Not all images were able to load for printing. Please close the print window and try again. Time Set to the Second on the New Arnold & Son DSTB Stop-Seconds
Arnold & Son brings stop-seconds precision to its exposed true seconds complication.
Arnold & Son has forged its identity around the legacy of the 18th-century English chronometer maker John Arnold. Its collections are grouped into three categories (astronomy, chronometry and world time), each reflecting a different dimension of his work. One of the brand’s signature complications is the true seconds, also known as a deadbeat seconds mechanism. In the DSTB, or Dial Side True Beat, a member of the chronometry family that pays tribute to John Arnold’s precision chronometers, the rare true seconds mechanism is exposed to striking effect on the dial. In honour of John Arnold’s pioneering work in chronometry, the DSTB adds a stop-seconds function in two new limited editions housed in precious metal cases with finely grained dials.
Arnold & Son’s true seconds display draws inspiration from the precision instruments John Arnold supplied to the Royal Navy, whose detent escapements governed balances beating twice per second. Vital allies for mariners finding longitude at sea, highly legible and precise seconds readings could make or break a voyage. For context, a deviation of one second from GMT could result in a positional error of 463.8 metres.
Marine chronometers were designed to run uninterrupted throughout a voyage, while navigators used a separately synchronised pocket watch to carry their reference time on deck. The DSTB Stop-Seconds echoes that practice of exact synchronisation: its crown-activated stop-seconds function halts the hand so the watch can be set precisely to the second. Deliberately exposed on the dial, Arnold & Son’s dedicated true seconds mechanism on board the DSTB was introduced in 2014 in a large 43.5mm case; it returned in 2023 in a more manageable 42mm case diameter powered by a more compact version of the A&S calibre 6003.
Limited to 18 pieces in each metal, the new 42mm models are available in red gold with a Cliff Grey PVD-treated dial or platinum with a Kingsand PVD dial. Similar to the DSTBs presented last year, the dials feature a contemporary grained surface, with the hours and minutes displayed in a concave opal sub-dial at 4 o’clock. The colours are also symbolic: the Cliff Grey evokes the cliffs of John Arnold’s native Cornwall while the golden Kingsand is inspired by the brass plates of his movements.
Occupying a large swathe of the dial, the deadbeat mechanism is revealed beneath three openworked bridges. The long, slender and blued seconds hand advances sharply, once per second, alighting on the blue printed seconds track. Shaped like wishbones, the three-dimensional gold bridges are mirror-polished and openworked to reveal the gears and blued anchor-shaped lever below – a further reference to John Arnold’s maritime ties. The dial is protected by a domed sapphire crystal, while the caseback features a flat one to admire the movement.
The DSTB Stop-Seconds is powered by the in-house A&S6303 with automatic winding, a 55-hour power reserve, a 4Hz frequency and dial-side true seconds, with the important addition of a stop-seconds function. Decorated with radiating Côtes de Genève on the bridges, circular graining on the mainplate, blued screws and hand-chamfered edges, the openworked 22k gold rotor is engraved with guilloché and Arnold & Son’s anchor emblem.
Both references of the DSTB Stop-Seconds are limited to 18 pieces. The red gold model is paired with a warm grey alligator strap with a red gold pin buckle and retails for CHF 46,000 (incl. VAT). The platinum edition has an ink blue alligator strap with a platinum pin buckle and retails for CHF 56,800 (incl. VAT).
More information at arnoldandson.com.
