Not all images were able to load for printing. Please close the print window and try again. The Lebois & Co. Heritage Chronograph Atelier “Coquille d’œuf” with a Grand Feu Enamel Dial
A restrained, vintage-inspired chronograph that offers plenty of charm
Lebois & Co. was founded in 1934, and since its revival a decade ago, the independent has been steadily building a catalogue that treats vintage codes with the utmost care. The turning point was the Heritage Chronograph, a compact, community-shaped bi-compax that gave the brand a clear design language: classical proportions, crisp typography, and useful scales with just enough personality to feel its own. For the brand’s 90th anniversary, Lebois & Co. opens a higher-craft lane within the Atelier series, starting with this Chronograph Atelier “Coquille d’œuf” and its charm-packed enamel dial.
The Atelier series is where traditional Métiers d’Art dial making, like guilloché or Grand Feu enamel, will be applied, throttled by what the crafts allow, not by a marketing calendar. The debut piece, the Heritage Chronograph Atelier Coquille d’œuf, is offered by souscription (reserve first, build after) and limited to 25 pieces per year. The brand took the proven Heritage Chronograph and crowned it with a true, multi-part Grand Feu enamel dial in a warm eggshell tone. We spent time with the prototype, and here’s what to know.
The 39mm stainless-steel case is 10.9mm thick (just a bit taller compared with the regular production models), about 14.3mm including the tall domed sapphire, with a measured 47.35mm lug-to-lug. Brushed flanks with polished bevels give it definition; the elongated pump pushers are heritage-correct, and the knurled pull-out crown is easy to operate. Water resistance is rated at 50m, which is fine for a daily-oriented classic watch. Nothing here that we haven’t experienced before with the classic versions of this retro-styled chronograph.
The Coquille d’œuf (French for eggshell) dial is made by Donzé Cadrans, one of the specialists of enamel in Switzerland, owned by Ulysse Nardin. The dial is a three-part construction: a main plate and two separately recessed sub-dials, each enamelled on its own and then soldered into place. Up close, you see what kiln work does that lacquer can’t: a soft, luminous depth and a perfectly clean edge to the sunken registers.
Enamel powder is hand-laid and fired above 800°C in successive passes to build tension-free layers. The typography (black Breguet numerals, logo, scales) is pad-printed with enamel inks, colour by colour, and fixed with a final firing. The result is wonderfully calm: a warm eggshell tone ringed by a pulsation scale, leaf hands in deep black, and a classical bi-compax layout that breathes. The kiln-born sheen is beautiful, to say the least.
The transparent caseback reveals the calibre LC-450, a hand-wound movement made by La Joux-Perret. This strong evolution of the original Valjoux 7750, now with a column wheel, looks and feels the part. The start/stop button has a crisp step, the reset is dead-clean, and winding gives a satisfying, fine-toothed feedback. Modern and practical, it operates at 28,800 vibrations/hour and provides about 60 hours of autonomy. Finishing is neat and considered, with a blued column wheel with polished column tops, blued screws with bright slots, Côtes de Genève and perlage, enough show without pretending. The calibre keeps the case thickness in check and the price anchored in reality.
The Lebois & Co. Heritage Chronograph Atelier Coquille d’œuf is worn on a brown leather strap with a steel pin buckle and quick-release bars, and the 20mm lug allows plenty of options. I’m sure a straight endlinks beads-of-rice bracelet wouldn’t look out of place here…
The Heritage Chronograph Atelier Coquille d’œuf is offered exclusively by subscription, and its price is EUR 9,800, secured by a EUR 2,940 deposit. For a hand-wound column-wheel chrono with a genuine, multi-part Grand Feu dial by Donzé, the value proposition is strong and the charm undeniable. For more details, please visit www.lebois.com.
7 responses
It’s neat but they upped the price too far. I can buy several Longines chronos with similar movements (L688 or something like that) at a fraction of the price. Some also come with enamel, which is by no means difficult or expensive. So, no.
Have to agree on pricing, that’s a very aspirational price tag, good luck to them.
You’re being considerate in your calling it an aspirational price tag. It’s an outrageous price tag for what it is, no matter how this review tries to pretty it up. There’s a sucker born every minute, but hopefully not for this.
If you want to charge this kind of price, at least use applied numeral indices.
I‘d rather pay even more and get a proper movement. This is like a Hermes interior in a rusty Datsun.
Interesting comment about “by no means difficult” regarding the dial. Tell that to Donze Cadrans, who are behind the dial craft.
The watch is outside of my budget, but when you understand the craft behind the dial and the overall proposition of the watch itself, the price becomes a matter of subjectivity. If I had the money and tried the watch on, and I connect with it – I would buy it.
But to call this easy work and compare it to the slightly more mass produced Longines watches, is a tad lazy.
I have enamel mugs that cost single digit, look ultra smooth and shiny and take abuse. And, they don’t carry the “email” label on them, which is proper parvenu-ish (wannabe).