Corum

Corum Golden Bridge Automatic Watch

Now here is a watch I didn't see coming. Corum's interesting and iconic Golden Bridge watch that features a long and thin mechanical movement now comes in an automatic version. The nature of the concept needed something different than the ordinary half-circle style automatic rotor. So Corum uses a linear moving weight as an automatic winding mechanism. As you can see through the back of the watch, the platinum weight moves up and down as opposed to around in a circle. This "linear moving weight" concept is not new, but rarely used. It is part of the new Corum calibre CO313 movement that has 18k gold plates, guilloche machine engraved decoration, and shows just the time.

As in existing Golden Bridge models, the movement is more or less suspended in the tonneau style case. For the automatic the watch is a bit larger (thankfully) being 37.2mm wide by 51.8mm tall. You can get the case in 18k red gold or 18k white gold. The crown is located at the bottom of the case. One funny issue with the watch is that Corum doesn't do the greatest job on the face of the watch in helping you determine which is the top and which is the bottom of the case. The watch is however surprisingly comfy on the wrist. I would personally consider this a men's watch, but I could also see women wearing it. The new Golden Bridge Automatic watch comes on a black crocodile strap.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch reviews site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: automatic, corum, golden bridge, watch, watches

Corum Romvlvs Billioniare Tourbillon Watch

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

In the luxury world, "millionaire" doesn't sounds nearly as sexy as it used to. With the existence of watches that cost a million dollars, having just a few million dollars in the bank isn't gonna get precious stone peddlers excited. So we've stepped things up to making "billionaire" the new "millionaire." The former of which is exactly the type of person who might be interested in this new, highly limited watch from Corum.

I have to say that I have seen this watch, and it is mighty impressive. My favorite part is the Roman numerals on the bezel - done entirely in diamonds. Swanky! As is en vogue today, Corum "suspends" the manually wound tourbillon movement in plates made out of sapphire crystal. The watch case design is based on the Corum Romvlus (Romulus) collection of watches. It is a collection I happen to like a lot, but isn't found in the US very often. And this is one Romvlvs piece that no one will find very often with just five pieces ever to be produced.

Set in a large 45mm wide 18k white gold case, the movement and dial are likely to be the second thing people notice about the "Billionaire" what. First is the rich coating of diamonds that the watch case gets. It has 164 large diamonds on the case, with another 44 on the bezel. This watch is 'carat rich.' While I am not sure of the price of the watch, its name should give you something hint as to when the cost is fathomable. Again, the Corum Romulus Billionaire Tourbillon will be limited to just 5 pieces, and for some people might just be the perfect arm hand.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch reviews site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: billionaire, corum, tourbillon, watch

Corum Vintage Re-Releases: Round Golden Bridge Watch

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

I recently discussed two other Vintage re-issues from Corum: the Golden Tube and Chinese Hat. This is the Round Golden Bridge, and isn't from that long ago. It was originally released in 1994, but that is a while ago in terms of modern watch design. The watch comes in an 18k red gold case that is round, but houses Corum's famous Golden Bridge "stick thin" mechanical manually wound movement (that has actual gold bridges). The look is interesting, while the movement visually bi-sects the round case (that is 41mm wide).

The rest of the dial is black with vertical texturing, while the sloped flange ring is lined with triangular gold hour markers. The watch hands are stubby, but that is because of the movement. They can't be too heavy, and that petite movement can only take so much weight. The movement bridge/plate is nicely engraved, and I like the design of the case which visually continues on to the lugs. The watch is matched to a black crocodile strap, and is limited to just 75 pieces. So you ask, is it a man's watch or a woman's watch? In this case, that is up to you.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch reviews site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: bridge, corum, golden, round, vintage, watch

Corum Vintage Collection Watches: Golden Tube & Chinese Hat

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

As part of a series of three vintage re-releases, these are the Corum Golden Tube and Chinese Hat women's jewelry watches. I will discuss the third watch in the new Vintage collection soon. Around the mid 20th century you could get away with a woman's watch shaped like a can of beans in gold covered in diamonds. You could also get away with a watch nicknamed the Chinese Hat (because it sort of resembled that). Corum is likely going to using the French word for that which is "Chapeau Chinois."

