Description

The present reference is the F.P. Journe Centigraphe Sport Ref. CTS2/CT2, a technical and highly distinctive chronograph conceived around the pursuit of extreme precision. Housed within the LineSport collection, it translates one of François-Paul Journe’s most celebrated mechanisms into a lightweight, contemporary titanium format, combining the Maison’s uncompromising mechanical ingenuity with the comfort and resilience of an integrated sports watch.

Its 44 mm grade 5 titanium case and matching bracelet measure only 11 mm in height, giving the Centigraphe an unexpectedly slim and wearable profile for such a mechanically involved chronograph. The titanium construction keeps the complete watch to approximately 81 grams, while the bezel incorporates a ceramic inlay for additional durability. The integrated bracelet is equally considered: its articulated first links allow it to adapt naturally to the wrist, while the folding clasp offers approximately 5 mm of adjustment.

The present execution is distinguished by its slate-grey aluminium-alloy dial, a modern and purposeful contrast to the more traditionally finished precious-metal variants. Applied luminous indexes and numerals ensure immediate readability, while the three sapphire chronograph registers give the display an architectural, technical depth. Oversized steel hands filled with luminous material indicate the hours and minutes, complemented by vivid red-lacquered titanium hands for the chronograph indications.

At its heart is the hand-wound Calibre 1506, an extraordinary 284-component movement specifically developed to measure elapsed intervals from one hundredth of a second to ten minutes. In the titanium version, the movement is constructed in aluminium alloy, contributing to the model’s exceptional lightness. Measuring 34.40 mm in diameter and 5.60 mm thick, it is regulated by a free-sprung balance with four adjustable inertia weights and an Anachron balance spring, operating at 21,600 vibrations per hour.

The Centigraphe’s chronograph display is unlike that of any conventional chronograph. A central hand completes one revolution each second, allowing the wearer to read intervals to one hundredth of a second. The counter at 2 o’clock records up to 20 seconds, while the register at 6 o’clock totals elapsed time to ten minutes. The one-second chronograph display is positioned at 10 o’clock, creating a dial that is as dynamic as it is technically informative.

Most significantly, the chronograph is controlled not by conventional pushers flanking the crown, but through an ergonomic rocker integrated into the caseband at 2 o’clock. This patented system starts, stops, and resets the mechanism through a single intuitive control. A second patented construction isolates the chronograph train from the timekeeping train, ensuring that activation of the chronograph does not reduce the balance amplitude or compromise the watch’s rate stability.

The separate chronograph trains are driven directly by the mainspring, with individual mechanisms serving the high-speed hundredth-of-a-second display, the 20-second register, and the 10-minute counter. The movement provides approximately 80 hours of power reserve with the chronograph disengaged, or around 24 hours with the chronograph running continuously. Its finishing includes circular striping on the bridges, circular graining on the baseplate, polished screw heads with chamfered slots, polished pegs, and straight-grained steel components.

The F.P. Journe Centigraphe Sport is therefore not simply a sporting reinterpretation of a classical chronograph. It is a rare example of mechanical design pursued from first principles: lighter, more ergonomic, and technically isolated from the timekeeping organ. With its slate-grey dial, red chronograph hands, titanium construction, and uniquely expressive calibre, the Ref. CTS2/CT2 stands among the most compelling high-performance creations in contemporary independent horology.

F.P. Journe – Bio

François-Paul Journe was born in Marseille in 1959. An unruly child, he was sent to a local technical college at the age of 14. He went on to graduate from the Paris watchmaking school in 1976.
In 1982, after five years of work, he finished his tourbillon – and it work !
He founded the F.P. Journe company in 1999, have ever since stunned the world year after year with the visually distinctive and technically innovative watches
The motto of the brand, Invenit et Fecit (Latin for “[He] invented it and made it”) denotes that the company builds the entirety of the watches. Journe often designs brand new movements, even inventing completely new systems, like the famous resonance chronometer.