RGM Model 501-PC “Perpetual Calendar”

The RGM Model 501-PC Perpetual Calendar is a watch we have wanted to make for many years.

It marks an important return for RGM, being our first perpetual calendar since the Model 103-R Minute Repeater Perpetual of the late 1990s. For me, bringing a perpetual calendar back into the RGM collection has always been something I wanted to accomplish. It is a complicated and demanding form of watchmaking, but it is also one that represents so much of what I value about traditional horology.

The design is unmistakably RGM—classical in character, restrained in its proportions, and rooted in the traditions of watchmaking. The fired enamel dial is inspired by perpetual calendar pocket watches from the late 1890s, a period when complicated watches were made with a wonderful combination of technical ingenuity and elegance.

Paired with blued steel hands, the enamel dial takes on an especially distinctive character. The deep blue of the hands against the white enamel recalls the old-world craftsmanship of fine pocket watches, where every detail was considered not only for its function, but for its beauty as well.

I have always felt that a good watch should have a sense of permanence to it. It should not look as though it belongs to only one particular moment in time. With the 501-PC, we wanted to create something that could have been appreciated generations ago, while still being unmistakably an RGM watch made today.

The combination of the fired enamel dial, blued steel hands, classical design, and perpetual calendar gives the watch a quiet presence. There is beauty in the simplicity of the design, but also a great deal of watchmaking beneath it.

For us, the 501-PC is not simply a new model. It is a continuation of an idea that has been part of our work for decades: to look to the great traditions of watchmaking for inspiration, and then interpret those traditions through our own hands and our own time.

The result is a watch deeply connected to the past, made for the present, and intended to endure well into the future.

The RGM Model 501-PC is, in many ways, exactly the kind of watch we have always wanted to make.

Movement Caliber:  RGM-ETA 2892-A2 - Swiss Automatic modified by RGM with custom DD Perpetual Calendar, RGM Solid gold winding rotor, and automatic winding system; 21 jewels, 28,800 vph. Rhodium finish - Côte de Genève lines and perlage. 52 to 56-hour power reserve.

Functions: Hour / Minute / Second / Date on some models

Hands: Blued steel Pear-style

Case: American-made 316L Stainless Steel, 39 mm x 11.5 mm over crystal, sapphire crystal; front is a raised box style, 20mm lug width, and water-resistant to 5-ATM. Case length from lug end to lug end: 48mm. Brushed and Polished

Weight: 2.5 oz. in stainless steel

Movement choice

For our Model 501-PC Perpetual Calendar, we wanted a movement that would not only be exceptionally reliable, but could also be serviced and repaired for decades to come.

We also wanted something that looked substantially better than a standard ETA 2892-A2. To achieve this, we started with the proven 2892-A2 architecture and removed the automatic bridges, automatic bearing, and winding rotor.

We then replaced the original bridges with ones featuring a smaller rotor-bearing diameter. This creates a significant visual improvement, opening up the movement and giving it a much more refined appearance. We went one step further by making a solid-gold winding rotor to complete the movement.

For the perpetual calendar, we commissioned a custom module from Dubois-Depraz, incorporating a four-year rotation hand for the month indication—a configuration commonly used in traditional perpetual calendars.

We chose Dubois-Depraz for its extensive experience with perpetual calendar mechanisms and its reputation for reliability.

The result is a movement that combines proven reliability and serviceability with the beauty and character we wanted for the Model 501-PC. It is a movement designed not only to perform exceptionally well today, but to remain serviceable and relevant for generations to come.

Model 501-PC: Enamel dial $39,900.