WRX Ralf Tech

A watch born from a world record scuba dive

Ralf Tech's WRX watch is the first designed by the Franco-Swiss brand, and it's also the one that launched the company - founded in 1996 by professional diver Franck Huyghe - into the watchmaking business. The first? Not quite, actually. In 2005, Ralf Tech was a company specializing in professional scuba diving equipment. On July 5, off Propriano, in Corsica, Pascal Bernabé is preparing to push the limits of autonomous descent. To beat - and validate - the world record set at 318 meters below the surface, the explorer is equipped with a watch specially designed by Ralf Tech for the occasion. At 330 meters, the record is broken, for the diver as well as for the watch, which will therefore be named WR1 (World Record 1). "No watch created by an existing watch brand had ever gone down so deep in a real situation. No professional equipment company has ever been so high up in the halls of the watchmaking world. The event resulted in the launch of a 500-piece series, followed by an edition of 330 WRK1n the next year. This world record and the feat of both watchmaking and technology above all marks a turning point for Ralf Tech: in 2008, the company abandons all its other activities to devote itself exclusively to watchmaking, equipping both professionals in underwater work and members of the special forces with watches. The WRX watch is actually already designed. For Franck Huyghe and his team, it will be the watch that puts on track "an ambitious project to design, develop, manufacture and distribute timepieces of character, both accurate, reliable and robust, tested by professionals."

Multiple series, but limited editions

The WRX was indeed born in 2007, from a feedback of the 2005 world record on the technical side and on the WR1, while Franck Huygue took the pencil to design a watch mixing cushion shapes and round shapes. The powerful and timeless design of the WRX is thus combined with the best technical features. Initially intended for professionals, the WRX watch appeals far beyond, so much so that it goes beyond the usual watchmaking criteria. While many variations have seen the light of day since 2008, each model is edited in small numbered series, so the WRX remains a rare watch. The mechanical self-winding movement of the WRX Millenium (developed with the help of French Navy operators), which displays a 4Hz frequency and a 44-hour power reserve, sometimes gives way to an exclusive Electric movement. The WRX Electric Original series and its Ocean and Tundra versions are, moreover, the most affordable, displayed at a new price of €1900, when that of a Chronosunset or Chronoday and their self-winding mechanical chronograph movement reaches €4900. For the technical performances or for the look, the WRX watch leaves a large choice of models, new or second hand. For the amateurs, there are special series like the WRX 1963 Automatic Royale.