.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
This no. 3 prototype RM009 Felipe Massa Tourbillon ‘ALUSiC’ is one of the most exciting and significant Richard Mille watches to ever be offered at auction.
The property of the original owner, this ultra-lightweight watch is not only a prototype of the fabled RM009, but also the movement is engraved with the name of the present owner and dated 12. 2005. No greater connection and unbroken provenance can be imagined for this epoch-making wristwatch.
RM009
Richard Mille’s development of the ultra-lightweight RM009 Felipe Massa was truly groundbreaking, not only for Richard Mille, but for the entire world of watchmaking. The RM009 paved the way for the lightweight watches that have since become symbolic of the brand. In 2005, the very concept of an incredibly lightweight superwatch was unheard of and undreamed of in a world where substantial weight was a desirable attribute in a wristwatch. It was of course completely characteristic of Richard Mille to want to completely surprise and disrupt the watch world with an almost unfeasibly lightweight tourbillon timepiece – only weighing an incredible 28 grams excluding the strap - a world record at the time.
The model was developed for and named after the Brazilian Formula One racing driver Felipe Massa, one of the first sporting figures to have joined the Richard Mille family as brand ambassador. In 2005, the same year the RM009 was launched, Massa began driving for Ferrari, finishing third that season.
In 2006, Richard Mille was interviewed by Sjx and explained the rationale of the RM009 - “I wanted to do a very light watch, the lightest watch ever made in the mechanical watch story, for one reason: because I was fed up of seeing people who add weight to a watch, because of the perceived value of weight,” he said, “So I said to myself, why not the lightest watch, and the watch costs a fortune!”
Unsurprisingly, to achieve the manufacture of a watch of such lightness, innovative materials needed to be employed for both the case and movement. Fascinatingly, the case of the RM009 is not made of carbon fibre like more recent Richard Mille watches but instead is made of a highly unusual metal composite with the trademark name ‘ALUSiC’.
The Case
‘ALUSiC’ is a metal matrix composite or ‘MMC’ made by the French company Les Bronzes d’Industrie. It has a granular textured surface with an almost industrial appearance that can acquire an individual patina over time. The material gets its name from its ingredients: a silicon-aluminium alloy that contains silicon carbide (SiC) particles to improve its hardness. This material is used mainly for high-wear applications like brake drums and rotors. ‘ALUSiC’ is the trademarked name for the particular type of MMC used for this watch. The properties of ALUSiC are in fact ideal to make a watch case. The material has a low density of under 2.95g/cm3, which is more than a third less than titanium (~4.50g/cm3) and less than half of stainless steel (~8.00g/cm3). ALUSiC also has great rigidity and resistance to wear and temperatures.
Aluminium-lithium movement
In common with later Richard Mille tourbillons, the movement was made by Renaud & Papi. Almost experimental in appearance, the RM009 calibre has a highly appealing hand-made vibe. However, as with the case, it is the use of innovative materials that is particularly significant. The base plate is made of an aluminium-lithium alloy, already a very lightweight metal, but with the addition of a tiny amount of lithium, the least dense metal, makes the resulting alloy not only significantly lighter but also strengthens the structure of the alloy ensuring long-term stability. With a density of just 2.60g/cm3, the aluminium-lithium alloy for the movement base plate is of less density than ALUSiC, which has a density of 2.95g/cm3. The bridges are made from an alloy of aluminium mixed with and copper and magnesium.
The property of the original owner, this ultra-lightweight watch is not only a prototype of the fabled RM009, but also the movement is engraved with the name of the present owner and dated 12. 2005. No greater connection and unbroken provenance can be imagined for this epoch-making wristwatch.
RM009
Richard Mille’s development of the ultra-lightweight RM009 Felipe Massa was truly groundbreaking, not only for Richard Mille, but for the entire world of watchmaking. The RM009 paved the way for the lightweight watches that have since become symbolic of the brand. In 2005, the very concept of an incredibly lightweight superwatch was unheard of and undreamed of in a world where substantial weight was a desirable attribute in a wristwatch. It was of course completely characteristic of Richard Mille to want to completely surprise and disrupt the watch world with an almost unfeasibly lightweight tourbillon timepiece – only weighing an incredible 28 grams excluding the strap - a world record at the time.
The model was developed for and named after the Brazilian Formula One racing driver Felipe Massa, one of the first sporting figures to have joined the Richard Mille family as brand ambassador. In 2005, the same year the RM009 was launched, Massa began driving for Ferrari, finishing third that season.
In 2006, Richard Mille was interviewed by Sjx and explained the rationale of the RM009 - “I wanted to do a very light watch, the lightest watch ever made in the mechanical watch story, for one reason: because I was fed up of seeing people who add weight to a watch, because of the perceived value of weight,” he said, “So I said to myself, why not the lightest watch, and the watch costs a fortune!”
Unsurprisingly, to achieve the manufacture of a watch of such lightness, innovative materials needed to be employed for both the case and movement. Fascinatingly, the case of the RM009 is not made of carbon fibre like more recent Richard Mille watches but instead is made of a highly unusual metal composite with the trademark name ‘ALUSiC’.
The Case
‘ALUSiC’ is a metal matrix composite or ‘MMC’ made by the French company Les Bronzes d’Industrie. It has a granular textured surface with an almost industrial appearance that can acquire an individual patina over time. The material gets its name from its ingredients: a silicon-aluminium alloy that contains silicon carbide (SiC) particles to improve its hardness. This material is used mainly for high-wear applications like brake drums and rotors. ‘ALUSiC’ is the trademarked name for the particular type of MMC used for this watch. The properties of ALUSiC are in fact ideal to make a watch case. The material has a low density of under 2.95g/cm3, which is more than a third less than titanium (~4.50g/cm3) and less than half of stainless steel (~8.00g/cm3). ALUSiC also has great rigidity and resistance to wear and temperatures.
Aluminium-lithium movement
In common with later Richard Mille tourbillons, the movement was made by Renaud & Papi. Almost experimental in appearance, the RM009 calibre has a highly appealing hand-made vibe. However, as with the case, it is the use of innovative materials that is particularly significant. The base plate is made of an aluminium-lithium alloy, already a very lightweight metal, but with the addition of a tiny amount of lithium, the least dense metal, makes the resulting alloy not only significantly lighter but also strengthens the structure of the alloy ensuring long-term stability. With a density of just 2.60g/cm3, the aluminium-lithium alloy for the movement base plate is of less density than ALUSiC, which has a density of 2.95g/cm3. The bridges are made from an alloy of aluminium mixed with and copper and magnesium.