Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Chronograph RD#5

 

 

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Chronograph RD#5, a Slim Watch along with Big Ambitions

 

Reinventing the Chronograph. Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Extra Thin fake

Audemars Piguet (AP) has redefined the wathe with the Royal Oak " Big Mac" Ultra-Thin Automatic Flying Tourbillon Chronograph RD#5. Crafted from titanium and dép?t BMG, this watch, calculating just 8. 1 milimetre thick, houses the Caliber 8100, a radically brand new interpretation of the chronograph system, employing a spring rack to gather and store energy. The actual RD#5, the fifth as well as final model in the " RD" collection, exemplifies the actual impressive technical sophistication associated with AP, particularly its Le Locle Manufacture, which started out Renaud & Papi (APRP).

The RD#5 was conceived with the objective of creating an ultra-thin and comfy chronograph, featuring exceptionally lighting and comfortable pushers, an immediately jumping minute counter, and also an ultra-thin profile (thanks in part to peripheral turning technology) while remaining flexible to industrial haute clocks. It's one of the most technologically fascinating releases of 2025, along with we'll explore Audemars Piguet's new interpretation of this chronograph below.

Preliminary Thoughts

Deceptively regular in appearance, yet sharing the perfect proportions and state-of-the-art band of the iconic " Jumbo, " the RD#5 is among the most innovative mechanical chronographs recently. Perhaps its only similar breakthrough in chronograph building is the AgenGraphe, launched almost a decade ago.

This particular watch was clearly created with two goals in your mind: slenderness and tactility. This achieves both with excellence. In addition to enhancing the responsive feel of the pushers, the particular RD#5 also reduces the peak of the movement by eliminating a layer of the timepiece mechanism, previously occupied through the hammers and heart-shaped camera, and replacing it having a rack; this de-layering is comparable to the approach used in typically the RD#2 perpetual calendar high quality fake watches .

The first time We activated the chronograph, the sensation was both expected in addition to surprising. Giulio Papi, co-inventor of the RD#5 (and among today's foremost watchmakers), stated that the chronograph pushers had been as light as the volume level buttons on an iPhone, an attribute he cited as one of the inspirations for the watch's design.

Mr. Papi's evaluation of the tactile feel is actually spot-on. The RD#5's drivers are smaller than most, needing only a light press in order to activate a timepiece, removing the deep travel of the chronograph. Furthermore, their responsive feel is smooth as well as crisp, unlike any other time counter on the market.

But since a chronograph enthusiast, exactly what most captivated me is the instantaneous jumping minute countertop, a feature also employed by AP watches in Geneva and also Glashütte.

The particular innovative nature of the RD#5 movement also demonstrates AP's exceptional achievements in commercial haute horlogerie. Its careful design for manufacturability (DFM) will be evident in every detail, especially the extensive use of videos rather than screws to safe the chronograph movement. The various slender levers, springs, along with connecting rods provide perfect material for wire-cutting.

Most importantly, Audemars Piguet's patent demonstrates the deterministic nature of the RD#5 motion, eliminating the need for tedious springtime tension and cam adjusted adjustments. Ultimately, this movements is unabashedly designed for contemporary manufacturing, which I find each intriguing and fascinating. In fact , often the 8100 movement in the RD#4 has two fewer components than the standard Audemars Piguet automatic chronograph caliber 4401.

The Regal Oak's movement has a different style, resembling the APRP actions found in the Royal Maple Concept collection and luxurious Richard Mille models. Typically the extensive skeletonization of the stop-watch levers and connecting supports, I believe, is intended both for practical weight reduction and aesthetics. 1 noteworthy detail is the semi-octagonal shape of the chronograph link, a subtle nod towards the obvious theme. Zenith Chronomaster Sport fake

The RD#5 is priced at CHF 260, 000 before tax, a moderate price for a superb activity featuring a tourbillon and a cutting-edge chronograph. However , its worth lies in its rarity. Could anniversary edition is limited to be able to 150 pieces, I foresee that other models showcasing the caliber 8100 is going to be released soon, and ideally, non-tourbillon versions will follow quickly.

RD Selection

In 2015, Audemars Piguet launched its Investigation and Development (RD) selection with the RD#1 Royal Oak Supersonic Concept, revolutionizing the moment repeater. In 2016, Audemars Piguet released the RD#2 Royal Oak Ultra-Thin Automatic Perpetual Calendar, which, just 6. 3 mm thicker, was the thinnest automatic everlasting calendar watch at the time.

Six years later on, the RD#3 introduced the high-amplitude lever escapement within a flying tourbillon, which was elevated in the 2023 Universelle RD#4. The RD#4 is an easy-to-operate, self-winding grand complication, computing just 42 mm within diameter. It is named after any Louis-Alice Piguet caliber which AP supplied to the German born watchmaker Union in the late nineteenth century. With the RD#5, AP focused on reinventing the wathe mechanism, specifically the totally reset function.

Often the high-amplitude tourbillon returns for your third time in the RD#5. The watch itself is constructed from titanium, while the bezel, caseback, and bracelet middle hyperlinks are made of palladium-bulk metallic cup (BMG). AP also lately used this material in the Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar, the actual swan song of Quality and reliability 2120, as well as in several Royal Oak " Jumbo" versions and special editions.

As its name indicates, Palladium BMG is an different, rather than crystalline, metal. This will make it more rigid and more difficult than the polycrystalline forms common of traditional alloys.

The dial, in line with the classic Royal Oak design, features a refined guilloché design and a midnight blue PVD coating, complemented by strong gold " bathtub" hours markers and hands. Such as the other limited editions on sale since 2025, the dial has a distinctive 150th anniversary logo design inspired by the brand's historic emblem.

