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Louis Erard Le Régulateur x Atelier Oï Limited Edition 42mm Unisex Watch Grey
Ref. 85237AA53.BVA33
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Stepping up in Louis Erard's range
Le Régulateur x Konstantin Chaykin Time Eater III Limited Edition 42mm Mens Watch Grey£4,950
2340 Louis Erard X Astro Boy 40mm Limited Edition Mens Watch£4,390
Le Régulateur x Alain Silberstein Limited Edition 40mm Unisex Watch Green£4,500
Le Régulateur x Cédric Johner Limited Edition 39mm Unisex Watch Blue£4,500
Métiers d'art Guilloché Main II Limited Edition 42mm Unisex Watch Grey£4,500
Louis Erard has worked with Atelier Oï before, but this piece — one of 178 made — pushes the collaboration toward something more considered than most limited editions manage. The Swiss architecture and design studio took the regulator format as a starting point and stripped it back to a single question: what would a sundial look like if it told mechanical time? The answer is a slate grey dial engraved with sixty lines that radiate outward from the centre, each planed at a shallow angle so that the surface changes character entirely as the light shifts across it. Hours read at twelve, central minutes sweep the main dial, small seconds sit at six — the separated axes of a regulator layout, which forces the eye to read the time actively rather than at a glance, and which suits a dial this architectural. At 42mm with a lug-to-lug span just under 50mm, it sits with some authority, but 12.25mm of thickness means it stays neater under a cuff than that footprint might suggest. There is no lume on the blue baton hands, which is the right decision: luminous material would break the engraved surface at night and the watch has no pretence of being a tool. The Sellita SW266-1 runs the movement; through the sapphire caseback, the openworked rotor carries Louis Erard's own decoration, which is a small detail worth looking for when the watch is off the wrist. The grey calf nubuck strap changes straps without a tool, which matters when a piece this considered deserves more than one wearing context.
- Reference
- 85237AA53.BVA33
- Brand
- Louis Erard
- Collection
- Excellence
- Case size
- 42mm
- Case thickness
- 12.25mm
- Lug width
- 22mm
- Case material
- Stainless steel
- Case shape
- Round
- Dial
- Grey
- Crystal
- Sapphire
- Movement
- Automatic
- Calibre
- SW266-1
- Functions
- Small seconds, Skeleton dial
- Water resistance
- 50m
- Bracelet / strap
- Leather strap
- Strap colour
- Grey
- Clasp
- Buckle
- Lume
- Luminous
- Retailer
- Goldsmiths
Additional specifications
- Lug-to-lug
- 49.60mm
- Power reserve
- 38 hours
- Origin
- Swiss made
Learn more about Louis Erard
Louis Erard was born in La Chaux-de-Fonds in 1893, into a town then producing a large share of the world's watches. He worked in its workshops, founded a watchmaking school in 1929, and set up a casing and assembly business with André Perret the same year. The first watches under his own name followed in 1931.
Assembly was the trade at the time: components came from independent artisans and the assembler built, adjusted and finished the watch. By 1937 Erard employed more than sixty people and was selling internationally.
The quartz crisis did its usual damage. The company was sold in 1991 and production moved to Le Noirmont in the Jura, then sold again in 2003 to a group led by Alain Spinedi, who refocused it on mechanical watches at prices that undercut everyone doing similar work.
The regulator became the signature — the dial layout that separates hours, minutes and seconds onto their own axes, borrowed from precision reference clocks, and rarely seen at this price.
What has made the brand's recent reputation is collaboration: limited editions with independent watchmakers whose own work is unobtainable, among them Vianney Halter, Konstantin Chaykin and Alain Silberstein, on Sellita and Valjoux movements.
- 1929
- Founds a watchmaking school and a casing business with André Perret.
- 1931
- The first watches carry the Louis Erard name.
- 1991
- Sold, with production moving to Le Noirmont.
- 2003
- Relaunched under Alain Spinedi around mechanical watches.
- 2020
- Collaborations with independent watchmakers define the brand.
Also in 7 collections
This watch appears in the Louis Erard Excellence range (5), Back in Stock (4,300), Stainless Steel Watches (2,846), Automatic Watches (1,403), Leather Strap Watches (928), Skeleton Watches (278) and Grey Dial Watches (219).
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What the specifications mean
A mechanical watch for everyday wear.
Strengths
- Sapphire crystal, which resists scratching
- Luminous hands and markers for low light
- Sits in the lower half of Louis Erard's range as we list it
Worth knowing
- 50m suits rain and handwashing, not swimming
- 38-hour reserve means winding it after a day off
Louis Erard Le Régulateur x Atelier alternatives
Watches from other brands at a similar price, style and size, so you can see what else your budget can buy.
| Specification | 85237AA53.BVA33 | FC-718NWM4H6 | WWDK01 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £3,750 | £3,995 | £3,995 |
| Case size | 42mm | 42mm | 42mm |
| Water resistance | 50m | 50m | 50m |
| Movement | Automatic | Automatic | Automatic |
| Strap | Leather strap | Leather strap | Fabric strap |
| Power reserve | 38 hours | 38 hours | 38 hours |
| This watch | Closely matched | Closely matched |
Your new watch
Frequently asked questions, and things you should know about this watch
Can I swim with it?
Showering yes, swimming no. 50m covers splashes and brief immersion, but a swimming stroke generates well above the pressure that figure describes.
Water resistance explainedWill the glass scratch?
Unlikely. Sapphire is second only to diamond in hardness and shrugs off everyday marking.
Sapphire, mineral and acrylic comparedDoes it need a battery?
No. It is automatic — the motion of your wrist winds it, and there is no cell to replace.
Quartz, automatic and solar comparedHow long does it run for when it's not worn?
About 38 hours fully wound — so it will usually stop if you leave it off overnight.
What size strap does it take?
22mm. Any strap of that width will fit, and on most modern watches quick-release bars make the swap a two-minute job with no tools.
Will it fit my wrist?
Lug-to-lug is 49.60mm, which suits wrists from roughly 16.5cm (6½ inches) upward.
Lug-to-lug decides fit more than case diameter does.
How to size a watch to your wristIs it a men's or women's watch?
Listed as unisex, and at this size it suits any wrist that takes the dimensions.
Cheapest place to buy
Both Mappin & Webb and Goldsmiths list it at £3,750, so choose on delivery and warranty rather than price.
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