REVOLUTION_International_Vol 56

A NEW FACE
FOR THE RM 011
Richard Mille adds a fifth chapter to their widely
beloved family of chronographs with the RM 11-05
Automatic Flyback Chronograph GMT that has its
bezel made of Cermet.
Words Sumit Nag
Richard Mille adds to their most beloved line of
timepieces, the RM 011. This family of chronographs
was first launched in 2007 as the RM 011 Automatic
Chronograph Felipe Massa, establishing for the brand a legacy
and several lifetimes’ worth of admirers.
For 2020, the RM 011 welcomes its fifth chapter, the RM
11-05 Automatic Flyback Chronograph GMT. The first thing
that should strike you about the watch is that as opposed to the
more aggressive take on the Richard Mille tonneau case that
we see now on the RM 11-03 and 04, the RM 11-05 has the
prior sleek case styling that we last saw on the RM 11-02. And
probably for good reason (we’ll come back to this).
The movement powering the watch is the caliber RMAC3
that we’ve seen previously in the RM 11-03. As it is the Richard
Mille religion, the baseplate and bridges of the RMAC3 are
all forged in grade 5 titanium with extensive skeletonization.
However, what makes the movement different from those
used in previous instances is the inclusion of the GMT hand,
seen here with the orange arrow-tipped fourth hand on the
central pinion. The GMT hand can be independently adjusted
using a pusher integrated into the watch at nine o’clock.
Beyond that the movement includes hours, minutes
and running seconds at three o’clock; 60-minute and
24-hour chronograph totalizers at nine and six o’clock
respectively; lastly, the annual calendar comprising the large
date display at 12 o’clock with the month aperture between
four and five o’clock.
Now the hardcore follower of Richard Mille watches will
note that the material we see on the bezel of the RM 11-05
is not one we’ve seen previously. After their last foray into a
brand-new material utilized in case construction — graphene,
used in the RM 50-03 — the brand has now plunged into
using Cermet. Cermet is a compounded material formed using
a metal element and ceramic. The metal element provides a
lattice structure which is then filled with ceramic forming the
Cermet (cer-met, i.e. ceramic + metal).
In the case of the RM 11-05, Richard Mille has utilized a
zirconium-based Cermet for the bezel, also formally known as
zirconium carbide (ZrC). The brand has stated that the Cermet
they are using “combines the lightness of titanium with the
hardness of a ceramic.”
The production of ZrC requires starting off with zirconium
dioxide, where the compound is reduced using a carbon source
giving us ZrC in powered form. ZrC is a gray substance, which
explains the color of the bezel on the RM 11-05. From there the
solid form of the material is obtained by flash sintering, where
the material is subjected to temperatures of up to 2,000ºC
all while a direct electric field is applied using specialized
electrodes. Sintering is what helps form the solid; the flash
aspect of it helps to dramatically reduce the time it takes for the
sintering process to be completed.
According to Richard Mille, the resulting solid has a, “…
density of 4.1g/cm3 — less than that of titanium — and its
hardness of 2,360 Vickers — almost the same as diamond’s
2,400 Vickers — makes Cermet a judicious choice for use in
bezels that are very exposed to scratches, while maintaining
overall lightness.” The tripartite case of the RM 11-05,
therefore, has a Cermet bezel, a Carbon TPT® mid-case and a
titanium back all held together by Richard Mille’s spline screws
in grade 5 titanium.
The RM 11-05 Automatic Flyback Chronograph GMT will
be available as of July 2020, in a limited run of 140 pieces.
RICHARD MILLE
RM 11-05 AUTOMATIC FLYBACK CHRONOGRAPH GMT
MOVEMENT Self-winding caliber RMAC3; hours, minutes and
small running seconds; chronograph with 60-minute and 24-hour
totalizers; annual calendar with date and month display; 50-hour
power reserve
CASE 50mm × 42.70mm; front bezel in gray Cermet, caseband
in Carbon TPT® and caseback in grade 5 titanium; waterresistant
to 50m
STRAP Baby blue rubber
PRICE CHF 204,000 (excl. VAT)
AVAILABILITY July 2020, in a limited run of 140 pieces
40 PRIME TIME
40-41 USA Prime Time - Richard Mille D.indd 40 15/8/20 2:32 AM
RM57539_Issue103_040
075847 Mon, Aug 17, 2020
40-41 USA Prime Time - Richard Mille D.indd 41 15/8/20 2:32 AM
RM57539_Issue103_041
075848 Mon, Aug 17, 2020