BY HARLAN CHAPMAN-GREEN
It’s been a hot minute since we last published something about Jaeger-LeCoultre here on WristReview. So, in case you’d forgotten all about them, here’s a new, well-sized dress watch inspired by a reference from 1995. Oddly, Jaeger-LeCoultre omitted to mention precisely which reference this new piece draws from.
The Master line is Jaeger-LeCoultre’s classic round-shaped dress watch. Usually, we don’t need to mention the case shape, but this manufacturer is best known for its rectangular Reverso, which is also a dress piece. The Master Control Classic ref. Q4008520, you see before you features the classic dress watch look: a sparsely decorated but attractive case, a high-quality leather strap (made from ostrich leather in this case), and a simple dial. It’s also moderately sized, measuring just 36.00mm x 8.15mm. The watch even has 50m of water resistance.
The silver-coloured sunray dial is very clean to look at, with just enough visual detail to keep your attention without overloading the senses. The blue seconds hand is a nice touch, though if this weren’t a historically inspired piece, I’d suggest moving the date window to 6 O’clock for better balance. Behind the dial is the self-winding calibre 899, which has a 4Hz beat rate and a 70-hour power reserve, not bad at all considering it’s 3.3mm thick. The 899 has been given a good level of hand finishing as is tradition for Jaeger-LeCoultre, but it is obscured by the closed caseback. Instead, we get a visual reminder that one of the main ways Jaeger-LeCoultre likes to set itself apart is with its ‘1000 Hour Control’ whereby the manufacturer tests its watches after casing for 1000 hours to ensure they are accurate and resilient before they go out to the customer. It doesn’t mean there aren’t ever problems down the line, but it is a very strong indicator of the reliability and overall quality “La Grande Maison” puts into its pieces.
Limited to 500 examples worldwide, a new Master Control Classic will set you back $8,950, but you know you’re getting quality from one of the world’s most respected watch manufacturers. There is a reason they’re referred to as “the watchmaker’s watchmaker”.
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