{"lien_WSTV":"","tax_name":"deprecated","tax_rate":20,"id_manufacturer":"0","id_supplier":"0","id_category_default":"662","id_shop_default":"1","manufacturer_name":false,"supplier_name":false,"name":"TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18","description":"<h3>The new Montblanc TimeWalker Collection \u2013 A Rebirth of Professional Watches<\/h3>\n<p><strong>Paying tribute to Minerva\u2019s extraordinary heritage, Montblanc takes a journey back to the glory days of motor racing with five new TimeWalker timepieces that capture the beauty, spirit and values of motorsport history. The rebirth of these professional watches showcases the performance and innovation of the new Montblanc TimeWalker collection.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Instruments of glory<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The chronograph has been one of the most popular complications since its very beginnings. This innovative complication has become far more than a mechanical timing device \u2013 it is an instrument that enforces the gentleman\u2019s code of fair play and good sportsmanship, becoming the witness and judge to almost every type of sporting competition. Of all the motor sports, car racing is the one that has always had an intricate link to the chronograph. The history of competitive driving and performance timing are so inseparable that one could not exist without the other. With the capacity to capture and record time for eternity, the chronograph has borne witness to some outstanding automotive sporting moments.<\/p>\n<p>As the development of motor racing evolved through the 20th and 21st centuries, the chronograph became a symbol of fair competition and the ultimate reminder that victory can only ever be judged by true and accurately timed results.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Inspired by performance<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The Montblanc TimeWalker Collection symbolizes the spirit of racing and harks back to these instruments of glory by offering a line of new professional watches for the modern performer that take their inspiration from Minerva\u2019s outstanding history. The Minerva Manufacture was known as an exclusive workshop that produced high-quality instruments for measuring brief intervals of time with remarkable precision. The renowned \u201cRally Timer\u201d, a stopwatch that was created to time motor racing with precision, is the perfect example of this heritage. Minerva watches were the reference in the field of horological innovation, with numerous patents registered over the years in the domain of precision timers, creating a legacy of savoir-faire.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Legitimacy of the past<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Founded in 1858 in Villeret in the Saint-Imier Valley, Minerva has been a leadingspecialist in the fabrication of professional watches. From 1908, it was already successfully pursuing new technological challenges, such as the production of watches equipped with chronograph functions and highly accurate stopwatches that measured short intervals of time. The Manufacture developed stopwatches that could measure 1\/5th of a second as early as 1911, rapidly increasing to 1\/10th of a second. In this innovative spirit, in 1916, the Minerva Manufacture was one of the first to produce a high-frequency movement that could measure 1\/100th of a second, a development that was further technically improved in 1936, putting Minerva on the map as the specialist of professional watches and stopwatches.<\/p>\n<p>The new Montblanc TimeWalker collection combines these legendary timing instruments of the past with the spirit of motor racing, encapsulating the Minerva heritage, superb technology, masculine energy, highest performance and the style of the glory days of racing.<\/p>\n<p>The results are evocative, vintage-themed though contemporary, and designed for modern performers who like to express their achievements, ambitions, masculinity, style and personality in their choice of wristwatch. Perfect for both business and leisure, the new Montblanc TimeWalker timepieces command respect and admiration and underline the confidence of those who wear them.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Performance<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The new Montblanc TimeWalker collection represents a strong contemporary expression of the professional sport chronograph with a 43 mm case size that has become a standard size for Montblanc\u2019s performance timepieces. From the case to the dial, from the movement to the complications, the collection focuses on masculine energy and a vintage-themed style, while combining performance, innovation, great legibility and robustness. Emblematic combinations of materials come into play in each of the models, such as high-tech black ceramic, satinated steel, titanium and rubber, highlighting the Maison\u2019s creative spirit.<\/p>\n<p>The aesthetic codes of the new Montblanc TimeWalker timepieces are directly rooted in the world of racing: satinated cases and semi-skeletonized horns with architecturally carved flanks, all inspired by the aerodynamic lines of the bodywork of classic cars. Iconic details include knurled finishing on the flank of the emblematic black ceramic bezel, as well as on the crowns and pushers, which are reminiscent of vintage car caps; smoked glass case backs inspired by the glass windows that reveal sporty V12 engines; and strap holes that pay tribute to vintage leather racing gloves.<\/p>\n<p>Clear legibility and visibility are achieved with strong contrasts of colour, three dimensional counters inspired by vintage dashboards, precise scales and dauphine-shaped hands with SuperLuminova for the greatest readability and performance by day and night. For utmost precision, most of the TimeWalker timepieces feature an iconic central seconds hand coated in red with the tip crafted in the shape of the Minerva arrow.<\/p>\n<p>In order to guarantee the reliability of such a sporty professional product line, all the Montblanc TimeWalker models undergo over 500 hours of controls, with specific testing and general operating evaluation under extreme conditions. To also ensure sporting performance in terms of waterproofness, all the models are water-resistant to 100 metres.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Montblanc TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cGlory isn\u2019t measured in thousandths of a second, but the victory that creates it is.