A new Rattrapante from A. Lange & Söhne
Eqotime has taken a look at the new Tudor Ranger, a watch with a solid history tested under harsh conditions.
Text: Britta Rossander
Technically supreme A. Lange & Söhne have added a model to their 1815 series with one of the most sophisticated complications: rattrapante chronograph (French for catching up). Eqotimes Britta Rossander has talked with Anthony de Haas, Director of Product Development at A. Lange & Söhne.
Why a rattrapante?
-I think it is such an elegant complication and wanted to make a model that is as ”clean” as possible without a lot of extra complications, says Anthony de Haas, Director of Product Development at A. Lange & Söhne, when we chat about the new model over zoom.
-I wanted it to be as basic as possible: modern, functional, in the best materials and without a peek in the basement at old pocket watches. I'm not that interested in reviving old models, I would rather make watches that are modern. It has a new movement, calibre L101.2, case and clasp in platinum and it is limited to 200 individually numbered examples and they will primarily be sold in our own boutiques.
You call it rattrapante and not split second – why?
-The French expression is so much more beautiful and fits perfectly on such an elegant complication.
How long will the production time be to produce the 200 examples?
-We estimate that it takes about two and a half years.
Why essentially only in your own boutiques?
-It is because we want to know who buys our watches and it is easier to keep track of that if we sell them ourselves. There has been heavy speculation on our watches and we do not wish to contribute to someone buying one day, possibly with a discount, only to the next day consign it for sale at auction with a fat profit as a result. We have seen that happen with above all one watch, which despite not being limited was sold for a sky-high price and that does not feel good. We want our watches to be bought and worn by those who really like our craftsmanship and wear the watches themselves.
A. Lange & Söhne show with the new model that they are experts in the field of timekeeping. The complex mechanism has two chronograph hands, the central chronograph hand and the central rattrapante hand. Both hands start together when you press the button at 2 o'clock. The central rattrapante hand can now be stopped independently of the central chronograph hand and then again be synchronised with it. Since the movement is an in-house one it is easy for the watchmakers to place the smaller dials where they want which in this case has become 12 and 6 o'clock instead of the traditional placement at 3 and 9. Great skill, experience and patience are required to ensure the precision and reliability of the complex mechanism. The whole glory is clearly visible through the case back's sapphire crystal.
In 2004 a double rattrapante chronograph came, a Triple Split was presented in 2018 but the new 1815 Rattrapante is a classic interpretation of a split-second mechanism. Lange's watchmakers and engineers have with this watch managed to limit the height of the case to 12.6 millimetres despite the technical complexity of a hand-wound movement which makes it easy to wear for most wrists.
The blue hands to the silver-coloured dial, the minutes shown with a railway track and the clear Arabic numerals make the watch very easy to read and are, despite Anthony's feeling for the modern, a nod to the historic pocket watches from Lange.
Technical specifications
Brand: A. Lange & Söhne
Model: 1815 Rattrapante
Reference number: 425.025
Diameter: 41,2mm
Thickness: 12,6mm
Case material: Platinum
Water resistance: 30m
Dial: Silver, argenté
Strap: Hand-stitched black alligator
Buckle: Platinum
Movement: L 101.2 in-house
Complications: hours, minutes and subsidiary seconds with stop seconds; rattrapante chronograph with 30-minute counter, lap counter scale
Power reserve: 58h
Winding: Manual
Price: The price for the A. Lange & Söhne 1815 Rattrapante Platinum (reference 425.025) is given on request but a cautious guess is that it should lie somewhere close to what the price for the 1815 Rattrapante Honeygold ”Homage to F. A. Lange” with a limited edition of 100 examples that came for the 175th anniversary two years ago was, which was 130 000 euro.
