Lang & Heyne

[KarlS]

I quite enjoy dabbling a bit in the independent watch maker side and the obvious like Greubel, Roger Smith, Dufour are well outside my price range or ability to qualify for an allocation. I like dress watches and I have been looking at this small manufacturer for a while and gave corresponded with them. I know it's not Swiss, nor Glashutte and tea if he dies I doubt I can have my watch serviced there but has anyone actually seen one of their watches and share some views? I will be going to Switzerland in August but wanted to fly over and look at them a bit earlier. Views?

[PJ S]

Been aware of them these past couple of years, and instantly fell for the Moritz von Sachsen

http://forums.timezone.com/index.php...161&rid=121188

[KarlS]

Originally Posted by PJ S

Been aware of them these past couple of years, and instantly fell for the Moritz von Sachsen

http://forums.timezone.com/index.php...161&rid=121188

Yes I discounted it as 44 mm too big. Prefer dress watch at 40 mm...but still haven't spoken to anyone who has actually seen one of their watches in the metal. Interesting is they also use a diamond in their movements

[FTE2014]

Hi Karl, very classic designs, the cases look beautiful, but I am not 100% sure about the additional centre lug.
I was in Frankfurt late last year, and was hoping to drive to Dresden to visit the manufactures, I think I will do so this year.

[KarlS]

Originally Posted by FTE2014

Hi Karl, very classic designs, the cases look beautiful, but I am not 100% sure about the additional centre lug.
I was in Frankfurt late last year, and was hoping to drive to Dresden to visit the manufactures, I think I will do so this year.

The cente lug u can have removed and I think they also flexible in switching hands. If the corporate video is true then these are very special watches

[FTE2014]

Originally Posted by KarlS

The cente lug u can have removed and I think they also flexible in switching hands. If the corporate video is true then these are very special watches

That makes it interesting. I guess one I finally make the trip to the area, I will try to see these guys as well.

[GreenRust]

Hi Karl

Apologies for bumping your post from back in May, but there doesn't seem to be too much info around the forums on Lang and Heyne.

I was in Dresden in early January and got to see a lot of them in the flesh. They're fantastic watches. I love them. Enamel dials (double sunk on some models), they make their own cases and buckles, in house movements, the hands are works of art as well.

A craftswoman spends an entire day getting the curvature of the hands just right - to fit the same curve of the slightly domed sapphire crustal. The hands are works of art and not stamped by machine. You have the choice of three types of hands as well (Louis XV?, Spade and Cathedral) and you can chose if you want them in rose gold, steel, or blued steel.

The engraving is also done by a master engraver and not a machine. You can also get custom engravings on the movement, i.e. initials, etc. The upcharge for this is modest, about 220 euros to start; yes two hundred and twenty (ex VAT).

They even make their own screws and heat treat them with an actual flame, not in an oven. It's the best of old world watch making meets modern day - they use the latest CNC tech to cut the movements.

The watches start at about 19k Euros (Friedrich II/III in SS) and go up to over 100k. The upcharge for gold is also reasonable - if a Friedrich II in SS is 19k, the gold version of the same watch is only 4-5k more.

Not to mention, they only make about 50 (fifty!) watches per year.

The frosted finish is also amazing. They use a boar's hair brush to get the frosted finish - there is a chemical found in the boar's hair that acts as a catalyst when mixed with talcum, silver and salt and creates the frosted finish - looks similar to RW Smith's finishing.

Also the gear train and escapement is made from solid gold. Not to be flashy, but because gold is harder on the vickers scale then brass and it is more practical to do so - so very German.

In the hand and on the wrist, the watches feel great - a bit less 'tank' like than a Lange (and I love Lange), probably a bit more like a Journe - substantial, but not overly burdensome.

Marco Lang is also a fifth-generation watch maker. His father was the head of the restoration department at the Mathematical and Physics Salon (museum) in Dresden - it's one of the best collections of mechanical art pieces in the world. His father was also a head trainer at Lange & Sohne and trained many of the watchmakers there early on. I think he may now work in an advisory capacity for H. Moser - though the 'swiss cheese' watch was surely not his idea; I digress.

Please find some photos below - apologies in advance for the terrible quality. They were taken at Tempus Arte in Dresden (an AD and great place for a wide range of German watches). The watch in the wrist shot is a RG Friedrich II - it's 39 mm, but wears a little bigger due to the longer lugs.

It's funny because I think 39mm is the perfect size for a classically styled watch, but this one still has a presence that many watches in this size lack. Please let me know if you have any additional questions - I'm a Lang and Heyne fan after seeing / experiencing them and I hope to return to Dresden in the summer to have a tour of the manufacture - it's basically a nicely sized home in size.

[KarlS]

They are still on my radar and I think won't be too long before I take a plunge

[kunlun]

Looks good!

[GreenRust]

Originally Posted by KarlS

They are still on my radar and I think won't be too long before I take a plunge

Good deal Karl. What model and spec are you thinking of going for?

[GreenRust]

Also, two more additional points regarding the enamel dials and future viability of the company.

The enamel dials:
The dials are made by Donze Cadrans (DC). DC are now owned by Ulysse Nardin, however they make the enamel dials for some of the best maisons in watchmaking, e.g. Patek, Lange, etc.

A funny point to note about the dial printing:
Marco Lang was not satisfied with the quality of the dial printing on the enamel dials from DC, so now he has DC only make the enamel dials, sans printing and he performs all the printing for the dials in house. This also nicely facilitates the possibility of some minor custom dial work, e.g. different colors, addition of minute markers, etc.

Future viability:

There's a good article I found on Quill and Pad, link below
http://dev.quillandpad.com/2014/03/1...w-watch-group/

In short, and I'm paraphrasing with my own interpretation: One of the majority shareholders of a large German company (Rohde and Schwartz GmBH with c. 2 billion USD revenue per year) is a watch fanatic and the financial backer for L&H and a larger watch group, which seeks to resurrect fine German watchmaking (not to imply that Glashutte, the town and A. L&S haven't done so). It seems as if this investment is creating a watchmaking renaissance in Dresden, as they're also making UWD watch movements (found in the new limited edition Sinn 6200 Meisterbund).

Tempus Arte, the L&H AD in Dresden, is the retail location related to this new structure. The article is a few years old; Tempus Arte is now up and running and I highly recommend a visit.

Another point re future viability. When I was looking into Ludovic Ballouard watches, I remember reading an article where the journalist stated once, when Ballouard was asked by a prospective client, 'well what if my watch needs servicing because something goes wrong?' Ballouard's response was something along the lines of 'well, I'll invite you over to my home, pour us a glass of wine and I'll fix your watch.' Potential logistics aside, I like that reply and I think Marco Lang would be very similar in his approach. Plus, when a passionate, 5th generation watch maker is only making 50 watches per year, the service level will undoubtedly by more personalized and attentive.

[lapince]

First time I hear about them but I find their complicated models quite interesting, maybe not what I would get but they do have something. How's your Voutilainen going Karl, did you decide what to get? I like the PR models but I think I prefer the simple time only ones, but both are special

[KarlS]

Originally Posted by GreenRust

Good deal Karl. What model and spec are you thinking of going for?

Friederich 111 as I prefer dress watches at 40 mm and I think they only do 2 models of that size.

[KarlS]

Originally Posted by lapince

First time I hear about them but I find their complicated models quite interesting, maybe not what I would get but they do have something. How's your Voutilainen going Karl, did you decide what to get? I like the PR models but I think I prefer the simple time only ones, but both are special

Vouti is chugging along. I think April is drop dead date. I won't be doing the PR I don't think.