Glashütte Original’s Senator Chronometer generated strong buzz among collectors and enthusiasts at this year’s Baselworld, and as of December, 2009, the watch is available at retailers. This is GO’s first timepiece to confirm its timekeeping accuracy with an official chronometer certificate from the observatory in Glashütte, issued under German standard DIN 8319. The DIN standard provides for testing fully assembled watches, while the Swiss COSC test involves uncased movements. Like COSC, the German tests involve timing in different positions and at different temperatures, and the basic timing standard is -4 to +6 seconds.
The Senator Chronometer’s redesigned manual winding manufacture Caliber 58-01 movement incorporates a new stop-seconds reset mechanism, illustrated below. The mechanism makes synchronizing the hour and minute hands automatic. Pulling the crown stops the time display and causes the second hand to jump to 12, where it remains; the minute hand moves simultaneously to the next full minute. When the crown is turned to set the time, the minute hand stops only on the indication of the full minute, assuring the correct relationship between the minutes and seconds displayed.
The 42mm Senator Chronometer is available in rose gold ($26,900) or white gold ($28,000) with a silver dial and a black alligator strap with folding clasp.
