The 32 series movement launched by ROLEX is a brand new work that has attracted much attention in recent years. This is not necessarily because of how powerful the technical declaration made by the movement itself, but also because of Rolex’s opinion. Observation, plus 15 years since their last major movement change (4130), so everyone’s attention to the 32 series actually contains a lot of complex emotions.
Cal. 3255
Automatic winding / hour, minute, second, date, day of the week display / 31 stone / oscillation frequency 28,800vph / approx. 70 hours power reserve, Parachrom hairspring, ParaFlex balance wheel suspension, Chronergy escapement, C.O.S.C.
The predecessor of the 32 series was launched in 1988. For nearly thirty years, 70% to 80% of Rolex’s watches have been using this movement and its sister styles. The output of the entire watchmaking industry may be rare. The model can be second to none, and although it has been designed 27 years ago, the overall specifications and performance of the movement are still the benchmark for mass production of automatic movements, and the words classic or legend do n’t seem to describe it. Status.
However, the high performance of the 31 Series was not created overnight. Rolex launched a new generation of basic movement 30 series in 1977. The specifications of some modern movements, such as the high vibration frequency of 28,800vph, were basically set at that time, and the 31 series launched a few years later. Improvements such as straddling balance wheel bridges were added to further strengthen the movement’s physique. In the following two decades, the 31 series has been continuously revised. Among them, the more important is the replacement of Rolex’s exclusive blue hairspring Parachrom and the same self-developed balance shock absorber Paraflex. Both are proposed for impact resistance. To solve the problem, and Parachrom is in the industry’s gradual trend to silicon materials, through the niobium zirconium alloy, blue oxide coating, Breguet hairspring, etc., continue to use metal materials to achieve shock resistance, temperature resistance, magnetic resistance Waiting for appeal, showing the brand’s unique technical perspective.
Under the premise of not changing the size of the barrel, the inner wall of the barrel can be made thinner by 1/2, so that the inside can accommodate a longer mainspring, which adds 10 hours of energy to the movement.
To be fair, the current 31 Series is not inferior to most of the basic movements launched in the market after 2000, except that the 48-hour power reserve is slightly weak, and the performance in other aspects is still almost the same. Being in a leading position, as far as the automatic movement is concerned, the space for further improvement is limited. From this perspective, the need for Rolex to upgrade to the 32 series this time, instead of focusing on performance, they should consider the front-end productivity and subsequent maintenance; of course, the new-generation movement still has significant performance However, the changes in these data may not be felt by the users. In contrast, there are many new designs in the 32 Series that make the movement more durable, and some can simplify the production process to some extent. These innovative Benefits will be reflected in the number and cycle of products returned to the factory, in fact more in line with Rolex’s consistent watchmaking philosophy.
70-hour kinetic energy: extended clockwork
The weakest link in the 31 series is the 48-hour power reserve. At present, almost all basic movements have set the three-day chain as the standard specification. Today, the 31 series’ energy storage is indeed a bit outdated, so Probably the most impressive of the 32 series’ new specifications is the 70-hour kinetic energy. The 32 series’ means of increasing kinetic energy are also divided into open source and throttling. The open source part does not change the size of the barrel, and allows the inside of the barrel to be longer by thinning the barrel by 1/2. This alone adds 10 hours of power to the movement.
The red automatic wheel is changed to only the inner part that is in contact with the non-reverse wheel has a red coating, that is, only the most severely worn part is strengthened.
Chronergy escapement
The so-called throttling refers to reducing the loss of power transmission. The 32 series uses a new Chronergy escapement system. This set of escape wheels and forks are firstly made of nickel-phosphorus material, and the escapement is made by LiGA electroforming micro-manufacturing technology. The wheel is completely hollowed out, and the gem of the escapement fork is also half thinner, only 125 microns. All of this is to use lightweight to make the power transmission more reliable, but it is more special because it adjusts the escapement fork and escapement. The angle of the wheel contact, it is said that this new geometric shape can also make the escapement more reliable. The two-fold addition and multiplication increase the escapement efficiency by 15%, and also extend the power reserve to 70 hours.
Improved processing accuracy
The part of the balance wheel group continues the Parachrom balance spring and Paraflex shock absorber. The shape of the balance wheel spokes is slightly different from the old version. It is said that the new precision cutting is used here, and the stability of the finished weights and the like are more improved; In fact, many of the modifications mentioned today, including thinning the inner wall of the barrel, thinning the escapement fork gemstones, or precision cutting balances, etc., are basically related to the improvement of the machining accuracy. The same is true of the hollow molding of LiGA. In addition to these high-precision processed parts, which can directly enhance the performance of the movement, in fact, it also reduces the re-dressing of the parts after forming. The significance of production is also the focus of the 32 series.
Antimagnetic and automatic winding mechanism
As mentioned earlier, the escapement uses nickel-phosphorus material. In addition to the purpose of molding and weight reduction, anti-magnetic is also an important advantage. In addition to the escapement, the new version of the balance also uses a magnetically resistant balance shaft, plus Parachrom hairspring, the entire movement has a good anti-magnetic performance. Part of the self-winding Rolex finally used a ball bearing automatic disc. In addition, their signature red automatic wheel has also been changed from the entire red to only the inner part that is in contact with the anti-reverse wheel. Coating, that is, only the most severely abraded part is strengthened. In addition, the shape of the hollow part of the automatic disk is also slightly different.
The design of the 32 series through the wheel path makes the Erfan and Sifan cars coaxial in the center. In theory, this can allow the minute hand to start operation without delay after the stop seconds are lifted.
Improved sense of operation
Some designs of the 32 series are related to the operation feeling when adjusting. One is that it deepens the depth of the positioning groove when the crown is pulled out, so that the feel of the dragon core when it cuts into each stage is more clear. The second is that it modifies the gear train. In simple terms, it allows Erfan and The four-wheeled car is coaxial in the center; Rolex has chosen to eccentric the two-wheeled car since the 30 series, and the four-wheeled car is in the center of the movement. The purpose is for the four-wheeled car to directly drive the central second hand, while the 32 series is driven through the wheel. The design of the system path allows Erfan and Sifan to be in the same center. In theory, this allows the minute hand to start working without delay after the stop seconds are lifted.
Oyster Perpetual Day-Date 40
Platinum material / 3255 automatic movement / hours, minutes, seconds, date, day display / C.O.S.C. Observatory certification / sapphire crystal mirror / waterproof 100 meters / 40mm diameter / reference price: 450,000 RMB
Oyster Perpetual Day-Date 40
18K eternal rose gold material / 3255 self-winding movement / hours, minutes, seconds, date, day display / COSC Observatory certification / sapphire crystal / waterproof 100 meters / 40mm diameter / reference price: 260,500 RMB