Credits: Article and images by Tim Mosso @ Quill & Pad. See the original article here - https://quillandpad.com/2024/03/22/de-bethune-db28xs-starry-seas-reviewed-by-tim-mosso/
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“Triple Pare-Chute” shock protection for the balance provides both insurance against damage and improved chronometry. Regarding the former, my internal access to the brand has included follow-up inspection of DB28s used in professional tennis matches, and the watches in question were no worse for the experience.
Regarding the relationship between chronometry and shock protection, the essence of the principle is that the additional shock absorbers can maintain the pivot of the balance staff in its cup jewel for more total time than a single Incabloc spring can accomplish under identical impacts.
Artisanal decoration of De Bethune models varies by collection. The entry-level DB27 is the most basic. Certain automatic movements blend traditional finish juxtaposed for effect against calculated “industrial chic.” But the DB28’s DB2005 and derivatives always get the full-fat French Swiss lily-gilding.
Start with the steel barrel bridge cap. It’s mirror-finished in fashion often described as “black” polish; from most angles, the optically flawless surface reflects no light. Most movements from most brands apply this treatment to regulators, stud holders, or screw-size components; De Bethune goes poli noir on full bridges. The edges of the polished barrel cap are broad, round, and mirrored in the fashion of the finest anglage. Jewel sinks are reamed and smooth.
Don’t take my word for it; the photos tell the story.
Oddly, the primary barrel bridge, although mostly covered, exhibits a full set of côtes De Bethune; this can be seen in photos just below the bridge for the shock protection springs Also of note, the ratchet wheel above and to the right of the balance includes teeth with micro chamfers.
De Bethune caps the base plate with a decorative disc engraved with the company’s “Microlight” engraving. It’s similar to guilloché in the sense that Microlight is a reductive engraving by engine, but the tightly spaced texture is finer in detail and better suited to the modernist ethic of the watch. De Bethune’s philosophy of applying Microlight is to amplify the contours of a form or arc of line, and that’s evident in the DB28XS’ radiating ripples around the barrels and balance wheel.
The balance assembly itself is a case study in obsessive detail. Above the oscillator, a large steel bridge extends itself to the top of the barrel cover. All parts of this fired blue bridge are mirror polished, but the fine beveled edges speak to the time lavished on this mostly ornamental addition. The unfired steel bracket immediately above the balance is more functional and serves as the anchor of the Triple Pare-Chute flanking springs. A Greubel-worth balance bridge of continuously rounded and specular polished steel is the chef d’oeuvre of the entire caseback.
De Bethune’s Starry Seas isn’t designed to be the “affordable” DB28. Its shape, extensive use of blued titanium, and top-shelf movement banish any notion that the XS is an “entry level” De Bethune in any sense. But with size, style, and an image that’s more approachable to conservative tastes, the DB28XS is the company’s definitive “point-of-entry” for brand-curious collectors hitherto on the sidelines.
For more information, please visit www.debethune.ch/en/collections/db28-collections/xs-starry-seas
Quick Facts: De Bethune DB28XS Starry Seas
Edition: Since 2023
Reference Number: DB28XSTIS3
Case: 38.7mm in grade five titanium; 9mm thick; variable geometry floating lugs with range from 44.8mm to 48.9mm; 30-meters water resistant
Dial: Silver hour and minute track framing heat-blued grade five titanium with random guilloché pattern and applied gold stars; polished titanium hands
Movement: DB2005, manual wind with 144-hour power reserve; twin barrels; 4Hz beat rate; triple shock protection for balance staff; 30mm diameter; 27 jewels
Functions: hours and minutes
2024 Retail Price: $90,000
* Tim Mosso is the media director and watch specialist at Watchbox. You can check out his very comprehensive YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/@WatchBoxStudios/videos. Watchbox is the majority owner of shares in De Bethune.
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Credits: Article and images by Tim Mosso @ Quill & Pad. See the original article here - https://quillandpad.com/2024/03/22/de-bethune-db28xs-starry-seas-reviewed-by-tim-mosso/