When I first saw the Duometre at SIHH two years ago I was mighty impressed by the design, idea and execution of the watch. This is what I wrote in my 2007 SIHH report:

"JLC has introduced at least one major complication each year for the past few years, and each time the resulting watch tended to be large and thick. In contrast the Duomètre à Chronographe is a manageable 42mm wide and 13.5mm in height. Although it is not a small watch and the dial is complicated, the Duomètre à Chronographe looks elegant and is reminiscent of vintage chronographs from the mid-20th century.

Comparison between the F. P. Journe Centigraphe and the Duomètre à Chronographe are inevitable... JLC emerges a cut above the Journe. Bravo JLC!"

A few months ago I briefly handled a production piece at the JLC boutique here and was less enthused about it. While it was what I had expected, the watch did not feel fine, it felt like it was made in a large factory. Yesterday I examined a yellow gold limited edition version at length and have warmed up a bit more to it.

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- SJX