Technical complexity and unerring precision has always been right at the heart of Richard Mille’s watchmaking, and its latest RM 65-01 Automatic Split Seconds Chronograph is certainly no exception to that. Rather, the watch is a prime example of the brand’s watchmaking prowess, and it might just be Richard Mille’s most complex timepiece ever.
As the name suggests, the RM 65-01 houses a highly precise split-seconds chronograph complication, which is able to make stopwatch calculations that are accurate to 1/10th of a second – no mean feat for a mechanical watch. This precision is made possible thanks to the high oscillation rate of its balance wheel, which beats at a rapid 5Hz – significantly faster than most other watches, which usually oscillate at a rate between 2.5 and 4Hz.
Even more impressively, the complication is integrated into the movement itself, whereas many other chronograph watches are usually modular. The integrated movement was developed in partnership with movement expert Vaucher Manufacture Fleurier and has a superior column wheel and vertical clutch architecture, which allows for greater accuracy, precision and reliability in timekeeping.
A fast-rotating barrel ensures that the movement always receives the ideal torque for energy transmission throughout the duration of its 60-hour power reserve, and the newly designed oscillating rotor allows the rotor’s inertia to change for improved winding efficiency depending on the activity level of the wearer – so even if you’re desk-bound all day, you can rest assured your watch will keep running.
If you ever need to wind the watch quickly – say, after it has spent a few weeks in a safe – Richard Mille has invented a patented rapid-winding mechanism that allows the wearer to fully wind the watch by pressing on a pusher at 8 o’clock. After 125 quick pushes, the barrel is fully wound and ready to go – much more quickly than winding the crown. The development of such a rapid-winding mechanism was no easy task, thanks to the high levels of energy transfer involved.
For greater user convenience, Richard Mille’s engineers also created a new “gearbox” function selector housed in the watch crown, which allows the user to switch easily between three modes – traditional winding (indicated by the letter W on the subdial between 4 and 5 o’clock), semi-instantaneous date adjustment (indicated by the letter D), or just setting the time (indicated by the letter H). Gone are the days when you had to fiddle with the crown and attempt to pull it out to the right stop to set the date or time.
To match the technical complexity of the RM 65-01 movement, Richard Mille has created a dial that is colour-coded for the greatest legibility and user-friendliness. Here, function drives the aesthetics of the watch – although there is certainly plenty of Richard Mille’s characteristic flair.
The yellow parts of the dial and hands correspond to the time, while green indicates the date display. The chronograph’s sweep seconds hand, as well as its 30-minute and 12-hour totalising subdials are coloured orange, while the winding mechanism is red. Finally, the most important indicator, the split-seconds hand of the chronograph, is blue. The movement and dial are surrounded by a Carbon TPT bezel, caseband and caseback, while the watch case is available in two materials: Carbon TPT, or Gold and Carbon TPT.
At first glance, the RM 65-01 Automatic Split Seconds Chronograph may look like another model in the classic Richard Mille mould, with colourful aesthetics and tonneau-shaped case. It is only when you delve further into the watch that you realise the complexity and technical expertise that went into its creation.
Want more stories like this? Sign up here. Follow STYLE on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tK%2FMqWWcp51kuqKzwLOgp52jZMC1xcueZqWtqKq%2FunvAq6uim5yafHR9kHBtcmpfqMG6uMRmnJ2hpGK2r8DRqJuum5mjtG6%2ByJyfmqqUYrqquMueqmarpaWys7LArKtmppWserO5lW5kaWk%3D