By Jovan Krstevski
The U20 Ultra-Skeleton Tourbillon watch is an attempt at bringing forth life to the once great brand Angelus that went bust during the Quartz crisis in the 70s. Well, if I remember correctly, they do have amazing iconic timepieces back in the 40s and 50s which I somehow secretly want to be revived with the hint of today’s technology. Anyhow, the U20 Ultra-Skeleton Tourbillon watch is the brand’s attempt at entering today’s brave new world showcasing the best of the contemporary components such as sapphire, carbon, and titanium – not bad for a once busted company which is clearly screaming for new interest from the international horology crowd. Honestly, I’m hooked and intrigued with the U20 Ultra-Skeleton Tourbillon because of its brave design.
So what is this brave design all about – a crystal enclosure for the movement that can break at any time shattering the beautiful timepiece mainly because of its contemporary marriage with the case and everything else in between. Apart from this that I will call a major source of worry for active wristwatch wearers, the new U20 Ultra-Skeleton Tourbillon watch is indeed very captivating. The 42 mm case is lovely and allows full view of “time” in all its technicalities. Its dramatic visibility showcasing the “ultra-skeletonized” movement is indeed revolutionary as one can really see the nitty-gritty details of the tourbillon, but has been done before by other brands. The bezel, for example, is not really there because of the sapphire crystal dome that merely doubles as a bezel thus offering perfect sideways view of the movement. The crown is also superbly designed and neatly connected to the main engine.
As we examine the dial which is not really there since this is a skeletonized watch, one would argue about the visibility of the practical time. The hands are a bit difficult to see once you get used to the idea of skeletonized designs and the presence of the multiple blued bridges make time reading practically elusive at first but once you get the gist of it, the readability is quite relatively easy. The indices are simple and seen clearly right on the bezel plus the iconic branding is very subtle at 12 o’clock. I like it.
So how did the U20 Ultra-Skeleton Tourbillon watch achieved its ultra-skeletonized design? The answer is very simple but not that easy to achieved – it’s all about the perfect combination of massive pieces of sapphire crystals and other elements such as blue titanium and carbon. Simply said, the sapphire crystal main plate is the real eye candy as it is the one hosting the setting points for the bridges and other movement components. Note that sapphire is very hard but it becomes brittle when played with one’s brave ideas such as the Angelus so good job Angelus.
What powers the watch is an in-house Angelus A–250 calibre beating at 3 Hertz. Once fully wound by hand, it is capable of offering a 90-hour power reserve. The movement showcases the best of Swiss Made Haute Horlogerie finishing such as hand chamfered steel cage and the use of solid gold chatons embedded in the sapphire main plate. For more info, please visit angelus–watches.com
JOVAN KRSTEVSKI – FOUNDER, PROPRIETOR & EXECUTIVE EDITOR
Jovan Krstevski has been collecting watches every since his father bought him an Omega Seamaster back when he was just a teenager. He launched Watchgeek back in 2011, which is now known as WristReview and is one of the most widely read watch blogs on the Web. He quotes ’WristReview is a site to help people find, explore, discover and enjoy wristwatches.’ Besides WristReview, he also writes for a number of publications. Read his articles here