However the true allure of the RD#5 lies within its mobility. Caliber 8100 is equipped with some sort of high-amplitude flying tourbillon, automated winding with a peripheral oscillatory weight, and a function selectivo crown that switches among winding and setting, distinctions of many Richard Mille APRP movements. However , the focus the following is on its novel timepiece construction.

Adolphe Nicole, a Swiss migration living in London and creator of Nicole Nielsen, a new movement manufacturer best known with regard to supplying British watchmakers, developed the modern chronograph around 1840, creating the first mechanism effective at starting and stopping individually of the movement-unlike a stopwatch-and using a hammer with a solitary stable position and a heart-shaped cam to instantly go back to zero. swiss watches replica

Since then, most industry insiders have considered chronograph resetting the solved problem, typically looking for other solutions only when handy, such as in certain retrograde chronograph watches.

Typically, the power required to reset a chronograph is introduced into the view via a pushbutton. On numerous watches, pressing the start/stop button triggers the recast hammer, which is held in location by a pin (shown inside red in the image below) and released when the reset to zero button is pressed.

Pressing the start switch is like pulling a bowstring, requiring considerable force, whilst pressing the reset key is as effortless as tugging a trigger. Alternatively, the particular resetting force can come through the reset button itself, whereby it can be quite heavy.

The RD#5 is usually clearly not an ordinary time counter, despite its appearance initially, featuring a sweeping chronograph secs counter and typical 30-minute and 12-hour totalizers.

Instead of relying on energy from outside the watch, typically the RD#5 uses three early spring racks to collect and shop energy from the mainspring as the chronograph is running. This specific energy can be used to reset often the chronograph or advance the actual hour and minute totalizers.

Conceptually, this really is identical to the ingenious AgenGraphe, which uses a snail surveillance cams and spring-loaded hammer vertueux to achieve the same effect, however the execution is completely different.

Reinventing the Chronograph Reset

When the ti chronograph seconds wheel (light blue in the image below) rotates counterclockwise, its pinion drives the balance seconds stand (turquoise) to the left, while any weaker return spring (orange) works to push the tray to the right.

As the seconds rack calèche to the left, it pulls back again the connecting rod (gray, 50) until the minute enhance gear (pink) falls driving the teeth of the minute recorders wheel. As mentioned earlier, the particular weaker return spring issues with the pinion, which pulls the stronger mainspring pressure. This also replaces the typical anti-jamming spring. When the clutch is definitely disengaged (the chronograph is actually paused), the red detent prevents the gear from moving. With no red detent, the come back spring prevails and earnings the seconds wheel totally to zero, which is the important thing to the reset mechanism.

The seconds pinion is missing two smile, and another tooth will be shortened. As the chronograph mere seconds hand completes one trend around the dial, the roof-rack is no longer affected by the pinion, and the return spring comes the seconds rack for the right. It's important to note that typically the chronograph seconds hand is constantly on the move forward during this process, because this is not a retrograde chronograph. Jacob & Co. Casino Tourbillon replica

This causes often the connecting rod to cool forward, momentarily advancing when counter. The pinion after that reengages the rack, and also the process repeats. A similar device centered on the minute counter improvements the hour counter submit the opposite direction, gradually improving the hour wheel prior to rebounding every thirty minutes. Just like the chronograph seconds hand, none the minute counter nor the actual hour counter displays some sort of retrograde display.

Start. Stop.

This kind of chronograph utilizes an odd-numbered hybrid coupling system, in which the chronograph drive wheel is continually engaged with the clutch steering wheel, which has a small degree of up and down freedom of movement within the pivot range.

When you stop the stop-watch, a lever (turquoise within the image below) pushes the particular clutch wheel upward, from the chronograph seconds tyre. To reengage the wathe, the lever retracts, as well as the chronograph tension spring tire presses the clutch controls back into contact with the timepiece seconds wheel. The clutch system wheel's teeth have beveled bottom surfaces to ensure sleek engagement.

Pushing the Start/Stop button moves the yellow column steering wheel, engaging and disengaging typically the clutch via a purple addition. The purple linkage additionally contains the spring for the time counter seconds hand brake (red). When the chronograph is halted, the spring tension raises to hold the gears in position; when the chronograph is operating, the spring tension calms.

Reset in addition to Flyback

When the reset button button is pressed, a new lever pushes the light glowing blue reset carriage (my title, not AP's) counterclockwise, however it is stopped by a good orange stop. Continue pushing the reset button, plus the orange stop moves having an audible click, causing the totally reset carriage to rotate somewhat, pushing the turquoise button, disengaging the clutch tyre from the central chronograph moments wheel.

The pin on the reset buggy releases the brakes (red) on the chronograph seconds, moment, and hour wheels, along with the chronograph minute and hour or so advance pawls (pink), coming back all three displays to absolutely no. If you reset the stop-watch while it is running, it is going to restart immediately after releasing often the reset button, making it a genuine flyback chronograph. Richard Mille Bubba Watson replica

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak " Big Mac" Ultra-Thin Automatic Flying Tourbillon Chronograph RD#5

Ref. 26545XT. OO. 1240XT. 01

Diameter: 39 mm

Height: 8. 1 mm

Material: Titanium as well as 500 BMG Palladium

Crystal: Sapphire

Water proof: 20 meters

Movement: Caliber 8100

Functions: Flying Tourbillon, Wathe

Winding: Automatic

Frequency: 21, 600 heurt per hour (3 Hz)

Power Reserve: 72 hours

Strap: Titanium together with 500 BMG Palladium backlinks