Audemars Piguet 2908 User manual

Instructions for use
Mode d’emploi
Jules AudemArs WA t c h
With AP escAPement
Calibre 2908
Hand-wound

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4 3
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A B

En g l i s h

English
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Table of contents
1. Introduction p 35
The Manufacture Audemars Piguet
Jules Audemars watch with AP escapement
2. About the watch p 40
New Audemars Piguet escapement
Dual balance-spring
High frequency and precision
3. Watch description p 48
Views of the movement
Technical data of the movement
Case technical data
Watch indications and functions
4. Basic functions p 52
Setting the time
Winding the watch
Power reserve
If your watch stops
5. Additional comments p 57

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1. Introduction English
I
The Manufacture
Audemars Piguet
The Vallée de Joux : cradle of the watchmaker’s art
n the heart of the Swiss Jura, around 50 kilometres
north of Geneva, nestles a landscape which has
retained its natural charm to this day : the Vallée de
Joux. Around the mid-18th century, the harsh climate
of this mountainous region and soil depletion drove the
farming community settled there to seek other sources
of income. With their high degree of manual dexterity,
inexhaustible creativity and enormous determination,
the inhabitants of the valley, known as Combiers, were
naturally drawn to watchmaking.
Due to their high quality, the movements they produced
acquired great popularity with the Geneva firms which
used them to create complete watches.
From 1740 onwards, watchmaking developed into the
principal industry of the Vallée de Joux. This region was
thus transformed, as an 1881 chronicle put it, “ into a
land of milk and honey, in which poverty has rapidly
disappeared ”.

I
Two names for a great adventure
n 1875, two young men passionate about
Haute Horlogerie — Jules-Louis Audemars and
Edward-August Piguet — decided to pool their skills
to design and produce watches with complications
in the Vallée de Joux, the cradle of Haute
Horlogerie. Determination, imagination and
discipline led them to instant success. A
branch in Geneva was their next move in about
1885 and new commercial links were forged
at the 1889 Paris World Exposition, where
they exhibited complication pocket watches.
The Audemars Piguet factory continued to
expand as the years went by. Its creations
represented major milestones in the history
of Haute Horlogerie, like the first minute
repeater wristwatch in 1892 and the smallest
five-minute repeater movement ever
made in 1915.
From 1918 onwards, the founders
passed the reins of the business onto
their sons, who in turn perfected
their expertise in manufacturing
men's and ladies' wristwatches as
well as designing new sophisticated,
ultra-thin movements. Perseverance
and initiative were the watchwords : while the Wall
Street crash in 1929 was a bitter blow, the company
directors were soon designing so-called skeleton
watches before embarking on chronograph production.
But this new momentum was abruptly interrupted by
the Second World War. Re-organisation was necessary
in the aftermath of the conflict. The factory focused
on creating top-of-the-range items in keeping with its
tradition of innovation. A strategy that would
prove its worth, especially since it was backed
by outstanding creative daring.
Audemars Piguet continued to build on
its now international reputation with
creative designs. 1972 saw the launch of
the Royal Oak, the first, immediately
successful high-quality sports watch
in steel, followed in 1986 by the first
ultra-thin tourbillon wristwatch with
automatic winding. The creative spirit of
the Manufacture has not faltered since,
offering aesthetically original time-
keepers with outstanding movements.
Thus it brought watcheswith complications
back into fashion at the end of the 1980s,
launching its extraordinary Tradition
d’Excellence collection in 1999. All the
signs of a bold spirit rooted firmly in
tradition and auguring well for the future.
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1. Introduction English

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1. Introduction English
T
Jules Audemars watch with AP escapement
he most striking thing about the new Jules
Audemars watch with AP escapement is the
design, featur ing a transparent dial that reveals
the outstanding mechanism of the new Calibre 2908
with its white-gold mainplate. The watch’s three-
dimensional aesthetic leads the eye straight to the
small seconds display, then to the hours and minutes
and the two barrel s. The escapement is the nerve
centre of the new calibre and appears to reach out
from the plate in a bid to stamp its unique authority
on the watch. Everything is contained in a large case
made of 950 platinum twinned with a sapphire-crystal
back to fur ther reveal the impressive mechanism.
Waterproof to 20 metres, the new Jules Audemars
watch with AP escapement comes with a crocodile-
leather strap and f olding clasp, al so made of
950 platinum.
The new hand-wound design with its 274 components
represents a return to the roots of watchmaking. The
AP escapement boasts exceptional frequency and
bears the hallmark of an ongoing quest for accuracy.
The small seconds display is placed f irmly in the
foreground to provide clear proof of the philosophy
behind the timepiece.
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The new AP design hosts a number of technical
features f ar superior to the tradit ional (Sw iss
lever) escapement :
Detached pin-pallet escapement : a single
impulse corresponds to two vibrations, causing
fewer set t ing disturbances and ver y high
efficiency.
Improved chronometry : the spr ing balance
isochronism may be adjusted by mov ing the
quiescent point w ith respec t to the impul se
given to the balance ; reducing mechanical dis-
turbances at the escapement increases movement
accuracy.
Optimum long-term stability : tests performed
over the last five years have shown that this
escapement has excellent operational stability.
New Audemars Piguet escapement
The new Audemars Piguet escapement system takes
its inspiration f rom the mechanism proposed by
Robin. This direct-impulse escapement has a large
number of advantages, including full shock resistance.
Its innovative design and outstanding performance
render this patented system a minor revolution in
watchmaking mechanics. It heralds the new genera-
tion of Audemars Piguet movements and
furthers the performances of the watches
produced by the Manufac ture. The new
escapement will shor tly be f it ted to
the brand’s complicat ion movements
and ultimately, in a few years time, to all
the Audemars Piguet mechanical move-
ments.
Stud 1
Balance-spring 1
Shell
Stud 2
Balance-spring 2
Balance
Inertia blocks
Pallet fork
Escapement wheel
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2. About the watch English

