Franck Muller Vanguard Chronograph Review
Let’s get up close and personal with a very striking luxury chronograph that will undoubtedly catch the eye of anyone who sees it on your wrist.
Franck Muller Vanguard Chronograph Review
The watch we’ll be reviewing today is the Franck Muller Vanguard Chronograph reference # V45 CC DT TT NR BR 5N. Yes, it’s a whole lot of reference number for a whole lot of watch.
As you can see from the profile shot of this watch at the top of this article, this watch has a nice sized thickness. It has a lot of wrist presence so if you are looking for something that you can discreetly, tuck away under a cuff, look elsewhere. This is a 16mm thick statement piece, but don’t let that scare you. If you’re the type that wants something a little avant-garde on the wrist, you’re going to like what you read next.
Weighing in at 44mm x 53mm, this barrel-shaped tonneau case has a slick PVD coated black matte finish and is constructed of stainless steel with a polished 18kt rose gold sandwich insert. However, what is most intriguing about this design lies in the front of the case.
Bold rose gold applied numerals grace the vertically brushed slate grey dial and are flaring outward towards the perimeter of the dial in a serif style typeface very commonly found on Franck Muller watches. There is a grey dial flange that has a printed tachymetric scale. A jet-black section at the perimeter of the dial has the second's track printed finely in white.
The chronograph sub-dial and the small seconds sub-dial are raised and have a fine radial ribbed texture. These sub-registers use luminous rose gold hands and are contoured in black with white indices and have a rose gold rim. At the 6 o’clock position of the dial, you’ll find a round-shaped, rose gold-rimmed date window.
Thick and bold partially skeletonized hour and minute hands are made of rose gold and have a brushed finish with a section that is filled with luminous material. The central chronograph seconds hand is made of the same material and had the same finish but with a red-painted arrowhead tip with luminous fill.
On the inside of the case, you will find a beautiful caliber that is exquisitely finished with Côtes de Genève, circular graining, and rhodium plating. However, this watch has a solid case back so glancing at the mechanical movement will only be possible if the case back is removed.
The 27-jewel machine that powers this watch is the self-winding Franck Muller FM-7000 caliber which is a 4Hz mechanical movement beating at 28,800 VPH, with a power reserve of approximately 48 hours. Its features include a chronograph (stopwatch function operated with the black matte finished pushers on the right side of the watch on either side of the winding crown), date, hour, minute, and seconds hand.
The back of the case has a vertically brushed finish and is engraved with the Franck Muller logo and the tagline “Master of Complications”, the number of the limited edition, and the reference number.
The right side of the case will show a black PVD coated crown with a rose gold endcap that is embossed with a polished Frank Muller logo. This lovely piece of horology is fastened to your wrist with a soft and comfortable mauve-grey rubber strap which has a gentle to the touch calfskin leather top with rose gold accent stitching.
This strap has a matte black PVD coated folding buckle with a rose gold medallion on the clasp with the Franck Muller logo embossed in the same fashion as on the endcap of the winding crown.
In summary, this is a watch for is beautifully designed modern, tasteful, and has a healthy wrist presence for those looking for a watch that has some. It's made by a watchmaker that has tremendous respect in the industry and will draw the eye of watch connoisseurs and your average layman alike.
