Ladoire’s first watch had the curious title of “Roller Guardian Time,” a unique name that matched the avant garde nature of the watch’s design. Slightly smaller, and with a diverse set of personalities, Ladoire has now released the Black Widow collection to follow up the “RGT.” Using the same type of movement that has undergone a series of modifications, these new watches offer an extremely hip and loud design that will be hard to resist for many people wanting something on their wrist that is ‘obviously different.’
Ladoire’s first watch had the curious title of “Roller Guardian Time,” a unique name that matched the avant garde nature of the watch’s design.
Say hello to Mr. Race. He is the sportiest face in the Black Widow collection featuring a black a DLC coated titanium case with brushed titanium elements and a seriously intense dial done in red, white, and black. At first glance the dial is very intimidating, and your eyes will not know where to rest. With a little time you realize where to look to read the time as well as the second time zone via the prominent centrally mounted hand. The basic time is read regulator style via three separate turning discs with arrows on the dial showing you where to read the information. Ladoire’s intent was to make the highly unorthodox dial as legible as possible, so the dials are thankfully labeled. The hour and minute discs are easy to spot on the lower part of the case. Near 3 o’clock you’ll see a disc with three “hands” that spins next to a counter that goes from 0 to 20. The hands are labeled “1-3” in Roman numerals to see which segment of the minute you are reading. The three dimensional dial is littered with interesting details and textures that are both decorative and functional – though you’ll find that little on the dial represents wasted space.
The most prominent feature on the dial is the large red hand in the middle of the face. Under it is a gear with a spider web motif that hearkens to the “Black Widow” name of the collection. The hand indicates a second time and is easily adjustable in one hour increments via a large pusher that is positioned across the entire left side of the case. The crown to adjust the time is located at about 7 o’clock on the right side of the case. Once you understand these elements the regulator style dial isn’t that tough to figure out, right?
Things get even more interesting when you flip the watch over and look through the sapphire crystal display back. This Calvet manufacture-made automatic movement is a superb example of contemporary watch movement design that applies traditional mechanical features but rejects traditional aesthetic rules. The automatic winding mechanism features a micro rotor, while the thick white upper bridges offer a fascinating visual contrast against the underlying black. Spots of synthetic rubies used in the movement are prominently visible for added color.
Ladoire feels that their watch straps should properly match the unique majesty of their cases. Attached to the Black Widow Mr. Race watch is a thick hand-stitched leather strap with a uniquly designed buckle and metal inserts in the lugs to promote strap health and wearing comfort. Ladoire will only produce 12 Black Widow Mr. Race watches, each with a price of 65,800 Swiss Francs.www.ladoire.ch.
- aDLC black coated titanium case
- Hour indicator hand and dial
- Minute indicator
- Seconds indicator
- Large middle hand indicates second time zone
Ariel Adams is the Haute Living Watch Editor and also publishes the luxury watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.
