Sublimely elegant: The Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Grande Ultra Thin
By Straight-Six, published on 21 June 2010
A bloody tool. That’s what the Prodigal Fool has taken to calling Straight-Six since his acquisition of a vintage Rolex Submariner and Sea-Dweller in less than a week. And instead of challenging the Fool to a round of drunken fisticuffs, Straight-Six merely took it. And took it. Until the Fool recently explained that it was the abundance of “tool” watches in Six’s collection that was the target of his ire.
This lead Straight-Six to rub his chin, gaze over his empty watch box (they’re all being serviced by Rolex Belgium) and get his tight little buns online to see what was happening in the wide, wonderful world of modern, functioning horology.
Truth be told, it’s kinda grim out there for the moment, with an abundance of socially insensitive and thoroughly irrelevant ticking and swinging dicks still hanging from gents’ wrists. The horological equivalent of a hang-over has left us with designs that were penned when you could take home a billion bucks in a year, snort a quarter of it and then sell bad loans to a bunch of schmucks (us) to make up the difference. Yeah, not so nice.
So, it was time to take an obsidian blade to this bulging mass of rot and keep on carving until something special could be found. And boy, did we find it.
The Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Grande Ultra Thin is the very essence of sophistication and we have no hesitation in naming it the most inspired and convincing modern dress watch on the market today. That’s the headline, so what about a little analysis, you ask?
Well, you should know that its mere 8.62 mm thickness despite a spot-on 40mm diameter is not only a breath-taking achievement, it’s in complete juxtaposition to most so-called dress watches that have gotten heavier than a stuffed colostomy bag. Indeed, when was the last time we wore a watch that was so light and so discreet we didn’t notice we even had it strapped on? And this is before we get into the absurd hardiness of JLC’s proprietary 1000 Hour Control Test, which this delight has survived.
The Master Grande Ultra Thin is surely the distillation of timelessness. Yes, it could have been designed many decades ago, but look at how JLC have maintained all that heritage and made it appear absolutely relevant to us all…today. There’s not one thing out of place on this timepiece, not one flaw or heavy-handed error of design or fabrication. This is balanced perfection that should blind the meandering mass that portends to deliver something equivalent.
There isn’t much more for you to do except sit back and gaze at it. And make sure you get ABP to fit yours with a suitable strap.
Sublime. Timeless. Utterly Prodigal.
Sublimely elegant: The Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Grande Ultra Thin
A bloody tool. That’s what the Prodigal Fool has taken to calling Straight-Six since his acquisition of a vintage Rolex Submariner and Sea-Dweller in less than a week. And instead of challenging the Fool to a round of drunken fisticuffs, Straight-Six merely took it. And took it. Until the Fool recently explained that it was [...]
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14 Responses to “Sublimely elegant: The Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Grande Ultra Thin”
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Straight-Six
23 June 2010
Frank,
Thanks for dropping by and leaving your remarks. It appears we agree on this completely.
Anyone else?
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Pete L
23 June 2010
It was the search for subtlety and classic design that led me recently to the Junghans Max Bill watches (unfortunately the reissues and not the originals). A nice size, understated, slim and featherlight. Obvioulsy not quite comparable to this JLC, but at least I now have something else to aspire to
Pete
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I think Frank raises an important point: gorgeous though this JLC is, it is by no means the last – or only – word in thin, simple timepieces (can we call them dress watches!?)
For my part, I’ve always had a penchant for Vacheron Constantin (even though I can’t shake a very tenious association with goat’s cheese). Models like the ‘Patrimony Contemporaine’ are lovely dress watches.
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Straight-Six
29 June 2010
Well, what a surprise! I don’t agree.
See, the VC is a handsome piece, but it’s just, well, a bit flat. Nothing about it stands out or has the depth and subtle plays that the JLC sports…
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Wait till you’ve seen one in the metal. You’ll feel differently. They’re lovely.
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Frank T
24 June 2010
“Dress watches.” Yes. The adjoint dual to “tool watches”. Every manufacture must declare!
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Alex
28 June 2010
You are absolutely right on this watch. It’s very close to perfection in its essentiality and elegance. I own the rose gold version.
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Congratulations, Alex – a great purchase.
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Straight-Six
29 June 2010
Alex,
I can only echo the Fool: well done indeed. I have an itch for a rose gold piece ever since I watched Pierce Brosnan wearing an unbranded RG JLC Reverso in The Thomas Crowne Affair.
Simply delicious.
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Alex
4 July 2010
Thanks. As a JLC great fan, Reverso is by far my preferred watch. I owned a Reverso Grande Date and I am now eager to see what great Reversos will be released next year (80th anniversary). I have already allocated a budget
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Frank T
23 June 2010
+1 on the assessment of current fashion. Clunky, complicated and showy (“Sure it looks like a frog, but it’s the work of watch legends that you can’t afford.”) – The elegant gold three-hand wristwatch is under-appreciated, especially in the vintage market that Straight-Six haunts (only Sean Connery could make a Sub look right with a white dinner jacket)… V&C made beautiful time-only watches in the 50′s and 60′s in gold with beautiful lugs. Universal Geneve actually pioneered complicated elegant watches. And PP had countless models, never featured in the blogs, that did nothing but tell time, simply. The holy grail being the Ref 2526, their first self-winding model. I love to see new models (this JLC Master Grande Ultra Thin, or the Richard Lange watches from two years ago) that recognize the importance and the simple beauty of a well made, well designed basic watch.