WT_2006_03: CHRONOSWISS TIMEMASTER 24 DAY & NIGHT

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CHRONOSWISS TIMEMASTER 24 DAY & NIGHTIts slow-moving hour hand will play tricks with your psyche and make you feel as thoughyou’ve got all the time in the world.about a dozen models with slow-running hourhands can be found in the catalogs of the variousmanufacturers. The best-known modelsare probably Breitling’s Cosmonaute andGlycine’s Airman.The situations in which a 24-hour display isgenuinely useful are admittedly few. Submarinecrewmen and polar explorers would betwo potential target groups. Pilots who appreciatenostalgia belong to another professionalgroup whose members might be interested inthis type of watch.Pilots’ watches from the early days of motorizedflight were the godfathers for thestyling that Gerd-Rüdiger Lang and his teamdevised for the Timemaster 24 Day & Night.This watch has big numerals and broad, highcontrasthands: if it had been available back inthe 1920s and ‘30s, it would surely have beena popular piece of equipment on the wrists ofthose daring young men in the jaw-jarringcockpits of their flying machines.Anyone who opts for this timepiece willneed to spend some time becoming accustomedto the unconventional relationship betweenthe positions of its hands and the timeof day or night. Getting used to reading thisdial is rather fun…it’s a bit like driving a Britishcar with its steering wheel on the right. After afew days, you begin to feel comfortable with it,but if you’re in a hurry (or have to make a rightturn in London traffic), you’re liable to becomeconfused.Chronoswiss’s designers have taken painsto make it easier for people to become accustomedto the unaccustomed. First of all, theThe cock, which was added to support a sweep seconds hand, is only one of the many eye-catchingalterations that the Unitas movement has undergone.daytime hours from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., i.e., thehalf of the day that’s most relevant for ordinarypeople, are boldly indicated on the upper halfof the dial. This detail distinguishes theTimemaster from most other timepieces with24-hour displays. The numerals for these 12hours are coated with luminous material sothey contrast strongly with the black backgroundand positively draw your gaze towardsthem. The nighttime hours are indicated byblack numerals against a pale background.This half of the dial glows so brightly when twilightcomes that you can’t possibly overlook it.The hands gleam brightly and in a slightly differentcolor, so you won’t have any trouble locatingthem in the dark. The sapphire crystal isnon-reflective on its inner surface, but the glassnonetheless reflects light, which can createglare. The domed crystal doesn’t distort thenumerals unless you peer through it at a veryobtuse angle.This variation is more practical than its partnermodel, which has a uniformly dark-coloreddial. If you compare the Timemaster 24 Day &Night with its two relatives (which have conventional12-hour time displays), you’ll probablyagree that the additional numerals on ourtest candidate’s dial give it a more balancedand appealing look.The craftsmen who made the dial havemeticulously ensured that both its halves areexactly coplanar. The layer of black lacquer onthe upper half of the dial is precisely as thick asthe coating of luminous material on the lowerhalf. This fine workmanship is best appreciatedby scrutinizing the line where the two halvesmeet. The luminous substance isn’t appliedwith quite the same consummate accuracy attwo places: near the “6” and on the markingbeside the “18.”From a technical point of view, it doesn’ttake a rocket scientist to rework a 12-hour displayto produce a 24-hour indicator. But Gerd-Rüdiger Lang wasn’t satisfied to merely halvethe speed of the hour hand. The Unitas 6497supports a seconds hand at the “9,” but Lang98 WatchTime June 2006
CHRONOSWISS TIMEMASTER 24 DAY & NIGHTGetting used to reading this dial is rather fun…it’s a bit likedriving a British car with its steering wheel on the right.The large distance between the case and the crown makes it very convenient to set the time.DATACHRONOSWISS TIMEMASTER 24DAY & NIGHTManufacturer: Chronoswiss,Elly-Staegmeyr-Strasse 12, 80999 MunichModel: Timemaster 24 Day & NightFunctions: 24-hour display, hours, minutes,seconds, stop-seconds functionMovement: Caliber C.674, based on aUnitas/ETA 6497-1; diameter = 36.6 mm;height = 5.4 mm; 18,000 vibrations per hour;18 jewels, Incabloc shock absorption, swan’sneck fine adjustment, screw balance, powerreserve of about 48 hoursCase: Stainless steel case crafted from 22 parts;threaded screw-in back, sapphire crystal is nonreflectiveon one surface; rotating bezel;screwed strap lugs (Autobloc system); upperhalf of dial is matte black with Super-LuminovaC3 on the numbers; the entire lower half (butnot the matte black numerals) is coated withSuper-Luminova C3; screwed crown; waterresistantto 100 metersStrap and clasp: Crocodile-skin strap withpronged buckle; extensible cowhide strap alsoincludedRate results:(Deviations in seconds per 24 hours)Dial up +12Dial down: +5Crown up: +3Crown down: +2Crown left: +8Crown right: -3Greatest deviation of rate: 15Average deviation: +4.5Mean amplitudeflat positions 313°hanging positions: 297°Dimensions: Diameter = 44 mm;height = 12.3 mm; weight = 100 gramsPrice: $6,750preferred a sweep seconds hand. The modifiedcaliber inside the Timemaster 24 Day & Nightsupports a center-mounted seconds hand becauseLang added a wheel and a pinion beneatha massive cock. These additional componentsadded 0.9 millimeters to the height ofthe movement, which is now 5.4 millimeterstall. The central seconds hand also received itsown ruby, which raised the total number ofjewels from 17 to 18. Standard features on themodified caliber, which goes by the alphanumericdesignation “C.674,” include a stopsecondsfunction, a screw balance, and aswan’s neck fine adjustment mechanism. Agenerously proportioned window in the backof the case lets you feast your eyes on thispowerhouse, which has been prettily decoratedin typical Chronoswiss style. The adornmentsinclude Geneva waves on the upper surfaces,cloud-pattern embellishment under thebalance, and a precisely positioned sunburstpattern on the barrel wheel and crown wheel(a k a “transmission wheel”). The wheels havebeen polished to a mirror-like sheen. The entireensemble is a pleasure to look at. It provesjust how beautiful a sleek and simple movementcan be when it has the good fortune topass through the right hands. Some of thosehands, incidentally, belong to artisans whowork at Arola in Les Bioux, Switzerland. Andthey individually number each movementwhen they’re finished embellishing it.The hour hand on this wristwatch movesslowly, but its slowness shouldn’t be equatedwith a lack of precision. The specimen that wetested in our laboratory gained an average of4.5 seconds per day. That’s an entirely acceptableperformance for a hand-wound movement.Empirical tests on the wrist measured adaily gain of between 5 and 6 seconds, whichis also satisfactory. The maximum deviation of12 seconds per day occurred when the watchwas in the “dial up” position, so when youtake your Timemaster off at night and put it onyour nightstand, you’d be better advised toleave it curled on its side like a sleeping catrather than flat on its back.Apropos the back: this one slides smooth assilk through its threads when you open thecase. This is an admittedly small detail, but itconfirms the unflaggingly high quality of thecraftsmanship. The interior of the case revealsexactly what one expects from this fine brand.The insulator fits perfectly inside its groove,where it helps the Timemaster remain waterresistantto 100 meters’ depth. The movementnearly fills the case, so no bulky movement-100 WatchTime June 2006
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WT_2006_03: CHRONOSWISS TIMEMASTER 24 DAY & NIGHT

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