BY HARLAN CHAPMAN-GREEN
Carl F . Bucherer’s watches stand out for being classy and good-looking timepieces which typically have an unusual twist to them, that’s probably thanks to the fact that they’re quite rare collector’s items. People “in the know” about watches tend to be the ones buying Carl F. Bucherer pieces, and this new one could be their next timepiece for sure.
Black dial
The new Manero Peripheral Perpetual Calendar is quite a striking-looking piece, and it’s presented in a 41.6mm x 11.73mm 18k rose gold case with a leather strap and a matching gold folding clasp. As far as dress watches go it’s not too bulky and should therefore be good to wear with a suit for most people.
Green dial
The dial is quite interesting, it has a sunray-polished centre zone and a matte outer edge. Gold-plated dauphine-shaped hands point to gold-plated markers; meanwhile, the subdials for the perpetual calendar sit around the centre, this calendar adjusts itself at the end of each month and also adjusts for leap years. The hand-decorated moonphase display is particularly impressive, with accurate details of the moon’s surface. I also like that the Carl F. Bucherer name is offset to one side, and it’s been balanced on the other side well. However, I think the subdials are a little too close together here, they don’t seem spaced out as I would expect. Usually, when watches do this, it’s because their movement is a lot smaller than the case it’s in. You do get four different dial colour options, though, with the choices being black, green, rose or taupe. There’s quite a selection.
A view around the back of the watch confirms my thoughts, the self-winding calibre CFB A2055 is on display with lots of lovely hand-finishing. The peripheral rotor, which gives the watch part of its name, is something Carl F. Bucherer does a lot. Rather than partly cover the movement with a rotor or make a skeletonised one, Carl F. Bucherer did it the more difficult way and engineered the rotor to orbit the movement rather than sit atop it, thus making the calibre thinner. And yet, despite this, the movement is still a COSC-certified chronometer with a 55-hour power reserve.
Taupe dial
These watches are available now, although the rose version is limited to just eight examples and is being sold exclusively from Bucherer boutiques. I think these watches look good.
Rose dial, limited edition of 8 pieces
Although I’m personally not sure about the subdial spacing, I think Carl F. Bucherer does more than enough to offer a strong alternative to the norm, and if that’s what they’re going for then mission accomplished.
