Chaumet Dandy Chronographe XL
- original and coherent design
- good finishing of the dial and the case
- a “flattering” brand
- the push-button a bit harsh
- the shape and the finishing of the case imperiled to shocks
| 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 |
| 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.
