A. Lange & Söhne Saxonia Dual Time Review

Most watch enthusiasts are familiar with A. Lange & Söhne. These watches are considered some of the most elegant watches made in the world today, even though they are produced in Germany, not Switzerland.

The Saxony region of Germany, known as Glashütte, is synonymous with watchmaking and is home to only the most prestigious, outstanding German watch manufacturers.

Among these, there are names like Glashütte Original and the younger but rising German watch manufacturer NOMOS Glashütte, which is young but full of surprises; The factory of this manufacturer is located exactly across the street from the A. Lange & Söhne manufactory.

After all, if they pay attention, maybe they can learn a thing or two from this master watchmaker! Without further ado, let's get started with our A. Lange & Söhne Saxonia Dual Time review, shall we?

A. Lange & Söhne Saxonia Dual Time Review

Today we will review A. Lange & Söhne's watch known as Saxonia Dual Time 40 mm. This is a beautifully designed and impeccably crafted watch; It truly demonstrates the manufacturer's ability to pack practical complications such as the GMT/Second Time Zone complication for travelers into a classic design, while maintaining a timeless yet current look.

Perfect for frequent travelers, this watch comes with the Second Time Zone complication, also known as GMT; Thus, it both shows the time of the city you are going to and continues to display the time of your actual location.

Even the box and casing appear to be sized for a traveler.

Using the two buttons on the left side of the case, a traveler can move the watch's hour hand forward or backward in one-hour increments, revealing the blue central GMT/Second Time Zone hour hand hidden underneath.

Another feature you'll notice is the small subdial just below 12 o'clock.

This dial features a small hour hand made of blued steel tempered by an industrial coloring process known in Germany as ' Kornblumenblau'; In this process, the metal is heated until it reaches a high temperature that changes its color to a blue hue.

The steel is then polished and heated one last time until it turns a nice blue color.

The subdial at 12 o'clock is a 24-hour indicator that tells you whether it is AM or PM. This subsidiary dial works with the central blued steel GMT hour hand, which also indicates home time.

The 24-hour display has printed Roman numerals for 24, 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18 and 21. The Roman numerals for 18, 21, 24, 3 and 6 are printed in blue, while the numerals for 9, 12 and 15 are printed in black.

Below, there is a small seconds subdial with a second hand made of polished 18k white gold at 6 o'clock. The central hour and minute hands are also in high polished 18k white gold.

This particular model (reference #385.026) has a silver dial and, at first glance, leaves a very balanced appearance with symmetry throughout. There is a reflective dot on the applied baton-shaped hour markers.

The printed minute/seconds track shows four thin black lines printed between each hour marker. Although this watch can do a lot mechanically, the design keeps the dial sleek and classic and looks less crowded than many other GMT watches.

On the case back, you can see German watchmaking at its best.

A. Lange & Söhne's in-house L086.2 automatic caliber consists of 268 parts and is enlivened by pink rubies and Glashütte-style blue screws on the rotor, main platinum, hand-engraved balance bridge and three-quarter platinum.

The combination of numerous handcrafts such as Geneve strips (also known as Côtes de Genève), Perlage (a circular graining sometimes called perlée) and Chamfering (a high polishing technique used on beveled edges) on various sinkers and screws makes this home-made mechanical movement worth seeing.

Many watch experts place A. Lange & Söhne's craftsmanship at the top of the industry and say there are few rivals that can compare; He says that these are, at most, a few names such as Vacheron Constantin, Philippe Dufour, Breguet and Patek Philippe.

Saxonia Dual Time has a power reserve of 72 hours thanks to its L086.2 self-winding 31 jewel movement, which operates at 21,600 VpH, or 3 Hz.

The list price of the 18 carat white gold model featured here is XXX; There is also an 18k rose gold Saxonia Dual Time version (reference #385.032) with a list price of XXX.

See the comparison chart below to understand the differences between these two models.

Let's compare the A. Lange & Söhne Saxonia Dual Time 385.026 model with the 385.032: