When it comes to luxury sports watches, there’s always some hesitation in allowing a watch like a Royal Oak Offshore to fulfil its life’s purpose – the rough and rumble of sporting activity because of the price tag involved. The Audemars Piguet Offshore Diver is rated to 300m water resistance and for the recreational diver, I doubt even a third of that depth would be explored.
Then there are the other concerns- boat ladders, clumsy girlfriends and drunken shipmates- in other words, scratching hazards in that case a watch like the one Audemars Piguet is collaborating with The Hong Kong Jockey Club for the 16th Audemars Piguet Queen Elizabeth II (QEII) Cup in Hong Kong is something that might assuage such fears.
The Tantalum Royal Oak Offshore Diver
The QEII Cup 2014 Royal Oak Offshore Diver limited edition takes Audemars Piguet’s spirit of innovation to an extreme with a mega-sized Oak with all the iconic octogonal contours and by Méga Tapisserie details of a regular Royal Oak. More importantly, the 150 limited edition piece is built in tantalum, a metal renowned for its resistance to corrosion by acids.
It’s a pain in the metaphorical ass to machine- work is done in an inert atmosphere of argon or helium in order to shield it from contamination and since soldering is impossible, it must be completed in a solid piece. Alloyed, the carbide form is used to make superjets, nuclear reactors and missile components – in short a tantalum Offshore Diver like Audemars Piguet’s QE II would be nigh indestructible.
Given its robustness, one can be forgiven for expecting a brute of a timepiece, instead what we have is a bluish grey case topped with 18-carat pink gold bezel and the “large square scale” grey crocodile leather band creating a luxurious and decadent sports watch which belies its alpha machismo. On the reverse, one can admire the 22K oscillating weight and Dark Knight-esque balance wheel bridge is the prime decoration of the 3120 Manufacture Calibre.
Each and every component is produced with exquisite craftsmanship and finishing, perfectly showcasing the brand’s commitment in traditional high-end watchmaking. The highly anticipated 2014 Audemars Piguet QEII Cup will take place on April 27 at the Sha Tin Racecourse.
