Front view
Dial, hands and bezel as delivered.
Case-back view
Case-back engraving and, where fitted, the sapphire display.
Movement
Calibre with its finishing and decoration.
On the wrist
Worn shot for proportion and strap drape.
Roger Dubuis · Velvet
Roger Dubuis Velvet 38 mm Slate 18k
Reference 28513OR.42
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Roger Dubuis
- Collection
- Velvet
- Model
- Roger Dubuis Velvet 38 mm Slate 18k
- Reference number
- 28513OR.42
- Year / era
- 1995 · 1990s — mechanical revival
- Complication
- Chronograph
- Movement
- In-house automatic with 22k gold rotor
- Case material
- 18k white gold
- Dial type
- Slate grey
- Strap / bracelet
- Alligator leather with folding clasp
- Water resistance
- 300 m
- Limited-edition status
- Regular production, not a limited edition
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 38 mm
- Case thickness
- 14.1 mm
- Case material
- 18k white gold
- Bezel
- Smooth polished
- Crystal
- Box sapphire with AR coating
- Dial
- Slate grey
- Hands
- Faceted dauphine hands, polished by hand
- Indexes
- Printed minute track with applied batons
- Bracelet / strap
- Alligator leather with folding clasp
- Clasp / buckle
- Titanium deployant clasp
- Water resistance
- 300 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 19B — In-house automatic with 22k gold rotor
- Movement type
- High-frequency automatic
- Frequency
- 28,800 vph (4 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 38 hours
- Number of jewels
- 27 jewels
- Complications
- Chronograph
- Functions
- Annual calendar, moon phase
- Watchmaker
- Assembled and regulated by a single watchmaker, who signs off the piece before casing.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1995 – 2011
- Limited-edition quantity
- Not applicable
- Current market information
- Consistently trades above retail; waiting lists at authorised dealers remain long.
Designer
Marc Newson
Marc Newson is an Australian industrial designer whose work spans Qantas cabins, Apple hardware and Jaeger-LeCoultre's Atmos clocks; his watch design reduces the object to pure geometry and legibility.
Historical significance
Roger Dubuis Velvet 38 mm Slate 18k sits within Roger Dubuis's Velvet line, introduced in 1995. It carries the house codes established since 1995 — 18k white gold case, slate grey dial and in-house automatic with 22k gold rotor — and is one of the references collectors use to date the evolution of the collection.
Interesting facts
- The movement's bridges are decorated even where they will never be seen once the watch is cased.
- Early production dials show a slightly different minute track, and collectors pay a premium for them.
The House
Roger Dubuis
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 1995
- Founder
- Roger Dubuis & Carlos Dias
- Headquarters
- Switzerland
- Tier
- Ultra-Luxury & Haute Horlogerie
- Major collections
- Excalibur, Excalibur Spider, Velvet, Monovortex, Knights of the Round Table
- Signature technologies
- Hand-applied guilloché dials · In-house hairspring production · Composite and ceramic case materials
- Famous movements
- In-house tourbillon, manual-winding · In-house automatic micro-rotor · In-house automatic with 22k gold rotor · In-house manual-winding, hand-finished
- Notable watches
- Roger Dubuis Excalibur 40 mm Black 18k (1995) · Roger Dubuis Excalibur 43 mm Silvered Sapphire (1995) · Roger Dubuis Excalibur 39 mm Silvered Sapphire (1995) · Roger Dubuis Excalibur 38 mm Blue 18k (1995)
Brand history
Roger Dubuis has spent more than 31 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's Excalibur, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
Roger Dubuis & Carlos Dias established Roger Dubuis in 1995, working from Switzerland at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every Roger Dubuis calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
1995
Roger Dubuis & Carlos Dias founds Roger Dubuis in Switzerland.
2024
Roger Dubuis continues to produce Excalibur, Excalibur Spider, Velvet and other icons in limited numbers.