Credits: Article and images by Martin Green @ Quill & Pad. See the original article here - https://quillandpad.com/2024/03/15/jaeger-lecoultre-blue-enamel-master-ultra-thin-tourbillon-very-close-to-being-the-perfect-tourbillon-watch/
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Spot on design
This is also the case with the Master Ultra Thin Tourbillon with a blue enamel dial. Granted, 40mm in diameter is not particularly small, but on the wrist it actually looks a bit larger. This is quite remarkable, as the tone of the blue is slightly on the dark side, which often results in the perception that the watch is actually smaller. Here, it is the enamel that plays an important role.
There are various ways to do enamel. The most common is to simply ‘glaze’ a dial with a single color of enamel. This will create a very understated effect and was something the Jaeger-LeCoultre could have done very well with this version of the Master Ultra Thin Tourbillon. However, the brand went the extra mile, utilizing the incredible expertise that they have at their fingertips in the manufacture.
They crafted a hand-guilloché pattern of 180 rays and coated them with blue enamel. To get an even result, this requires the hand of a master and very precise firings. In addition to the sunray hand-guilloché pattern is the center of the subdial for the date decorated with a circular hand-guilloché pattern. We call this azurage.
Enamel on a flat dial gives that unique, milky shimmer when light hits it, but when the dial is equipped with a pattern, like this Master Ultra Thin Tourbillon, you get a tremendous play of light that elevates the character of the watch to being much more outgoing. Jaeger-LeCoultre further plays into this with pink gold hour markers that flow into the dial design. They are kept on purpose slender and slightly longer to highlight that unique effect on the dial.
Jaeger-LeCoultre is also always focused on keeping the legibility of all the features on its watches as high as possible. This sounds like kicking in an open door, but to balance the features of the movement with an extraordinary design and craftsmanship means that legibility is sometimes paying the bill.
Despite the hands being quite slender on the Master Ultra Thin Tourbillon, they make reading the time very easy. Jaeger-LeCoultre folds these pink gold hands in such a way that usually one side reflects the light while the other is consistently darker, making them easy to spot.
JLC also takes room to print the dates, so the numerals are in a readable size. The tourbillon doubles as seconds hand, and is surrounded by a laser-engraved railroad track. This not only makes it easy to read this feature as well, but it also adds additional depth and a bit more of that pink gold to the dial.
Overall, this results in a rich and warm look that will most likely keep your eyes glued on this timepiece.
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Credits: Article and images by Martin Green @ Quill & Pad. See the original article here - https://quillandpad.com/2024/03/15/jaeger-lecoultre-blue-enamel-master-ultra-thin-tourbillon-very-close-to-being-the-perfect-tourbillon-watch/