2. About the watch
High efficiency : with the conventional Swiss
lever system, the escapement absorbs around
70% of the energy; the new AP system reduces
this figure to 50%, enabling a significant boost
in efficiency over traditional designs.
No lubrication on the lifts (Dia. 1a and 1b) :
the special geometr y of the Audemars Piguet
escapement means no lubrication - a watch-
maker’s dream! - which facilitates maintenance
and prevents greasy paste build up af ter oil
evaporation.
Direct impulse on balance (Dia. 2a and 2b) :
energy is transmitted directly from the escape-
ment to the balance without passing through a
pallet fork, which limits energy losses by improving
efficiency.
Excellent shock resistance : the meticulous
shape of the various components (especially the
guard pin) and their ultraprecise cut out provide
maximum security against tripping and over-
banking.
0,4 mm
Dia. 1a
0,05 mm
Dia. 1b
Direct
impulse
Dia. 2b
Indirect
impulse
Dia. 2a
The need for oiling is eliminated by shortening the sliding
Fewer moving parts in the transmission equals greater efficiency
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English

2. About the watch
Dual balance-spring
The calibre 2908 also stands out for its totally new
regulator component. Two balance-springs positioned
one on top of the other, offset by 180°, automatically
compensate for any balancing defects.
Undoubted advantages
The system of dual “opposing” flat balance-springs
has many advantages :
no more balance-spring “end curves” pio-
neered by Breguet and Phillips, which require
painstak ing construction, and thus the end
to defects caused by the slight asymmetric
balance-spring development.
automatic compensation for any balance-spring
balancing defects, thus improving accuracy.
prevents errors caused by the watch’s vertical
position.
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English

2. About the watch
Series systemParallel system (AP)
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English
High frequency and precision
In addition to the intr insic advantages of the AP
escapement, the new Calibre 2908, which powers this
latest addition to the Jules Audemars collection, offers
exceptional frequency hitherto unseen in the world
of f ine watchmaking. It is t w ice as ef f icient as
conventional designs, boasting 43,200 vph (6 Hz), and
marks a major milestone in the AP watchmakers’ long-
standing quest for improved accuracy. The increase
in bal ance oscillation—with its var iable iner tia
system—significantly enhances timekeeping, making
the watch more resistant to impact and other fac-
tors that can af fect balance. The two parallel barrels
provide a power reserve of at least a 72 hours, amply
offsetting the extra power needed for the 43,200 vph
frequency.
Advantages of the parallel barrel system
Reduced pressure in the gears
Fr iction in the barrels used to cancel out the
variations

Calibre 2908
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3. Watch description English
Views of the movement
Dial side
Bridge side
Movement technical data
Basic thickness : 8,11 mm
Total diameter : 39,80 mm
Fitting diameter : 39 mm (17 ²⁄³lines)
Frequency : 43’200 vibrations/hour (6 Hz)
Number of jewels : 33
Power reserve: at least a 72 hours
Manual winding
Audemars Piguet lubrication-free escapement
Variable inertia balance
Flat dual balance springs
Stop-seconds function
Number of parts : 274
Case technical data
Diameter : 46 mm
Total height : 12,64 mm
Case water resistance : 20 m (2 bars)
Case in 950 platinum
Sapphire crystal caseback

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3. Watch description English
Watch indications and functions
(see figure on the inside cover)
1Hour hand
2Minute hand
3Small second hand
4Power reserve indicator hand
Your watch is fitted with a two-position crown :
ACrown in manual winding position
B Crown in time-setting position
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Setting the time
Pull the crown to position
B
. The stop-seconds
arresting lever is automatically activated when
the crown is pulled to ensure precision time
adjustment.
You may now set the time by winding in
either direc t ion w it hout r isk of damaging
the movement.
Recommendation : make sure to set the time
precisely by carefully moving the hands
forward to the time desired.
Winding the watch
Your watch is fitted with a mechanical hand-
wound movement.
We recommend that you wind the watch fully
every two days or at least once every three days
at regular intervals.
The crown features a disconnecting-gear system
to prevent damage to the barrel mechanism caused
by over-winding (the crown turns freely).
Power reserve
When the watch has been wound to a maximum,
the hand which shows the power reserve will be
at the outside of the indicator. The watch has a
power reserve of at least 72 hours at this point.
Once the needle reaches the red area, the watch
has a power reserve of around 12 hours. At this
point, we recommend that you wind the watch
fully to ensure optimal timekeeping.
4. Basic functions English

If your watch stops
Normally if your watch stops, simply winding it
with the crown is enough to start the movement.
However, sometimes the movement does not
start again automatically.
This is because the escapement is
no longer receiving an impulse,
as the impulse-pin and pallet
fork remain fixed in this position
(Fig. 1). No impulse is being sent
to the balance.
Turning the case a few times to turn
the balance is enough to reactivate
it (Fig. 3). This means that the
escapement wheel sends the
necessary impulse to the balance
(Fig. 2).
Winding the watch until the end stop (crown in
position
A
) ensure that the watch functions
correctly during approximately 70 hours.
Fig. 2
360°
Fig. 3
Fig. 1
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4. Basic functions English

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English5. Additional comments
Guarantee and care
All details concerning the guarantee and instructions
on caring for your watch are provided in the enclosed
certificate of origin and guarantee.