\u201d<br \/><strong><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Racing drivers have always strived for faster lap times with increasingly powerful and efficient vehicles, experimenting with technology, materials and more in their quest to win. The same is true for Montblanc, which has never stopped innovating and pushing the boundaries of fine watchmaking technology. In 1916, the Minerva Manufacture developed its famous 1\/100th of a second stopwatch, which was further technically improved in 1936, putting Minerva on the map as the specialist of professional watches and stopwatches. Montblanc continues to innovate with the Montblanc TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18, a mechanical chronograph that measures elapsed time to the 1\/1000th of a second.<\/p>\n<p>In the spirit of motor racing, this limited edition embraces the world of motorsports through and through. From its powerful design to the mix of high-tech and high-performance materials, the Montblanc TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18 is the height of horological technology. Its high-frequency movement boasts two patents and 22 auxiliary patents combining performance and innovation like never before.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Inspired by performance<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The spirit of racing is not only found on the inside of the timepiece, but also on the\u00a0 outside, with design elements that hark back to the glory days of motor racing. The chronograph power reserve indicator is inspired by old fuel gauges, while the black and red details and the 1\/1000th of a second indication are reminiscent of early dashboards. Knurled crowns and bezels evoke vintage petrol tank caps, and red holes in the black alligator strap are typical of the driving gloves that were so popular with gentlemen racers. The timepieces feature a high-frequency balance wheel that has also been inspired by the performance of racing cars, and a monopusher chronograph at 12 o\u2019clock, which mirrors the Minerva stopwatches that were used for timing car races.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Mix of high-tech materials<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>A sophisticated combination of high-tech materials has been chosen for the Montblanc<br \/>TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18, starting with the 46.4 mm titanium case and semi-skeletonized horns that have all been satinated and treated with a black DLC coating for ultimate scratch-resistance, robustness and lightness. The case is complemented by a titanium monopusher at 12 o\u2019clock and a fixed black ceramic bezel that has been engraved with white Arabic numerals that characterize the overall design of the line and accentuate its legibility and performance.<\/p>\n<p>The dial is a multi-layer construction with black horizontal stripes, red indications and a red gasket, which is framed by a smoked sapphire crystal, enhancing the sporty and racing aesthetic.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The heart of the matter<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Recording the time to 1\/1000th of a second is a feat of horological engineering. The Montblanc TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18 works thanks to one movement with two hearts: the first heart indicates the time functions, and the second one is in charge of the chronograph indications. The hours and minutes are at the centre of the dial with the addition of a small second counter with a rhodium-plated hand at 9 o\u2019clock. The hour, minute and second displays keep time accurately thanks to a large balance with 18 screws, which beats at the traditional pace of 18,000 semi-oscillations per hour. This balance wheel is partially visible through the skeletonized dial at 7 o\u2019clock. All other indicators serve the chronograph function, to which this exclusive timepiece devotes the highest priority. The chronograph\u2019s small balance can be seen at 10 o\u2019clock showing oscillations at a rate of 360,000 semi-oscillations per hour (50 Hz). In order to allow a finer adjustment and then further improve its precision, the chronograph\u2019s small balance wheel has been equipped with two hairsprings, which are fixed on top of each other.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The mechanics explained<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>When an elapsed interval is being measured, the chronograph\u2019s elapsed 100th of a second hand orbits the entire dial once per second. But rather than occurring as a smooth progression, this circular motion is sub-dived into 100 individual steps which the naked eye cannot distinguish from one another. The chronograph\u2019s centre-wheel, to which the central chronograph hand is affixed, likewise jumps from one tiny step to the next in a hundredth of a second increments. However, the thousandths of a second are measured in an entirely different way.<\/p>\n<p>In order to go further and measure a thousandth of a second, the Montblanc engineers had to innovate. They developed a movement with a balance beating with a frequency of 360,000 semi-oscillations per hour. This rapid oscillator completes 100 to-and-from motions per second, i.e. 50 times in one direction and 50 times in the other. This tempo not only guides the motion of the 1\/100th dedicated mechanism, but it also sets the pace for delivering an impulse of energy that sets into rotation an innovative wheel in the gear train, the so-called \u201cthousandth wheel\u201d. Powered in this fashion, it rotates around its own axis at a uniform speed of ten rotations per second and thus provides the resolution with which hundredths of a second can be further divided into sets of ten increments.<\/p>\n<p>The chronograph is controlled by a two-level column-wheel: one level controls the whip to start, stop and reset the seconds, minutes and the thousandths of a second, and the other level guides the hammers to reset the seconds and the minutes. The reset of the 100th of-a-second hand is accomplished in a particular way thanks to a disc with a catch at the centre of the movement. This catch, made of an alloy of copper, improves the reliability of the mechanism.<\/p>\n<p>Rather than remaining continually in motion, the separate balance for the chronograph begins to vibrate only when the start function is activated by a flexible steel lamella or whip mounted behind the arrowhead of the chronograph rocker. When the stop function is triggered, this slender steel plate stops the small 50-Hertz balance and holds it motionlessly in place until it is needed again.