Ask most guys under the age of 50 if they'd wear a skeleton watch, and they'd say "No f'n way." The reason for that is, up until recently, most were relegated to regal, almost faux opulent designs that were just a little too ornate, a little too "blingy" in the most upper eastside-y / Purdy sort of way.
Then came the Openworked Royal Oak (ref 15305) from AP and the Altiplano Skeleton from Piaget, which we showed you first here. These two watches are the best examples of the new type of skeletonized watches - the types of openworking that is less dandy / ornate and more manly / industrial. At SIHH and while visiting Piaget with our contest winner, we got a chance to go hands-on with this awesome new skeletonitzed Altiplano.
Sized at 38mm in a case of white gold (ugh, how nice does that combination of size and metal sound?), this is actually the thinnest skeletonized caliber (Piaget 1200S) inside the world's thinnest skeletonized watch, and it took over three years to develop. What Piaget has done so well here is play with the finishing on the matte surfaces - you'll see alternating sunray brushing and sandblasted facades that will contrast the polished angles with the rhodium (dark) colors. The black platinum micro-rotor in this watch really just looks great, too.
The price of the Piaget Altiplano Skeleton Automatic will be $60,000 when it starts to deliver this year. Based on the reception of the regular Altiplano (which we reviewed in detail here), this skeleton is sure to be a winner.
http://www.hodinkee.com/blog/2012/4/23/ ... ld-li.html
