Roger Dubuis Excalibur DT RDDBEX0952
The Roger Dubuis Excalibur DT RDDBEX0952 is the latest creation from the high-end horological visionaries. It perpetuates the brand’s reputation for making ultra-modern, highly technical, beautifully finished and deliciously decadent watches. Angus Davies, an unabashed brand devotee, provides some insight into the esoteric world of ‘Hyper Horology’.
Calvanism
Geneva will forever be associated with Calvanism, a Protestant theological system dating back to the 16th century. The regime at this time was incredibly strict, even religious names were banned. The wearing of jewellery was also prohibited, hence many artisans transferred their skills to horology, culminating in Geneva becoming the epicentre of the Swiss watchmaking industry. Modesty and conservatism were the order to the day.
This period has left an indelible mark on the city and the psyche of many of its inhabitants. Everyone is polite and everything feels elegantly understated. While various fashions are in evidence, the locals tend to be smartly dressed but there’s not a sequin or leopard-skin print to be seen anywhere. Some 500 years have passed since John Calvin ruled Geneva with a rod of iron and yet a culture of temperance prevails.
Meyrin – a different world
However, if you stand on the Montblanc bridge, located in the heart of the city, and you cup your hand to your ear, you may well hear a faint, indistinct rumble. As you head away from the city towards the airport and onwards to nearby Meyrin, the sound gets louder.
Meyrin, a suburb of Geneva, is home to Roger Dubuis, the purveyor of ‘Hyper Horology’. It is in this enclave of creativity where rebels hang out. You can now hear the music, the party is in full swing and the air brims with joie de vivre. As the brand often says ‘We believe in living larger than life’. It’s a mindset that permeates everything the company does, including the high-end products it painstakingly makes.
Radical, slightly off-beat, daring and wonderfully made
Roger Dubuis is the enfant terrible of Haute Horlogerie. It crafts models, often endowed with high complications and produced to exacting standards, whilst encompassing bold, neoteric, radical design. The finishing stands comparison with watches produced by the so-called ‘Holy Trinity’. Indeed, the Poinçon de Genève, an independent certification body, regularly visits the Manufacture to rigorously inspect both components and complete watches. No stone is left unturned.
Poinçon de Genève
Where Roger Dubuis differs from watchmaking’s old guard is that it doesn’t blindly follow the well-trodden path of others, it dares to question accepted norms and pushes the boundaries. The Maison repeatedly innovates, working with new materials and executing different forms of finishing all under the watchful eye of the Poinçon de Genève.
Specialities of the house
Earlier this year, I spent a couple of days touring the Manufacture, following the linear flow of production. At the end of my visit, I left the party having witnessed incredible watchmaking expertise coupled with a relentless and passionate pursuit for improvement.
One of the specialities of the house is the flying tourbillon. The tourbillon is designed to counter the adverse influence of gravity acting upon the escapement and regulating organ, thereby heightening precision. A flying tourbillon eschews an upper bridge, affording superior views of the escape wheel, pallet lever, balance wheel and hairspring all in motion.
Highly trained, vastly experienced watchmakers are required to bring a tourbillon to life. The process of assembly and regulation, along with countless quality controls along the way, is technically challenging and protracted. However, the resultant product serves as a wonderful expression of fine watchmaking, or ‘Hyper Horology’ as they like to say at Roger Dubuis.
Clearly, not content with making ‘flying tourbillons’, Roger Dubuis has conceived ‘double flying tourbillons’. By equipping the model with two escapements and two regulating organs, linked with a differential, infinitesimal positional errors can be eliminated. While most brands are willing to live with ‘acceptable’, Roger Dubuis obsesses over the minutiae in its relentless quest for perfection.
Roger Dubuis Excalibur DT RDDBEX0952 – a white ceramic case enlivened with EON GOLD™️
The Genevan marque has just released a new model endowed with a double flying tourbillon, the Roger Dubuis Excalibur DT RDDBEX0952. The brand’s irreproachable standards of watchmaking are housed in a new white ceramic case, measuring 45mm in diameter. This hard material takes 15 times longer to finish than an identical case made of gold. The resultant case is scratch-resistant and won’t tarnish over time.
The white tones of the case are enlivened with EON GOLD™️, a form of 18-carat gold that is also less prone to tarnishing. This noble metal is used for various case components, including the bezel, crown, crown guard and caseback. The resultant aesthetic juxtaposes shades of artic white with warm golden hues.
RD108 calibre
Consistent with other Roger Dubuis creations, the hand-wound movement, the RD108 calibre, is the star of the show, visible front of house with no secrets to tell. Everything is shown in flawless form. The tourbillon carriages are executed in titanium and cobalt-chrome and feature blemish-free, mirror-polished surfaces. This latter example of ‘finissage’ is widely considered the most difficult to perform, however, on this watch, the technique has been applied to several components.
A double tourbillon
The movement has been re-engineered, thereby providing a power reserve of 72 hours. Furthermore, the tourbillon carriages are made in titanium and cobalt-chrome, providing better resistance to magnetism. Normally, a tourbillon is connected to the fourth wheel of the gear train, however, in this instance, Roger Dubuis has connected the differential to the second wheel of the gear train, delivering superior energy transmission.
Roger Dubuis Excalibur DT RDDBEX0952
The dial flange is made from white mineral composite fibre (MCF) and includes an engraved minute track and pink gold accents with generous helpings of Super-LumiNova. The multi-faceted hands are pink gold, encompass different finishes and, once again, feature luminescent treatment. Day or night, the dial indications are highly legible.
Closing remarks
The bold styling of the Excalibur DT will not be to everyone’s taste. Personally, I’m an unabashed Roger Dubuis devotee and I would love to own an example of this watch. Sadly, I lack the pecuniary means to make this a reality.
The design language showcases the movement, revealing many of its thought processes. The mainspring can be seen in various states of tension, while the keyless works, gear train, etc are revealed in gorgeous naked form.
However, Roger Dubuis ownership is more than appearance alone. The movement is the product of prolonged consideration, where chronometry, longevity and reliability are optimised to the nth degree. Examine a Roger Dubuis movement with a loupe and you will find no evidence of machining, just peerless finishing, sating one of the many requirements of the Poinçon de Genève.
Roger Dubuis frequently proclaims it makes ‘excessive’, ‘provocative’ and ‘revolutionary’ timepieces. The company’s products are the very antithesis of John Calvin’s belief system. Geneva is a fabulous city and home to sublime examples of Haute Horlogerie, however, it is the suburb of Meyrin where the horological rebels choose to live, party and innovate, crafting wonderful exemplars of Hyper Horology.
Further reading
Technical specifications
- Model: Roger Dubuis Excalibur DT
- Reference: RDDBEX0952
- Case: white ceramic, diameter 45 mm, water resistance 10ATM (100m), sapphire crystal to the front and exhibition case back.
- Functions: hours, minutes
- Movement: RD108 calibre, hand-wound movement, frequency 21,600 vph (3Hz), 32 jewels, power reserve 72 hours.
- Strap: premium calf leather strap, interchangeable with Quick Release System – QRS. Pink gold buckle with titanium blades (triple folding)
- Price: £242,000 (RRP as of 5.11.2022)