Vacheron Constantin and Nonmagnetic Watches

Throughout the long history of this Swiss brand the Vacheron Constantin watchmakers have come up with many watch innovations and they were not afraid to introduce them. Although it is still not certain, whether Vacheron Constantin has or has not introduced the antimagnetic cases, they are sure to do it among the first ones.

Anti-magnetism in Watch Making

An antimagnetic watch is the one, which is able to withstand magnetic fields of various intensity. There are two known ways of assembling a nonmagnetic watch. The first way is to make the small parts using metals, which either cannot be magnetized or are resistant to it. For example the Elinvar or Nivarox hairsprings, which are used in conjunction with nickel, brass or beryllium, bronze balances. Some watchmakers use also antimagnetic metals to assemble the anchor, escape wheel and impulse roller. The second method is enclosing the entire movement into an antimagnetic case, made of a highly conductive alloy to prevent the forming of magnetic fields inside the watch.

The watchmakers agreed that a watch could be called antimagnetic, if it is able to resist a magnetic field of 4800 amperes per meter and it keeps on running with a maximal deviation of 30 seconds per day.

If you see that your watch runs slowly, it means it was magnetized. To cure it, you should visit the nearest watchmaker's workshop, where the watch will be cured with the help of a chocking coil.

The Merits of Vacheron Constantin

As for Vacheron Constantin, it is worth mentioning that today each of the watches from the Overseas collection has such an antimagnetic 'system'. Each version of this watch is enclosed into a three-part, soft iron antimagnetic screen. Thus Vacheron Constantin Overseas watches are protected against magnetic fields, which have become frequent event nowadays.

Actually, during the long history of these watches, the company always strove to protect its watches against such hazards and in 1846, it was the first to develop a watch immune to magnetic influence. Thanks to a balance spring, balance wheel and a lever made of a special bronze alloy this became possible. 16 years later, the Vacheron Constantin watchmakers tested the palladium balance springs and also this year (1862) it joined the Association for Research into Nonmagnetic Materials.

The results achieved were never enough for the Company. In 1885 appeared the first watch of this type with the name Vacheron Constantin on its dial. It was fully antimagnetic, i.e. it had the balance wheel, balance spring and the lever shaft made of palladium, whereas the lever arms were made of bronze, and the escape wheel – of gold.

Throughout the 20th century Vacheron Constantin didn't stop its researches in this field. As a result, from 1954 to 1959 appeared a series of chronometers, which were so resistant to magnetism, that they became a must-have tool for the engineers, engaged in the field of electronics. Those chronometers featured a round case with a screwed-in back, which provided water resistance and a 13-line movement, with a frequency of 18800 vph. All these parts were protected by a soft-iron hood, giving maximum antimagnetic protection.

The contribution of Vacheron Constantin to developing such watches was certainly immense. However, other watch brands have also assembled their antimagnetic watches, thus having also a merit in this branch of watch making industry.

Other Contributions

The Bretiling Avenger Seawolf is equipped with an antimagnetic case too. A small innovation in this field was provided by Omega too, which produced the Railmaster. This watch had two cases: the inner case covered completely the movement, and the outer steel case protected the watch against the external influence. The technicians from IWC have also developed an antimagnetic watch in the middle of the last century, called Ingenieur. The watch didn't have an outstanding look, though it became the new flagship watch of the company for a period of time. The Panerai Company uses another alloy to produce nonmagnetic watches - Glucydur. It is a non-magnetic, stainless alloy of copper and beryllium, which is used in making of internal parts.

Choosing a Swiss Replica Watch

Building an antimagnetic watch is really expensive. It is also expensive buying, wearing and maintaining an original antimagnetic watch from Vacheron Constantin. A Swiss replica watch is not an expensive timepiece, though having the majority of functions, which the originals also have. Any of the Swiss replica watches, especially a Vacheron Constantin replica watch, will give you some more self-esteem and an increase in status among your co-workers. With a Vacheron Constantin Swiss replica watch on your wrist the office you are working for will stop working for at least an hour, because you will have to tell everyone about your new watch. A Vacheron Constantin Swiss replica watch is almost unrecognizable from the original watches, so you can torture your mates for a while and keep it a secret.

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