<\/p>\n<p>The chronograph function is powered by its own barrel, which stores enough energy to measure intervals of up to 45 minutes in duration. An elapsed-time measurement can be indefinitely extended by turning the crown anti-clockwise while the chronograph is running, thus adding fresh energy to the chronograph\u2019s barrel. The going train for the ordinary time display draws its energy from a second barrel that guarantees a 100-hours of power reserve.<\/p>\n<p>This long-lasting power reserve also contributes to the regularity of the amplitude of the balance beating at 360\u2019000 oscillations per hour which, in turn, enhances the precision of the time measuring\u2014a decisive advantage for accurately measuring intervals to the nearest thousandth of a second.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Indicating the 1\/1000th<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The Montblanc TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18 is surprisingly easy to read as it follows a familiar pattern that is found on the vast majority of chronographs. A double counter at 6 o\u2019clock has a longer, red-tipped hand to tally elapsed seconds from 1 to 60, as well as a shorter, all-red hand to count a maximum of 15-elapsed minutes. The chronograph\u2019s indicators begin with a red, centrally axial, elapsed 100th of a second hand that completes one full 360\u00b0 rotation every second so that its tip sprints along the hundredths of-a-second scale on the dial\u2019s periphery. The thousandths of a second is displayed at 12 o\u2019clock on a cartouche inspired by the speedometer of vintage car dashboards, where a triangular red pointer progresses along a scale calibrated from 0 to 9. The resting position is indicated by the letter \u201cN\u201d (for neutral), leaving the 0 to clearly indicate the thousandths, i.e. one full 100th of a second.<\/p>\n<p>A slightly inset display at 3 o\u2019clock indicates the remaining reserve of power for the<br \/>chronograph\u2019s movement which, when fully wound, will operate for more than 45 minutes. The power-reserve display also serves as a helpful indicator for the chronograph because it shows how much longer the chronograph will continue to run beyond the 15-elapsed minutes it can tally.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Measuring performance<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The mainspring for the ordinary timekeeping movement is wound by turning the crown clockwise (the power reserve is about 100 hours). Turning the crown counter clockwise winds the separate mainspring for the chronograph\u2019s movement, which delivers optimal measuring results for more than forty-five consecutive minutes. To tally lengthier intervals, power can be conveyed to the chronograph\u2019s barrel by turning the crown while the chronograph is running. Pressing the button between the horns at 12 o\u2019clock starts the chronograph and sets the long red chronograph second hand in motion as it races around the main dial once per second. Double counters at 6 o\u2019clock tally its rotations. The small red hand on the chronograph\u2019s power-reserve display gradually progresses upwards, and the 1,000th-of-a-second arrowhead at 12 o\u2019clock points motionlessly toward the \u201cN\u201d. When the chronograph button is pressed again, the entire system instantly halts and the duration of the elapsed interval can be read: beginning with the number of elapsed minutes on the inner scale on the double counter at 6 o\u2019clock, followed by the elapsed seconds on the outer scale of the same subdial, continuing with the hundredths of a second on the peripheral scale surrounding the main dial, and culminating with the thousandths of a second in the display at 12 o\u2019clock. The entire process is simple, clear, quick and requires no additional calculations.<\/p>\n<p>This revolutionary timepiece is testament to how Montblanc has never stopped innovating by always pushing the boundaries of what is technologically possible. Equipped with Montblanc\u2019s Manufacture Calibre MB M66.26, this manually wound monopusher chronograph is decorated to the finest standards of Swiss watchmaking with decorations and finishings that include C\u00f4tes de Gen\u00e8ve, circular graining, hand chamfering and burnishing. In addition to the ingenious mechanics, the Maison knows how to complement its inventions with harmonious designs that, in the case of the Montblanc TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18, capture the spirit and adventure of those early racing drivers, their magnificent racing machines, and the passionate officials who meticulously timed them using Minerva\u2019s precision instruments. This Limited Edition captures it all in a timepiece that marks a new chapter in Montblanc\u2019s history.<\/p>","description_short":"","quantity":0,"minimal_quantity":"0","available_now":"","available_later":"","price":147083.333333,"specificPrice":false,"additional_shipping_cost":"0.00","wholesale_price":"0.000000","on_sale":"0","online_only":"0","unity":"","unit_price":0,"unit_price_ratio":"0.000000","ecotax":"0.000000","reference":"116828","supplier_reference":"","location":"","width":"0.000000","height":"0.000000","depth":"0.000000","weight":"0.000000","ean13":"","upc":"","link_rewrite":"timewalker-chronograph-1000-limited-edition-18","meta_description":"The new Montblanc TimeWalker Collection \u2013 A Rebirth of Professional Watches Paying tribute to Minerva\u2019s extraordinary heritage, Montblanc takes a journey bac...","meta_keywords":"","meta_title":"Watch Montblanc TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18 | TimeWalker 116828  Titanium DLC - Strap Alligator","quantity_discount":"0","customizable":"0","new":false,"uploadable_files":"0","text_fields":"0","active":"1","redirect_type":"","id_product_redirected":"0","available_for_order":"0","available_date":"0000-00-00","condition":"new","show_price":"1","indexed":"1","visibility":"both","date_add":"2017-03-22 09:35:32","date_upd":"2017-06-27 15:59:18","tags":false,"base_price":"147083.333333","id_tax_rules_group":"1","id_color_default":0,"advanced_stock_management":"0","out_of_stock":2,"depends_on_stock":false,"isFullyLoaded":true,"cache_is_pack":"0","cache_has_attachments":"1","is_virtual":"0","id_pack_product_attribute":null,"cache_default_attribute":"0","category":"timewalker","pack_stock_type":"0","id":6095,"id_shop_list":null,"force_id":false,"customization_required":false}

