Saxonia Thin 37mm Review.

[MJaber]

After almost 3 months since I got my first Lange I believe I’m able to give my full honest review on this timepiece. I usually form a full opinion within the first two weeks but due to the simplicity of this watch, I wanted to see whether I would eventually get bored or grow tired of it.

The first thing that drew me to this model is its price point. I’m not a person who usually skimps on money when I really want something, but the relatively reasonable pricing on this watch from one of the finest Manufacture really got me interested in taking a closer look. And boy was I surprised! Everything about the Saxonia Thin is perfect, from the case, lugs, dial and the overall finish. My heart was set and I took the plunge. There is something so satisfying about this watch, you know that your watch was constructed and finished just as meticulously as the most expensive Lange ever made. This speaks volume of what Lange thinks of all its customer regardless of their purchasing power and their commitment to this craft.

At 37mm the Saxonia is on the smaller side by today’s standards. However, the watch certainly does not feel small thanks to how brilliantly the dial is laid out. With very little to work with, the chances of a design flaw showing is very high. Stripping down a watch to the purist form of timekeeping is no easy task. The skills required to get the details right by having the various elements flow together without disrupting the purity of the watch is on another level. The hands are beautifully polished and are of the perfect length – nothing worse than an hour hand too long or a minute hand too short- while the gold applied markers each have 8 different surfaces that are masterfully polished. The positioning of each of those markers on the mesmerizing silver argente dial and their interaction with the hands is a fine display of harmony.

With a thickness of 5.9mm it is indeed thin. Yet, as with every Lange, there is this beautiful heft to the watch that screams quality and wears very nicely on a wrist- certainly feels balanced as it doesn’t fade away nor is it overbearing. The case is made of 18k pink gold and alternates between polished and brushed. The finishing is nothing short of artful and flows cohesively. I personally find the contrast between the two finishes makes the case much more interesting than some Lange cases that are entirely polished. There is a certain charm in knowing that a watchmaker spent more time carefully applying two different finishing on the case

This beauty is powered by Lange’s thinnest movement, Calibre L093.1. I won’t get into the movement as I lack the technical knowledge to talk about construction and what not. However, I can comment on beauty as the finishing is exceptional- I am yet to see a watch from any of the Big 3 at any price point with the same level of tasteful finishing. Three polished gold chatons are held down by blued screws, the Glashutte ribbing is deep and creamy, while plate edges along with blued screws slots are meticulously chamfered and polished. The swan-neck regulator and the escapment wheel cap are flat polished. While the balance cock- the highlight of every Lange movement- is uniquely engraved with traditional Glashutte floral patterns that give each watch an identity of its own. Also, for those of us who are not entirely sold on a ¾ plate hiding every bit of the movement- the ratchet and crown wheels are both visible and are superbly finished, including the pikes.

To achieve such an expression in purity takes a lot of determination and focus. It’s so easy to fill up a watch with a date window, minute tracks, subdials or even add a seconds hand. True talent is to create something so meaningful and complete with so very little. This watch achieves that.

After 3 months of wearing this watch, I find myself falling in-love with it even more by the day. The joy I derive from wearing it is difficult to describe. I spent countless hours just admiring those perfectly polished markers and smiling gleefully at how light dances on all those surfaces while the minute hand elegantly passes. It is a grounding and romantic experience. In terms of versatility, I was pleasantly surprised how after the NYC boutique so generously put blue straps on, the watch become more suited to be dressed down to semi-casual. Its certainly not a strictly black-tie watch and is more than happy to be your daily companion.

Apologies if this is long and thank you for reading!

Moe

[mario belgium]

Thank you for your review off a very classy watch

[Maxtor]

Great review. Enjoy that beautiful watch!

[Marcela]

Congratulations!!! Enjoy for the longest time, and thank you for sharing :-)

[AlexFrank]

Congratulations in a very classy watch also the background paintings are a beauty. Vincent Van Gogh one of my favorite post-impressionist painters/artist.

[JZD]

Great review. Thank you.

[ragingcao]

Excellent review. You nailed it.
My WG says hi

[wisguy]

Enjoy it, as I do mine.

[Gharddog03]

Beautiful piece!!!

[wach16]

Great write up and nice watch!

[scarlet knight]

Maybe I have bad reading comprehension. Is the original poster’s watch rose gold or yellow gold?

I have a Patek Calatrava in yellow gold which is in the same genre, so I admire this Lange.

[MJaber]

Originally Posted by scarlet knight

Maybe I have bad reading comprehension. Is the original poster’s watch rose gold or yellow gold?

I have a Patek Calatrava in yellow gold which is in the same genre, so I admire this Lange.

Rose Gold. This watch only comes in Rose or White gold. no Yellow gold.

[MJaber]

Originally Posted by ragingcao

Excellent review. You nailed it.
My WG says hi

a beauty! wear it in good health!

[rossi46]

Great review. Spot on about the length of the hands-sometimes, it's the littlest of details.

Love the blue strap on it, too!

[J Scott]

Thanks for sharing! Much appreciated!

Best,

Scott

[Divie1]

Achingly beautiful and a great review!

[woodsworth]

That is a bloody looker, and a bargain for what you get.

That could easily be a "one nice watch." Of course, you'd still need some sort of beater for yard duties ;>

[Burlington]

Thanks for sharing - stunning watch !

[Frits1980]

Great review. I have it in WG for 2 months now. Still have to get used to it, its my first real dress watch. Its a bit small on my '7inch wrist but just something to get a bit used to i guess. The strap do is a bit of a problem. I'm using the second last hole for the pin so thats something to consider if your wrist is '7+

I have a question about winding the watch. Is there a clear stop or should i stop when i feel resistence? At the moment i just give it 15 to 20 winds and stop once the watch start running.

[tryptobphan]

Originally Posted by Frits1980

I have a question about winding the watch. Is there a clear stop or should i stop when i feel resistence? At the moment i just give it 15 to 20 winds and stop once the watch start running.

Like most, if not all, manual watches, you keep winding until you feel a resistance. There will be a clear resistance once you reach the end of the winds, it will feel too tough to wind any more. Seriously, just keep winding until you feel a tough stop, it's very different from the normal winds once you reach the end. The watch will tell you when to stop because of this tough resistance. Once you reach this point, just release the crown and wait another 1, 2, or 3 days to wind again.

If you ever had/have an Omega Speedmaster Professional Moonwatch or a Nomos Glashutte watch, then it's exactly like that, however, these watches only have a power reserve of 48 hours and 42 hours, respectively.

Most watches have a power of 36-42 hours so you have to wind every morning or day and a half, which is kind of annoying. But the 72 hours for this watch is quite generous. I've been leaving mine on for more than 3 days and it's still sticking... it's actually more than 72 hours, so I'm not sure how long its power reserve actually is.

Also, you're right about the sizing on your wrist. It's absolutely perfect for my 6.5" wrist, but the I'm using the middle hole in the strap. I don't know what it'd be like if my wrist was any bigger. With that said, even with a 7" wrist, I'm sure it still looks very traditional on your wrist. I think that the modern and contemporary trend is giant watches, however, the traditional look is that of a smaller watch on your wrist, aka having a watch that does not overpower your wrist, yet elegant enough for a true wrist presence.

You can check out people wearing the Patek Philippe 5119R (36mm diameter and like 43mm lug to lug or something similar), very small on the wrist, but absolute wrist presence due to its design.

Lastly, you can go to your Authorized Dealer and put in an order for a larger strap from A. Lange & Sohne for about ~$475 if you need a larger strap, which it seems like you might need. That would annoy me. Or you can just buy a new strap from a third party and change it yourself, however, it feels like the lugs width is 19mm so it's hard to find straps with that measurement.

You should do a review on it after another month. I'm curious what other owners think of it. I'll probably write one up later since I've only had mine for a week.

EDIT: I just read your post from May 2, 2018 asking this question about the crown "rolling back" during manual winds. Out of curiosity, since my watch has gone way over its 72 hours of power reserve and still ticking, I figured I'd wind the watch a few times to see this "rolling back" mechanic you asked about. The answer is "Yes", it happens on mine, too. I can see it happening when I let go of the crown even after a single or a couple winds. This happens at the end of a full wind for my Omega Speedmaster Professional and Nomos Club as they reach the end of their full winds. This is actually pretty cool, it's a unique mechanic I haven't seen in another manual watch before. In any case, you can just wind it up until you feel a true resistance at the end like you would on your Omega Speedmaster (you mention you had one in the post at the beginning of May).

[Frits1980]

Thank you for your reply. Yes i have a speedmaster and as instructed i did wind it till got to a clear stop. I remember winding it about 80 turns before i finaly got to the clear stop. However, right after i found out my mainspring was broken. I'm now getting a slipping sound after every 10/15 turns and getting 8/9 hours max power reserve out of it. Still have to get it serviced.

So i'm carefull with the Saxonia. I bought it to use as a pure dress watch so i'm only using it when going out at night wearing a suit so the max power reserve isnt realy important for me. 15/20 turns gives it 2/3 days power so thats perfectly ok.

I do not have a problem with the 37mm. Its a pure dress watch so for me it should be relatively small. Although it looks a bit funny for a moment when putting it on right after wearing for example my 43mm Bathyscape.

As for the strap. Its at the limit but no need to switch now. When its time to change the strap i will get the larger one. But like i said if your wrist is bigger then '7 opt for the larger strap as the standard strap wont fit you.

Its a beautiful watch and in my opinion the bang for the buck if you are looking for a pure dress watch. Its cheaper/less expensive then the calatrava and patrimony while certainly not less in terms of quality and look.

[tryptobphan]

Originally Posted by Frits1980

Thank you for your reply. Yes i have a speedmaster and as instructed i did wind it till got to a clear stop. I remember winding it about 80 turns before i finaly got to the clear stop. However, right after i found out my mainspring was broken. I'm now getting a slipping sound after every 10/15 turns and getting 8/9 hours max power reserve out of it. Still have to get it serviced.

So i'm carefull with the Saxonia. I bought it to use as a pure dress watch so i'm only using it when going out at night wearing a suit so the max power reserve isnt realy important for me. 15/20 turns gives it 2/3 days power so thats perfectly ok.

I do not have a problem with the 37mm. Its a pure dress watch so for me it should be relatively small. Although it looks a bit funny for a moment when putting it on right after wearing for example my 43mm Bathyscape.

As for the strap. Its at the limit but no need to switch now. When its time to change the strap i will get the larger one. But like i said if your wrist is bigger then '7 opt for the larger strap as the standard strap wont fit you.

Its a beautiful watch and in my opinion the bang for the buck if you are looking for a pure dress watch. Its cheaper/less expensive then the calatrava and patrimony while certainly not less in terms of quality and look.

Sorry to hear about your Omega Speedmaster. Hopefully it gets fixed up soon. I love it, so I can only imagine how it feels having it not working properly.

And I think the Saxonia Thin looks really nice on your wrist. Shame about the strap, but yes, you can always get a larger size when you bring it into the AD or something next time. Good recommendation for anyone with a 7"+ wrist, too.

[MJaber]

Originally Posted by Frits1980

Great review. I have it in WG for 2 months now. Still have to get used to it, its my first real dress watch. Its a bit small on my '7inch wrist but just something to get a bit used to i guess. The strap do is a bit of a problem. I'm using the second last hole for the pin so thats something to consider if your wrist is '7+

I have a question about winding the watch. Is there a clear stop or should i stop when i feel resistence? At the moment i just give it 15 to 20 winds and stop once the watch start running.

Congrats on your watch! wear it with pride!

regarding winding, just turn it around and look at the movement while youre winding and you'll notice that w the ratchet wheel is always stoped by the click after every turn. once you've fully wound the watch the ratchet wheel will simply not turn anymore and thats when you stop!
it'll take a fair amount of force to actually break it so once it stops turning, youre good to go!

[wisguy]

Wind it slowly, I was wound mine very fast and the clock wheel jumped the teeth and I had a hard time getting back into place.

Make sure to always turn the crown half a turn in the opposite direction after moving it forward, this way you can feel the resistance that indicates the click engaged properly.

[chloebear]

Thanks for the outstanding write up. As I am looking at this exact watch, can you comment on if you still have it and your thought after several years of ownership? Please share more pictures please. Thank you!

[NatiLad79]

A classic looking time piece

[Sulituan]

Beautiful!

[mdtddd2007]

Beautiful watch! Great write ups!

[Robine]

Nice watch!

Re size - how much larger should a flat, time-only watch be?? It covers almost the entire wrist of the OP.

[gliazzurri]

such a classic timepiece from a phenomenal brand.