2-Eight

The  Vingt-8  wristwatch,  presented  at  Baselworld 2011, was  an exceptional expression of watchmaking philosophy according to the philosophy of Kari  Voutilainen.  That watch marked the first release  of  the  new in-house  movement  that  was  designed, assembled and finished in its entirety at the Voutilainen atelier in Môtiers,  Switzerland. The  design  and  philosophy  of  this new in house  movement  combined  a  deep respect  for  tradition  with novel design impulses. This is evident in such details as the new double  wheel  escapement  designed  with  a  view  towards longevity  and  precision.  Its very  large  in-house  manufactured balance wheel, beating at a classical 18,000 v.p.h., provides great stability  whilst  allowing perfect  regulation  of  the  watch  within strict tolerances.

New  for  2012,  the  2-Eight utilizes  this  same  exceptional movement,  this  time in  new  case  dimensions  of  37mm  and  a special dial created with a guilloché chapter ring and center field of  delicately  colored  mother  of  pearl.  The  whole  is  set  off  with hand  made and  applied  indexes  and  numerals  in  gold,  with  the famous Voutilainen hands that represent a new interpretation of classical  pomme hands  for  the  21st century. For such  an exceptional  timepiece,  a  very  rare  and  unique balance-spring configuration has been used with two special curves.  The exterior curve  of  the  spring  uses  a typical  Breguet  overcoil,  whilst the internal  curve  uses  the  little  known  Grossmann  curve.  This  is combined with the use of two escapement wheels, instead of the centuries old use of a single wheel, as ones sees in standard Swiss anchor escapement design.

This new Voutilainen movement is the first watch to use such a configuration.  The  double  escapement  wheels  give  a  direct impulse to the balance through the impulse roller and jewel. This means the escapement is extremely efficient, requiring much less energy  than  traditional  lever  escapements,  as  well  as  offering benefits in terms of longevity and stability in day-to-day use. The sublimely elegant balance-wheel bridge befits such a unique escapement, offering  an  unimpeded  view  of  the  mechanical wonders below.

The  watch  is  finished  to  the  highest  standards.  The  surfaces  of pinions  and  wheels  are  completely  flat  and  highly  polished  to within exceptionally uniform tolerances. All finishing work on the main plate and bridges is created by hand to achieve the highest possible levels  of  surface  finish. Even  the  smallest  parts  such  as screws  and other steel  parts are finished  and polished  by hand. This also applies to parts of the watch that the owner will never be able to see.