Chanel, one of the cult names of luxury shopping, showed up with its new model Chanel Boy.Friend Caliber 3 equipped with the Maison’s third in-house movement.
Famous fashion house Chanel continues to draw further attention with important moves related to traditional luxury watchmaking. After the introduction of the Monsieur de Chanel Calibre 1 back in 2016 and the Première Camelia Skeleton Calibre 2 last year, Chanel recently released the new Boy.Friend model employing its third in-house movement Caliber 3.
The new Caliber 3 is housed by the brand’s highly acclaimed Boty.Friend Collection. As the name suggests, the model family, designed with the theme that the masculine products designed for men can also be adopted by women, has recently become one of the most popular product groups of the brand.
The model comes in Chanel’s exclusive 18K beige-gold alloy case measuring 37mm x 28.6mm. The case is equipped with scratch resistant sapphire crystals on both sides. Featuring a gold winding crown adorned with a cabochon cut Onyx, the case is water resistant to 30 meters. Besides the regular model, there is also a gem-set version with 66 brilliant-cut diamonds on the bezel.
Due to the model’s skeleton style design, there is no conventional dial is employed. Time display is shown via beige gold hands placed directly on the movement. Besides the hour and minute hand, there is also a small second hand at 6 o’clock.
The new model is powered by the Caliber 3 which is the third in-house movement of the brand. Developed by Chanel’s subsidiary G&F Châtelain (in La Chaux-de-Fonds) together with help from independent watchmaker Romain Gauthier (in which Chanel owns a stake). The movement, which is quite a bold choice for a model family like Boy.Friend as the previous versions of the collection were powered by ETA 7001 or battery-operated calibers, is laid out vertically, with the barrel located at 12 o’clock, the regulator at 5 o’clock, and the wheel train in between.
The ADLC coated bridges are chamfered with a beige gold galvanic coating, providing a visual integrity between the 18K beige gold case and movement. There’s the brand’s signature lion motif, attached to the third circular bridge on the back. The movement beats at a frequency of 4Hz (28.800vph) and is equipped with a variable inertia balance wheel. Power reserve is set at 55hours when fully wound.
Chanel Boy.Friend Calibre 3 is available with two versions differentiating from each other with the bezel (plain or gem-set). The standard model is priced at €36,500 while the diamond-set version at €42,500. Both models are offered with glossy black alligator straps that are secured with 18K beige-gold pin buckles.