Both of these watches are going to be limited editions, coming in either 18k rose or white gold, and with mother-of-pearl or diamond studded faces. Even the MOP faces have diamond hour markers. Each of the versions is limited to just 30 pieces per style. The Golden tube is 30mm wide while the Chinese Hat is 34mm wide. Both are certainly elegant (in their own retro way), and have Swiss quartz movements, lots of high-quality diamonds, and thin alligator straps.

Between these two I like the Golden Tube more. Probably because there are so many things to compare it to. Tin can is one thing. It could also be a beer can, and my favorite, the large side-mounted fuel tanks on a big rig. Keep on truckin' "diamond style" Corum...

Ariel Adam publishes the luxury watch reviews site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: chinese hat, collection, corum, gold, vintage, watch, watches

Corum Admiral's Cup Chronograph 44 Centro Mono-Pusher Limited Edition Watch

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

As a complement to this year's Corum Admiral's Cup Chronograph 44 Centro, the brand is also releasing a limited edition version that has some color differences and a mono-pusher, versus two pusher chronograph. A mono-pusher operates the same way, but cycles through "start, stop, and reset." Certain enthusiasts are fascinated by a mono-pusher chronograph cleaner look, but in reality the complication is slightly less useful than a two pusher chronograph because you cannot "pause" timing.

The mono-pusher is located above the crown on the watch. The "Centro" part of the watch is actually more interesting. Rather than a traditional chronograph dial layout with subdials, the watch uses two centrally placed chronograph hands. One (the thinner of the two) is used for the seconds, while the larger, arrow tipped hand is use for the chronograph minutes. This chrono measures up to 60 minutes. The subsidiary dial on the face is for the seconds for the main time.

In PVD black titanium, the case is 44mm wide with a rubber strap. The dial is interesting for its use of cotes de Geneve style stripes in the center, and an otherwise multi-layer dial. The hour and minutes hands are in polished steel, but with applied black luminant in the center of the hands. Inside the watch there is a Corum CO961 movement that has been COSC Chronometer certified. Limited to just 555 pieces the Admiral's Cup Chronograph 44 Mono-Pusher Centro is certainly a model with niche appeal. Those wanting a red, versus orange trim, and the mono-pusher complication will prefer this model over the non-limited Centro watch from this year as well.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch reviews site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: admirals cup, Centro, chronograph, Corum, limited edition, mono-pusher, watch

Corum Admiral's Cup Black Chronograph 40 Watch For Women

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

Corum releases a new version of their Admiral's Cup watch for women in a more petite sized case of their standard Admiral's Cup watch that is usually 44mm and up (with some exceptions). At 40mm wide the piece is still large on a woman's wrist - but manageable. The case is in PVD black steel - matched to a black rubber strap. Style is basic monochromatic Admiral's Cup, with the jewelry look of diamonds around the bezel. Corum places 66 stones around the dial, which makes for a sober, stylish look.

Inside the watch is a Swiss automatic chronograph movement that carries a COSC Chronometer certification for accuracy. Forum has designed the dials on these watches nicely, making them mostly sport, being a feminine watch without too much of a feminine touch. The black dialed version of the Corum Admiral's Cup Black Chronograph watch is limited to 355 pieces, while the white dialed version is limited to 155 pieces. Should be available soon.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch reviews site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: 40, Admirals Cup, black, chronograph, Corum, watch

Corum Admiral's Cup Black Split-Seconds 44 Limited Edition Watch

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

The split second chronograph (aka rattrapante) is a curious invention sought after today due to complexity and mystique rather than practical use. It is funny, as amusing as they are to use, their practicality over a digital watch is almost nil. Though there is something so fun about having a double seconds hand on your chronograph and playing with it like a toy. When operating the chronograph, you have an additional pusher that activates a small hand underneath the regular seconds hand. This hand then stops, and can be used to measure an additional minute's worth of time. There you have it.

