Guide To Buying A Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Replica Wholesale Suppliers

Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Hands-On


Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Hands-On

For 2016, Parmigiani has succeeded in putting their long-awaited Genequand system into a wrist watch. The materialization of almost a decade of work – presented on the brand’s 20th anniversary – is a concept watch called the Senfine. The system inside, if successful in an industrialized environment, could lead to a major disruption in how we measure the performance of mechanical watches.

Trade shows like SIHH are places with fewer and fewer secrets. Much of the time, prior to our set meetings with brands, we typically know exactly what we are going to be presented with. The age of social media sharing and rapid internet distribution hasn’t just allowed eager people to share information, but it has also caused pressure on brands to use these channels for their more important announcements in order to earn some of the “social noise” that comes with major trade show events.

Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Hands-On

Other members of the aBlogtoWatch team dutifully monitor the digital static for news and updates – a crucial part of our ability to share the most relevant and up-to-date information with you, our audience. With that said, I sometimes like to refrain from ruining the surprises that Swiss watch brands like to prepare with carefully curated presentations complete with curtain-pulling and often presentation videos.

Again, the vertical dial creates all sorts of challenges, all of mainly related to receiving the tubular movement to communicate its timekeeping results towards a period screen set in a very different plane. The angle transmission which solves all this really is an aptly named “pig screw” that meshes together with the massive, though largely hidden wheel that is merely beneath the greatest wheel in the middle. Start looking for the pig screw in the upper right section of the image above the wheel meshes with the large teeth of a wheel that has two layers beneath the black PVD-coated bridge. It’s an innovative solution and once more something you won’t find in watches with ordinary round or square cases.The PF390 cylindrical caliber was designed and produced wholly in house, save for the jewels and hands — even the Breguet overcoil equilibrium spring has been made by Parmigiani’s high-precision production subsidiary called Atokalpa. In the end of the 7-layer movement, we locate the flying tourbillon that runs at an astonishing 4Hz — no more low-frequency traditional BS compromises there. The entire motion is composed of 302 components, a very large component count to get a wristwatch with only hours, minutes, and electricity reserve.Before the plates are black PVD coated, they receive haute horlogerie grade hand finishing that involves beveled and hand polished borders on all the weird and unexpectedly complicated, partly skeletonized plates and bridges, in addition to on countersinks and wheel spokes. Despite the fact that Parmigiani has its own dial manufacture, they chose to not use one and rather went with a trendy, skeletonized overlay frame.
Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Hands-On

At SIHH 2016, Parmigiani Fleurier Watch Review Replica almost lackadaisically presented a completed concept watch (of which a few pieces may be sold) called the Senfine. The term translates into “eternity” and is the physical working manifestation of a concept I had actually written about back in 2014, as the brand quietly announced their dedication to making the Genequand System – a new silicon-based mechanical watch regulator – a reality.

Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Hands-On

Even as the Parmigiani Fleurier Watches For Sale Replica Senfine is now a concept watch, Parmigiani promises production in some way or another no later than 2018. The concept watch the system is housed in looks spacey and techie – a modern watch nerd’s dream incarnate, as it feels like a timepiece born out of a silicon motherboard.

Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Hands-On

One of the concept movements from a few years ago

When Parmigiani – through their movement company Vaucher and some skilled engineers from the CSEM (Swiss Center for Electronics and Microtechnology) – first debuted the realization of Pierre Genequand’s idea a few years ago, it was difficult to understand what it would be like in real life. The promises were lofty, with claims that by simply implementing this new system, the power reserve of a normal mechanical watch would increase to 30 days… which, perhaps, seems like “forever” in the world of mechanical watchmaking. Even the “eternity” name of the Parmigiani Senfine concept alludes to the fact that the system is about longevity. Oddly enough, at the 2016 presentation of the Parmigiani Senfine concept watch, little about the long power reserve promises was mentioned. In a very uncharacteristic way, Parmigiani was proud but very reserved in their discussion of the Parmigiani Senfine concept. They knew it was special, but they didn’t want to start making promises until it was really and truly ready for prime time.

Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Hands-On

The balance (yellow) is attached to the base of the pallet fork (blue) which is in permanent contact with the escape wheel (grey)

Let me get to heart of the matter – which is a deviously simple system with a pantheon of devils in the details. The Fifa-watches-parmigiani-fleurier Replica Senfine’s regulation system consists of two major “monolithic” elements. These two “one-piece” components are the Senfine oscillator (the system’s version of a balance wheel) and the Senfine grasshopper escapement (a hyper-modern version of an age-old mechanical watch concept). Each of these parts is produced from single pieces of highly precision-cut silicon, and rely on the material’s special elastic properties, lack of needing lubrication, and being mostly impervious to the effects of temperature changes.

Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Hands-On

Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Hands-On

The first thing to know about the Parmigiani Senfine is that its oscillator has a dramatically reduced amplitude as compared to a traditional balance wheel. In mechanical watch terminology, amplitude is a measure of the “swing” of a balance wheel. The greater the amplitude the greater the “back-and-forth” motion as the wheel oscillates. Increased amplitude means a lot of things, but it also means greater room for error as well as more power required. Many watch makers today producing “traditionally romantic” watch movements prefer producing large, high amplitude balance wheels because they have a more elegant, and mesmerizing look to them. Performance wise, though, they often leave much to be desired.

Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Hands-On

Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Hands-On

Amplitude is measured in degrees, like the arc of a circle. Consider that most balance wheels have an amplitude of around 300 degrees (give or take). That is almost a complete turn each time the wheel goes around. Consider then that the Senfine oscillator has an amplitude of only 16 degrees. By comparison, this is an extremely short throw, requiring a lot less movement, with less opportunity for rate-error-producing deviations.

Connected to this short 16-degree amplitude is a non-traditional grasshopper escapement which, unlike the Swiss lever escapement, never actually leaves the oscillator disc. One piece is always touching the oscillator and this “direct impulse-style” system has been relied upon for years in some special clocks, but rarely, if ever, in a wristwatch.

Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Hands-On

Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Hands-On

Silicon offers the ability to have monolithic pieces which have flexible joints and bendable parts. Careful science, intense algorithms, and experimentation are required to get these parts’ shapes just right. The result, however – when successful – is, in this case, a scant few parts to produce an entire regulation system. A system which has some inherent shock-absorption qualities does not require lubrication due to its mostly frictionless operation and is, of course, not affected by magnetism.

Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Hands-On

The dial side of the Parmigiani Senfine concept watch’s movement…

In addition to the scant 16-degree amplitude of the Parmigiani Senfine oscillator, the system operates at a frequency of 16Hz (115,200bph). Compare this to a standard mechanical oscillator which operates at 4hz. This four-time increase in frequency theoretically allows for even more accuracy in a system that, if properly designed, could increase accuracy to a rate deviation of just a few seconds per week. Right now, Parmigiani claims that the Senfine system operates within COSC Chronometer standards (probably a very easy feat for the system to accomplish), but my guess is that potential accuracy is much greater than performance of the -4/+6 seconds per day that COSC certification requires.

Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Hands-On

…and the caseback side of the Parmigiani Fleurier Watch Review Replica Senfine concept watch’s caliber.

And then there is the matter of power reserve. Once again, for this working concept watch, Parmigiani has not made impressive promises for the Senfine, but the system, when closer for prime-time use, should have an impressive power reserve offering. Will it be the 30 days or more that Parmigiani promised a couple years ago in 2014? That will be difficult to say, but the company does appear to be putting an enormous amount of effort into the system as being something they will fully industrialize sooner rather than later. None of this would presumably be happening if Senfine and the realization of the Genequand System were merely marginally better than traditional mechanical watch regulation systems.

Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Hands-On

Parmigiani Senfine Concept Watch Realizes The Genequand System For Exciting New Mechanical Oscillator Hands-On

There is, of course, the looming matter of “tradition.” The thorn in the Senfine’s side will be the system’s reliance on silicon – a material that the traditional Swiss watch industry continues to struggle with (sort of). Despite many of the clear mechanical and performance benefits of silicon, the material still has two major problems (if you wish to see it that way). Don’t forget that mechanical watches are purchased these days for their beauty, art, technique, and rarity. No one requires a mechanical watch to know the time. For strict chronometric measurements, you are always better offer with an electronic digital device.