{"Compl\u00e9ment":"Titanium DLC - Strap Alligator","S\u00e9rie limit\u00e9e":"Oui, 18","Sexe":"Homme","Diam\u00e8tre":"46.4","Hauteur":"17.34","Types":"Hand-winding","Styles":"High Horology, Sporty","Calibre_autre":"MB M66.26","Calibre distinction":"C\u00f4tes de Gen\u00e8ve","Affichage":"Superluminova luminescent hands","Complication":"60-Second Counter, Chronograph Power Reserve Indicator, Small Seconds, 15-Minute Counter, 'One-push-piece' Chronograph, 1\/100th of a Second Display","Mati\u00e8re du bo\u00eetier":"DLC, Titanium","Particularit\u00e9 du boitier":"Sapphire caseback","Etanch\u00e9it\u00e9":"30 meters","Forme":"Round","Cadran":"Grain\u00e9","Couleur du cadran":"Black","Verre":"Sapphire","Mati\u00e8re du bracelet":"Alligator leather","Fermeture du bracelet":"Triple folding buckle","Couleur du bracelet":"Black","Plus de caract\u00e9ristiques":"<br>Movement<\/br>\r\nMontblanc Manufacture Calibre MB M66.26<\/br> \r\nManually wound monopusher chronograph with a balance wheel for\r\nthe time indication and a separate balance wheel for the chronograph <\/br>\r\nMonopusher with column wheel<\/br>\r\nDimensions :<\/br>\r\nDiameter : 38.4 mm<\/br>\r\nHeight =:10.60 mm<\/br>\r\nNo. of components : 488<\/br> \r\nNo. of rubies : 46<\/br>\r\nPower reserve Approx. 100 hours for the time & approx. 45 min. for the chronograph <\/br>\r\nBalance :<\/br>\r\nTime indication : balance with screws<\/br>\r\n11.4 mm<\/br>\r\nMoment of inertia : 26 mg.cm\u00b2<\/br>\r\nChronograph : smooth hoop<\/br>\r\n6 mm <\/br>\r\nFrequency <\/br>\r\nTime indication:18,000 A\/H (2.5 Hz)<\/br>\r\nChronograph : 360.000 A\/H (50Hz) <\/br>\r\nHairspring : Time indication : flat with Phillips terminal curve<\/br>\r\nChronograph : flat\r\nPlate Rhodium-plated German silver<\/br>\r\nCircular-grained on both sides <\/br>\r\nHandchamfered\r\nedges<\/br>\r\nRhodium-plated German silver<\/br>\r\nhand-chamfered edges<\/br>\r\nGold-plated<\/br> \r\nCircular-grained <\/br>\r\nChamfered <\/br>\r\nDiamond hubs on both sides<\/br>\r\nPinions <\/br>\r\nPolished faces and toothing<\/br>\r\nBurnished pivots<\/br>\r\n\r\n<br>Case<\/br>\r\nMaterial mix consisting of satinated black DLC titanium<\/br> \r\nSatinated black DLC titanium horns<\/br>\r\nHigh-tech black ceramic bezel<\/br>\r\nSapphire crystal<\/br>\r\nBlack DLC titanium back with screws & inset pane of sapphire crystal<\/br>\r\n\r\n<br>Dial<\/br>\r\nBlack grain\u00e9 dial with horizontal stratus and transparent opening<\/br>\r\nSilvery-white dauphine-shaped hour-hand and minute-hand with\r\nSuperLuminova<\/br>\r\nSmall second counter with silvery-white hands<\/br>\r\nRed and black-colour chronographs hands<\/br>\r\n\r\n<br>Fonctions<\/br>\r\nSmall seconds at 9 o\u2019clock<\/br>\r\n1\/100th of a second in the centre (1 turn\/sec.)<\/br>\r\n60-elapsed seconds and\r\n15-elapsed minutes counters with double indication hands and\r\ncorresponding sectorial scales<\/br>\r\n1\/1000th of a second counter at 12 o\u2019clock<\/br>\r\nPower reserve indication for the 1000th of a second at 3 o\u2019clock<\/br>\r\n\r\n<br>Strap \/ Buckles<\/br>\r\nBlack alligator leather strap with red stitching & asymmetric holes<\/br>\r\nStainless steel and black DLC triple folding clasp<\/br>\r\n\r\n<br>Certified by the Montblanc Laboratory Test 500<\/br>"}

TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18

Reference: 116828

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Brand  :	Montblanc
Collection  :	TimeWalker
Model  :	TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18
Reference  :	116828
Complement :	Titanium DLC - Strap Alligator

176 500 €Recorded list price in FranceI WANT ITADD TO CART

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• Brand  :	Montblanc
  Collection  :	TimeWalker
  Model  :	TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18
  Reference  :	116828
  Complement :	Titanium DLC - Strap Alligator
  List Price :	176 500 €
  Diameter :	46.4 mm
  Height :	17.34 mm
  Styles :	High Horology Sporty
  Types :	Hand-winding
  Calibre :	MB M66.26
  Calibre distinction :	Côtes de Genève
  Complication :	60-Second Counter Chronograph Power Reserve Indicator Small Seconds 15-Minute Counter 'One-push-piece' Chronograph 1/100th of a Second Display
  Case material :	DLC Titanium
  Case peculiarity :	Sapphire caseback
  Shape :	Round
  Water-resistance :	30 meters
  Dial :	Grainé
  Dial color :	Black
  Display :	Superluminova luminescent hands
  Glass :	Sapphire
  Strap material :	Alligator leather
  Strap color :	Black
  Strap clasp :	Triple folding buckle
  + More characteristics :	Movement Montblanc Manufacture Calibre MB M66.26 Manually wound monopusher chronograph with a balance wheel for the time indication and a separate balance wheel for the chronograph Monopusher with column wheel Dimensions : Diameter : 38.4 mm Height =:10.60 mm No. of components : 488 No. of rubies : 46 Power reserve Approx. 100 hours for the time & approx. 45 min. for the chronograph Balance : Time indication : balance with screws 11.4 mm Moment of inertia : 26 mg.cm² Chronograph : smooth hoop 6 mm Frequency Time indication:18,000 A/H (2.5 Hz) Chronograph : 360.000 A/H (50Hz) Hairspring : Time indication : flat with Phillips terminal curve Chronograph : flat Plate Rhodium-plated German silver Circular-grained on both sides Handchamfered edges Rhodium-plated German silver hand-chamfered edges Gold-plated Circular-grained Chamfered Diamond hubs on both sides Pinions Polished faces and toothing Burnished pivots Case Material mix consisting of satinated black DLC titanium Satinated black DLC titanium horns High-tech black ceramic bezel Sapphire crystal Black DLC titanium back with screws & inset pane of sapphire crystal Dial Black grainé dial with horizontal stratus and transparent opening Silvery-white dauphine-shaped hour-hand and minute-hand with SuperLuminova Small second counter with silvery-white hands Red and black-colour chronographs hands Fonctions Small seconds at 9 o’clock 1/100th of a second in the centre (1 turn/sec.) 60-elapsed seconds and 15-elapsed minutes counters with double indication hands and corresponding sectorial scales 1/1000th of a second counter at 12 o’clock Power reserve indication for the 1000th of a second at 3 o’clock Strap / Buckles Black alligator leather strap with red stitching & asymmetric holes Stainless steel and black DLC triple folding clasp Certified by the Montblanc Laboratory Test 500

