Rado continues their pursuit of material mastery with the first preview of their 2018 offerings. Though just a tease of what’s to come at Basel later this year, they are off to a strong start with two new models suggesting a slightly more whimsical approach to design, playing off of patina and nature.
HyperChrome Bronze
Though known for their use of ceramic, one of the most ?modern? materials in case making, Rado is taking a look back in time with the HyperChrome Bronze LE Chronograph, introducing CuSn8 bronze into the palette. The two materials together create a conceptual and visual contrast. One is ancient, dating back 5,000 years, while the other is contemporary. One is super hard and impervious to aging while the other begins to patina within days of being exposed to air. As the watch is worn, blues, greens and browns will begin to surface in random and interesting ways along the sides of the case.
The HyperChrome Chronograph is otherwise an existing model, featuring a swooping, modern 45mm ?high-tech? ceramic case with external ceramic tachymeter and bronze wings. The dial features a vertically brushed black surface with applied rose gold numerals and oversized sub-dials at three and nine. Inside is the modular ETA 2894-2 caliber, which helps keep the watch on the thin side (for an auto chrono) at 13mm. The bronze edition is limited to 999 pieces and has an MSRP of 4,900 CHF....