By Burak ÖZGÜR
Among the world’s lovers of watches, including sector professionals, master watchmakers, and collectors, the “Datograph” is accepted as the ultimate in modern chronographs. Philippe Dufour, as the greatest master alive, ranks this watch at the very top in terms of craftsmanship, quality and mechanism. The Datograph was first seen at Basel in 1999 when A. Lange & Söhne the timepiece to Baselworld, where it attracted a great deal of attention among the main high-end horology brands, being the first to be produced and to use the company’s in-house chronograph mechanism.
CASE & STRAP
The Datograph 405.031 Rose Gold has a Black Dial 41mm rose gold case and is 13.1mm thick with a shiny convex bezel framing the sapphire glass. The button area has a brushed finish, and the case is completed with a polished area and a concave bezel framing the back glass. The lugs are then mounted on the case, and the reddish-dark brown handstitched strap is completed with a rose gold Lange pin buckle. The button at 10 o’clock is for the date, while the buttons at 2 and 4 o’clock operate a flyback chronograph. The crown has 1 grade and one can adjust the watch with one pull, plus can be wound when the crown is closed. The screw-down crown lock typically found on diver’s watches is absent from this model.
DIAL
As in all Lange models, the dial is made from silver. The Black dial has a tachometer on the outside and the spaces between seconds are divided into 5, which is appropriate for a mechanism of 18,000 bph. The ABAUF power reserve pointer from which the model takes its name is at 6 o’clock, the small silver dial at 9 o’clock is the small second indicator and the one at 3 o’clock is the minute indicator. The hour hand, the minute hand and the chronograph second hand are made from pink gold, although only the hour and minute hands are illuminated. The second and the chronograph hands, in contrast, are blued steel. The front and back of the watch are both sapphire crystal glass that measures 9 on the Mohs hardness scale. The baton-shaped hour indicators and date window are pink gold. The date indicator is printed black on white background. As in all Lange timepieces, the Datograph features a “Big Date” indicator.
MOVEMENT
This model uses an A. Lange & Söhne L951.6-caliber manufactured movement with 18.000 bph, hand winding and stop seconds. It is construed of 451 pieces and has a 60-hour power reserve, plus 46 jewels and four gold chatons. The lever escapement movement uses a Lange balance spring, produced by the brand itself. The bridges and plates are German silver, which is an alloy of silver, copper, nickel and zinc that grows a unique patina in time. Additionally, each balance cock is hand-carved and is different in every timepiece. It has the mark of the watchmaker on the balance cock, making every watch distinctive. The silver used of the bridges and plates, plus the hand-carved balance cock, are indicators of the royalty of Lange. The movement is tested in five different positions. After each movement is assembled and tested, the watch is completely dismantled and reassembled by a different watchmaker. This is “double assembly” method is applied only by A. Lange & Söhne. The chronograph mechanism is considered to be the most complicated in the world by all watch masters. The Datograph utilizes a column, wheel chronograph and this adds the instantaneous minute jump which is again unique to Lange. In the chronograph mechanism, the minute arm of the watch moves with the second hand when it reaches the 60th second. Owners of chronograph watches can tell the difference when observing the changing minutes on their chronograph. This also is another indicator of the high level of Lange engineering.
CONCLUSION
The elegant Datograph is technical perfection and an icon of the era. It can be considered special and exclusive in terms of workmanship, overall quality and technical performance. The design and structure of the dial is well balanced and elegant, while the pink gold case and black dial combination allows it to be worn with anything from a dress suit to smart casual outfits.
