David Candaux DC1 Titanium

The Swiss brand from the Vallée de Joux celebrates 30 years of watchmaking of its founder with a final tribute.

Founded in 2017 by Master Watchmaker and engineer David Candaux , the eponymous brand is not only dedicated to preserving the Swiss watchmaking tradition of the Vallée de Joux. It draws on technology and science to offer contemporary timepieces for lovers of modern, uncomplicated and ambitious haute horlogerie.

Discreet like its founder, who draws his inspiration from the wilderness of his beloved Vallée, the DAVID CANDAUX watch brand has established itself in just a few years as a benchmark among connoisseurs. The incomparable aesthetics of its timepieces and the very high technical level of its manufactured movements make them veritable works of watchmaking art sought after by collectors.

Two iconic collections, one philosophy

With its large central second hand and straight lugs, the 2017 DC1 collection in steel is a homage to the great watchmaking tradition of the Vallée de Joux. The titanium DC6 of 2019, on the other hand, breaks the codes and presents a more personal vision of haute horlogerie according to David Candaux. The classic aesthetic of the former is succeeded by the more assertive and totally assertive design of the latter, which marks a decisive turning point in the brand's history and opens up a new path that its founder intends to pursue. DC1 or DC6, both collections share the same philosophy: to create timepieces with timeless design , regardless of fashion, with particular attention to ergonomics , efficiency and ease of use. 

Guillochage "Pointe du Risoux" and "Côtes du Solliat", two of the brand's aesthetic signatures

The powerful geometry of hand - guilloché decoration "Pointe du Risoux" evokes the famous Risoux forest as seen from the air. "Côtes du Solliat", another brand exclusive, was designed by David Candaux, paying homage to the natural beauty of t he village of Solliat, where the brand's workshops are located.

Innovation and mechanical excellence

Totally innovative and protected by several patents, the retractable "Magic Crown" (at 6 o'clock and composed of 31 elements) is a world first and the watchmaking signature of the DAVID CANDAUX brand. Another must-have is the flying tourbillon, inclined at 30° to the base and mounted on a ceramic ball bearing inclined at 3° to the case. This double inclination and the presence of the winder ensure an exceptional constant amplitude of 250°.

Superlative finishes

The Manufacture movements powering the timepieces of the DAVID CANDAUX watch brand feature the traditional rounded angles of the Vallée. The three degree incline bridges evoke the reflections of the majestic Lac de Joux, so dear to the Combiers, proud inhabitants of the Vallée.

Combier and master watchmaker

Born in 1979 in the heart of the Vallée de Joux, David Candaux (45) inherited Haute Horlogerie. His grandfather, then his father - a specialist in grandes complications at Patek Philippe for over 20 years - passed on to him a passion for fine traditional watchmaking, that of Ferdinand Berthoud and Abraham-Louis Breguet.

In 1994, David joined Jaeger-LeCoultre as an apprentice and stayed for 17 years. He made his own the words of Günter Blümlein, then at the helm of La Grande Maison, who used to say that "a watch must speak to the heart and the mind".

But David has no intention of simply copying his illustrious elders and, at 45 years old, the complete and now recognized watchmaker that "L'Ours" du Jura - as he is affectionately called by his peers - has become, aspires to independence in order to give free rein to his creativity. Sponsored by Philippe Dufour and Miki Eleta, he joined the Académie Horlogère des Créateurs Indépendants (AHCI) in 2017. That same year, he unveiled the DC1 in Basel, a watchmaking manifesto and founding act of the Swiss watch brand DAVID CANDAUX.

A keen mountaineer, snorkeler and Alpine horn enthusiast, David Candaux is now one of the few independent Swiss watchmakers capable of designing his own movements and each of their components from scratch. In 30 years, he has conceived and designed over 30 inventions, patented in his own name and for major watch brands. A true aesthete, his watchmaking is personal and singular, timeless and uncompromising.

Inaugural timepiece launched in 2017, the DC1 is the birth certificate of the DAVID CANDAUX brand. Contrary to the trends of the time (no nickel silver), it is a revolutionary timepiece with an asymmetrical case in the shape of a bassinée and a retractable "Magic Crown" at 6 o'clock, which alone embodies its founder’s vision: to pay tribute to classical watchmaking tradition while innovating through the integration of cutting-edge technologies.

The resulting DC1 collection features several world firsts, including an all-titanium movement that required the development of new manufacturing, precision and hand - decoration processes never before seen in watchmaking. Another DAVID CANDAUX watchmaking signature: the 30- degree inclined tourbillon, which enhances the chronometric precision of the queen of complications. Presented in Geneva in April 2024, the new DC1 in titanium marks the apogee of this emblematic collection and is true to the brand's philosophy of simplicity of use, ergonomics and wearing pleasure.

Perfectly accomplished, it is David Candaux's ultimate tribute to his father, a specialist in great complications who passed on his passion and knowledge, as well as to his peers, in particular Philippe Dufour , his illustrious godfather in the prestigious Académie Horlogère des Créateurs Indépendants (AHCI).

Technical specifications

David Candaux DC1 Titanium

Case

• Material: Natural titanium Gr5
• Diameter : 43.9 mm
• Thickness : 12.90 mm
• Asymmetrical upper crystal in anti-reflective tinted sapphire; back in chimney-type sapphire
• Crown: "Magic", pressure release
• Clipped back with olivette at 6 o'clock
• Titanium side rails
• Haute Horlogerie titanium finishes : satin-finishing and hand-polishing
• Water-resistant to 30 meters

Dial

• Central back in hand-grained 3N 18 ct yellow gold
• Titanium and white opal hour and minute microdials
• Pad-printed black numerals
• Hand-beveled and polished hour-markers in 18 ct white gold
• Satin-finish gold top, black zapped varnish

Hands

• Hours and minutes : syringe-shaped in blued 18 ct white gold, fluted and polished by hand
• Center seconds : in Bronze, beveled and polished by hand, blued
• Power reserve : inverted "syringe" shape in white-varnished titanium

Movement

• Calibre 1740
• Dimensions : 16 ¼ lines (35 mm diameter), 6.20 mm high
• Materials : Platinum and bridges in natural titanium, tourbillon cage in natural titanium and blued natural titanium
• Undercarriage, wheels and axles inclined at 3° to the turntable
• Mechanical, hand-wound
• Frequency : 21'600 vibrations/hour (3Hz)
• Setting : 47 semi-gloss rubies with moulded solid gold bezels
• Number of components: 287
• Power reserve of 55 chronometric hours
• Indication by cam system
• Polished-blocked steel power reserve bridge
• Haute horlogerie finishes : hand-bevelled, 18 re-entrant convex angles, poliblocked, drawn lines, beading under the bridges, "Côtes du Solliat".
• Single-axis titanium flying tourbillon 30° at 9 o'clock, cage inclined at 3° to the case, 30° inclination of the balance in relation to the cage
• Spiral with Breguet-type terminal curve
• Cascade movement made entirely of titanium

Functions/Indications

• Hours and minutes on dedicated counter
• Chronometer display with blue central seconds hand
• Power reserve indicator at 12 o'clock

Strap and buckle

• Leather
• Entirely handmade
• Ardillon buckle
• Materials : titanium and gold

MSRP: CHF 195'000

For more information, please visit davidcandaux.com