DESCRIPTION

• The new Montblanc TimeWalker Collection – A Rebirth of Professional Watches

  Paying tribute to Minerva’s extraordinary heritage, Montblanc takes a journey back to the glory days of motor racing with five new TimeWalker timepieces that capture the beauty, spirit and values of motorsport history. The rebirth of these professional watches showcases the performance and innovation of the new Montblanc TimeWalker collection.

  Instruments of glory

  The chronograph has been one of the most popular complications since its very beginnings. This innovative complication has become far more than a mechanical timing device – it is an instrument that enforces the gentleman’s code of fair play and good sportsmanship, becoming the witness and judge to almost every type of sporting competition. Of all the motor sports, car racing is the one that has always had an intricate link to the chronograph. The history of competitive driving and performance timing are so inseparable that one could not exist without the other. With the capacity to capture and record time for eternity, the chronograph has borne witness to some outstanding automotive sporting moments.

  As the development of motor racing evolved through the 20th and 21st centuries, the chronograph became a symbol of fair competition and the ultimate reminder that victory can only ever be judged by true and accurately timed results.

  Inspired by performance

  The Montblanc TimeWalker Collection symbolizes the spirit of racing and harks back to these instruments of glory by offering a line of new professional watches for the modern performer that take their inspiration from Minerva’s outstanding history. The Minerva Manufacture was known as an exclusive workshop that produced high-quality instruments for measuring brief intervals of time with remarkable precision. The renowned “Rally Timer”, a stopwatch that was created to time motor racing with precision, is the perfect example of this heritage. Minerva watches were the reference in the field of horological innovation, with numerous patents registered over the years in the domain of precision timers, creating a legacy of savoir-faire.

  Legitimacy of the past

  Founded in 1858 in Villeret in the Saint-Imier Valley, Minerva has been a leadingspecialist in the fabrication of professional watches. From 1908, it was already successfully pursuing new technological challenges, such as the production of watches equipped with chronograph functions and highly accurate stopwatches that measured short intervals of time. The Manufacture developed stopwatches that could measure 1/5th of a second as early as 1911, rapidly increasing to 1/10th of a second. In this innovative spirit, in 1916, the Minerva Manufacture was one of the first to produce a high-frequency movement that could measure 1/100th of a second, a development that was further technically improved in 1936, putting Minerva on the map as the specialist of professional watches and stopwatches.

  The new Montblanc TimeWalker collection combines these legendary timing instruments of the past with the spirit of motor racing, encapsulating the Minerva heritage, superb technology, masculine energy, highest performance and the style of the glory days of racing.

  The results are evocative, vintage-themed though contemporary, and designed for modern performers who like to express their achievements, ambitions, masculinity, style and personality in their choice of wristwatch. Perfect for both business and leisure, the new Montblanc TimeWalker timepieces command respect and admiration and underline the confidence of those who wear them.

  Performance

  The new Montblanc TimeWalker collection represents a strong contemporary expression of the professional sport chronograph with a 43 mm case size that has become a standard size for Montblanc’s performance timepieces. From the case to the dial, from the movement to the complications, the collection focuses on masculine energy and a vintage-themed style, while combining performance, innovation, great legibility and robustness. Emblematic combinations of materials come into play in each of the models, such as high-tech black ceramic, satinated steel, titanium and rubber, highlighting the Maison’s creative spirit.

  The aesthetic codes of the new Montblanc TimeWalker timepieces are directly rooted in the world of racing: satinated cases and semi-skeletonized horns with architecturally carved flanks, all inspired by the aerodynamic lines of the bodywork of classic cars. Iconic details include knurled finishing on the flank of the emblematic black ceramic bezel, as well as on the crowns and pushers, which are reminiscent of vintage car caps; smoked glass case backs inspired by the glass windows that reveal sporty V12 engines; and strap holes that pay tribute to vintage leather racing gloves.

