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six-barrel
·Had my Lange 1 serviced, here's some interior pictures..
Inside the Lange 1
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Cozmopak
·Gorgeous! I went with an Up/Down recently, but a Lange 1 is on my shortlist.
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brownwld
·Give us more pictues! I absolutely adore Lange 1 😀
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Archer
··Omega Qualified WatchmakerSurprising lack of decoration in some areas...
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KingCrouchy
·Surprising lack of decoration in some areas...
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Archer
··Omega Qualified WatchmakerCan you point out which areas you find disappointing? Happy to learn.👍
Sure...
ALS is often considered to be as good or better than even Patek, however the extent of the perlage is lacking in these photos when compared to a Patek main plate:
Note these are not done yet - I took the photos just after the perlage station so additional steps are done after this. But this drawing gives you an idea of how completely the finishing is done in this operation:
Completeness is not the same as quality of course, but I was surprised to see significant areas that were left unfinished.
Cheers, Al
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KingCrouchy
·Sure...
ALS is often considered to be as good or better than even Patek, however the extent of the perlage is lacking in these photos when compared to a Patek main plate:
Note these are not done yet - I took the photos just after the perlage station so additional steps are done after this. But this drawing gives you an idea of how completely the finishing is done in this operation:
Completeness is not the same as quality of course, but I was surprised to see significant areas that were left unfinished.
Cheers, Al
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dsacks30
·I'd be curious (and surprised) to see if this lack of finishing on the main plate also applies to their more highly decorated (and expensive) models such as the Datograph Up/Down, 1815 Chronograph, Zeitwerk, etc.
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Cozmopak
·Is that not a frosted finish?
Sure...
ALS is often considered to be as good or better than even Patek, however the extent of the perlage is lacking in these photos when compared to a Patek main plate:
Note these are not done yet - I took the photos just after the perlage station so additional steps are done after this. But this drawing gives you an idea of how completely the finishing is done in this operation:
Completeness is not the same as quality of course, but I was surprised to see significant areas that were left unfinished.
Cheers, Al
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Mauzer
·It sure looks like ALS did some kind of finish on these parts!
I’m not sure whether this “frosted” finish or perlage like om Patek is more special? The perlage does stand out more...
I’m not sure whether this “frosted” finish or perlage like om Patek is more special? The perlage does stand out more...
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Archer
··Omega Qualified WatchmakerThanks Archer for your very informative post. Now I see what you mean.👍 Is Lange being lazy and just finishing what can be seen or could there be other reasons (precision maybe) behind their decision to not finish the spots behind gears and wheels?
No, it's just cost cutting. The same as this is on a Panerai...
What people are calling a "frosted" finish is what the surfaces look like after preparation for finishing, after machining marks are removed.
One man's "frosted" is another man's "unfinished" I guess...
Cheers, Al
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KingCrouchy
·No, it's just cost cutting. The same as this is on a Panerai...
What people are calling a "frosted" finish is what the surfaces look like after preparation for finishing, after machining marks are removed.
One man's "frosted" is another man's "unfinished" I guess...
Cheers, Al
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zrleopold
·No, it's just cost cutting. The same as this is on a Panerai...
What people are calling a "frosted" finish is what the surfaces look like after preparation for finishing, after machining marks are removed.
One man's "frosted" is another man's "unfinished" I guess...
Cheers, Al
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Cozmopak
·Hmm, I don’t know. I feel like the quality of the existing finishing is quite high and I remain impressed.
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Archer
··Omega Qualified WatchmakerOkay, that's bit disappointing from a Brand like Lange. Which company would you see as the "best"/most impressive in terms of finishing, if I may ask?
I don't know that I can tell you of a mass market brand that highly finishes every single watch in their line-up. As this thread shows, to some degree or another there is variation in the level of finishing between models. I showed the main plate being decorated fully at Patek, but I've serviced some Pateks that are not finished completely like that one is.
In all of the factories I've been through, there are areas where the high complications are worked on that are separate from the main workshops. For example at JLC the original farmhouse is where a couple of watchmakers work on the high complications that are apart from the regular production. Same thing at Blancpain when I was there. At the Patek factory, it was clear that the mass produced models used different finishing techniques than the more high end models. My assumption (I've not been through every manufacturer's shop obviously) is that most brands work this way.
Cheers, Al
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Archer
··Omega Qualified WatchmakerHmm, I don’t know. I feel like the quality of the existing finishing is quite high and I remain impressed.
It's up to each of us to decide what we find acceptable or not given the price of a specific model. If you are not used to seeing the inside of watch movements, then this certainly may look like some sort of high quality finish, but it's very common for plates to look this way after machining marks are removed. Are there watches with even less finishing? Yes, of course, but this is sort of the minimum step any respectable brand would do to remove the marks left behind by the end mill from the initial machining of the plate, and certainly isn't any sort of high end decoration.
If brands are doing this on mass produced movements that cost just a couple hundred dollars, I have a hard time considering this any sort of high end finish in those areas, but that's just me I guess.
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Cozmopak
·I agree, but Lange 1 in the grand scheme of “high end” watches is actually fairly modestly priced, especially on secondary markets. It’s still a ton of money, don’t get me wrong, but I would bet that it’s much leas than the Patek example that you gave us.
I would be much more upset if I saw that nonvisible components went unfinished in something like a Voutilainen, for instance, which costs 80k USD, even in a used state.
I would be much more upset if I saw that nonvisible components went unfinished in something like a Voutilainen, for instance, which costs 80k USD, even in a used state.
It's up to each of us to decide what we find acceptable or not given the price of a specific model. If you are not used to seeing the inside of watch movements, then this certainly may look like some sort of high quality finish, but it's very common for plates to look this way after machining marks are removed. Are there watches with even less finishing? Yes, of course, but this is sort of the minimum step any respectable brand would do to remove the marks left behind by the end mill from the initial machining of the plate, and certainly isn't any sort of high end decoration.
If brands are doing this on mass produced movements that cost just a couple hundred dollars, I have a hard time considering this any sort of high end finish in those areas, but that's just me I guess.
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Archer
··Omega Qualified WatchmakerI agree, but Lange 1 in the grand scheme of “high end” watches is actually fairly modestly priced, especially on secondary markets. It’s still a ton of money, don’t get me wrong, but I would bet that it’s much leas than the Patek example that you gave us.
Interesting that you would assume that.
Anyway, as I said it’s up yo each of us to decide, and if this meets your standards, that’s all that matters to you.
Cheers, Al
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Archer
··Omega Qualified WatchmakerIs my assumption incorrect?
The fact that this is a chronograph movement would naturally mean it's higher priced, so it's not comparing apples to apples. But yes retail is approx. 17% higher than the L1...not that much...
But clearly what matters to people varies, so if this lack of finishing doesn't bother you, then that's all that matters to you.