A radical design...

[mlcor]

Many of you know I've been waiting for this one to become available, and probably a number of you won't care for the design, but I have been attracted to it since I first saw pictures. My local dealer had told me it wouldn't be available until May...until another good customer (an unrepentant serial flipper) bought one in Italy, then decided to flip it. My guy held on to it for me, and we negotiated a deal. So, without further adieu, here is the Bulgari Octo Finissimo Automatique.

The watch's main claim to fame, of course, is the crazy thin movement and case. Currently the world's thinnest automatic movement at 2.23mm, and the case (40mm in diameter) is only 5.15mm thick. Made of titanium (a favorite choice of mine), it is ridiculously light, weighing only 73 grams. When you hold it, it feels like a mock-up of a watch, and on the wrist, it barely feels like it's there at all. And yet, it doesn't feel particularly fragile, just bizarrely light and comfortable.

Once you get past the thinness and lightness, you can start to appreciate the rest of the design--there are a lot of contours and textures, and a surprising amount of depth in the dial and case, especially given that they only had 5.15mm to work with:



This view gives some idea of how thin it really is, and also shows the black ceramic crown insert, which is a nice touch:



I imagine someone with a round wrist might not be able to wear it comfortably, but my wrist is pretty flat, and it sits very nicely:



The movement is Bulgari's in house BVL 138, running at 21,600 vph. In order to make it so thin, a platinum micro rotor is used. The power reserve is an impressive 60 hours, and the movement is nicely finished.











The bracelet is a treat, with a beautiful taper, small, comfortable links and a butterfly style clasp. No micro-adjustment, though.



That's it!



P.S. In keeping with my one in, one out policy for pricier watches, the GO Senator Observer went as part of the deal. A lovely watch, but not getting enough wrist time, and 44mm ultimately was too big for a dressy watch for me, even though it didn't wear that big.