Corum has made another Split Second chronograph in their Admiral's cup line, which they name quite simply, the Corum Admiral's Cup Black Split-Seconds 44 watch. There are two versions of the 44mm wide steel cased watch. I like the use of contrasting black tones on the case based on the dial color. The white dialed version has a black mid case and lugs with a polished steel bezel, while the black dialed version has black PVD bezel and polished steel lugs and case sides. See how that works? Dial is pretty standard for modern Admiral's Cup watches. Nice, with mostly muted colors. It comes on a rubber strap, and inside the watch is a Corum Calibre CO986 (base ETA) automatic split-second chronograph movement - that has further been COSC Chronometer certified. The white dialed version is limited to 155 pieces and the black dialed version is limited to only 55 pieces.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch reviews site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: 44, Admirals Cup, Corum, Split Second, watch

Corum Admiral's Cup Chronograph 48 Grand Prix Corum Watch

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

Corum Admiral's Cup Chronograph 48 Grand Prix Corum Watch

Corum wants you to associate it with all things related to competitive sailing. They do this in the only way they know how, but sponsoring events, and coming out with a continuous limited edition watches. For the watch collector this is good, because they need only sit back and wait for the right watch to be released that suits their tastes. Each new limited edition piece has a theme - in this instance being to celebrate the "CORUM Grand Prix" race on Lake Geneva, as part of the Challenege Julius Baer. Corum is a sponsor of the Okalys-CORUM team, which is one of the top boating racing competitors in such competitions.

The watch is the Corum Admiral's Cup Chronograph 48 Grand Prix Corum - a little redundant in name, but you get the point. Colors on the watch match those of the Oklays-CORUM team. The 48mm wide titanium and rubber case is very sporty looking and true to the modern designs of the nicest Admiral's Cup watches. I like the polished crown next to the black color crown guard. The dial of black, gray, white, and orange has many levels to it, with the center having a texture similar to cotes de Geneve striped polishing. It is a nice modern look, that while busy, provides decent legibility. The watch has an interesting leather strap with orange stitching and a texture to make it look like fabric. Inside the watch is a COSC Chronometer certified CO753 chronograph automatic movement. The watch will be limited to just 25 pieces with a price of $8,770 each.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

Gallery: Admiral’s Cup Chronograph 48 Grand Prix Corum

Tags: 753.935.060231 AK57, admirals cup, corum, grad prix, limited edition, watch

Severin Wunderman's Belongings Up For Sale

by Jonathon Ramsey (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Decor, Timepieces / Watches, Auctions, Charity

The possessions of Severin Wunderman, the late owner of Corum watches who died in 2008, will be auctioned by Bonhams on June 23. The horologer's 12-bedroom, 16,000-square-foot chateau in the South of France was stocked with a wild array of goods from various centuries and continents, almost all of which will be going on the block.

The only things held in reserve will be the Jean Cocteau art collection, which won't be auctioned until September. The contents of Wunderman's other estates in California and England were sold last year, with all of the proceeds from those sales and this one going to his eponymous charity.

[via Art Daily]

Source

Tags: auctions, bonhams, corum, estate auction, severin wunderman

Corum Golden Tourbillon Panoramique Grey Sapphire Watch

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

Watch companies like to get creative with the use of synthetic sapphire crystals, but it is difficult given the fact that the material can be very fragile. The problem isn't so much in risk of it breaking once it is made, but rather that the fabrication of synthetic sapphire crystal into all sorts of organic shapes requires a lot of stress of the material. So pieces can break with relative ease. That is why the finished result is not always as impressive as possible without knowing what a pain in the ass the watch was to make. This is probably the fact with this limited edition of just 5 pieces Corum Golden Tourbillon Panoramique Grey Sapphire watch.

