Richard Mille RM 66 Flying Tourbillon

January 19, 2023

The new Richard Mille RM 66 Flying Tourbillon is most certainly one of the most extravagant watches of the collection, flashing for all to see the ‘horns’ hand sign that has symbolised a generation, a school of thought, a state of mind.

The eye is first drawn to the openwork hand in 5N red gold that holds the movement in its fingers. The five digits of the hand were first milled, then transferred to the master engraver to be perfected by hand. The protracted and meticulous work of deburring and polishing brings out the contours of the bones and highlights the delicate joints with their microblasted finish.

The architecture of the RM66 manual winding calibre showcases a fast-winding barrel providing a 72-hour power reserve positioned at 6 o’clock and the flying tourbillon at 12 o’clock – a first for the brand. To ensure the greatest possible transparency, the grade 5 titanium movement is highly skeletonised. This is possible thanks to a complex mechanical solution rarely employed by Richard Mille to enhance the skeletonisation, a flying tourbillon with variable inertia.

Bringing the world of rock’n’roll to life within the RM 66 Flying Tourbillon required 1,500 hours of Research & Development and 9 months of work for the casing team, in fact. The index points, for instance, are shaped like a guitar plectrum, extended by a lancet arch in titanium. The extreme attention to detail is further revealed in the grade 5 titanium crown in the shape of a spider whose gothic-inspired segments embrace a ruby and its circular black rubber gasket.

‘Between its development and finalization, we spent more than 200 hours on this piece, in addition to the 12 hours required to machine and finish a single crown. Polishing titanium is much more difficult than polishing gold or steel. Not only that, but the polishing also made it difficult to hold the crown without slippage, so we had to use special fixtures to fix the piece from the inside,’ explains Julien Boillat, Technical Director for Cases.

Issued in a limited edition of 50 watches, the RM 66 Flying Tourbillon is an electrifying and dynamic timepiece right down to its finest details, fascinating for its irreverent spirit and a faithful reflection of the brand.