Lange Zeitwerk:- The First Constant Force Jumping Hour and Jumping Minute Digital Indicator Watch from Lange!Posted by Jaw
The revealation of Lange Zeitwerk was most interesting (more later) but the watch itself is also very impressive. It appears to me that Lange has successfully deomonstrated its versatility by giving us the first modern Constant Force Jump Hour and Jump Minute wristwatch. While digital time display is hardly new, most digital display watches and clocks lack the natural beauty of an analog time telling, and the visual perception of a digital time display has been quite unfavourable to most. The Lange Zeitwerk in contrast, posesses a contemporary look which is also very traditionally “Lange”. Amidst the depressed economic sentiment, I think Lange Zeitwerk will jolt the industry and give it a little life. Although the intended prices are not cheap, it is a great value proposition for the Lange fans. Many brands hold back their novelty products this Basel and SIHH and being the first to launch a new innovative watch just as economists see the light at the end of the tunnel. The timing is geared to attract maximum attention. While we expect several new launches from other brands throughout the year 2009, Lange has fired the first salvo. Since I am just back from Berlin a few hours ago and reached home only about 15 minutes ago, perhaps I should reproduce the press release texts first to satisfy the curiosity of the Lange fans. Any context relevant reply in this thread will automatically quality to win one of the five Lange Photoframe 2009 calendar.  Pink Gold Zeitwerk.  Platinum Zeitwerk.  Yellow Gold Zeitwerk.  White Gold Zeitwerk With a new timepiece concept, A. Lange & Söhne ventures a bold step forward Often, it is a new face that ushers in new times. That was the case after the rift in Europe had healed and the LANGE 1 paved the way for the comeback of A. Lange & Söhne. Fifteen years ago, it enriched the realm of horology with a fundamentally new concept and unprecedented technical finesse. As a design icon, it has long conquered its place at the pinnacle of timelessness. Now, with a mechanical, precisely jumping hour and minute indication of singular clarity, Lange presents another milestone. So yet again, a new face ushers in the next era in timekeeping. Its name: LANGE ZEITWERK. “I shut my eyes in order to see” – the creative maxim of famous French painter Paul Gauguin was adopted by Lange’s calibre engineers and designers as they resolved to explore uncharted territory and, from an unbiased viewpoint, devise a watch that would be evolutionary and progressive in every respect. Ultimately, progress is always a result of curiosity. The question at Lange was: “Can the principles of a mechanical watch and a modern time indication format be persuasively combined?” The answer is the first mechanical wristwatch with a truly eloquent jumping numeral display. It is a watch that reinterprets time in an era of change. It not only endows time with a new face but also defines a new direction in watchmaking. It is a timepiece that embodies the spirit of time and simultaneously transcends it. Indeed, it is a watch that lets its owner experience a totally new sense of time. A fresh design concept underscores the paradigm shift: The German-silver time bridge unfolds its wings across the entire width of the dial to prominently frame the large numerals of the laterally aligned windows that present the hours and minutes. It extends down to encircle the subsidiary seconds dial as well, uniting all three levels of time measurement in a harmonious setting. With its easy-to-grip bevelled flutes, the knurled crown points up and away, predicting an upswing movement. And in the upper third of the dial, the continuous power-reserve indicator reliably tells the owner when it is time to re-energise the movement. With its emblematic name, the LANGE ZEITWERK is a watch that stands for uncompromising clarity. Thanks to the unparalleled size of its numerals, it tells the current time at even a cursory glance. With a whispered click and within fractions of a second, the minute display advances step by step until the watch initiates the big jump at the top of the hour. At this point, all three numeral discs switch forward simultaneously and instantaneously by exactly one unit. Here, timekeeping is elevated to the status of an event. The perfect moment for the showdown is at 11:59 – “high noon” in a widescreen format. The seconds hand embarks on its leisurely trajectory along the periphery of the subsidiary dial. Time seems to slow down as its course is deliberately observed. Thirty seconds to go. Mounting suspense. Then: ten … three, two, one – click – 12:00. One small step for a watch, but a giant leap for horology. Beneath the extraordinary face, an equally revolutionary movement with