For the year 2010, Montblanc has updated one of my favorites in their product range, the Timewalker series. Presented during the SIHH 2010 trade show in Geneva, Switzerland, this particular Timewalker Dual Carbon (Ref. 105805) chronograph features a stainless-steel case hardened with a special edition of the DLC-treatment process.
While most manufacturers tend to simply coat stainless parts (usually, the main body, bezel and winding crown,) Montblanc has employed a painstaking process of stamping, machining, polishing, thermal treatment by carbon diffusion (similar technique is applied when making heavy-duty bearing,) finishing and, finally, applying black DLC coating. According to the company, the resulting product is three times more resistant to bumps and scratches than a normal DLC-coated case.
The combination of black case, bezel, and crown, with rose gold hands and numerals, as well as chronograph push-pieces, and dark-chocolate-brown leather strap makes the Dual Carbon especially attractive, not to say outright sexy.
The silver small second hand at nine o’clock makes a nice touch balancing the “Montblanc Automatic” logo at three o’clock, which is also printed in the same shade of light grey. At the same time, when not in use, the two rose-gold hands of the chronograph sub-dials and the central chronograph second hand make a strong vertical line unifying the rose gold Arabic numerals and the hour and minute hands.
Like a great number of other chronographs in this range, the Montblanc Timewalker Dual Carbon is powered by an ordinary Caliber MB 25.01 automatic chronograph movement. Being a slightly refinished ETA 7750 with a fancy skeletonized oscillating weight (in the official specification, the company doesn’t list any upgrades to the moving parts of the mechanism,) it offers the usual 46 hours of power reserve and the average level of accuracy. However, the movement is bullet-proof in terms of build quality and you can service or repair it at just about any outlet in nearly every village with more than a dozen residents.
The only thing that I don’t like here is the water resistance rating. For a sporty chronograph that is supposed to be worn by people leading an active lifestyle, the WR rating of just 30 meters (3 ATM) looks almost like a joke: even such mundane thing as washing your hands after a brief visit to a bathroom may become a dangerous adventure if you are not careful enough. Well, perhaps that was the idea. After all, what can be better than spicing-up your boring life with things that don’t force you to do anything out of the ordinary?
See also: Montblanc TimeWalker Chronograph Automatic
Photos: Montblanc
Montblanc Timewalker Dual Carbon Chronograph (Ref. 105805) specification
Price range: €5900
Movement: Automatic, Caliber MB 25.01 (base ETA Valjoux 7750), Swiss Made
Movement frequency: 28,800 vph
Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds, date, chronograph
Power reserve: 46 hours
Case: DLC-coated stainless steel
Shape: Round
Transparent case back: Yes, sapphire back
Size: 43.0 mm
Dial: Black
Numerals: Arabic
Hands: Rose gold
Strap: Black natural leather strap on DLC-coated steel buckle with “Montblanc” inscription
Crystal: Sapphire, AR-coated
Water resistance: 30 meters
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Bought my first mechanical watch in 1986 and it took me ten more years to realize that I have a problem: at some point in time watches became my passion. Well, it could be worse.