Inside the Chronograph: By Keith W. Strandberg, Exclusive feature for Arabian Watches & Jewellery Magazine
fiogf49gjkf0d Here is a riddle for you – what do people use to cook their egg in the morning, is an integral part of their run after work and is necessary for determining the winner of many sporting events?
The humble chronograph.
Chronographs are one of the most popular complications in watchmaking and are used in timepieces for both men and women. There is something about the chronograph that captures people’s imagination and, as such, this complication is certainly in high demand.
Kinds of Chronographs
Standard chronograph: This watch has two or three subdials (also known as totalizers), and the standard two pusher layout (the top pusher starts and stops the timing, while the bottom pusher returns the timing hand to zero).
Monopusher: this chronograph only has one pusher, which is sometimes integrated into the crown and in other cases is set off by itself. This one pusher starts, stops and resets the timing mechanism.
Flyback: A flyback chronograph allows the user to restart the timing hand at anytime during the timing process. One of the most useful chronograph complications, it’s not easy to make.
Split second: A split second chronograph has two timing hands, allowing the user to “split” these hands, effectively timing two things at once.
Complications: One popular thing for watch brands to do is to include the chronograph in complicated watches. For example, the tourbillon chronograph, the perpetual calendar chronograph, and the complicated watch of all complicated watches, the Franck Muller Aeternitas Mega 4, which has 37 separate complications, including a chronograph.
Quartz: Extremely precise, quartz chronographs often use the subdial layout popularized by mechanical watches, but they also use digital displays, which helps showcase the quartz chronograph’s phenomenal accuracy.
Why is the Chronograph so Popular?
Using a chronograph is easy and fun, and very functional. In addition, says Jean-Paul Girardin, VP, Breitling, "It’s really an added function that is not just an additional display, it’s something you can use to measure the time, not just to read the time. Due to this, you have an interaction with the watch. Interactivity makes things completely different, since you are doing something, not just reading something. You interact with your chronograph. By doing this, you cannot control the time, but you are heading in that direction.“
Chronographs are very popular because they offer an easy to use complication and one whose standard layout is very attractive. “Aesthetically, the chronograph is a well liked complication as it has a technical sportive style via the chronograph pushers on the case, the dial and the movement type,” details Philip Barat, head of watch development department, Patek Philippe. “The chronograph mechanism is visible via the sapphire case back and it has a very technical look.”
Also, the cost of entry into the mechanical chronograph world is not as steep as other complications, like perpetual calendars, tourbillons or minute repeaters. "The chronograph is the first complication people can afford,“ states Jean-Frederic Dufour, president, Zenith. "The chronograph brings you emotion – it means something to you, and it’s an easy complication to understand.“
Also, chronographs are linked to competition, sports and moving, mechanical parts. “Chronographs became boy’s toys, because their look is sporty and the origin is from competition,” says Thomas Morf, president, Hanhart. "As we all know by now, men like to compete and therefore the chronograph underlines a certain masculinity.”
Since the very beginning of timekeeping, we have been qualifying events and performances, like Usain Bolt’s gold medal-winning sprint and how long it takes your kids to run around your house.
“It is reasonable to think that, for a very long time, man has needed to measure time: to set markers and define durations,” opines Jean-Christophe Babin, president of TAG Heuer. “People now require much greater precision so they can measure fractions of time. As the purpose of a watch is to tell the time, the chronograph is, naturally, the most popular option, because it divides the time as precisely as possible. The chronograph has also become much more important with the development of sport."
TAG Heuer, in fact, this year introduced the first mechanical chronograph on the wrist that captures 1/100th of a second -- the Carrera Mikrograph in a limited edition of 150 pieces.
New Ways of Displaying Elapsed Time
Lately, many companies have redesigned how elapsed time is displayed, foregoing the totalizers/subdials and using alternative ways – linear, retrograde, turning disks, using the hour and minute hands to display and more – and we can expect to see more of the same as these alternate ways have gained acceptance on the market.
There is definitely room in the market for both classic and modern, and sometimes in the same collection. “I personally like the classic way, but with the new ways of displaying elapsed time, a brand can distinguish itself from others,” says Hanhart’s Morf. “Easy to read is still one of the most important factors when it comes to a Chronograph.”
The Future of the Chronograph
Chronographs are here to stay, with just about every company offering up their version of this time-honored complication. It’s the combination of sportiness, dial design and functionality that attracts people, so companies will continue to meet the market’s demand for chronographs.
Today, the chronograph is still one of the most popular, and affordable, complications in watchmaking. As companies refine and introduce their own in-house chronographs and designers come up with new and interesting ways of reading elapsed time, the chronograph is sure to stay extremely popular and wonderfully useful.
To Run or not to Run?
Many people buy chronographs for their look rather than their performance. In fact, I have asked people who are wearing chronographs if they ever use them, and the answers are often “no,” and in fact some people don’t even know how to use them.
However, one of the common questions I get is if it’s ok to keep a chronograph running all the time. Many people like to have a moving second hand and use the chronograph hand in this function.
The consensus from the people I talked with for this story is that there is no consensus. Some worry about the debilitating effect on the movement, while others think running the chronograph continuously will not affect the performance of the watch. Some, in fact, believe running the chronograph is preferred to never running the chronograph.
"The BR-01 movement has been designed and tested both ways, so for us it doesn’t matter,“ explains Jean-Paul Girardin, VP, Breitling. "With the level of amplitude we have and the power reserve, it doesn’t change so much regarding the timekeeper. If someone wants to wear his watch with the chronograph running all the time, it won’t hurt it.“
Thomas Morf, president, Hanhart, believes that since the chronograph is about performance, it makes sense that the chronograph perform in order to stay in working order. "Since a chronograph is rarely used for what is was built for, people use it to play with it,” he says. “It’s like an engine of a car -- you should sometimes use the car in order to keep the engine smooth. The same thing for a chronograph -- use the chronograph function in order keep it working perfectly.”
Babin from TAG Heuer uses the car example as well, this time to recommend not running the chronograph all the time. “It’s not a good idea to leave your car running when it's not in use,” he says. "The same is true for watches. If the wearer wants to keep their chronograph running permanently, they can, but we wouldn’t recommend it. It is best to use the chronograph when you need it.
Philip Barat head of watch development department, Patek Philippe, says that it depends on the type of chronograph mechanism. “For example, on the Patek Philippe self-winding CH 28-520 with vertical clutch, the chronograph hand can be kept running without any influence on the movement precision, whereas on a horizontal clutch system it has an influence on the movement precision and creates more wear.”
A Chronometer is NOT a Chronograph, but a Chronograph Can Be a Chronometer
Two confusing words in watchmaking are chronometer and chronograph. A chronometer is a certified timekeeper that meets high standards set by an independent regulating association. A chronograph is a watch that can time things independently. A chronometer is not the same thing as a chronograph, but many chronographs are also certified as chronometers. Just remember this, a chronometer has been tested and certified to be highly accurate, while a chronograph is the watch with the pushers that you can use to time sporting events, your egg in the morning and how long it takes you to get to work.
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