Vintage AP Royal Oak Jumbo vs Richard Mille RM033: 1972 Audemars Piguet Royal Oak 5402,

Contact tmosso@thewatchbox.com for pricing and availability; Either I have it, or I can get it! Ultra Thin Audemars Piguet and Richard Mille sports watches go head-to-head in today’s “Mini Versus” watch comparison. Tim Mosso takes watch buyers on a tour of ultra thin luxury watches that span the four decades between Audemar Piguet’s famed 1972 Royal Oak Jumbo 5402 “Extra Thin” and Richard Mille’s RM033 “Extra Flat” RM 033 automatic sports watch. Both are automatic sports watches with 7mm profiles, rabidly loyal watch collector communities, and base metal construction. The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak sprung from the mind of designer Gerald Genta to the floor of Baselworld (Then the “watch and jewelry show”) in 1972. Crafted from stainless steel and priced like solid gold, the Royal Oak “Jumbo,” so-called for its then large 39mm size, was a polemic in steel directed at the quotidian sports watches of its day. Only 7mm thick and powered by a Jaeger LeCoultre based Audemars Piguet caliber 212 automatic, the Royal Oak 5402 was a revolutionary watch. Genta’s Royal Oak sparked a revolution in watch design as competing firms including Patek Philippe and Vacheron Constantin rushed to issue responses to Genta’s provocative Royal Oak “Jumbo” A fully integrated bracelet by noted specialists Gay Freres added additional appeal for watch buyers, and Audemars Piguet opened this new era in its history by introducing the alpha-numeric serial numbering system that remains in use to this day; t