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Screws are both beautiful and functional in this caliber. All feature highly polished heads, beveled slots and beveled perimeters. However, there appears to be a functional difference between the two styles.
Polished and blued screws of the Richard Lange Tourbillon Pour le Mérite
Solid components such as bridges and stones are connected with head-blued screws; Screws for adjusting distance, tension or timing are made of bare, polished metal.
Lange decides to use not one, not two, but three sizes of motorized vehicles Perlage on the cascading levels of bridges and slabs. The wheels – including the lock – have satin metal surfaces.
Polished gear trains of the Richard Lange Tourbillon Pour le Mérite
However, the wheels also have polished bevels on the inside. Although this interior polish is not quite at the level of the finest Greubel Forsey, it is rare even among Swiss “Holy Trinity” products.
I recently inspected an early Philippe Dufour Simplicity and found that it had similar wheel bevels to those I observed on the RLTPLM.
Highly polished column wheel of the Richard Lange Tourbillon Pour le Mérite
ALS watchmakers ensure a robust finish, complemented by a highly polished ratchet wheel on a sunburst grain barrel crest.
Elaborately shaped tourbillon cage of the Richard Lange Tourbillon Pour le Mérite
Finally, note the shape and complexity of the tourbillon cage itself. The design is a direct allusion to the A. Lange & Söhne pocket watches produced before World War II. The shared history is the reason why today’s tourbillon regulators from Glashütte Original use almost the same cage shape. On the long surface polish, micro bevels and inside English made of tiny recesses are at a virtuoso level.
Richard Lange Tourbillon Pour le Mérite
Ultimately, a watch like this Richard Lange Tourbillon Pour le Mérite is my “Hall & Oates” watch because it reminds me of how out of contact I have become mainstream in the watch collecting community. These white gold examples retail for $233,400 and sell used for around $140,000.
Recall that in December 2021, someone paid $6.5 million for a steel Nautilus with a Tiffany turquoise dial. For – much – less money, you could have a handcrafted masterpiece the likes of which no one else will wear, even if Watches and Wonders is on your calendar.
For more information, please visit www.alange-soehne.com/us-en/timepieces/richard-lange/richard-lange-tourbillon-pour-le-merite
Short info: A. Lange & Söhne Richard Lange Tourbillon Pour le Mérite
Reference number: 760.026F
Case: 41.9mm diameter; 12.7mm thick; 49.1 mm white gold bridge to bridge.
There are versions made of rose gold and platinum.
Choose: Sterling silver with Roman numerals, regulator with Seyffert scale, hidden hour display
Movement: L072.1, hand-wound, 36-hour power reserve, stop movement, stop-seconds tourbillon, fusee and chain constant force system, retractable subdial, five-position setting, 21,600 vibrations per hour, hairspring, 31 functioning synthetic rubies and 1 cosmetic diamond
End consumer price: $233,400
Used market value: $140,000 to $150,000
* Tim Mosso is media director and watch specialist at Watchbox. You can check out his very comprehensive YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/@WatchBoxStudios/videos.
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