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RICHARD MILLE - LE MANS CLASSIC 2010

From 9th to 11th of July

RM 010 Le Mans Classic

For the Fifth Edition of Le Mans Classic, Richard Mille unveils a new limited edition model, the RM 010 Le Mans Classic. This watch flaunts a ground-breaking feature of 24-hour format time displayed at the two o'clock mark. Such technical refinement pays fitting homage to Le Mans Classic and to the four hundred automobiles and drivers and who will relay during the 24 hours of the event. The RM 010 wears the colours of the historic race, sporting a green upper flange and a white minutes flange, in carbon fibre. The RM 010 Le Mans Classic boasts automatic-winding skeleton movement with an integrated variable-geometry rotor, an exclusive Richard Mille concept which allows the automatic winding to adapt to the wearer's activity. Each watch is assembled and finished entirely by hand: the barrel-shaped casing alone requires 202 distinct factory operations. The watch's design and construction are the result of an overall approach encompassing movement, casing and face. It is an approach comparable to the creation of a racing car, whereby chassis, motor and body are conceived in total cohesion, the sole objective being optimal efficiency.

RM 010 Le Mans Classic

- Mechanical self-winding movement

- Dimensions: 48.00 mm x 39.70 mm x 12.60 mm

- Functions: hours, minutes, seconds, date. 24-hour display at 2 o'clock

- Rotor with variable geometry

- Power reserve: 55 hours

- Water resistant to 50 metres

- Limited-edition of 150 pieces, available in titanium, white gold, red gold

Richard Mille is the Le Mans Classic main sponsor since the first edition, in 2002.

This international event revives over eighty years of motor sport history on the 13 kilometre long Le Mans circuit and welcomes the cars and drivers who wrote the legend of the most famous race in the world. The race becomes the gathering for automobile lovers everywhere, in 2002, 2004, 2006 and 2008. Editions of the event just roll on each one breaking attendance records. Richard Mille is present at all of them and his team proudly waving his colours. Since that first edition, Richard Mille's involvement in the Le Mans Classic is equal to the passion he holds for automobile racing. From Formula 1, where research in the pursuit of the ultimate performance is the primary source of inspiration for the creation of his watches, to the historical competition cars whose engineering and craftsmanship he greatly admires. His watches are the perfect combination of extreme technical prowess, for which the search for revolutionary materials is vital to increasing the rigidity while reducing the weight of the watch, with an assembly and finishing process done completely by hand; the quintessence of fine swiss watch making.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS OF THE SPECIAL NUMBERED LIMITED

EDITION RM 010 LE MANS CLASSIC

CALIBER RM 005-S: skeletonized automatic movement with hours, minutes, seconds, 24-hour display, date and adjustable rotor geometry.

Maximum dimensions: length 48.00 mm x 39.70 mm x 12.60 mm

MAIN FEATURES

(MANY OF WHICH ARE MAJOR TECHNICAL INNOVATIONS)

ROTOR WITH VARIABLE GEOMETRY

Arm in grade 2 titanium

Flange in grade 2 titanium

6-positional adjustment via grade 5 titanium screws

Wings in 18-carat, high palladium content white gold

Weight segment in tungsten/cobalt alloy

Ceramic ball bearings

Unidirectional; anti-clockwise winding direction

This exclusive RICHARD MILLE design allows the rewinding of the mainspring to be adapted most effectively to the user's activity level. By adjusting the six positional setting of the rib's placement, the rotor's inertia is modified, either speeding up the winding process in the case of minimal arm and hand movements, or slowing it down when activity is pursued. This invention allows the movement's winding mechanism to be optimized and personalized to the owner's lifestyle.

POWER RESERVE

55 hours.

24-HOUR DISPLAY

Hours, minutes, seconds, date. 24-hour display at 2 o'clock.

