Chopard L.U.C 1963 Heritage Chronograph

Aesthetic refinement and mechanical performance. This is the world that has given life to the L.U.C 1963 Heritage Chronograph: an exclusive, numbered 25-piece limited edition reaffirming Chopard Manufacture's attachment to the noble values of Haute Horlogerie. This new hand-wound flyback chronograph features a 42 mm case in Lucent Steel™ – Chopard’s exclusive steel endowed with superior properties – along with an English-green dial and L.U.C Calibre 03.07-L delivering chronometer-certified precision. The latter is in itself a mechanical work of art offering outstanding functionality. An ageless timepiece embodying the very essence of the traditional chronograph, the L.U.C 1963 Heritage Chronograph is honoured by the prestigious Poinçon de Genève quality hallmark.

Rich details

While the chronograph is one of the most demanding horological specialities, Chopard Manufacture has nevertheless raised its L.U.C Calibre 03.07-L to the top of this high-flying universe thanks to a multitude of functional details dedicated to user friendliness. The movement is housed in a case made of Lucent Steel™: Chopard's exclusive steel alloy composed of 80% recycled elements, acknowledged for its superior resistance to standard steels, as well as its luminosity and its dermocompatibility. Accentuating the watch’s sporty appearance, two mushroom-shaped pushers protrude from the traditionally designed, round and supple 42 mm-diameter case. The brown calfskin strap with its contrasting lining is bridle-stitched with green thread matching the colour of the dial.

The latter is adorned with a sunburst pattern centred around the "L.U.CHOPARD" logo at 12 o’clock. The absence of a date makes for an extremely pure composition. The hour-markers with their rounded font systematically feature two Arabic numerals, like on a car dashboard rev counter. Graduated from 05 to 60, they indicate the chronograph minutes and seconds. The movement visible through a transparent case-back is finished to superlative standards: the baseplate and bridges are gilded, with the exception of the upper surface of the latter, which is in raw nickel silver to heighten the contrasts of L.U.C Calibre 03.07-L as well as its depth effect – further enhanced by the absence of an oscillating weight enabling an entirely unobstructed view.

A rare and exclusive calibre

Chronograph movements in the L.U.C collection feature a distinctive profile. Created in 2012, Calibre 03.03-L represented a major step in the development and maturity of Chopard Manufacture. The first chronograph movement to be produced within the Maison’s workshops, it is self-winding and its construction is integrated – meaning it is not a base calibre enriched with a modular functionality plate, but instead a unified whole.

It has given rise to several hand-wound or self-winding versions, with or without date and always in very limited series such as the L.U.C Chrono One, L.U.C 1963 Chronograph or Mille Miglia Classic XL 90th Anniversary Limited Edition models. Issued in a series of just 25, the L.U.C 1963 Heritage Chronograph is no exception to this rule of exclusivity.

Certified chronograph user friendliness

L.U.C Calibre 03.07-L is a descendant of L.U.C 03.03-L, yet hand-wound and with no date. It relies on its advanced functionalities, developed by Chopard's R&D teams and for which four invention patents have been filed. The most visible is the flyback enabling consecutive timing operations without having to zero-reset the counters, thanks to the 4 o’clock pusher. Its extremely unusual hammer system involves three pivoting hammers with elastic arms activated by a single lineardisplacement lever. These kinematics guarantee infallible operation and a peerlessly soft touch – a haptic factor symbolising all the care that the Chopard Manufacture watchmakers have lavished on L.U.C Calibre 03.07-L, as well as its level of quality.

Its coupling-clutch is vertical, thus guaranteeing more reliable starting of the chronograph seconds hand. Finally, pulling out the crown resets the small seconds at 6 o'clock to zero and keeps it there. This enables precise synchronisation with a reference time, a function stemming from the chronometer vocation of the L.U.C 1963 Heritage Chronograph. This element featured across the entire L.U.C collection reflects Chopard Co-President Karl-Friedrich Scheufele’s consistent determination to ensure the precision rating of the timepieces produced by the Maison. This accuracy is highlighted on the dial by the word "Chronometer" and certified by the Official Swiss Chronometer Testing Institute (COSC).

Peak craft skills

In this hand-wound version, L.U.C Calibre 03.07-L is raised to even nobler status. The chronograph components take up most of the visible space: rhodium-plated bridges, yokes, levers and column wheel stand out against the rose-gilt background. This contrast is reinforced by the variety of surface treatments: circular graining for the base, straight-graining for the chronograph components and a Côtes de Genève motif on the bridges. The latter are fashioned in nickel silver, an exceptionally bright alloy.

However, nickel silver leaves scant room for mistakes, since no scratch on its surface can be repaired by polishing. A steady hand is required to polish its chamfers, the shiny wires outlining their contours. Their curves, dips, corners and tips are all complex shapes that are accentuated by excellent artisanal craftmanship. The latter is rewarded here by the Poinçon de Genève quality hallmark: an independent certification reserved for watches of the highest technical as well as aesthetic quality – and of which Chopard is one of the most loyal users.

Technical specifications

Chopard L.U.C 1963 Heritage Chronograph In Lucent Steel™

Reference: 168556-3002

Limited edition of 25 pieces

Case

• Material: Lucent Steel™
• Diameter: 42 mm
• Thickness: 14.55 mm
• Notched crown in steel with L.U.C logo 8 mm
• Steel pushers
• Vertical satin-brushed flanks and inter-horn space
• Polished bezel, lugs and case-back surround
• Sapphire crystal glare-proofed on both sides
• Exhibition sapphire crystal pane fitted on the case-back
• Water resistance 50 metres

Dial and hands

• Dial with sunburst motif centred on the logo, green with PVD treatment
• Transferred hour-markers
• Minutes track
• Snailed concentric chronograph counters
• Rhodium-plated Dauphine fusée-type hours and minutes hands
• Rhodium-plated central sweep-seconds chronograph hand
• Faceted and rhodium-plated small seconds and chronograph counter hands

Movement

• Mechanical hand-wound movement L.U.C 03.07-L
• Column wheel, vertical coupling clutch, flyback chronograph
• Number of components: 283
• Diameter: 28.80 mm
• Thickness: 5.62 mm
• Number of jewels: 38
• Frequency: 28,800 vph (4 Hz)
• Power reserve 60 hours
• Nickel silver bridges with non-treated surface
• Gilded nickel silver baseplate
• Flat balance-spring
• Variner balance
• Patented zero-resetting device for the small seconds during time-setting
• Patented zero-resetting device for the chronograph, with pivoting hammers and elastic arms
• Patented vertical coupling-clutch
• Chronometer-certified by the COSC
• Poinçon de Genève quality hallmark

Functions/Indications

• Central display of the hours and minutes
• Small seconds at 6 o’clock
• Small seconds zero-resetting
• Flyback chronograph
• 30-minute counter between 2 and 3 o’clock
• 12-hour counter between 9 and 10 o’clock
• Stop-second function

Strap and buckle

• Brown calfskin strap, green lining, green bridle stitching
• Steel pin buckle with L.U.C engraving

MSRP: TBC

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