a diameter of 33.6 millimetres fully occupies the space inside the 41.9-millimetre gold or platinum case. The significant amount of energy required to simultaneously advance all three numeral discs once every hour is delivered by a newly developed barrel with an extra-strong mainspring. Its patented design literally turns the venerable wind/unwind principle upside down. Thus, the mainspring barrel bearing with the higher friction rating is involved when the watch is being wound, but the barrel wheel always turns in the minimised-friction bearing as the mainspring gradually relaxes. This makes more torque available for powering the watch as well as the ensemble of discs with the hour and minute numerals. A constant-force escapement, also patented, between the barrel wheel and the balance acts as a pacemaker for the jumping advance of the hours and minutes – in its compactness, the mechanism is quite likely unprecedented. The forces that occur when the numeral discs are accelerated and braked are far beyond the magnitude normally encountered in a movement. To absorb them, a fly governor was integrated in the mechanism. As it rotates, its vanes must displace air like a fan; it is this resistance that dissipates much of the energy and assures gentle switching. At the same time, the constant-force escapement makes an important contribution to stabilising the rate of the movement: across the entire 36-hour autonomy period, it drives the balance with nearly uniform power, regardless of the state of wind of the mainspring and unaffected by the energy-consuming switching cycles that take place in one-minute intervals. Incidentally, a balance wheel with eccentric poising weights and a hairspring manufactured in-house constitute the high-precision beat controller. As progressive as this watch with the “A. Lange & Söhne” signature may be, it remains a staunch advocate of classic horological values. A glance through the sapphire-crystal caseback reveals the lavishly decorated L043.1 manufacture calibre that in addition to all its technical novelties of course also features a three-quarter plate, a hand-engraved balance cock, and screwed gold chatons – each element is an endearingly familiar and regal asset of every Lange watch. With its graceful appearance and intrinsic values, the LANGE ZEITWERK is not only a seminal timepiece, it also makes a strong statement about the personality and the style of its owner. It delivers a new experience in time – whether with eyes wide open or shut. *****   Movement Exploding view.  Movement view, dial side. Remontoir Jumping Hour and Jumping Minute Mechanism. Data sheet LANGE ZEITWERK Movement Lange manufacture calibre L043.1, manually wound, crafted to the most exacting Lange quality standards, decorated and assembled by hand; precision-adjusted in five positions; three quarter plate made of untreated German silver; balance cock engraved by hand; jumping minutes; constant-force escapement Number of movement parts 388 Jewels 66 Screwed gold chatons 2 Escapement Lever escapement Oscillation system Shock-resistant glucydur balance with eccentric poising weights; superior-quality balance spring manufactured in-house with patent-pending attachment system (balance spring clamp), frequency 18,000 semi-oscillations per hour, precision beat adjustment system with lateral setscrew and whiplash spring Power reserve 36 hours when fully wound Functions Jumping hours and minutes, small seconds hand with stop seconds, power-reserve indicator Operating elements Crown for winding the watch and setting the time Case dimensions Diameter: 41.9 millimetres; height: 12.6 millimetres Movement dimensions Diameter: 33.6 millimetres; height: 9.3 millimetres Ref. Nos. 140.021 Yellow Gold 140.029 White Gold 140.032 Pink Gold 140.025 Platinum Dial Solid silver, champagne (yellow Gold) Solid silver, black (white gold) Solid silver, argenté (pink gold) Solid silver, rhodié (Platinum) Time bridge German silver, untreated (yellow and pink gold) German silver, rhodiumed (white gold and platinum) Glass and caseback Sapphire crystal (hardness 9) Hands Rhodiumed gold Strap Hand-stitched crocodile strap and Lange prong buckle in solid gold or platinum
thanks Jaw, like Stefano said, good report! to be very honest, and although I like the concept, my first impressions are not, well, not jawbreaking. the three differents in height in the windows, the screw and the jewel next to each other, the crown on the two....hmmm, think i have to see it in the flesh IMVHO...  but interesting? that's for sure!  cheers, Wim Wim K. Glashütte Original Forum Moderator Dream as if you'll live forever, live as if you'll die tomorrow. (James Dean) el tiempo es la base de nuestra existencia un día a la vez, siempre cerca de usted Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/07/2009 11:32AM by Wimster.
