Monthly Archives: May 2017

Cheap Cartier Replica Crash Skeleton Watch For Men Hands-On

Want a watch that is almost guaranteed to become a fascinating collector’s piece somewhere down the road? Then you might want to take a close look at what is destined to be a unique and rare treat from Cartier. I am, of course, talking about the Cheap Cartier Replica, which adds a new men’s version of the famous crash watch to Cartier’s venerable stable of modern timepieces.

Cheap Cartier Replica

Cheap Cartier Replica

It was back in 2012 that Cartier decided to relaunch their odd Crash collection (for women). Odd because, well, it is. The story of the Cartier Crash watch is one that I spend more time discussing in that article I just linked to above. Cheap Replica Watches doesn’t market the actual creation of the watch with as much transparency as I think collectors deserve. According to Cartier, the Crash was a simple byproduct of the 1960s in “Swinging London.” That is technically true, but the more gruesome reality is far more interesting.

Cartier Replica

Cartier Replica

Originally a men’s watch, in 2012 when the Cartier Crash was reintroduced, it was as a women’s watch, complete with a lovely bracelet and diamond decoration in all 18k white or rose gold cases. Quirky and unique, the Cartier Replica remains a polarizing design cherished by some and mocked by others. It does have a special intrigue to it, and while I am not sure if I could be a Crash wearer, there is a definite attraction I feel toward the look of the case.
From a technique standpoint, what is the most interesting element of the Cartier Crash Skeleton is how Cartier adopted its now signature movement skeletonization design aesthetic for the more organic “melted” look of the Crash case. The in-house made and hand-finished Cartier Replica Watches caliber 9618 MC manually-wound movement is design to “move” with the case shape – offering something that I’ve never quite seen before.

Cartier Replica Watches

Cartier Replica Watches

The 9618 MC movement operates at 4Hz (28,800 bph) with about 72 hours of power reserve and is produced from 138 parts. It indicates only the time with hours and minutes via two blued steel sword-style hands on the dial. In addition to the platinum case, the Cartier Crash Skeleton has a platinum crown and is matched to a black alligator strap. There is an avant-garde elegance to the watch which, while not divorced from the Cartier aesthetic, is something much less uncommon than the typically refined and more conservative looks people tend to associate with the brand. I am pretty sure that if the Cheap Cartier Replica was not part of Cartier’s history, the company today would never release a watch of this character and design.

Replica Watches

Replica Watches

As a men’s watch, the Cartier Crash Skeleton is going to be an acquired taste, for sure. I think it looks pretty good, and David actually liked it a lot as well. When producing a watch like this, Cartier Replica has no doubts that it will have niche appeal at best. “Niche appeal” is really one of the top reasons I love the luxury watch industry – because there is a degree of risk taking, allowing for wild stuff to be produced for the few people that feel a real connection to it. I just wish more timepieces like this came with “democratic pricing.”

Clé de Cartier Mysterious Hour Replica Watch

The Cartier Clé Mysterious Hour watch is probably my favorite new Cartier men’s watch model debuted here at Watches & Wonders 2015 in Hong Kong. It is actually a combination of three existing Cartier elements. First, is the also new-for-2015 Clé de Cartier Replica Watches collection case. Next, is the in-house made Cartier caliber 9981 MC which was debuted in 2013. And last, is a presentation of Cartier’s particular form of semi-skeletonized dial that we have seen from almost the beginning of Cartier’s higher-end “haute horology” collection of timepieces.