  Clear legibility and visibility are achieved with strong contrasts of colour, three dimensional counters inspired by vintage dashboards, precise scales and dauphine-shaped hands with SuperLuminova for the greatest readability and performance by day and night. For utmost precision, most of the TimeWalker timepieces feature an iconic central seconds hand coated in red with the tip crafted in the shape of the Minerva arrow.

  In order to guarantee the reliability of such a sporty professional product line, all the Montblanc TimeWalker models undergo over 500 hours of controls, with specific testing and general operating evaluation under extreme conditions. To also ensure sporting performance in terms of waterproofness, all the models are water-resistant to 100 metres.

  Montblanc TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18

  “Glory isn’t measured in thousandths of a second, but the victory that creates it is.”
  

  Racing drivers have always strived for faster lap times with increasingly powerful and efficient vehicles, experimenting with technology, materials and more in their quest to win. The same is true for Montblanc, which has never stopped innovating and pushing the boundaries of fine watchmaking technology. In 1916, the Minerva Manufacture developed its famous 1/100th of a second stopwatch, which was further technically improved in 1936, putting Minerva on the map as the specialist of professional watches and stopwatches. Montblanc continues to innovate with the Montblanc TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18, a mechanical chronograph that measures elapsed time to the 1/1000th of a second.

  In the spirit of motor racing, this limited edition embraces the world of motorsports through and through. From its powerful design to the mix of high-tech and high-performance materials, the Montblanc TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18 is the height of horological technology. Its high-frequency movement boasts two patents and 22 auxiliary patents combining performance and innovation like never before.

  Inspired by performance

  The spirit of racing is not only found on the inside of the timepiece, but also on the  outside, with design elements that hark back to the glory days of motor racing. The chronograph power reserve indicator is inspired by old fuel gauges, while the black and red details and the 1/1000th of a second indication are reminiscent of early dashboards. Knurled crowns and bezels evoke vintage petrol tank caps, and red holes in the black alligator strap are typical of the driving gloves that were so popular with gentlemen racers. The timepieces feature a high-frequency balance wheel that has also been inspired by the performance of racing cars, and a monopusher chronograph at 12 o’clock, which mirrors the Minerva stopwatches that were used for timing car races.

  Mix of high-tech materials

  A sophisticated combination of high-tech materials has been chosen for the Montblanc
  TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18, starting with the 46.4 mm titanium case and semi-skeletonized horns that have all been satinated and treated with a black DLC coating for ultimate scratch-resistance, robustness and lightness. The case is complemented by a titanium monopusher at 12 o’clock and a fixed black ceramic bezel that has been engraved with white Arabic numerals that characterize the overall design of the line and accentuate its legibility and performance.

  The dial is a multi-layer construction with black horizontal stripes, red indications and a red gasket, which is framed by a smoked sapphire crystal, enhancing the sporty and racing aesthetic.

  The heart of the matter

  Recording the time to 1/1000th of a second is a feat of horological engineering. The Montblanc TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18 works thanks to one movement with two hearts: the first heart indicates the time functions, and the second one is in charge of the chronograph indications. The hours and minutes are at the centre of the dial with the addition of a small second counter with a rhodium-plated hand at 9 o’clock. The hour, minute and second displays keep time accurately thanks to a large balance with 18 screws, which beats at the traditional pace of 18,000 semi-oscillations per hour. This balance wheel is partially visible through the skeletonized dial at 7 o’clock. All other indicators serve the chronograph function, to which this exclusive timepiece devotes the highest priority. The chronograph’s small balance can be seen at 10 o’clock showing oscillations at a rate of 360,000 semi-oscillations per hour (50 Hz). In order to allow a finer adjustment and then further improve its precision, the chronograph’s small balance wheel has been equipped with two hairsprings, which are fixed on top of each other.

  The mechanics explained

  When an elapsed interval is being measured, the chronograph’s elapsed 100th of a second hand orbits the entire dial once per second. But rather than occurring as a smooth progression, this circular motion is sub-dived into 100 individual steps which the naked eye cannot distinguish from one another. The chronograph’s centre-wheel, to which the central chronograph hand is affixed, likewise jumps from one tiny step to the next in a hundredth of a second increments. However, the thousandths of a second are measured in an entirely different way.

  In order to go further and measure a thousandth of a second, the Montblanc engineers had to innovate. They developed a movement with a balance beating with a frequency of 360,000 semi-oscillations per hour. This rapid oscillator completes 100 to-and-from motions per second, i.e. 50 times in one direction and 50 times in the other. This tempo not only guides the motion of the 1/100th dedicated mechanism, but it also sets the pace for delivering an impulse of energy that sets into rotation an innovative wheel in the gear train, the so-called “thousandth wheel”. Powered in this fashion, it rotates around its own axis at a uniform speed of ten rotations per second and thus provides the resolution with which hundredths of a second can be further divided into sets of ten increments.