 At 51 Seconds.  Just before the 52 seconds mark.  At 52 seconds, the single minute digit shifted down very slightly, getting ready for the jumping minute release.  At the 59 seconds mark.  Just before the 60 seconds mark.  At exactly 60 seconds mark, the unit minute digit jumps.  The Minute jump completed.  At the 1 minute mark, going for the next minute jump. Jaw
       Jaw
    Jaw
       Just before the 60 seconds mark.  Just after the 60 seconds mark.  Just before the 52 seconds mark.  At the 52 seconds mark, the unit minute digit dips very slightly lower. Jaw
thanks for the wonderful pics and report. a very interesting watch. at first glance the face does not appeal to me but it looks to grow on me  cheers raph timetapestry.blogspot.com
I was told the digital dislays are still being tweaked, especially the visual perception of some that the numerals don't look quite straight (optical illusion), but take a look at the hour and minute discs construction. To make the Hour and the 10 minute and the unit minute discs truly on one single horizontal plane will not be an easy matter...  Of Course, nothing is impossible, but I am happy as it is with the different levels. Jaw
      Jaw
         Jaw
If I read what you read elsewhere then the reference was to a more precise lining up of the numbers horizontally - the prototype apparently needed to be tweaked in this respect with some fine adjustment of the positioning of the disks. The construction simply does not allow for the tens and minutes to be on the same plane - unlike two disks next to each other in the old Pallweber pocket watch design or the tens overlapping in a recess on the minutes disk like on the Glashutte Original design.  I have also read elsewhere that the Lange tens and minute disks being as they are is intentional because this is - by now - the recognised "look" of the Lange big date display. Dirk
      Jaw
 Sandra Domschke maybe relatively new at Lange, but she is the hero behind the elaborate Zeitwerk launch events at Berlin between May 3rd to May 6th 2009!. The logistics of handling international press and retailers, their food and accommodations, their city tours and the tough job of ensuring the 4 nights event will go smoothly was a monumental task which was handled nicely with aplomb by Sandra and her team. I feel there is a need to introduce this charming and capable lady to our fellow Horomundians! Jaw
While perhaps immaterial to watch fans, a great watch has to be revealed in an exceptional manner! The Lange Zeitwerk launch dinner brought athorised retailers and members of the media to the Katharina Grosse Shadowbox, a culinary experience where the sense of taste and smell were enhanced by suppressing the sense of sight. Guests pre-allocated their table were guided to their seat by the waitress within a room in complete darkness. As an amateur photoghrapher who has played with dark room in my younger days, I never knew a pitch dark room is possible to construct, especially s scale this large. The waitresses however seemingly had their magical ways to serve food and beverages to every seating guest without so much spilling a drop of red wine. It was so fun eating in the dark that I tried it once again during my flight back from Berlin (wearing an eye mask), with considerable satisfaction that I managed to keep my seat and clothing free from food stains   Emcee Radka Kaspar for the evening, in darkness and in light  Lange Uhren CEO Fabian Krone giving his welcome speech. The Lange Zeitwerk was revealed only after the main course was served and the light turned on. To the enthusiastic applause of the guests!  Hartmut Knothe.  Sandra Domschke.  Christian Engelbrecht, Radka Kaspar and Jan Abele. Jan is the Head of Event Marketing at Lange, He is the one in charge of event organisation and I congratulate him and his team for a job well done!  Project Manager Tino Bobe.  Tony De Haas, Lange Product Development Director.  Arnd Einhorn.  Lange CEO Fabian Krone.  Wei Koh, Lange Hong Kong and China Communication and PR Manager Elaine Hung, Eddie Koh and Peter Chong.         The real timekeeping Zeitwerk Sofa. Jaw |   .jpg)     | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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