Tourbillon Cardan

Specifications

About this reference

Three principles combined. The 8th Fundamental Invention. Overview: Collection: Tourbillon; Model: Tourbillon Cardan; Functions: Manual winding movement, Cardan Tourbillon, hours and minutes, small seconds, power-reserve. Specifications: Case material: Titanium; Case diameter: 45.50 mm; Case height: 18.15 mm; Water resistance: 3 atm - 30 m - 100 ft; Frequency: 21,600 vibrations/hour; Power reserve: 80 hours; Limitation: 55 timepieces (2023-2027). Description: The Tourbillon Cardan is built around three combined principles, each addressing a specific chronometric problem. The first is the tourbillon itself — patented by Breguet in 1801 to compensate for rate variations in vertical positions. For Greubel Forsey, that was the starting point, not the solution.; The second principle: speed. Where most tourbillons complete one rotation in 60 seconds, this one does so in 16. The fastest Greubel Forsey has built. A faster rotation means more positions covered in less time — and a measurably higher average chronometric performance.; Inside the cage: the Greubel Forsey in-house balance wheel, built for the first time in a tourbillon context. At 12.6 mm, its large diameter and high inertia deliver stable oscillations and resistance to shock and external disturbance — qualities that matter under real wrist conditions.; The third principle: inclination. The classical tourbillon was designed for the vertical positions of a pocket watch. On the wrist, the dominant positions are horizontal. The Tourbillon Cardan is inclined at 30° — the angle that optimises chronometric performance for the full range of positions encountered in everyday wear.; Two mobile rings, connected by 90° axes, tilt the tourbillon through a controlled arc of +30° to -30° every 48 seconds. This distinguishes the Cardan system from a conventional gimbal: the rings are not free to rotate, but precisely controlled. The tourbillon's inclination angle — 30° — never changes. What changes is its orientation relative to gravity, continuously and deliberately.; Four barrels, coaxially stacked — a construction that has appeared once in twenty years of Greubel Forsey calibre development. A slipping mainspring prevent