Introducing The Grönefeld 1941 Grönograaf, The First-Ever Chronograph From The Grönefeld Brothers

One complication which they have, until now, notably not tackled is the chronograph. Although chronographs are the most common complication other than a simple calendar, they are also surprisingly difficult to design. And while there are a whole plethora of different chronograph watches, they rely as a rule on a much smaller handful of movements, like the ETA 7750/Sellita SW500 and SW 600 (themselves derived from the 7750). And there are essentially only three basic coupling mechanisms out there – the lateral clutch, the tilting pinion system, and the vertical clutch. 

The new 1941 Grönefeld Grönograaf (and I am keeping a straight face as I type – by the way, the brothers are from the Netherlands and "chronograaf" is Dutch for chronograph) is in many respects a very traditional chronograph, using a classic lateral clutch and column wheel system. Your first clue that all is not as it seems, however, comes when you look at the dial. There is a subdial for reading the time, at about 1:00, with a sector for the power reserve at 10:00-11:00, as well as a center chronograph seconds hand and a subdial for the 30-minute chronograph counter at 6:00. However, there is also, at 3:00, something you might not recognize at first unless you spend time looking at minute repeaters – it's a centrifugal silent regulator with two gold weights. 

Normally, the centrifugal regulator is used to control the speed of chiming in repeaters although it can also be used to control other mechanisms, as well (Van Cleef & Arpels uses one to control the speed at which flowers close, in the 2022 Watches & Wonders release, the Lady Arpels Heures Florales). 

In the new Grönograaf, the regulator is there as part of what, as far as I can remember, is a novel solution to a problem in virtually all existing chronograph designs, which can be mitigated but never entirely done away with. This is the force with which the chronograph hands, and in particular the center chronograph seconds hand, are reset. 

Ordinarily, a chronograph resets to zero through the use of two heart-shaped cams set on the axes of the seconds hand and 30 minute hand. When the reset button is pressed, two flat-faced hardened steel hammers fall onto the cams. The cams rotate (rapidly) under the pressure of the hammers until the hammers are resting on the lowest point of the cams, which correspond to the zero position for the hands. And almost without exception, this is the reset-to-zero system you will find, with variations, in virtually every chronograph in existence. 

As you can imagine, the cams and hammers must be shaped very exactly for this to work and the hammers have to strike the cams with enough force to get them to rotate briskly back to the zero position. The action is more violent than you might think and although the naked eye can't quite see it, the chronograph seconds hand, in particular, oscillates vigorously when it returns to the zero position. Since the seconds hand is friction-fit on its post, it's possible for the hand to slip out of the correct position and to reduce the chance of this happening (as well as to make it easier to read off the elapsed seconds exactly) the chronograph seconds hand is usually kept as thin as possible. This also reduces the amount of additional load placed on the going train when the chronograph is running. 

A less violent solution would therefore seem desirable. The Agengraphe caliber, designed by Jean-Marc Wiederrecht (and as seen in the Ming 20.02 chronograph) has such a "soft reset" system, which uses a combination of cams and spiral springs. The Grönefeld brothers, however, have invented a new soft reset system which uses a centrifugal governor to control the speed at which the hammers reset the hands. 

On the movement side, the regulator can't be seen but there is plenty of eye candy if you happen to think beautifully finished components and a thoughtful, tasteful mechanical design are eye candy. The large balance (the watch beats at 21,600 vph) is at 4:00 in the image and the column wheel is visible at about 10:00. There is a beautiful bridge oriented along the vertical axis, which holds the pivots for the chronograph center seconds hand and the instantaneously jumping chronograph minutes hand. 

An additional interesting feature of the soft-reset system is the reset hammers, which pivot around the large screw head at about 7:00. Rather than using flat, hardened steel hammer faces, the Grönograaf uses two ruby rollers, which provide the necessary pressure but without the sliding friction that the conventional steel hammer system uses. 

The Grönograff is 40mm in diameter and 11.30mm thick and water-resistant to 30 meters. At launch it will be available in a stainless steel limited edition of 188 pieces at €155,000, and in a tantalum-cased limited edition of 25 pieces, at €165,000. 

That said, I think this is a great watch. The design is logical, clear, and attractive and I think the slight offset from the vertical and horizontal axes in terms of the placement of elements on the dial side gives the watch a lot more visual interest than many more conventional chronograph designs. I've always thought that chronographs have the potential to bring out the worst in watch designers who often seem unable to resist the temptation to add just one more thing, but the Horological Brothers have done a commendable job in both design and innovations in watchmaking, if you ask me. 

And the movement's a knockout. It builds on the natural beauty of the hand-wound, lateral clutch, column wheel chronograph, which for aesthetics is still the game to beat, with a very mechanically clever innovation that also happens to look terrific (which is not always the case with technical innovations – the vertical clutch has some technical advantages, arguably, over the lateral clutch system but even its strongest supporters would have to concede it doesn't do much for aesthetics). When aesthetics and mechanics are this seamlessly integrated, that's when you have real watchmaking.

Brand: Grönefeld
Model: 1941 Grönograaf
Diameter: 40mm
Thickness: 11.30mm
Case Material: Steel or tantalum; domed sapphire crystal with double AR coating on the front; flat sapphire crystal with double AR coating on the back
Dial: Stainless steeel base; rhodium-plated sub-dials and numerals, frosted and satin-grained
Water Resistance: 30m
Strap/Bracelet: Leather, 20mm tapering to 18mm, with steel or tantalum pin-buckle

Caliber: G-04
Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds; chronograph elapsed seconds and minutes with instant-jumping minutes counter. "Soft reset" system with centrifugal governor and ruby jeweled reset hammers.
Diameter: 32.0mm
Thickness: 6.15mm
Power Reserve: 53 hours
Winding: Manual
Frequency: 21,600 vph; free-sprung balance with Phillips terminal curve overcoil balance spring; Geneva-style balance spring stud
Jewels: 45

In steel, 188 pieces, €155,000; in tantalum, 25 pieces, €165,000. To reserve a Grönograaf, visit Grönefeld.com.