OK, so it’s mainly Black Carbon… and Titanium… with a bit of White Gold thrown in… but it does have ‘abrasion-resistant washers made of 316L stainless steel’. Which proves that even at the top end of watch making Stainless Steel still has an important place, be it for it’s functionality or the way it looks on your wrist. Take something like the 40mm Stainless Steel Rolex Submariner, simple… classic and beautiful (and you can pick on of those up for less than £10K, which is a bargain in comparison to the RM 11-03).
Since the brand’s debut, Richard Mille watches have shown some market leading design and marketing (including putting their watches on the wrists of the rich and famous around the world). To appreciate this, all you have to do is take a glance at the Richard Mille RM11 03 Black Carbon TPT. In terms of design, of materials used, of its details, this piece embodies everything the brand stands for.
The watch comes complete with a skeletonised, automatic winding movement with a variable-geometry rotor, that offers hours, minutes, and seconds. Flyback chronograph, a 60-minute countdown timer at 9 o’clock, a 12-hour totaliser, and an oversize date and month indicator. The tripartite case of the RM 11-03 is water resistant up to 50 metres, made sure of by it’s two Nitrile O-ring seals. The case is put together using 20 spline screws in grade 5 titanium and abrasion-resistant washers made of 316L stainless steel.
The watch contains:
- Central flange in grade 5 titanium
- 18K white gold weight segment
- Weight segment with 6 possible positions adjusted by screws in grade 5 titanium
- 18K white gold wings
- Ceramic ball bearings
- Unidirectional anti-clockwise winding
- stainless steel abrasion-resistant washers.
This limited edition Richard Mille design makes it possible to effectively adapt rewinding of the mainspring to the user’s activity level, in sporting or non-sporting environments. By adjusting the six-position rib, the rotor’s inertia is modified to either speed up the winding process in the case of leisurely arm movements, or to slow it down during sporting activities. However you’d have to be either very rich or very brave to wear this on your wrist whilst playing a round of golf!
I mean just take a look… how on earth do they manage to cram so much complexity into something that goes on your wrist. Sure, something like the Apple Watch can do lots more, but you don’t replace an RM after 12 months and upgrade it for something new (unless you’re a billionaire, in which case that’s probably exactly what you do!)
(And we know we’ve mentioned the stainless steel abrasion-resistant washers three times, four if you include this)
In a world that is full of digital marvels it’s great to see that design and functionality is still something to be pursued and cherished by companies like RM. Design and functionality is also something we at DSM are obsessed with, take our Stainless Steel Laboratory Sinks for example. Simple, beautifully designed, functionally perfect… unfortunately though, it would ruin your golf swing if you wore one on your wrist.