Comfortably Thin

by Ren Shi

Today very few watch firms can back up a claim that they’ve never made quartz pieces. Blancpain, however, was the first to make such a boast, and is among the few that can truthfully make such a statement. Apart from its ultra complicated pieces like the 1735 or Karrusel, Blancpain divides its men’s watch lines primarily into three collections: Villeret, Leman and Fifty Fathoms. Each watch series shares many characteristics, such as the same case, marks, and hands, with the differences usually found in the watch functionality and movement.
The subject of this review is the Villeret Complete Calendar with Moonphase (Ref. 6263-1127A-55). Utilizing the world’s thinnest calendar mechanism (with an astounding 100 hours of power reserve), it has features only a handful of top watch manufacturers in the world can create. 

Watch Case
Blancpain’s 6263 watchcase resembles the unique design of a typical Blancpain Villeret series watch: a very traditional Swiss watchcase with multiple soft edges. The case is divided into two parts. The four adjustors are organically blended into the bottom part of the case. Unlike its sister model 2763, which utilizes four hidden correctors that can be adjusted without any tool, the Villeret Complete calendar requires a small pin push tool (supplied) to adjust the month, date, day, and moon phase.
Thanks to its super long power reserve and complete calendar design, the watch needs adjusting only five times a year in theory, specifically for the months shorter than thirty-one days. The mirror-like polishing on the case is one of the best in this class of watches.
The back of the case is one of the simplest casebacks I have ever seen in any watch: only the watch model and the serial number of the watch are carved into the case. No wording on water resistance, sapphire crystal or country origin. Blancpain wants to state that it offers the highest standard quality with each watch so that any other indication is unnecessary. This melds perfectly with Villeret’s stated goal as a simple design with enduring elegance.
Despite today’s larger sizes, or possibly to spite them, the Villeret’s 38-mm diameter might look too small for some people, but on my wrist it does not. It’s perfect for wearing with a dress shirt. (For those who prefer a larger watch, the Leman Complete Calendar with Moonphase offers a 40-mm diameter.)

Hands and Crown
The curvature-shaped watch hands have been polished to the highest standard and all twelve applied index marks have been mirror image polished flawlessly. They are about one millimeter above the dial surface and create a very three-dimensional effect. The crown with carved logo “JB” (the initial of the founder Jehan-Jacques Blancpain) has the classic shape of a Swiss watch crown.
Unfortunately, when manually winding the watch I found the crown fairly difficult to grab, which marks one of very few shortcomings of this watch. On the other hand, I could understand the dilemma facing Blancpain designers; a slightly larger crown could facilitate manual winding but would destroy the proportion of the entire watch due to its rather small case size. Of course, the super long power reserve, hopefully, eliminates the need for much manual winding in the first place.