Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Automatic Chronograph 44mm Smoked Dial

The brazenness of the latest ROO chronograph.

The Royal Oak Offshore has always been considered a watch designed for men who are not afraid to make a (big) statement. What we are referring to here is not only size, but the aura of vitality and power delivered by the dynamic architecture of the watch. In June 2020, the brand from Le Brassus launched three new Royal Oak Offshore 44mm chronograph black ceramic cases with eye-catching contrast materials, highlighting the strong, angular structure. There is nothing new in this field, because models with ceramic cases and other materials have always been the mainstay of this ROO 44mm series. The true novelty of the trilogy is the combination of XXL Arabic numerals and smoked dials, which is a major trend in today’s watchmaking industry. In this hands-on practice, we have eye-catching black and blue ceramic styles as well as luxurious black ceramic and 18k rose gold styles.

From RO to ROO
Launched in BASELWORLD in 1993, it was only 20 times after the anniversary of the iconic Royal Oak-that defines the luxury sports concept iconic Zunda founding watch-Royal Oak Offshore is a bold and provocative proposal as Royal Oak has been in 1972. ROO is an oversized, high testosterone version of the Royal Oak. This is a huge 42mm watch (huge size in 1993), full of textures and bold material combinations.

As a branch of Genta’s iconic Royal Oak, ROO pays tribute to the legend with iconic design features, such as raised octagonal bezel and exposed screws, guilloché dial, integrated bracelet and overall industrial design atmosphere. However, ROO is stronger and bolder than RO, and uses materials that have nothing to do with high-end watchmaking. In addition to the huge proportions, what shocks many conservative watch lovers is the bold “deconstructed” black rubber gasket between the case and the bezel.

Not only that, but rubber is also used for chronograph buttons and crowns. Today, this seems to be a routine practice, but it was radical at the time. The 250-gram steel chronograph (Ref. 25721 ST) made its debut at the Baselworld in 1993 and soon won the nickname “The Beast” and caused fierce disagreements. To commemorate the 25th anniversary of ROO, the brand re-launched the chronograph version (Ref. 26237ST) and the super-skeleton anniversary ROO tourbillon chronograph.

Tame the “beast”
All three chronographs that appeared in the summer of 2020 use the same 44mm x 14.4mm brushed black ceramic case and unique side modules to protect the crown and accommodate the rectangular chronograph buttons. The two models we spent time using were black ceramic base/18k rose gold and black ceramic base/blue ceramic decoration-the third model has a green dial and a green ceramic bezel and decoration. As a brand that does not shy away from color, Audemars Piguet uses bold contrast to highlight the outstanding structure of ROO Chronograph. You can appreciate how the contrasting finishes and contrasting colors highlight the dynamic structure of the case.

The black ceramic case has a vertically brushed surface with an exquisite polished bevel. Both the blue ceramic bezel and the 18k rose gold bezel follow suit, and are decorated with a vertically brushed finish, which stretches the line of sight downwards to lengthen the watch’s powerful dimensions. Even the hexagonal steel screws on the octagonal bezel are aligned for a tighter and more compact appearance. The screw-in crown guard is the same as the blue or black hexagonal ceramic crown, which is vertically drawn. The smooth rectangular button guard (titanium or rose gold, depending on the model) fitted with the chronograph buttons is sandblasted/frosted and brushed at the bottom.

The spectacular structure and high level of finish of the 100-meter waterproof case make this watch so fascinating. The design style, such as the integrated blue or black textured rubber strap, has two recessed channels that taper from the lugs, which greatly helps in reducing the overall volume and elongated lines. watches online shop

Bigger numbers
As mentioned earlier, the novelty of these chronographs is the use of large-scale applied Arabic indexes and gradient dials. The applied bar hour markers that appeared on other versions of ROO chronographs have been replaced by new gold Arabic numerals, which are applied to the dial and filled with white luminous. The 12, 3, 6 and 9 o’clock positions retain significantly thicker rod-shaped markers to accommodate the three sub-dials and date window. The running second hand is at 12 o’clock, the 30-minute elapsed time counter is at 9 o’clock, the 12-hour counter is at 6 o’clock, and the circular date window is at 3 o’clock.

The two sub-counters indicated by the chronograph are in rhodium. Curiously, in this case, the circular date window is much less intrusive than the rectangular aperture, and its black background matches the background of the small second hand. The classic Royal Oak hands have not become thicker, they are still made of gold and luminous, while the central seconds hand has a black lacquered tip.

Don’t forget that there is also a tachymeter scale on the flange, so the available space on the dial is limited. Given their large size, Arabic numerals make the dial more busy and butcher, but the reward is improved legibility. The iconic “Mega Tapisserie” pattern of the ROO series still exists, but has now been processed as a gradient/smoke effect, transitioning from a lighter color (blue or gray) in the center to a darker color on the periphery of the dial. discount fake watches

Automatic movement
AP relies on its self-winding movement 3126/3840, which is a modular movement (equipped with Dubois Depraz chronograph device), which has been supplied for almost all modern ROO chronographs (42 mm and 44 mm) since 2007 power. These larger 44mm models replace the 22k gold rotors with AP logos in hollow black. The movement has a diameter of 20.92 mm, has 59 jewels, a frequency of 21,600vph, and a power reserve of 50 hours. Although there are not many movement parts visible from the bottom cover, the finish is modern.

Technical specifications-Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Automatic Chronograph 44 mm
Case: diameter 44 mm x 14.4 mm-black ceramic case with blue ceramic or 18k rose gold decoration-anti-glare sapphire crystal-titanium case back with sapphire crystal-titanium or 18k rose gold button guard-screw-in Crown-100 meters water resistance-resistant
Dial: Gradient blue or gray “Mega Tapisserie” pattern-Rhodium color counter-Gold Arabic numerals with luminous-Royal Oak hands with luminous coating
Movement: AP manufactured caliber 3126/3840-Modular chronograph, automatic winding-29.92 mm x 7.16 mm-59 jewels-365 parts-21,600 vibrations/hour-50 hours power reserve-hours, minutes, small Second hand, date, chronograph minute with 30- and 12-hour counter
Strap: Blue textile textured rubber with titanium pin buckle-Gray textile textured rubber with 18k rose gold pin buckle
Reference material: 26405CE.OO.A030CA.01 blue
Tone 26405NR.OO.A002CA.01 gold tone