BASELNEWS 2010
Das erste vollständig handgearbeitete Tourbillon-Uhrwerk von DeWitt: Das neue Uhren-Kaliber DW8028
Just DeWitt! Yes, the master watchmakers of DeWitt have done it: create the first entirely home-made Tourbillon movement. A major step forward, a landmark in the history of the brand. DeWitt’s audacious approach to contemporary watchmaking is once again brought to light. In these challenging times for the industry, DeWitt has recognized a fantastic opportunity to create, to consolidate, and to showcase its autonomy and the depth of its know-how.
The new DeWitt calibre DW8028 is a manually wound movement integrating a solid and reliable Tourbillon mechanism. Its construction is rather classical, using age-old and recognized technical parameters as a basis: 18’000 A/h, 72 hours power reserve. The movement is equipped with a Swiss anchor escapement with a variable-inertia balance and a spiral with a Breguet curve sequenced at 2.5 Hz. The balance, as well as the escape wheel and the anchor are made of 18 carat yellow gold.
A landmark in the history of the brand
As for the finishings, entirely hand-made, they are of extremely rare quality. Meticulously angled, polished and satin-finished, the barrel and cage-bridges are finely decorated with Côtes de Genève. A little plate, bearing the signature of the master watchmaker and placed on the barrel-bridge, further witnesses the pride and affection put into the creation of each timepiece. A direct connection is therefore established between the client and the Manufacture.
The master watchmakers of DeWitt have done it!
The dial is sober and reassuring, echoing the faces of traditional masterpieces, but at the same time, it is joyful and lively, thanks to the heartbeats of the movement visible through a discrete opening on the Tourbillon cage. In the centre of the dial, an extremely refined guilloché tapestry, created by specially trained artisans with DeWitt’s historical 18th century machines, displays a miniature “W” pattern. Finally, three hand-engraved dotted circles elegantly surround and structure the dial, as they separate the hours, the minutes and the seconds indications.
The 43 mm round case is made of 18 carat rose gold and presents particularly comfortable proportions. It is slightly thinner than the famous Academia collection and features 48 imperial columns on its flanks. The bezel is particularly interesting as its polished and satin-finished columns provide eye-catching reflections. The lugs were also redesigned and slightly curved to preserve harmonious lines. The movement and the quality of the finishings can be observed through the sapphire crystal back.
DeWitt’s new Twenty-8-Eight Tourbillon is undoubtedly an audacious step forward, a major achievement for the Manufacture. But first and foremost, in the current economic context, the message is, and should be: “Just DeWitt”.