What is interesting here is the application of gray PVD on the sapphire giving it that special look. The movement is a manually wound tourbillon based movement with a long 90 hours of power reserve. As you can see, the movement mainplate and bridges are all in sapphire! Something truly remarkable from a practical and aesthetic standpoint. The rest of the watch case is in 18k white gold with 309 diamonds decorating most every surface. Plus, the watch case has four sapphire crystals to help appreciate the movement from any angle. It is really a nice combination of luxury indulgence and mechanical intrigue. Expect prices to make your skin as light as the gray sapphire of the watch.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: corum, golden, gray, grey, panoramique, sapphire, tourbillon

Chronopassion Paris To Carry Corum Watches

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

Watch store owner and "personality" at large Laurent Picciotto is very particular about the watch brands his store Chronopassion in Paris carries. He is known to deeply invest his time and effort into expanding the brands the store carries. Why? Because it seems to be his goal that the shop only carry highly exclusive brands that are also highly original. Not a bad motive.

In the second such photo shoot that I've seen him participate in (first was for Richard Mille watches), Picciotto hangs with Corum's CEO Antonio Calce, with each wearing one of the new Corum Ti-Bridge watches. The images are meant to be sort of silly in a "I really want to be a celebrity" manner. Though the man does a good job of establishing hype, and I certainly appreciate the departure from all the stuffy pomp and circumstance of luxury watch retail. If you find yourself in Paris looking for one of the world's finest (i.e. most expensive) timepieces. Look no further than Chronopassion - where you will now also find select Corum timepieces.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

Gallery: Chronopassion Corum

Tags: chronopassion, corum, paris, ti-bridge, watch

Corum Admiral's Cup Challenge 44 Black & Gold Watch

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

Corum Admiral's Cup Challenge 44 Black & Gold Watch

A sure compromise between fancy and fun, the new Corum Admiral's Cup Challenge 44 Black & Gold is a suave new character in the Admiral's Cup watch lineup. No, it isn't a radical new design in the Admiral's Cup line of timepieces, but rather another installment in Corum's ongoing quest to promote the Admiral's Cup collection as the premiere non-regatta timer yacht racing themed watch around! I am pretty sure it has succeeded in that endeavor.

The "44" in the Corum Admiral's Cup Challenge 44 Black & Gold watch refers to the black PVD steel case's size of 44mm wide. The name of the watch is more or less "primarily descriptive" of the watch without much character in the title. The bezel is 18k rose gold, and so are the applications on the dial such as the hands and hour markers. The style is fittingly bold, but not necessarily more so than other Admiral's Cup timepieces. Inside the watch is Corum's calibre 753 automatic mechanical chronograph movement that has been Chronometer certified. The true black and gold version of the watch is limited to just 188 pieces while a brushed gray dial version (matched to a gray PVD case) is also available and limited to just 128 pieces. There is no way of knowing why there is a difference in availability. It is also hard to tell if there is lume applied to the dial of the watch. It could be the "dark" style lume - but I hope it is there. Sport watches such as this suffer a loss of credibility without having any type of darkness visibility. If not, at least plenty of other Corum Admiral's Cup watches have lume applied to the large stylish hands. The Admiral's Cup Challenge 44 Black & Gold watch should be available soon.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: 44, admirals cup, AdmiralsCup, black, challenge, corum, gold, watch

Corum Golden Bridge Lady Diamond Limited Edition Watch

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

Some of you will no doubt recognize Corum's new Golden Bridge Lady Diamond Watch as a derivative of an existing style they have, to others this unique watch will be all new. Years ago Corum was able to develop a mechanical movement that was shaped like a bar (more or less linear as opposed to square or circular). They placed it in a horizontal fashion in watches. It was incredible to look at as they cased in an traditionally sized squarish case with the movement placed in the middle being showcased through the sapphire crystals. This concept has been adopted here and is now placed horizontally instead of vertically with the new Corum Gold Bridge Lady Diamond watch. The new position of the movement is more flattering to the wrist in the rectangular 41mm x 34mm sized case that comes in either red gold or white gold.

