Matt Clymo 
Master Watchmaker François-Paul Journe has created a new very black and very stealthy Chronomètre Furtif, that as he puts it, is designed for those who are wearing it, and no one else!
Just before the start of the 2025 Watches & Wonders fair, in a less crowded area of Geneva at FP Journe’s headquarters, the master watchmaker and his team were busy showing their new creation to those lucky enough to get an invite. Thankfully, we were one of those people. So on a slightly chilly but sunny morning, we ventured over to where FP Journe calls home just outside the main centre to see the newly unveiled Chronomètre Furtif in a very black Tungsten Carbide case and bracelet, along with blacked-out frost numerals and dark grey dial. Whilst I’m not normally an all-black watch person, I appreciate the aesthetics of them and still find them somewhat alluring.
For this piece, F.P. Journe has used the Linesport collection as the base and crafted the Chronomètre Furtif from a case made of Tungsten Carbide, which is highly robust due to its makeup but as a result, extremely hard to work with when it comes to crafting and finishing. However, get this right and you have a very well-finished and almost indestructible watch that feels heavy on the wrist, but in a good way, a little like a precious metal piece does.
Sized at 42mm but only 9.5mm thick, the Chronomètre Furtif sits nicely on the wrist and as they say, black is slimming so the piece appears a little smaller than the 42mm diameter suggests. This is amplified by the fact that the dial is dark anthracite so from a visual perspective, you’re not hit with a lot of dial real estate like can happen with other pieces and the tapper of the case into the integrated bracelet also helps to both slim the watch down, and create a better visual balance on the wrist, not to mention a better feel and wearing experience as well.
Speaking of the dial, this is where this piece is a little unique and stands out to me. F.P. Journe has taken the dark aesthetic to the next level. Done on a dial of 18k white gold, Journe has given the dial a mirror polish with anthracite grey Grand Feu enamel giving the dial a glossy sheen. This look is then complimented by the dark frosted numeral on the dial that is only broken up by the rhodium-plated steel hour and minute hands and the white-coloured second’s hand. The result is a dial that can only be read really by the wearer, and at a certain angle.
Inside the Chronomètre Furtif is the Calibre 1522. A manual winding calibre with a 56-hour power reserve that is beautifully finished as you would expect with a combination of circular graining and Grain D’Orge (translated to barley graining or guilloche), Côtes de Genève, impeccable bevelled edges on the bridges and mirror polished screws. What you may not expect is on the back, the Calibre 1522 also houses a power reserve indicator and a moon phase window, making this piece more than a simple three-handed watch.
The movement is made from 18k rose gold that is fully wound with 38 turns of the Tantalum crown. F.P.Journe has done a few things with the movement here as well, like attaching the seconds hand directly to the axis of the dedicated wheel, which forms part of a linear gear train – a first for F.P. Journe. The balance wheel is also free-sprung, with 4 inertia weights, that is held in place with its own bridge and beating at 3Hz. This lower frequency allows the watch to conserve energy, and normally with this, the trade-off is less accuracy, but the inertia weights counteract this on the balance wheel so accuracy is not compromised.
Initial Thoughts
When you first see this Chronomètre Furtif, it looks simple. An all-black watch with three hands, and what looks on the surface to be a ceramic piece nonetheless. But like many haute hologerie pieces, the beauty is in the details, and with this piece, you need to take a closer more detailed look to fully understand it. It is stealth wealth at its best, an If You Know, You Know piece.
There is art in making the complex simple, and few better do this than F.P. Journe. The idea that this is a watch that can really only be read by the person wearing it, and at a certain angle no less is kind of cool. The weight of the Tungsten Carbide throws you a little when you pick it up as your mind associates this type of watch with the lightness of ceramic, which this is most definitely not. Then you flip the watch over and see the beautifully decorated case back with the power reserve and moon phase complications which means this is not your average three-hand watch, added to this, Journe has created a movement that is anything but ordinary.
Reference: CF
Specifications:
- Dimensions: 42mm x 9.5mm thick
- Case Material: Sandblasted Tungsten Carbide case with bezel, caseback and crown in tantalum
- Dial: 18k white gold dial with mirror polished anthracite Grand Feu enamel, frosted black numerals and rhodium plated steel hour and minute hands with a white coloured seconds hand.
- Movement: In-house calibre 1522, manual winding movement with power reserve and moon phase indicator, free spring balance with 4 inertia weights on the balance wheel
- Power Reserve: 56 hours
- Water Resistance: 30m (3 bar)
- Crystal: Sapphire crystal
- Bracelet: Sandblasted Tungsten Carbide with a titanium folding clasp and tantalum cap
