Now for a totally different design style. Where the Rebellion 540 Magnum tourbillon watch was all about industrial design the Angelus U10 Tourbillon Lumière watch takes a more subtle and refined approach to its design.
I remember looking at this watch for the first time when it was revealed at Baselworld this year and thinking about how strange it looked. The more I read about it the more I found I liked it. It’s a very elegant watch that takes a different approach with its elegance, choosing to use subtle corners and lots of sapphire crystal over skeleton black.
The Angelus manufacture was closed down over 30 years ago thanks to the quartz crisis in Switzerland which the Japanese brought in when Seiko unveiled the first battery powered watch. In fact, it was Manufacturer La Joux-Perret that decided it was time to re-ignite the flame of this champion and they came back with an albeit unexpected gusto.
The U10 Tourbillon Lumière watch takes on a different form to that of the Rebellion, where that watch was focused on being a square piece that hugs the wrist and curves around it the also square Angelus watch is designed to sit along the top of the wrist, focusing on width over height by being 62.75mm wide and 38mm tall. It also takes a simpler approach to design with the dial and the tourbillon being separated and most of the movement hasn’t been exposed at all.
Talking of exposure the watch itself has 7 pieces of sapphire crystal dotted about the place with 4 being focused on the tourbillon alone. This greenhouse effect gives the mechanism excellent exposure and will draw people’s eye when you sit around a table. There’s a piece of crystal on the edges of the watch, one on the back and one exquisitely crafted wraparound crystal on the front of the tourbillon itself. The back of the watch movement also has one crystal over it which allows us to peer at the various gears and other bits and bobs going around in there. On the bottom edge of the watch below the main dial is an excellently designed retrograde style power reserve, the power reserve in this watch is an impressive 90 hours. There’s also a big crown on the left-hand side of this watch which is due to the placement of the tourbillon.
And finally, the moment of truth. The winner of this battle of the tourbillons goes to the Angelus U10 Tourbillon Lumière watch. It looks stunning. It runs for 4 days. it has a tourbillon that’s on display like the artwork it is. Need I say more? This steel beast is bound to be expensive, but this is the Tourbillon Trials, so the price isn’t important to these watches.
I like the design and the soul put into the Rebellion 540 Magnum Tourbillon watch, it’s got nifty features and a stealth look even a B2 Spirit cannot match. Apart from not being my cup of tea in terms of design, I think companies (particularly Richard Mille) have got this design niche covered.
Either of these watches is a brilliant choice, but my pick is the Angelus U10 Tourbillon Lumière, did I mention it also has a deadbeat seconds hand? For more info, please visit angelus-watches.com & rebellion-timepieces.com
Stay tuned as there’s a load more watches still floating around out there just waiting to compete.
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HARLAN CHAPMAN-GREEN – CONTRIBUTING EDITOR
A keen bass guitar player, Harlan enjoys all the perks modern watchmaking technologies the industry has to offer. Although you might catch him sampling Omegas or the Rolex, Harlan loves all things Haute Horology, with his three favourite brands being Breguet, A.Lange & Söhne and Vacheron Constantin. He hopes to study timekeeping more in depth someday and will never be able to thank his father enough for introducing him to the industry. Read his articles here.