Aside from the 180 diamonds on the case and face, and the unique placement of the dial, the real show here is in the mechanical C0113 movement and in watching its ongoing operations. Despite its tiny size, it still has 40 hours of power reserve. While you can't truly appreciate the movement in still images, just try to imagine it with all the gears turning as the movement operates. The movement is suspended in the case between two sapphire crystals meaning you can see straight through to the other side of the case - quite cool. In addition to white or red gold, the watch comes with a black or white (pictured) alligator strap. Only 175 of these limited edition watches will ever be made, with just a few pieces produced each year. It is an incredible piece of micro mechanics for the woman who can appreciate the beauty of mechanical watches.

Ariel Adams publishes the watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: 113.353.690081 0019G, 113.353.6900810019g, 113.353.850089 0019R, 113.353.8500890019r, corum, diamond, gold bridge, GoldBridge, ladies, lady, limited edition, LimitedEdition, watch, women

Corum Rolls-Royce Grill Vintage Watch

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches, Luxury Cars & Autos

In 1976 after much persuasion and a lot of factory visits (on both sides I'm sure), Corum finally convinced Rolls-Royce to provide them with a license to make a Rolls-Royce themed watch. The result was one of the best automotive styled watches ever. The problem with most car themed watches is that the watch often does not look anything like the car it is modeled after, or any car for that matter. Think of the Breitling Bentley watches. If you didn't know that Breitling was producing them as an homage to Bentley, would you ever guess at the automotive theme of the watch? When I look at the Corum Rolls-Royce I think car, and I think Rolls-Royce.

The Corum Rolls-Royce received an unprecedented demand, but never enjoyed wide scale production, though examples still loom in the collector's world. The 18k white or yellow gold case was modeled after the trademark Roman temple styled Rolls-Royce automobile radiator grill, complete with the flying lady hood ornament. The watch face itself was placed inside the grill visible though the vertical column bars. Powering the watch was a skeletonized mechanical movement. With Corum making a market comeback, I wouldn't be surprised if they struck up a new deal with Rolls-Royce for licensed watches as no one else has been seemingly been able to do so yet.

Ariel Adams publishes the watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: corum, rolls-royce, timepiece, watch

Corum Admiral's Cup Tourbillon Watch Fully Set With Diamonds

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

People often miss the point of watches like this when they comment, "it's not worth that price!" No, it's probably not worth the retail cost (which is certainly $100,000 plus), but you aren't paying only for the value of the materials, you are paying for image and exclusivity. The Corum Admiral's Cup Tourbillon 48 is a status symbol on your wrist, and the cost of ownership will keep the watch out of most people's hands.

Corum's Admiral's Cup line has recently evolved into a show-off watch. Progressively getting larger, the watch that began as a celebration of a yacht race now seeks to be a timepiece 'measure of a man.' This 48mm wide version covered with diamonds has shed the characteristic flag hour indexes and replaced them with black diamonds (48 black diamonds make up the hour markers). The rest of the 18k red gold case is covered with 1,389 diamonds of various cuts for a total of 10.5 carats. The watch is no longer much of a submersible with a water resistance of only 30 meters. Overall look of the Admiral's Cup Tourbillon is extremely decadent.

Powering the watch is a manually wound Corum caliber 372 with a tourbillon complication. Interestingly enough, the power reserve is about 90 hours, which leads me to believe that the movement has at least two barrels. While tough to notice, the tourbillon cage is shaped like the iconic Admiral's Cup key logo that is typically present on the end of the seconds hand on the non-diamond version of the watch. The dial isn't the easiest to read, but no one who acquires a Corum Admiral's Cup Tourbillon 48 is doing so for practical time-keeping purposes.

Ariel Adams publishes the watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: admirals cup, AdmiralsCup, Corum, corum admirals cup tourbillon, CorumAdmiralsCupTourbillon, diamond watch, DiamondWatch, timepiece, watch

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