Rado Skeleton Auto Plasma

Making the case for high-tech ceramics

Inventors of the first scratch-resistant watch (the DiaStar, 1962) Rado has been synonymous with forward-thinking engineering and design ever since, further underlined by this year’s Skeleton Auto Plasma: a watch as stark as it is subtle. The skeletonised, or “open-worked”, movement features a cutaway plate and bridge, revealing the mesmerising inner workings. This contrasts with its ceramic casing, fired at 1,450°C then sandblasted and finished to create a super-hard, high-tech, matte black case that’s undisputedly manly.

“The first collection was presented under the Rado name in 1957, and the brand has always had the pioneering vision of creating watches that look good for a lifetime,” says company CEO Matthias Breschan.

Using monobloc technology, the Skeleton Auto Plasma is — unlike ceramic watches of the past that featured a steel “heart” — made entirely of ceramic. The complex process involves white ceramic blasted with mixed gasses at 20,000°C, forcing its molecular structure to change from white to metallic, giving, as Breschan says, “a warm metallic colour”, without using any metal.

On top of the ceramic alchemy, the Skeleton Auto Plasma boasts a Swissmade automatic movement with 80-hour power reserve, a smoked antireflective, scratch-resistant sapphire crystal face, and is water-resistant to 50m.

“Quality and value is very important for Rado,” says Breschan. “Before shipping, each watch is inspected by hand. We test the water-resistance of every timepiece, the timekeeping precision of the movement in five different positions and conduct a visual test to make sure every piece is flawless.”

With a sturdy 42mm case and a three-row polished plasma, high-tech ceramic-titanium, three-fold clasp bracelet, this is a watch that, at less than £2,500 is built to be worn. Alongside the Auto Plasma, the brand is releasing a new range of HyperChrome models in “ultra-light high-tech ceramic”, which has, says Breschan, “all the properties of high-tech ceramic — scratch-resistant, comfortable to wear, hypoallergenic — but is even lighter and harder.

At Rado, we believe this is the material of the future.” Finlay Renwick

£2,380; rado.com