Romain Gauthier HMS

As a reminder, Romain Gauthier grew up in the Vallée de Joux, the cradle of Haute Horlogerie, but began his professional life as a micro-mechanical engineer for the watch industry. Determined to build from scratch his own high-end watch brand, Romain completed an MBA in 2002 and launched the Romain Gauthier brand in 2005. Its first timepiece, the Prestige HM (for Hours / Minutes) was unveiled at Baselworld in 2007 and well-received by collectors, largely due to the quality of finishing. This model was followed by Prestige HMS launched in 2010, Logical One (2013), Logical One Secret (2014) and last one, the Insight Micro-Rotor in 2017.

The Prestige HMS (for Hours, Minutes, Seconds) draws its inspiration from Gauthier’s original watch (Prestige HM) but the lower part of the dial has been opened to reveal the balance wheel and second gears.

With the use of titanium, this model is part of Romain Gauthier’s freedom collection. The 41mm case is equipped with RG’s first in-house movement, HMS 2206 : a brass movement ruthenium coated with an incredible degree of hand-finishing, as usual with Romain Gauthier.

The flat crown is located at the back, which creates a symmetric case and increases winding efficiency by reducing energy loss and stress on the components.

Our model we have here is one of the first 15 pieces ever made by the manufacturer.

On the wrist, the watch appears very thin and light, which is normal with titanium, but can be quite disconcerting at first. I found the strap too rigid compared to the weight of the case and too classic for this watch. So we ordered a new one with a more modern and soft leather to let us forget this piece when strapped on the wrist.

After wearing it at the office, I found this piece amazing for a few reasons : its lightness, open dial, perfect readability and fantastic backside. It was very comfortable and I enjoyed looking at it often and reading the time. The mono-chromatic aspect makes this piece easy to wear and I thought at first that winding it would be annoying with this crown but it is actually very easy and you can do it even when the watch is on your wrist.

It is now sold . Feel free to contact us if you're looking for a similar reference !

Arthur B.