presently available Rieussec watches. Our editors were more astounded by it compared to another versions, whose openwork dials make sure they are look technical instead of elegant.

How did our test watches rate whenever we considered their craftsmanship

We found both watches to be very nearly exactly the same higher level. Their straps and clasps are pretty straight forward but well crafted: Jaeger-LeCoultre utilizes a double-folding clasp without buttons Montblanc depends on an abnormally sturdy, single-folding clasp keeping the vehicle safe buttons. As a result Jaeger-LeCoultre’s watch is much more comfortable to put on, but Montblanc’s clasp operates easier. Each clasp is a great match because of its watch: Jaeger-LeCoultre’s clasp is smaller sized and flatter while Montblanc’s is bulkier and much more rounded.

Both dials and cases are immaculately crafted, but Montblanc’s convey more facets and weird details. However, we'd have loved Montblanc’s situation to possess greater water proofing: it may withstand only 30 meters, while Jaeger-LeCoultre’s situation remains water tight to 50 meters.

With respect to the feature i was analyzing, we found significant variations in user-ambiance backward and forward chronographs. Jaeger-LeCoultre builds its classic two-button chronographs with small seconds, an end-seconds function along with a rapid-reset date display. Montblanc’s watch includes a date display, plus an additional hands to point time in again zone along with a corresponding day-night disk at 9 o’clock. These extras give Montblanc’s chronograph a lot of functions, however the watch lacks a constantly running seconds hands along with a stop-seconds function. And also, since it’s a monopusher chronograph, when it’s accustomed to measure brief times, it doesn’t allow additive timing rather, the beginning, stop and return-to-zero functions are required to follow each other in sequence.

Just like a number of other dual-time-zone watches, the Montblanc’s date could be reset fairly rapidly by pulling the crown out midway after which turning it clockwise or counterclockwise, which in turn causes the hour hands to maneuver forward or in hourly increments. The counterclockwise operation enables the date to become reset more rapidly sometimes of computer could should you advanced a standard rapid-reset date mechanism. Once the time zone is reset, the 2nd hour hands, that is skeletonized, remains still and is constantly on the show the right time in your house time zone. This hands disappears behind the primary hour hands after you’ve came back home. Pulling the crown to its second position enables you to adjust time.

Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Chronograph versus. Montblanc Rieussec

We found not enough contrast between your dial and on the job Jaeger-LeCoultre’s watch to simply browse the time. And it is difficult to browse the exact time rapidly and also to instantly tell the size of an passed interval with to-the-second precision because there's a pulse-calculating scale, instead of minutes numerals, round the fringe of the dial. However, the subdials provide sufficient contrast and therefore are well marked.

We'd some difficulty operating the Jaeger-LeCoultre watch. The little crown is difficult to drag out, even though you slip your finger nail between it and also the situation. In addition, the recently reset minutes hands leaped either forward or when we pressed the crown in, which necessitated repeating the setting process - a nearly unpardonable flaw inside a luxury watch. But we loved the stop-seconds function and also the formed pushers, that have good pressure points.

Montblanc’s crown is another bit difficult to take out since your fingertips have a tendency to slide from it. How big the chrono push-piece, around the left side from the situation, adds user-ambiance, however it takes so very little effort to trigger its “stop” function that you might accidentally finish the measurement of the interval earlier than you intended.

The 2nd time zone is proven in 12-hour instead of 24-hour format, that has pros and cons. The 12-hour orbit enables the extra hour hands to become hidden behind the primary hour hands once the watch is in your house time zone. But problems can arise whenever you attempt to decipher the associated day-night display, that is entirely white-colored from noon to six p.m. and dark blue from night time to six a.m. Both blue and white-colored sections is visible within the window whatsoever other occasions. Which means that when it’s 7 o’clock at night (as observed in the photo at the outset of this short article), you may mistakenly think that it’s morning hours in your house time zone: the white-colored disk appears to become sweeping the final remnant of blue night underneath the lower border from the window, but, actually, nowhere disk is really turning upward into view to usher in evening’s arrival.

Around the plus side, automatic Caliber MB R200 deserves credit for that very nearly perfect time keeping performance from the Nicolas Rieussec Chronograph Automatic. Our electronic timing machine calculated daily gains of just 1.3 seconds in normal operation and a pair of.3 seconds using the chronograph started up. Maximum variations one of the positions were three seconds and something second, correspondingly. The little loss of the balance’s amplitude following the chronograph was along with the apparatus train demonstrated that moving parts are nicely crafted which the chronograph mechanism uses only a tiny bit of energy. The decline averaged 13 % of arc within the two flat positions and merely eight levels within the four hanging positions. This watch doesn't have constantly running seconds hands, so its rate around the wrist might be tested only as the chronograph was running: we measured a continuing gain of three seconds each day.

Our timing machine also confirmed the superb rate behavior from the Jaeger-LeCoultre watch. It published small daily gains of two.2 seconds in ordinary operation and 1.2 seconds using its chronograph running. Its balance’s amplitude declined only slightly once the stopwatch was started up. We weren’t entirely pleased with large average deviations of 16 and just a few seconds, correspondingly, one of the individual positions. Daily deviation around the wrist ranged between -2.5 and  1 seconds.

Both chronograph calibers are built to provide numerous advantages

Each one has a column wheel to make sure the right functioning from the chronograph’s instructions and every depends on vertical coupling, which theoretically (and in cases like this, practically, too) prevents the shudder that frequently mars the clean oncoming of a chronograph’s passed-seconds hands. Both movements have freely swinging balances with weight screws along their rims. Each caliber contains two barrels, therefore the running autonomy of both watches is excellent: 65 hrs for Jaeger-LeCoultre and 72 hrs for Montblanc.

Jaeger-LeCoultre’s caliber is thinner: just 5.7 mm, when compared with Montblanc’s 8.5 mm. But Montblanc’s balace is borne beneath a bridge. Along with a bridge, which obviously includes a support each and every finish, is inherently sturdier than the usual cantilevered balance cock such as the one within the Jaeger watch.

Montblanc’s more elaborate embellishments put its caliber a nose ahead within the group of “movement quality.” The perimeters of plates and bridges aren’t just beveled, they’re also polished, much like the throats from the ruby bearings and also the holes for that screws. Montblanc blues its screws. And also the various decorative patterns on Montblanc’s chronograph look more brilliant than individuals on Jaeger-LeCoultre’s caliber.

Jaeger-LeCoultre exercises restraint in the selection of embellishments

Not just for that movement, but additionally throughout the timepiece. The opaque steel back is tastefully adorned using the “Master Control” emblem in relief engraving. This emblem refers back to the brand’s testing ordeal, the so-known as “1,000-Hour Test.” After set up, every watch bearing the actual Control name is exposed to a variety of temperatures and also to the pains water, shocks and vibrations in excess of 41 days, where it has to consistently demonstrate its proper functioning, its steady running behavior and also the stability of their power reserve.