Cheap Replica Watches

Cheap Replica Watches

In 2013, I went hands-on with the Rotonde de Cartier Mystery watch that was inspired by historic Cartier clocks which use transparent discs to move hands. These were dubbed “mystery clocks” because it was not obvious how the hands were connected given the illusion that they were floating. This technique has been applied to timepieces before, but Cartier introduced the “mystery” hands which are on transparent discs in the Cartier Replica MC movement. This movement makes a return for 2015 in the Cartier Clé Mysterious Hour watches. Let me be the first to say that the minutes are also mysterious…

Cheap Cartier Replica

Cheap Cartier Replica

Made from 158 parts, the 4.61mm thick 9981 MC movement operates at a modern 4Hz and has a power reserve of 48 hours. That is rather nice considering that the movement itself is actually a crescent. Much of the interior space is open, dedicated to the sapphire crystals that the hands for the hours and minutes are placed upon. This interior section of the watch is otherwise transparent, offering a view right through the dial to the other side. Some of the movement is visible through the dial and the rest can be admired through the sapphire crystal caseback window. I like this a lot, because compared to the standard Clé models with the 1847 MC movement, the Clé Mysterious Hour appears to have a slightly larger exhibition window.It is very important to note that while the standard Cartier Clé watch is 40mm wide, the Clé de Cheap Cartier Replica is 41mm wide. I believe this small amount of extra size was necessary to accommodate the wider movement. The case is still pretty thin at just 11.25mm.Interestingly, from a case material perspective the Clé Mysterious Hour will be available in 18k pink gold as well as 950 palladium. Similar to platinum, we really don’t see palladium watches that much. I doubt, however, that there will ever be a steel version of the Clé Mysterious Hour – but that would be awesome.

Cartier Replica

Cartier Replica

Please refer to previous articles on the Clé to understand more about how the crown system works. Well, it doesn’t operate differently than most other crowns from a utility standpoint but the entire point of the Clé collection is to have a crown which mimics the feeling of winding a traditional clock winding key. “Clé” means “key” in French and that is why the name is used for the collection. It is a cool part of the watch and as a cabochon in the rectangular crown there is an actual piece of blue sapphire. I mention this because in some less expensive Cheap Replica Watches models blue spinel has replaced blue sapphire.

Cartier Replica Watches

Cartier Replica Watches

Cartier isn’t wasting any time at all fleshing out the Clé collection with an impressive assortment of both men’s and women’s models as well as mainstream and very high-end exclusive versions. In less than a year Cheap Cartier Replica has released Clé models ranging from simple time-only automatics to Clé watches with flying tourbillons. The Clé de Cartier Mysterious Hour for men is an attractive higher-end Clé model with a lot of fashionable and collector’s appeal.

Cartier Skeleton Replica Watch Hands-On

It was back in 2010 that Cartier initially presented the Rotonde Astrotourbillon watch. It was a time when Cartier was only beginning to really show off its cred as a in-house watchmaker in attempts to woo an audience of higher-end collectors who mostly saw the company as a maker of fine jewelry, women’s watches, and men’s status pieces with great designs but simple movements. Cartier Cheap Replica Watches wanted to offer the best of both worlds in terms of having excellent mainstream luxury watch products for men and women, as well as a “haute horology” level of products for more serious enthusiasts.

Cheap Cartier Replica

Cheap Cartier Replica

Most agree that Cartier more or less succeeded in doing that. Today in 2015, Cartier has captured the attention of serious watch lovers, even if their mainstay is still more simple luxury watch products. At the least, they have thoroughly succeeded in impressing high-end mechanical Cheap Cartier Replica lovers with a series of designs and complications that show a lot of true innovation and creativity.

Cartier Replica

Cartier Replica

The Cartier Astrotourbillon was just that – a new type of whimsical complication that offered a stellar viewing experience. What is an astrotourbillon? It is essentially a balance wheel mounted to a seconds hand. It isn’t a true tourbillon in the sense that the balance wheel does not spin in a cage on its own axis. With that said, the motion of the balance wheel in a circular manner is at least… tourbillonesque. I mean, let’s face it, tourbillons simply add complexity and artistry to a watch movement. You should dispel any notions you have about them making watches more accurate. So when a company decides to change up how a Cartier Replica works and how it operates, there isn’t a functional loss, they are simply offering an alternative to a complication people know, understand, and are perhaps a bit bored of at this point.