  The chronograph is controlled by a two-level column-wheel: one level controls the whip to start, stop and reset the seconds, minutes and the thousandths of a second, and the other level guides the hammers to reset the seconds and the minutes. The reset of the 100th of-a-second hand is accomplished in a particular way thanks to a disc with a catch at the centre of the movement. This catch, made of an alloy of copper, improves the reliability of the mechanism.

  Rather than remaining continually in motion, the separate balance for the chronograph begins to vibrate only when the start function is activated by a flexible steel lamella or whip mounted behind the arrowhead of the chronograph rocker. When the stop function is triggered, this slender steel plate stops the small 50-Hertz balance and holds it motionlessly in place until it is needed again.

  The chronograph function is powered by its own barrel, which stores enough energy to measure intervals of up to 45 minutes in duration. An elapsed-time measurement can be indefinitely extended by turning the crown anti-clockwise while the chronograph is running, thus adding fresh energy to the chronograph’s barrel. The going train for the ordinary time display draws its energy from a second barrel that guarantees a 100-hours of power reserve.

  This long-lasting power reserve also contributes to the regularity of the amplitude of the balance beating at 360’000 oscillations per hour which, in turn, enhances the precision of the time measuring—a decisive advantage for accurately measuring intervals to the nearest thousandth of a second.

  Indicating the 1/1000th

  The Montblanc TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18 is surprisingly easy to read as it follows a familiar pattern that is found on the vast majority of chronographs. A double counter at 6 o’clock has a longer, red-tipped hand to tally elapsed seconds from 1 to 60, as well as a shorter, all-red hand to count a maximum of 15-elapsed minutes. The chronograph’s indicators begin with a red, centrally axial, elapsed 100th of a second hand that completes one full 360° rotation every second so that its tip sprints along the hundredths of-a-second scale on the dial’s periphery. The thousandths of a second is displayed at 12 o’clock on a cartouche inspired by the speedometer of vintage car dashboards, where a triangular red pointer progresses along a scale calibrated from 0 to 9. The resting position is indicated by the letter “N” (for neutral), leaving the 0 to clearly indicate the thousandths, i.e. one full 100th of a second.

  A slightly inset display at 3 o’clock indicates the remaining reserve of power for the
  chronograph’s movement which, when fully wound, will operate for more than 45 minutes. The power-reserve display also serves as a helpful indicator for the chronograph because it shows how much longer the chronograph will continue to run beyond the 15-elapsed minutes it can tally.

  Measuring performance

  The mainspring for the ordinary timekeeping movement is wound by turning the crown clockwise (the power reserve is about 100 hours). Turning the crown counter clockwise winds the separate mainspring for the chronograph’s movement, which delivers optimal measuring results for more than forty-five consecutive minutes. To tally lengthier intervals, power can be conveyed to the chronograph’s barrel by turning the crown while the chronograph is running. Pressing the button between the horns at 12 o’clock starts the chronograph and sets the long red chronograph second hand in motion as it races around the main dial once per second. Double counters at 6 o’clock tally its rotations. The small red hand on the chronograph’s power-reserve display gradually progresses upwards, and the 1,000th-of-a-second arrowhead at 12 o’clock points motionlessly toward the “N”. When the chronograph button is pressed again, the entire system instantly halts and the duration of the elapsed interval can be read: beginning with the number of elapsed minutes on the inner scale on the double counter at 6 o’clock, followed by the elapsed seconds on the outer scale of the same subdial, continuing with the hundredths of a second on the peripheral scale surrounding the main dial, and culminating with the thousandths of a second in the display at 12 o’clock. The entire process is simple, clear, quick and requires no additional calculations.

  This revolutionary timepiece is testament to how Montblanc has never stopped innovating by always pushing the boundaries of what is technologically possible. Equipped with Montblanc’s Manufacture Calibre MB M66.26, this manually wound monopusher chronograph is decorated to the finest standards of Swiss watchmaking with decorations and finishings that include Côtes de Genève, circular graining, hand chamfering and burnishing. In addition to the ingenious mechanics, the Maison knows how to complement its inventions with harmonious designs that, in the case of the Montblanc TimeWalker Chronograph 1000 Limited Edition 18, capture the spirit and adventure of those early racing drivers, their magnificent racing machines, and the passionate officials who meticulously timed them using Minerva’s precision instruments. This Limited Edition captures it all in a timepiece that marks a new chapter in Montblanc’s history.