Hands-On With One Of Ten Chopard L.U.C 1860 Flying Tourbillons

Done in the same case as the original 1860, the tourbillon measures 36.5mm wide and 8.2mm thick with a hinged caseback. It’s difficult to find the appropriate adjectives for a watch like this without verging into superlative territory but it is, in my opinion, damn near perfect. For a more objective take, let’s take a closer look at the distinct aspects that reveal the depth of respect for craftsmanship that you just don’t see enough of anymore.

Let’s start with the fact that the flying tourbillon bears both COSC certification and the Geneva Seal, which is something only Chopard and Patek Philippe can claim. Also, it’s not just one of only six tourbillons ever produced with stop-seconds functionality, but it is the slimmest and most compact of that group. While this all may sound incredibly nerdy, it’s pretty important in contextualizing just how much thoughtfulness and respect for the art of watchmaking goes into pieces like this. In fact, given that Abraham-Louis Breguet’s entire motivation when inventing the tourbillon was to improve accuracy and chronometry, one would be forgiven in thinking that a tourbillon without hacking seconds is somewhat pointless. Seeing this in action is pretty impressive, especially when observing how quickly the tourbillon leaps back into action due to the torque provided by the twin mainspring barrels. That all this watchmaking is fit into such a compact package makes the 1860 Flying Tourbillon so appealing when compared with just about anything else out there.

The L.U.C 96.24-L is an automatic tourbillon movement based off the original L.U.C Calibre 1.96. With a 22k gold micro-rotor and twin-stacked barrels, it operates at 3.5 Hz and has a 65-hour power reserve. Additionally, the flying tourbillon is housed within a 27.4mm-wide and 3.3mm-thick movement that is finished to the nines and can hold its own against the best of the best.

Beyond the tourbillon and movement, the dial of the 1860 Flying Tourbillon is exceptional. Done by Metalem, the Chopard-owned dialmaker who did Philippe Dufour’s Simplicity, the 18k yellow gold dial has a hand-done guilloché basket-weave radiating out of the center of the dial. This pattern is different than that of the original 1860 but it lends a fresh design that is no less impressive. The rhodium-plated applied hour markers are placed on the outer ring which is then framed by a subtle and very thin guilloché track serving as a border to the minutes track. Finally, the dauphine hands are also rhodium-plated and faceted making for brilliant reflections in any lighting condition.

I love the warmth and aesthetic harmony that comes from the dial and case being done in the same 18k yellow gold and I'm also a fan of the rounded case having no straight lines with thorough polishing throughout. Finally, it should be noted that Chopard’s commitment to only using ethical gold applies here.

The Chopard L.U.C 1860 Flying Tourbillon is limited to just 10 pieces priced at just around $150,000. These are certainly all spoken for by collectors but it was a real pleasure to get my hands on and photograph one of them.