The tonneau for Richard Mille aspirants
By Priya Nair, Singapore ยท
Let's not pretend: the tonneau shape here is what people buy when they like the look of a Richard Mille but not the price.
The Spirit of Big Bang is 42 mm across in a titanium tonneau, 14.1 mm thick, skeleton dial, chronograph and date, rubber strap, 100 m. The HUB4700 inside is based on Zenith's El Primero, a sibling at LVMH and one of the great chronograph movements, with 50 hours. That's a more serious pedigree than the price suggests.
Still, at 23,000 to 25,000 dollars, it costs the same as the Big Bang Integrated and loses value at a similar rate. It's a lot of watch for very little practical gain. The El Primero connection is the reason I'd pick it over the other Big Bangs. The tonneau shape is the reason I wouldn't buy any of them.