W&W 2022 Chopard Alpine Eagle XL Chrono in Lucent Steel A223 with Blue or Black Dial

The Alpine Eagle collection of sporty-chic timepieces is introducing its flyback chronograph fitted for the first time with a contemporary rubber strap. The Alpine Eagle XL Chrono in Lucent Steel A223 is available in Aletsch Blue or Pitch Black dial and remains strongly inspired – like the entire collection – by the power of the eagle and the beauty of the Alps. The three patents for its Chopard 03.05-C chronometer-certified movement with flyback function testify to innovations enhancing its accuracy as well as its smooth handling.

A cutting-edge chronograph movement 

The Alpine Eagle XL Chrono welcomes two models featuring a sporty and masculine extra-large 44 mm-diameter case forged from Lucent Steel A223, an innovative steel alloy developed by Chopard for its anti-allergenic properties, its robustness and its incomparable brilliance achieved through a meticulous recasting process. The discreet right-hand pushers relating to the chronograph functions are subtly integrated on either side of the crown guards and preserve the collection’s characteristically harmonious shape and symmetry.

Beating at the heart of these two new models, the Chopard 03.05-C movement developed and assembled by the artisans in the Maison’s watchmaking workshops is one of the world’s most innovative chronograph movements. It has a 60-hour power reserve and features an elaborate design guaranteeing accurate adjustments and optimal use of the chronograph functions. Equipped with a column wheel, it is also enhanced by several technical innovations that have earned Chopard three patents stemming from the boldness of its R & D teams.

First of all, it is equipped with a unidirectional gear drive system that prevents energy losses while ensuring rapid winding, a function much appreciated in the inherently energy-hungry chronograph category. In addition, its vertical clutch ensures accurate time-measurement starts. This chronograph calibre is also of the flyback variety, enabling smooth successive timing operations thanks to three pivoting hammers with elastic arms facilitating zero-setting of the counters.

Equipped with a stop-seconds function enabling accurate adjustments of the watch, the Chopard 0.305-C movement is chronometer-certified by the Official Swiss Chronometer Testing Institute.

An sporty contemporary bracelet

Already available with an integrated metal bracelet and a leather option, the Alpine Eagle XL Chrono model treats itself to a new look with a rubber strap. The multiple advantages of this material make it an ideal ally for sports chronographs subjected to the most extreme conditions: water-resistant, lastingly reliable, malleable and comfortable to wear, it gives the timepiece a particularly dynamic look. In using rubber, the workshops of the Maison have preserved the elegance and identity of the Alpine Eagle by reprising the shape of the metal-link bracelet – slightly tapering with a raised central cap – that is an integral part of the collection’s DNA. The material is different, while the identity and well-balanced proportions remain signature features of these new contemporary chronographs. Rubber also lends itself to colour, since the strap adapts to the blue or black dial of each of the two new Alpine Eagle XL Chrono models.

Chopard cultivates a longstanding tradition of sporty rubber straps. In 1995, the Maison’s workshops were among the first to adopt this material with its strong creative potential by reproducing the rubber treads of 1960s Dunlop tyres on the straps of its Mille Miglia chronograph collection. This trend that has been continuously nurtured by the Mille Miglia models has since spread widely across the watchmaking scene.

A dial in the eagle’s eye

Drawing inspiration from the beauty of Nature, the collection remains loyal to the shade of its dial referring to the Aletsch glacier (the largest in Switzerland) for the blue version; and to the intense blackness of mountain nights when wild Nature reclaims its rights for the Pitch Black dial. The texture and sunburst pattern evoke an eagle's iris. The seconds hand with its arrow-shaped tip flies over a highly legible display punctuated by snailed counters. The hands and hour-markers are coated with Grade XI Super-LumiNova^®, a treatment offering the advantage of retaining the same intensity over the years, while naturally more luminous than traditional Super-LumiNova^®.

The tachymeter scale bearing discreet red 100, 160 and 240 graduations appears on the inner bezel ring. It is divided into four steps, with different intervals of 5, 10, 20 or 40 km/h per line. This arrangement facilitates reading the average speed measurements and contributes to the dial’s overall aesthetic dynamic.

Reinterpreting an icon

Devised by three generations of men in the Scheufele family, the Alpine Eagle collection is a modern reinterpretation of the St. Moritz watch, the first horological creation by Karl-Friedrich Scheufele in the late 1970s. With its pure and assertive design, Alpine Eagle enriches this heritage with powerful inspiration drawn from Nature. A round case with stylised flanks; a crown engraved with a compass rose; a bezel with eight functional indexed screws; as well as textured dial with deep hues and luminescent indications: Alpine Eagle embodies impeccable elegance expressed in a resolutely contemporary manner.

Technical specifications

Chopard Alpine XL Chrono in Lucent Steel A223

Reference: 298609-3003 – with Aletsch Blue dial

Reference: 298609-3004 – with Pitch Black dial

Case

• Material: Lucent Steel A223
• Diameter: 44.00 mm
• Thickness: 13.15 mm
• Crown in Lucent Steel A223 with compass rose 8 mm
• Crown guards and pushers in Lucent Steel A223
• Caseband in Lucent Steel A223
• Bezel in Lucent Steel A223 with eight screws set at a tangent
• Glass: Glare-proofed sapphire crystal
• Exhibition case-back with sapphire crystal and Alpine Eagle logo
• Water resistance 100 metres

Dial and hands

• Brass dial stamped with an Aletsch Blue or Pitch Black sunburst pattern achieved by galvanic treatment and inspired by the eagle’s iris
• Applied numerals and hour-markers, rhodium-plated and enhanced with Grade X1 Super-LumiNova^®
• Snailed Aletsch Blue or Pitch Black chronograph counters 
• Baton-type hours and minutes hands, rhodium-plated and enhanced with Grade X1 Super-LumiNova^® 
• Rhodium-plated arrow-type seconds hand with eagle feather-shaped counterweight
• Rhodium-plated red-tipped chronograph counter hands 
• Transferred white and red graduations on the tachymeter scale

Movement

• Mechanical self-winding movement Chopard 03.05-C
• Integrated column-wheel chronograph mechanism
• Number of parts: 310
• Diameter: 28.80 mm
• Thickness: 7.60 mm
• Number of jewels: 45
• Frequency: 28,800 vph (4 Hz)
• Power reserve of 60 hours
• Annual balance with balance-spring featuring a flat terminal curve
• Patented chronograph zero-resetting mechanism with pivoting hammers and elastic arms
• Patented unidirectional gear drive
• Patented vertical clutch system
• Openworked central rotor with tungsten alloy
• Chronometer-certified by the COSC

Functions/Indications

• Central hours, minutes and chronograph seconds
• Semi-instantaneous minutes counter display
• Semi-instantaneous date indication between 4 and 5 o’clock
• Chronograph with flyback function
• 30-minute counter at 3 o’clock
• 12-hour counter at 9 o’clock
• Small seconds at 6 o’clock
• Tachymeter
• Stop-seconds function

Strap and buckle

• Blue or black rubber strap with titanium insert
• Pin buckle in Lucent Steel A223

MSRP: CHF 18'200

For more information, please visit chopard.com