Every second counts
Things are not always what they seem. At first glance, Instrument de Vitesse could be a highly refined three-hand watch. Only its discreet tachymeter scale, printed on the edge of the dial, and its name point us in the right direction: this is a chronograph designed for short bursts, an instrument for measuring average speed over a maximum period of 60 seconds. The purpose of the button on the crown thus becomes clear: a single pushpiece that triggers the slender direct-drive central seconds hand.
Technical Specifications
Functions
Movement
- Calibre:
- A5000 (view calibre)
- Jewels:
- 23
- Diameter:
- 24.00 mm
- Thickness:
- 4.20 mm
- Power reserve:
- 42 hours
- Frequency:
- 3 Hz/21,600 vph
Dial
Case
- Material:
- Stainless Steel
- Diameter:
- 39 mm
- Thickness:
- 9.27 mm
- Crystal:
- domed sapphire with an anti-reflective coating on both sides
- Back:
- sapphire crystal, with an anti-reflecting coating
- Water resistance:
- 3 bar (30 metres/100 feet)
Strap
- Material:
- mouse-grey nubuck calfskin
- Buckle:
- pin buckle, stainless steel
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Gallery
Velvety smooth
The La Fabrique family of timepieces, dedicated to reinterpreting historical Angelus classics, presents this chronograph in two editions each limited to 25 timepieces. Following ebony and ivory dials, Instrument de Vitesse showcases two essential colours in the watchmaking palette, named in reference to its tachymeter function: Indianapolis blue and Silverstone grey.
These two editions come with a tone-on-tone nubuck strap in the same colour as the dial.
Easy to read
Instrument de Vitesse is housed in a 39 mm diameter steel case measuring just 9.27 mm thick. It features a dial divided into two functional zones. The first, peripheral zone presents the tachymeter scale, graduated from 60 to 500 (km/h) with a base metric of 1,000 (typically one kilometre). The second, immediately adjacent zone is dedicated to the time display, with a graduated minutes circle. The typefaces are fine, in elegant cursive, and the colours have just the right amount of contrast to make them easy to read.
Manufacture movement
Inside Instrument de Vitesse, Angelus operates its own chronograph movement. The A5000 calibre is entirely produced by Manufacture La Joux-Perret, Angelus’ sister company. Presented in this manually wound version without totalisers, the movement offers a reduced thickness of just 4.20 mm. Set to a frequency of 3 Hz, it functions by way of a column wheel and horizontal clutch, like a chronograph from the 1950s.
