Panerai Radiomir 1940 Minute Repeater Carillon Tourbillon GMT, Instructions Manual

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effect of gravity on the balance, imperfections of workmanship and the
consequent varying friction in the different positions of the watch. To make it,
Breguet constructed a cage, continuously rotating on itself, containing the
balance, the escapement and the relative pivots. In this way any variation in
rate which may occur when the balance is located in a particular position will
be cancelled out when the balance is in the opposite position. For over two
centuries the Tourbillon has been synonymous with extreme constructional
difficulty, demanding the greatest precision in manufacture, and for only a few
years it has been used in wristwatches which are inevitably of the highest
quality. The Tourbillon escapement has fascinated generations of enthusiasts
and it has always been recognised as a substantial technical challenge.
Officine Panerai has taken up this challenge and it has even managed to make
innovations in a horological speciality which has been substantially
unchanged since it was first invented.
T
HE CASE
The Panerai Radiomir 1940 Minute Repeater Carillon Tourbillon GMT has a
case of 49 mm made of 18 ct. red gold or white gold.
Red gold is an alloy consisting of gold, copper and other metals, ideal for use in
haute horlogerie on account of its excellent technical properties and elegant
colour. The proportion of gold is 75% (18 carat), and other elements are added
to it in varying proportions. The red gold used by Officine Panerai is 5NPT; this is
a special alloy with an unusually high percentage of copper, which gives great
depth to the colour, together with a quantity of platinum, which contributes to
reducing the oxidation of the metal.
Gold is a very dense metal, highly ductile and malleable. The special alloys
used by Officine Panerai are notable for their great resistance and natural
colour. The white gold contains 15% palladium (PD) to give the desired white
colour. To preserve the tonal characteristics typical of this kind of gold, it is not
rhodium plated.
The case is made using manufacturing techniques involving many complex
operations which ensure a remarkable aesthetic finish and at the same time
excellent resistance in terms of water and shock-resistance. The crown has a
cylindrical shape and is personalised Panerai.
The name of the watch “Minute Repeater Carillon” is engraved on the flange
at 6 o’clock, and “Radiomir 1940 Panerai” on the flange at 12 o’clock.
The top crystal is of sapphire, obtained from corundum, a very hard material
(second only to diamond), free of impurities, transparent, abrasion resistant
and with two-sided anti-reflective treatment.
The screw back has a sapphire crystal window, enabling the movement and
its haute horlogerie finish to be admired. On the back of the case are engraved
the sequential number of the watch, the material and the maximum depth of
use. The back-case crystal has an undersided anti-reflective treatment.
The water-resistance of your watch, indicated on the back by the symbol
, is guaranteed to a pressure of 3 bar, which corresponds to the
hydrostatic pressure exerted by a column of water on 1 square centimetre at
a depth of 30 metres under normal conditions. In these circumstances your
watch is therefore water-resistant to a depth of about 30 metres.
T
HE DIAL
The dial is skeletonised, with Arabic numerals and hour markers.
In order to ensure optimal levels of luminescence and greater resistance over
time, Panerai exclusively uses “Grade A” Swiss Super-LumiNova
® . To produce
this luminous substance, special high-performance pigments are used. This
increases the duration of readability by approximately 35% compared to
standard Super-LumiNova
® .
The small seconds and the Tourbillon indicator are at 9 o’clock while the
second time zone is indicated by the central hand and by the small 24-hour
dial at 3 o’clock. The indicators of home time (HT) and local time (LT) for the
Minute Repeater functions are at 9 o’clock (beneath the small seconds hand).