Hautlence Vagabonde Tourbillon Series 3

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Cutting-edge materials in the service of HAUTLENCE’s uniquely avant-garde vision of watchmaking. The Vagabonde Tourbillon Series 3 elevates the brand’s unique interpretation of the wandering hours display with a flying tourbillon and a dial crafted in a sculpted superconductor material from the forge of James “Black Badger“ Thompson.

Innovation for the sake of art. Evocative watchmaking that challenges preconceived notions. Since its establishment in 2004, HAUTLENCE has remained at the helm of independent, out-of-the-box watchmaking. It incessantly challenges the tradition of watchmaking to create novel ways of displaying the passage of time while also showcasing its unique aesthetic sensibilities.

With its latest creation, the Vagabonde Tourbillon Series 3, HAUTLENCE is revisiting its tourbillon-equipped hands-free time display with a space-age material and striking contrasts throughout.

Supercharged Structure

The honeycomb pattern holds a special place for HAUTLENCE, featuring prominently in some of its earliest creations from as far back as 2004. For the Vagabonde Tourbillon Series 3, it’s more than just a geometric motif; it’s the structure of the base dial’s material.

Like something straight out of science fiction, superconductor materials hold many unique physical properties, with applications in a variety of fields including medical, aerospace, and quantum technologies – and we’re only just scratching the surface of its potential. The copper-niobium superconductor used in the Vagabonde Tourbillon Series 3 is intended for particle accelerators, so literally at the edge of physics. For HAUTLENCE, it’s mostly a source of creative expression.

To forge this sculptural dial, HAUTLENCE called upon the talents of its friend and collaborator James “Black Badger” Thompson, who has a real knack for experimenting with exotic and groundbreaking materials. Consisting of copper with hexagonal niobium filaments, the superconductor is cut across the grain at a specific angle. The material is then soaked in an acid bath, which attacks the copper but leaves the niobium intact, revealing a stunning, contrasting, tight honeycomb network. The result is a unique and almost organic lattice of raw metal.

Ripples and orbits

To further enhance the unique and highly three-dimensional structure of the cutting-edge superconductor dial base, a ripple-like pattern is created by carefully removing material to create pronounced grooves. With the silvery-gray tone of the superconductor and its subtle shimmer, the dial always appears in motion, like ripples on the surface of water. This sets the stage for HAUTLENCE’s hands-free display of the time.

All harmoniously arranged, the time display consists of three jumping hour satellites and a central minute disk. In essence, HAUTLENCE has reinvented the traditional wandering hours display by having three stationary jumping hours disks and a minute track moving between them, crafted in transparent sapphire crystal with minute numerals in Globolight®, a ceramic compound loaded with Super-LumiNova^®.

Deep blue frame

This hypnotic portrayal of the passage of time above the three-dimensional and structured dial is framed within HAUTLENCE’s emblematic TV-shaped case, streamlined with an integrated rubber strap and more rugged with its bumpers for added robustness and perfectly wearable proportions.

Water-resistant to 10 ATM, the steel case in the Vagabonde Tourbillon Series 3 is exceptionally draped in a deep midnight blue PVD coating. To bring out the myriad of contrasting tones and voluminous textures, the integrated strap as well as the notched crown’s grip are fashioned in bright white rubber.

Perpetual kinetics

Animating the hour and minute discs as well as the tourbillon is the D30 automatic movement. Visible through the sapphire display back, it features a bidirectional pawl winding mechanism to efficiently deliver a power reserve of at least 3 days. This manufacture calibre is equipped with a one-minute flying tourbillon fitted with a double hairspring in an open bar-shaped carriage, all expertly produced in-house by HAUTLENCE’s sister company, Precision Engineering AG.

HAUTLENCE –  Forging the path for avant-garde independent watchmaking since 2004.

Hautlence Vagabonde Tourbillon Series 3 Technical Specifications

Ref. AD30-ST00, CHF 65’000 – 28 pieces limited edition

Movement

• D30 self-winding mechanical movement
• Double hairspring flying tourbillon
• Wandering hours and minutes
• Power reserve: minimum of 72 hours
• Regulating organ: 21,600 vibrations/hour
• Number of components: 217
• Number of jewels: 39

Case

• Case middle and horns, bezel and crown: satin-finished and polished steel with midnight blue PVD coating
• Engraved HAUTLENCE logo on the crown
• Crystal: extra-hard beveled sapphire crystal with anti-reflective treatment
• Back: sapphire crystal, engraved «HAUTLENCE», «10 ATM», «Horlogerie Suisse»
• Dimensions: 43.0 x 50.8 x 11.9 mm / 10.9 mm without sapphire crystal
• Water resistance: 10 ATM

Dial

• Base dial: copper-niobium superconductor with etched-out hexagonal structure
• Intermediate dial: sapphire with applied minute numerals in Globolight^®

Strap

• White rubber
• Buckle: steel with midnight blue PVD coating