Original price was: $1,200,000.$1,100,000Current price is: $1,100,000.
The RM 21-02 Tourbillon Aerodyne is a limited-edition, 50-piece watch featuring a white Quartz TPT®, Carbon TPT®, and titanium construction. This model is an updated version of the manual-winding tourbillon Calibre RM21-02, known for its combination of precision, lightness, and durability. Richard Mille has a history of incorporating engineering materials from various industries, particularly aeronautics, into their watch designs. Carbon TPT®️, a key material in this watch, is commonly used in both the aeronautics and automotive industries, including in aircraft fuselages and Formula 1 cars. This material forms the baseplate of the RM 21-02 Tourbillon Aerodyne, along with a honeycomb structure made of black-PVD treated HAYNES®️ 214®️, a material used in gas turbine parts and researched by NASA for supersonic aircraft wings.
The design of the RM 21-02 Tourbillon Aerodyne includes a central winding barrel and tourbillon balanced on lightweight titanium bridges. It features torque and power-reserve indicators, along with a function selector, providing insights into the energy stored. The case of the RM 21-02 is a complex construction blending Quartz TPT®, Carbon TPT®, and titanium, resulting in a visually striking and robust design capable of withstanding regular use. This construction is one of the most sophisticated ever produced by Richard Mille. The brand’s commitment to innovation and the use of advanced materials is evident in the RM 21-02 Tourbillon Aerodyne, showcasing a unique aesthetic and technical prowess.
Precision, lightness and resistance are intimately bound by materials and architectural constructions. We have always capitalized on engineering materials from fields way beyond watchmaking. These new and technical materials are recognized today in Haute Horlogerie for their aesthetic and their mechanical properties.
The RM 21-02 Tourbillon Aerodyne has set the highest limits for watchmaking both in terms of its design, mechanical inventiveness and use of materials.
We were intent on achieving extreme lightness on the RM 21-02 and we succeeded in constructing it on a honeycomb structure. The objective was to juxtapose and laser-weld each tiny cell. This achievement on such a microscopic scale is a major technical tour-de-force.
RM 21-02 MANUAL WINDING TOURBILLON AERODYNE
Manual winding tourbillon movement with hours, minutes, function selector, power-reserve and torque indicators.
Around 70 hours (± 10%).
HAYNES® 214® is a nickel-chromium-aluminium-iron alloy, designed to provide the optimum in high-temperature oxidation resistance for a wrought austenitic material, while at the same time allowing conventional forming and joining. Intended principally for use at temperatures of 955°C and above, 214® alloy exhibits resistance to oxidation that far exceeds that of virtually all conventional heat-resistant wrought alloys at these temperatures.
Combined with a Carbon TPT® core, the honeycombed geometrical pattern of HAYNES® 214® offers unparalleled stiffness, a low thermal expansion coefficient and exceptional torsion resistance.
FREE-SPRUNG BALANCE WITH VARIABLE INERTIA
This type of balance wheel guarantees greater reliability in the event of shocks and during movement assembly or disassembly, and also guarantees better chronometric results over time. The regulator index is eliminated, and a more accurate and repeatable calibration is possible thanks to 4 small adjustable screws located directly on the balance.
BRIDGES MADE OF GRADE 5 TITANIUM
Bridges are crafted of grade 5 titanium, a biocompatible, highly corrosion-resistant and remarkably rigid alloy, which enables the gear train to function effortlessly. The alloy is 90% grade 5 titanium, 6% aluminium and 4% vanadium. This combination further increases the material’s mechanical properties, which explains its frequent use in the aerospace, aeronautics and automotive industries.
FUNCTION SELECTOR
In a manner similar to a car’s gearbox, a push-button located at the centre of the crown makes it possible to select the winding, neutral and hand-setting functions with a simple push. A hand at 4 o’clock indicates the selected function.
TORQUE INDICATOR
This indicator supplies information about the mainspring’s tension, thus permitting an optimisation of the chronometric functioning of the movement. Below 5.3 N.mm, the spring is considered too slack, while above 6.5 N.mm, excess tension in the spring can adversely affect the mechanism’s operation, or actually endanger it.
POWER-RESERVE INDICATOR
The power-reserve indicator shows the number of hours of energy left in the mainspring before the watch must be wound again.
MOVEMENT CHARACTERISTICS
Movement dimensions: 30.20 x 29.20 mm
Thickness: 7.14 mm
Tourbillon diameter: 12.30 mm
Balance wheel diameter: 10.00 mm
Number of jewels: 27
Balance: Glucydur®, 2 arms, 4 setting screws, moment of inertia 10 mg•cm2, angle of lift 53°
Frequency: 21,600 vph (3 Hz)
Balance spring: elinvar by Nivarox®
Shock protection: KIF Elastor KE 160 B28
Barrel shaft: nickel-free Chronifer® (DIN x 46 Cr 13 + S) with the following characteristics: stainless – antimagnetic – suitable for tempering
CASE MADE OF QUARTZ TPT®, CARBON TPT® AND TITANIUM
From the case and dial to each piece of the movement, the design and execution of the watch demonstrate a holistic approach to conception of the movement, case and dial.
As a result, everything has been constructed according to extremely rigorous specifications. The casing ring is eliminated, and the movement is fixed to the chassis with four grade 5 titanium screws and silent blocks (ISO SW).
The bezel is made of Carbon TPT® and Quartz TPT®, two exclusive materials with unique appearances. Their remarkable surfaces display extremely regular undulations, as they are composed of multiple layers of parallel filaments obtained by dividing carbon fiber or silica threads. These layers, with a maximum thickness of 45 microns, are impregnated with matrices then woven on a special machine that modifies the direction of the weft by 45° between layers. Heated to 120°C at a pressure of 6 bars, these materials are then ready to be processed on a CNC machine in Richard Mille’s case factory.
Quartz TPT® is also used for the caseback while the caseband is made of satin-finished grade 5 titanium with pillars in Carbon TPT®.
The tripartite case is water resistant to 50 metres, ensured by 2 Nitrile O-ring seals. The case is assembled with 20 spline screws in grade 5 titanium and abrasion-resistant washers in 316L stainless steel.
