Arnold and Son Dial Side True Beat (DSTB): Last year we were fortunate enough to get our hands on the Arnold & Son Basel 2013 Novelties: the HM Perpetual Moon, Ultra-Thin Tourbillon Escapement (UTTE) and the awesome Time Pyramid. And even more recently the DBG. Now there is a new timepiece awaiting us at Basel this year, the limited edition Dial Side True Beat or DSTB for short. It is in fact a tribute to the brand’s 250th anniversary and it is part of the illustrious instrument collection. The DSTB is a revision of the brands TB88 timepiece but I do feel they could’ve mustered up a better name for this timepiece.
The Arnold & Son DSTB features a true beat seconds that is indicated via a large sapphire dial that is suspended above the bridges, which are normally seen through the case back and a white lacquered domed subdial that indicates the hours and the minutes via blued hands. This effect gives the dial a three-dimensional look against the grey NAC treated with large circular finishing back drop. What will be nice to see is the small anchor on the dial that moves with each second, instead of it being on the rear, which is the case with the TB88.
Beating away inside the DSTB is the in-house calibre A&S6003, which consists of 229 components. In standard Arnold & Son fashion, the movement features Haute Horlogerie finishing with hand-chamfered and satin-finished lever and bridges, polished edges and circular graining and Côtes de Genève rayonnantes. Now, what is new about this true beat movement compared to that of the TB88 is the fact that it is self-winding. The movement operates at 28,800 vibrations and has a power reserve of 50 hours. I probably haven’t mentioned it yet but if you weren’t aware the terminology “true beat” is Arnold & Sons way of saying dead seconds. This is what you’d call a mechanical timepiece that employs a seconds-hand which ticks instead of the widely seen sweeping gesture.
The timepiece is housed inside a 43.5mm 18 carat red-gold case with anti-reflective sapphire crystal and caseback for viewing the movement, which is complete with skeletonised oscillating weight. The 250th anniversary edition of the DSTB will be limited to just 50 timepieces and won’t be available in any other metals for the time being. Moreover, what you do have a choice of, is what shoes you’d like your DSTB to come on. You can have it on either black or brown hand-stitched alligator leather.
We’ll get to have a good look at this when we visit this year’s Basel watch fair, so it will be great to see how this timepiece translates in the metal on the wrist. The Arnold & Son DSTB in 18k rose gold, ref. ATAR.L01A.C120A is priced at 44,928 Swiss Francs. For more information on the Arnold & Son DBG, visit the official website.
