Vacheron Constantin Overseas Grand Complication Openface

Jamie Weiss

• Vacheron Constantin continues its 270th anniversary celebrations in dramatic fashion with an especially sophisticated Abroad mannequin.
• Cased in titanium, that is the primary Abroad mannequin with a minute repeater, but it additionally incorporates a perpetual calendar and tourbillon.
• Its manual-winding calibre 2755 is descended from a number of the Maison’s most legendary and complex actions of all time.

Vacheron Constantin has a storied however sporadic historical past in producing minute repeaters. In fact, we’ve seen this complication featured in a number of the Maison’s latest ultra-complicated items, such because the Solaria Extremely Grand Complication launched at Watches and Wonders earlier this 12 months, however not like another watchmakers on the pinnacle of the artwork, Vacheron lacks a ‘customary’ minute repeater in its vary (if such a factor exists). We’ve additionally by no means seen a minute repeater motion contained in the model’s most well-known modern design, the Abroad. Properly, Vacheron’s seen match to vary all of that in 2025, marking this momentous 270th anniversary 12 months with some of the sophisticated and visually dramatic Abroad fashions but that, you guessed it, has a minute repeater.

Vacheron Constantin minute repeaters have been entrance of thoughts recently, with the ref. 6448 “Distinctive Piece” hammering for a powerful CHF 698,500 at Phillips over the weekend, a spotlight of this 12 months’s stacked Geneva watch public sale season. In contrast to that piece, nonetheless, which was cased in platinum and featured ‘simply’ a minute repeater, the Abroad Grand Complication Openface has plenty of spectacular problems and is cased in grade 5 titanium, a cloth we’re not usually used to seeing home minute repeaters or certainly excessive problems.

Sometimes, minute repeater timepieces are inclined to utilise valuable metallic instances – emblematic of how prestigious this complication is, in addition to client expectations at this finish of the watch market – however truly, gold and platinum are suboptimal supplies for a minute repeater. As a result of these metals are so dense, they hamper sound propagation, making chimes sound duller than in the event that they had been cased in metal or titanium.

Some snobs may nonetheless query utilizing titanium for such a high-end timepiece, however within the palms of Vacheron Constantin’s expert artisans, titanium could be reworked into a really luxurious materials, because the model first demonstrated with final 12 months’s Abroad Tourbillon ref. 6000V/210T-H032. The mirror sprucing on this Abroad’ signature gear-like bezel is simply luxurious, contrasted by a grained end on the plinth beneath it, delicate brushing down the tops of the watch down by means of its bracelet, alternating with polished bevels, case sides and a cultured minute repeater slider.

The opposite benefit of titanium, after all, is that it’s mild on the wrist, which is an effective factor for a watch that measures 44.5mm in diameter and 13.1mm thick. These aren’t small proportions, however in comparison with just about another watch this sophisticated, that’s actually not dangerous in any respect. Particularly, the Abroad Grand Complication Openface, on high of its minute repeater, additionally incorporates a perpetual calendar, a tourbillon (which acts as a small seconds indicator) and an influence reserve indicator, the latter of which is seen from the caseback.

As its title implies, the Abroad Grand Complication Openface exposes its workings by means of a sapphire crystal dial with perpetual calendar subdials and a minute observe in darkish blue, the signature Abroad color. I discover open dials to be a research in contradictions: they will both be extraordinarily conventional, like in some skeletonised watches from crème de la crème watchmakers (of which Vacheron certainly is one), or they can provide off a high-tech vibe. The Abroad Grand Complication Openface’s dial is someplace within the center. The color and materials selections – blue and gray, titanium and sapphire – are very trendy, however there’s a restraint on show right here.

General, this sophisticated Abroad is, idiosyncratically, fairly sporty. Vacheron has made a lot of the truth that this watch is waterproof to 30 metres: not a lot within the grand scheme of issues, however for a watch this sophisticated, not dangerous in any respect. VC explains that to achieve this stage of water resistance required a 12 months and a half of R&D and concerned a whole redesign of the caseback to suit the minute repeater mechanism. Like all Abroad fashions, the Abroad Grand Complication Openface comes with two extra straps, blue alligator and blue rubber (the latter of which actually makes the watch look sporty), which could be simply swapped out due to its quick-change system.

The motion on the coronary heart of the Abroad Grand Complication Openface, the calibre 2755, is just not new: it first appeared within the Traditionnelle assortment in 2010, and is itself spinoff of then calibre 2750 developed for the Tour de l’Ile Grand Complication of 2005, which on the time was the world’s most intricate wristwatch (a document Vacheron reclaimed this 12 months!) Vacheron Constantin Director of Fashion and Patrimony Christian Selmoni explains that the calibre 2755 was chosen for this primary Abroad minute repeater not just for its complexity but in addition for its slimness and modular design.

It won’t be a brand-new motion, but it surely’s been completed in another way for this execution, sporting anthracite gray NAC galvanic-treated bridges and rhodium-plated wheels. In brief, the calibre 2755 has by no means appeared extra trendy, which is befitting of the Abroad Grand Complication Openface’s modern aesthetic. Like most Vacheron Constantin actions, it boasts Poinçon de Genève certification, with delicate côtes de Genève, countersunk screws and pleasant inside angles offering a feast for the eyes, which means regardless of which aspect of this watch you’re taking a look at, you’re in for a deal with.

“With the boundaries between watchmaking genres changing into more and more blurred right this moment, the world of horological problems is now not confined to fragile, museum-quality timepieces – removed from it,” Selmoni elaborates.

“That is precisely what Vacheron Constantin is doing with the Abroad assortment. Conceived as a watch with a spirit of exploration tailored to the adventures of on a regular basis life, with helpful problems reminiscent of a chronograph or a twin time-zone show, the Abroad additionally is aware of find out how to transcend these boundaries. The gathering already consists of tourbillon and ultra-thin skeletonised perpetual calendar items that by no means detract from it – fairly the opposite. Every of them is devoted to the Abroad spirit, respecting its codes whereas including a brand new dimension to the world of problems, one among Vacheron Constantin’s nice areas of experience. The identical is true of this new Abroad Grand Complication Openface. It’s geared up with a fancy calibre however in a kind that honours the gathering’s adventurous character.”

Vacheron Constantin Abroad Grand Complication Openface pricing and availability

The Vacheron Constantin Abroad Grand Complication Openface is just not a restricted version however is a restricted manufacturing mannequin, maybe unsurprising due to its complexity. Value: on request.