Titanium has had a bit of an ugly duckling style story in the watch industry. When the material started to first see consistent use, a lot of collector sentiment at the time was that the material feels cheap compared to steel due to its extreme lightweight properties. Today though, titanium has become so widely used that collectors are familiar with how it feels on the wrist and the quality of life it brings in terms of comfort and wearability, especially in the realm of large tool watches. Watches like the Alpina Alpiner Extreme, which is now available in a new Alpina Alpiner Extreme Automatic Titanium edition, the brand’s first ever full titanium wristwatch.
It’s almost surprising that Alpina haven’t created a full titanium watch in the past due to their commitment to versatile everyday beaters and robust outdoor watches. But they’ve finally taken the plunge and the Extreme is the perfect collection with which to do so. Its 39mm x 40.5mm cushion case with wide, flat, circular bezel featuring exposed screws suits titanium down to a tee. Building on the bold, quasi-industrial aesthetic of the model by employing a material that first made a name for itself in cutting edge industries like aeronautics.
The case is specifically made from Grade 2 titanium, which is the slightly more common and more accessible alloy. The other grade you often see in watchmaking is Grade 5, which is a bit harder meaning it can take more styles of finishing, which is why you see it more often from high end brands who want to get fancy with it. For the Alpiner Extreme Automatic Titanium though a bit of brushing on the flat surfaces and a bit of polishing on the bevelled edges is all you need to make it look great.
Naturally, as a full titanium watch with an integrated bracelet, that bracelet is made from titanium too. It’s a nice H link number with a folding clasp and push button release. Like the case it’s finished with vertical brushing.
Aside from the case and bracelet, the other key element of the Extreme is the dial and for this new edition they’ve stayed true to the signature design of the model. That means a tessellating pattern of triangles like the Alpina logo. It follows in the tradition of patterned, textured dials on integrated bracelet sports watches that’s most commonly associated with the legacy of designers like Gerald Genta, the man behind icons like the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak.
Below the surface is the AL-525 calibre, which the Alpina variation of the Sellita SW200-1 with a custom rotor. It’s still based on the slightly older model with 38-hour power reserve and as I say every time, I can’t wait for brands to run out of those old stock movements and move on to the modern upgraded version. It’s just the inevitable industry lag that comes from bulk buying movements, something that’s often unavoidable due to manufacture minimum order requirements.
The Alpina Alpiner Extreme Automatic Titanium is priced at £2,195, making it a solid, mid-range wristwatch. If you want to get hands on with some of Alpina’s watches, I have some fantastic news for you. You can at Hands On Horology this June at London’s Protein Studios, tickets available now.
Price and Specs:
Model:
Alpina
Alpiner Extreme Automatic Titanium
Ref:
AL-525S3AE1B
Case:
39mm
x 11.5mm, brushed and polished grade 2 titanium, anti-reflective sapphire crystal, threaded solid caseback with engraved Alpiner pattern, screw-down crown
Dial:
Silver
with satin finish and triangle pattern, silver outer ring with black markers, applied pearl black indexes with white luminous treatment, date window at 3 o’clock, hand-polished pearl black hands with white luminous, red-triangle second hand
Water resistance:
200m
(20 bar)
Movement:
Alpina
calibre AL-525, automatic
Frequency:
28,800
vph (4Hz)
Power reserve:
38h
Functions:
Hours,
minutes, seconds, date
Strap:
Titanium
bracelet, folding buckle with push button
Price:
£2,195
More details at Alpina.
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