65 Years of Sinn
The Sinn 140 Chronograph, also known as the Space Chronograph, is easily one of Sinn's most recognizable models. Its endurance through the years is a reflection on both its popularity as well as its historical significance to the brand.
German physicist and astronaut Reinhard Furrer wore the Sinn 140 S on his wrist during the D-1 Spacelab mission in 1985 and demonstrated that automatic watches can function in a weightless environment. That significant event was eventually commemorated with the release of the Sinn 140 A Limited Edition, which was a fan favorite and one of the most collectible of Sinn's limited editions.
The new Sinn 140 A S Limited Edition commemorates the 65th anniversary of Sinn's founding. It features the same special dial, hands, and silver electroplated registers as the original Sinn 140 A Limited Edition, but now with a unique combination of satinized and polished black DLC finishes on the case and bracelet.
Limited to 300 pieces, the limited edition number of each watch can be found on the case back along with a D-1 Spacelab mission etching (pictured).
Sinn SZ-01 Calibre
65 years of technological and engineering advancements by Sinn have led to this limited edition.
First, this watch features the Sinn SZ-01 calibre, which was first introduced on the Sinn EZM 10.
Many of Sinn's earlier 140 and 142 chronographs used the Lemania 5100 (and 1341) as the base caliber. This movement proved to be quite popular especially with the military who approved its use primarily based on its use of a large centrally mounted chronograph minute hand.
Since that movement was discontinued many years ago and the standard Valjoux 7750 configurations did not support these displays, Sinn set out to create a host of in-house modifications to replicate the functions of the Lemania 5100. Little did Sinn know the extent of the modifications that would be necessary, and that this project would extend over seven years.
Elapsed chronograph minutes are displayed on this watch by a centrally mounted hand with a distinctive airplane pointer. The watch also features a centrally mounted elapsed seconds hand as well as an additional time second hand in the electroplated register at 9 which runs irrespective of the chronograph.
The chronograph hands on this model, just like on its limited edition predecessor, are light orange instead of the red found on the standard Sinn 140 Series.
The result is a highly legible timing system with a large central hand that counts elapsed minutes on a 60 minute scale rather than 30, and a minute stopwatch scale which is visible around the entire circumference of the dial.
Black DLC Tegimented Case
Normally, watch cases with applied DLC are subject to increased risk of cracking because of the difference in hardness between the base metal and the DLC (eggshell effect).
At Sinn, technology again has been used to not only solve a problem but to enhance a watch.
The Tegiment layer is not a coating consisting of a foreign material, instead the steel itself that has been hardened using a special engineering process that creates a hardened barrier. The base material is a type of stainless steel also used for surgical implants, and the stainless steel resistance to corrosion is even further improved by the Tegiment hardening process.
The Tegimenting process also acts as an extra protection for the black DLC coating by providing a harder surface for this material. It is interesting to note that Sinn's black DLC watches are hardened to higher standards than most of their non-black Tegimented watches.
Standard steel used by most watch companies has a hardness of between 200 and 240 HV (Hardness Vickers is a common scale used to measure material hardness). The Tegimented DLC layer on this watch has a hardness of 1,500 Vickers which is seven times harder than standard steel.
Ar-Dehumidification Technology
Sinn's dry hold technology is based on three technical elements: a special drying capsule, EDR seals (Extreme Diffusion Reducing) and a protective inert gas filling.
Mechanical watches require oils to ensure proper operation, and the proper care of any mechanical watch movement mandates that these oils maintain both their viscosity and lubrication properties.
Sinn has found that filling the case with inert gas can help prevent the introduction of moisture and humidity to the case, as well as provide a more stable environment for the oils that lubricate the movement. The presence of this technology combined with Sinn's special 66-228 oil allows for operation down to -45 degrees Celsius.
The second aspect of this technology is a dehumidifying copper sulfate capsule (in the side of the case near 7 o'clock) that absorbs diffused atmospheric moisture within the watch, thus slowing down the aging process of the movement inside.
Finally, Sinn uses complex case and crown sealing measures to achieve a water resistance of 100 meters, or 10 bar.
D3 System
In conventional watch designs, the chronograph pushers and crown shaft are mounted in the via an insert tube.
This tube requires the use of a tube seal and provides a potential source of gas diffusion (in watches featuring Dehumidifying Technology), but would also allow for water to enter the case if a chronograph pusher were inadvertently pushed or a crown was left unscrewed.
This is because the pusher and crown can shift in the tube if exposed to lateral movement which breaks the seal and allows moisture to penetrate the case. Likewise, with the crown, there is a similar risk that exists when it is unscrewed to make an adjustment.
Sinn developed the D3 System to prevent this risk as the Sinn D3 System features chronograph pushers and crown shafts that are mounted directly into the case, thus creating a perfect seal.
The D3 System permits the crown and push-piece to be integrated into the case, providing reliable protection from lateral knocks and the penetration of dust or moisture.
Important Features of this watch include:
- Tegimented steel case with hardened black DLC finish
- Dehumidifying Technology system prevents fogging
- Nickel free case back
- Sapphire crystal with dual anti-reflective coating
- Rotating inner pilot's bezel activated through crown at 10
- Chronograph pushers and crown use Sinn's D3 case integration
- Silver electroplated counter dials
- Water resistant to 100 meters
Packaging and Presentation Box
This new Sinn watch is packaged in a special presentation box and includes:
- Tegimented steel bracelet with hardened black DLC finish
- Black leather double padded strap with yellow trim/stitching
- Sinn spring bar tool
- Additional spring bars
Sinn 140 A S Anniversary Chr...