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WATCH REVIEW Chaumet Dandy Chronographe XL

Editor's opinion
60 / 100
As a wink to the 1920's cushion-shape chronographs which it modernizes the form, the Dandy Chronograph assumes successfully its status as a male jewel.
Straight to the Point

Chaumet Dandy Chronographe XL

Ref.: W11290-30B
$3,950.00 US retail price June 5th, 2010
Pros
  • original and coherent design
  • good finishing of the dial and the case
  • a “flattering” brand
Cons
  • the push-button a bit harsh
  • the shape and the finishing of the case imperiled to shocks
Technical specifications
Brand Chaumet
Model name
Dandy Chronographe XL
Reference
W11290-30B
Case material
Steel 316L
Case diameter (without crown)
40 mm
Case diameter (crown included)
43 mm
Movement type
Automatic
Caliber
ETA 2894-2
Base Caliber
ETA 2892-2 (+ chronograph module)
Functions
Chronograph
Date
Hour
Minute
Second
Crystal
Single-face crystal with anti-reflective coating
Power reserve
42h
Transparent back
No
Lug width
22 mm
Length from lug to lug
49 mm
Case thickness
12 mm
Clasp type
Deployment clasp
Clasp material
Steel 316L
Total weight
99,1 grammes
Retail price USA at June 5th, 2010
3,950.00 $
Editor's opinion 60/100
Comfort (/15) 12.5
Movement (/20) 8.5
Movement Optimisation / Garnishment (/5) 2
Ease of handling and adjustment (/5) 4
Movement control proceeded by the Manufacture / horlogical awards (/3) 0
Power reserve (/2) 1
Complications (/5) 1.5
Finishing (/20) 14
Dial finishing (/6) 4.5
Case finishing (/6) 4.5
Quality of garnishment / caseback engraving quality (/2) 1.5
Crystal quality (/4) 2
Clasp finishing (inner and extern) (/2) 1.5
Functionality (/20) 10
Diurnal legibility (/5) 4
Night legibility (/4) 1
Water resistance (/3) 0.5
Strap : ease of size adjustment + ease of substitution (/4) 2
Clasp : quality and safety (/4) 2.5
Additional items (/10) 3
Limited edition (/3) 0
Watch delivered with several straps (/2) 0
Quality of the watch box (/1) 0.5
Portability with shirtsleeves buttoned (/2) 1.5
Goodies included (/1) 0
Understandability of the brochure (/1) 1
Value for money (/15) 12
  • When to wear it ?
  • Riding a Dutch bicycle in Paris !
  • Chaumet Dandy Chronographe XL
    Overview

    The Plaza’s porter assured me that the city has to be discovered on cycle
    So it is riding a Dutch bicycle that I take the bus lane on the Avenue Montaigne.

    I first look at the double band that separates me from the car and my eyes glide to my left wrist.
    They are there too, these bands that energize my Dandy !

     

    Hooping of the markers

    Hooping of the markers that takes up the shape of the casing, asymmetrical stripes contrasting with the satiny silver that catch the light, date well at six o’clock, noon designed with Art Deco style numbers.
    I will not calculate my speed through lack of tachymeter and I will not measure my time to the eight-second because of the absence of graduation.
    I do not wear a chronograph, I wear a jewel !

    Watch is men’s jewel

    According to some, watch is men’s jewel.

    Why not go all the way the approach and wear around the wrist this elegant cushion with polished faces and satiny flanks that bears the name of a prestigious jeweler and which reasonable dimensions allow to settle it in the hollow of your radius ?

    And if you need a watch-making alibi, just remember Chaumet helped Breguet to rise back 30 years ago.

    I look up and adjust my path.

    The two bands are so close, on the avenue where I cycle as well as on the leather strap, which both grooves remind of the dial’s design.

    The sleeve of my Prince of Wales slips and the Dandy shrank from my sight.

    I can focus on my way and I get through the traffic circle.

     

    The movement

    At the Bristol, I put a foot on earth and start the chronograph.
    The push-button, unlike the very flexible assemble, are a bit harsh.
    The grooming, a meeting between the roaring twenties and a more austere modernity, shelters a rough mechanism similar to the Swiss Jura.
    It is hidden behind a flat and polished bottom where is engraved the identity of the watch that takes this bands up, like a bar code, half serious, half playful.

    At the sight of the Vendome column, I stop the second’s race.
    The hand of the minute’s register also stops hanging between two markers and I forget the length of the escapade.
    Counting time? So vulgar.
    The hands’ ballet enlivens the dial, unendingly and purposelessly. I contemplate it without reading the time.

    Walking, I wander like a cyclopedia on the cut flanked square that evokes the casing of the watch.
    At the east, above the porch, I decipher the same name as written on the dial.

     

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