Cartier Replica Watches

Cartier Replica Watches

In 2011, Cartier followed up the original Cartier Replica Watches by putting the same movement inside of a Calibre case. aBlogtoWatch debuted the Calibre de Cartier Astrotourbillon here. Because I liked the Calibre case a bit more than the Rotonde case – given my predilection for sports watches – that was a very strong offering, in my opinion, and I was happy to see Cartier extending the Astrotourbillon concept into more watches. With that said, I have yet to see a Cartier Astrotourbillon in the wild, and I look forward to seeing one soon, given the simple pleasure of seeing the astrotourbillon seconds hand in action.

Cheap Replica Watches

Cheap Replica Watches

Another year later, in 2012, Cartier released a very interesting limited edition version of the Rotonde de Cartier Astrotourbillon with the Rotonde de Cartier Astrotourbillon Carbon Crystal. This saw the implementation of some unique materials born from Cartier’s ID projects into the Astrotourbillon. Moreover, this is the first time Cartier began to experiment with some skeletonization on an Astrotourbillon-based timepiece. The Cheap Cartier Replica was an amazing watch, and it led to the 2015 Cartier Rotonde de Cartier Astrotourbillon Skeleton that we have here.

Rotonde De Cartier Grande Complication Watch Hands-On

After numerous impressive and unique ventures dedicated to pushing the boundaries of watchmaking – just think of the Cartier ID2 watch with a vacuum inside its case or this Astrocalendaire – Cartier really is flexing its muscles here in an effort to show off its capabilities and knowhow in more traditional segments of haute horlogerie. The result is a symphony of 578 parts that took five years to develop and required fifteen weeks to complete.

Replica Watches

Replica Watches

To really appreciate how far Cartier has come as a watch manufacturer, let’s take a brief look at the company’s history. The Cartier Rotonde De Cartier Grande Complication is supposed to act as a critical marker on the timeline of the brand and its evolution from jewelry maker to one that also produces some of finer mechanical watches out there. Cartier has been designing high-end jewelry for nearly 170 years, and they have been in the watch game for a bit shorter time than that, since the introduction of the square-bezeled Santos pilot watch (reviewed here) from 1904.

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To eventually be able to offer a wider range of its watches with in-house manufactured calibers, Cheap Replica Watches has established its state-of-the-art manufacture in La-Chaux-de-Fonds in 2001, and expanded it further in 2007, so that this vertically integrated facility also features timepiece research and development departments. In that same year, Cartier’s parent company, Richemont SA, purchased the Geneva-based facilities of Manufacture Roger Dubuis, a producer of Geneva Seal movements. Because for a movement to be awarded the Geneva Seal it not only has to meet certain strict aesthetic (and now, timekeeping) requirements, but the movement itself also has to be manufactured in the canton of Geneva, Cheap Cartier Replica moved ten of its master watchmakers into the facility.

Cheap Cartier Replica

Cheap Cartier Replica

This leads us to the Cartier Rotonde de Cartier Grande Complication because it is this latter facility where all the pieces of its movement fall into place. The 9406 MC movement inside comprises 578 components, with each movement requiring ten weeks to decorate all its parts to the Geneva Seal standard and another five weeks to assemble.This piece we are looking at is indeed very complicated but, in the traditional sense, misses out on being a grand complication by not having some sort of a chronograph function. Is that really an issue or a deal-breaker on the most complicated Cartier Replica ever made? Surely not – especially when we consider that Cartier has managed to package all of the 9406 MC’s complications in a skeletonized movement that measures a mere 5.5 millimeters thick. That is remarkably thin and is partly achieved by using a micro rotor for the caliber’s automatic winding in lieu of a full-size rotor.

Cartier Replica Watches

Cartier Replica Watches

The case is made of 950-platinum and comes on a black alligator strap that uses a double-adjustable, 18-karat white gold buckle. The beaded crown, set with a sizable sapphire cabochon, is a distinctly Cartier Replica Watches design element. Watches across their range wear similar crowns, though the beading and the sapphire are both much more pronounced on the Rotonde de Cartier line. The silver-ish colored, sunray-brushed dial blends well with the finish on the movement it reveals, and the blued steel hands provide a nice contrast and add a pop of color. And while no one is likely to take a Replica Watches swimming, it is water resistant to 30 meters.