BOTTOM PLATE, BRIDGES AND BALANCE COCK MADE OF TITANIUM

The manufacture of these components in grade 2 titanium with black PVD coating allows the whole assembly to be given great rigidity, as well as precise surface flatness which is essential for the perfect functioning of the gear train. The skeletonized baseplate was subjected to separate and extensive validation tests to insure optimal strength requirements.

DOUBLE BARREL SYSTEM

The double barrel system helps improve torque stability over a longer period.

This is achieved by utilizing more turns of the barrel, thereby reducing pressure and wear on the teeth, bearings and pivots, resulting in improved long-term performance.

VARIABLE INERTIA, FREE SPRUNG BALANCE

The free-sprung balance gives better reliability in the event of shocks, movement assembly and disassembly, and also guarantees better chronometric results over an extended period of time.

DATE DISPLAY

Semi-instantaneous, placed in a vertical aperture at 7 o'clock. The calendar disc of sapphire crystal is treated with non-reflective coating on both sides.

SPLINE SCREWS IN GRADE 5 TITANIUM FOR THE BRIDGES AND CASE

This permits better control of the torque applied to the screws during assembly. These screws are therefore unaffected by physical manipulation during assembly or disassembly and age well.

WATCHCASE

This was the subject of an entire year of research and development. With regard to the production of each case, 68 different stamping operations are required for the three main components (bezel, middle section and case back). The machine tooling process requires 8 days of adjusting the machines for the bezel, 5 days for the middle section and 5 days for the case back. Prior to this process, developing a methodology for carrying out this series of operations took 120 hours, the drawings for the tools 130 hours, and implementation 180 hours. Each rough case involves 202 separate machining operations. The design and execution of the watch demonstrates a complete conceptual approach to the movement, case and dial. As a result, everything has been constructed according to an extremely rigorous specification, in the manner of the analytical engineering methods used in the design of Formula 1 where the chassis and the engine are developed in complete harmony. For example, a casing ring is no longer used and the movement is mounted on chassis mounting rubbers (ISO SW) fixed by 4 titanium screws. Features such as these are evidence of uncompromising workmanship. The tripartite case is water resistant to 50 meters, ensured by three Nitril O-ring seals. The case is assembled with 12 spline screws in grade 5 titanium and abrasion resistant washers in copper-nickel-zinc alloy.

INTERIOR FLANGES

Upper flange in green carbon fiber, the index points filled with approved luminous material; minute flange in white carbon fiber.

CROWN

In grade 5 micro-blasted titanium, with double seal O-ring and collar in Alcryn.

DIAL

In sapphire (thickness: 0.40 mm) with anti-glare treatment (both sides), protected by 8 silicon braces inserted in the upper and lower grooves.

CRYSTAL

Bezel side: In sapphire (1800 Vickers) with anti-glare treatment (both sides).

Thickness: 1.20 mm

Case back: In sapphire with anti-glare treatment (both sides).

Thickness: at the center 1 mm and outer edges 1.73 mm

OTHER FEATURES

Dimensions of movement: 30,25 x 28,45 mm

Thickness: 4.33 mm

Number of jewels: 32

Barrel arbor – in AP 20 steel

Balance: GLUCYDUR, 3 arms, inertia moment 4.8 mg.cm2, angle of lift 53º

Frequency: 28,800 vph (4 Hz)

Balance spring: ELINVAR NIVAROX

Index assembly: Triovis N°2

Shock protection: INCABLOC 908.22.211.100 (transparent)

Escapement wheel jewels: Rubifix (transparent)

Stem with three positions: manual winding, time setting, date adjustment

FINISHING

MOVEMENT

- Bottom plate and bridges wet sandblasted, PVD treated

- Anglage and polishing by hand

- Locking sections hand polished

- Burnished pivots

- Diamond polished sinks on the bridge side

- Pinions with undercuts

- Sandblasted and rhodium-plated, beveled wheels

STEEL PARTS

- Sapphire blasted surfaces

- Anglage and polishing by hand

- Screw slot and screws beveled and polished with rounded and polished tip