Messages: 2611 Location: East Coast, USA
Registered: November 2003
2007-2008: An interesting time for the Overseas Chronograph (BY RESPO) >>>
Mon, 17 September 2012 10:42
In fact, 2007-2008 was a very interesting moment for the Overseas Chronograph. VC released, first, your Engine (notice how I refer to it as "your Engine," Paul -- I am rooting for ya!) for the Japanese market and then a second additional special edition (in two slightly different versions) also for the Japanese market:
(photo courtesy of Alex Ghotbi and The Hour Lounge)
These two also featured the grainy textured dial that preceded the same kind of dial on the US Edition, but here they have blue and tan accents. These were made in runs of 50 pieces for each of the two colors.
Then in 2008, Vacheron launched the US Edition in 100 pieces, this time with another big first for the Overseas. This Overseas was issued originally on a strap versus the standard bracelet that had been previously supplied.
There are a few interesting shared features about this series of three special editions of 2007-2008.
• All three have a special dial (grainy or carbon fiber) that has not been reproduced in any subsequent Overseas (as far as I know).
• They all sport a tachymeter scale, which I think is unique to this series of limited edition Overseas chronos, again, as far as I know.
• The second Japanese edition and the US Edition share the missing "Antimagentic" and "Automatic" typically inscribed within the seconds subdial at 6 o'clock.
• Normally, the Overseas Chronograph has a seconds track on the outer perimeter of the dial. On these three editions, the triangular hour markers have been replaced by luminescent dots at 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, and 11 (which when lit up reveal a hidden outline of the Maltese Cross emblem you gotta love VC's attention to detail).
• Finally, these three editions share the partially skeletonized hour and minute hands, which I think are also unique to this series of Overseas Chronographs across the history of the Overseas to the present.
I have to say, and this is a personal preference, the special hour and minute hands really do it for me on all three of these special editions. It is a subtle detail but one that makes a big difference on the dial of the watch. But the combination of interesting details introduced into these Overseas Chronographs really works and subtly add to what is already a very successful design.
It is curious to me that Vacheron really went all out for only a very brief moment with these several special editions. The combined total for these three limited editions is 200 pieces not a lot considering that some single watches are issued in "limited editions" of 1000, 1500 pieces or more.
There have been other special editions of the Overseas Chronograph, but usually these have focused on one major new element (a smooth dial or a featured special color such as blue for the dial) at a time. But even generally speaking among these limited editions of Overseas Chronographs there is very little deviation from the Overseas style vocabulary (e.g., the distinctive sculpted hour marker, the "Automatic" and "Antimagnetic" written in the seconds subdial, the differently-sized 30-minute and hour counter sub dials, the solid luminescent hour and minute hands, etc.). Some elements used in these 2007-08 special editions, such as the carbon fiber or grainy dial, have never been repeated in the Overseas lineup. Perhaps they will be revived in the future in the next generation of the Overseas. Time will tell.
I hope I have not gotten wrong any of the facts above, but please feel free to provide corrections wherever needed. There may be boutique editions, for instance, I have not seen that may share some of the interesting details of the 2007-08 special Overseas Chronographs, and if so, I hope people will post them.
- Paul Boutros