So the thing I've always known as a "tension ring" people call a "rehaut". I looked that up and it's a ring inside the crystal that is large, decorative, and usually has junk engraved or printed on it.

Why do people use it to mean "tension ring", the thing holding the crystal in?

Tom

 

I remember this one:

https://omegaforums.net/threads/tension-ring-please-explain.108353/

 

Rehaut is a french noun formed from the verb rehausser. The latter means to raise, to elevate, to enhance. So the reason the noun is used for the part of the watch framing the dial is self explanatory.

Edit: Maybe I should add that a rehaut may also serve as a tension ring, but not all rehauts are tension rings and vice versa. So it is not a synonym for tension ring.

 

My understanding is that the rehaut is the part of the case extending from the dial to the crystal. A tension ring is actually inside the rim of a plastic crystal. It may have the same inner diameter as the rehaut and may even appear to be the same surface but it is in fact a separate surface. When you remove a crystal with a tension ring, it becomes obvious.

 

It most bothers me when people talk about a "rehaut" in a Speedmaster. There is no such thing, it's a tension ring.

Tom

 

Excellent. One less horological myth I will be perpetuating...

 

Speedmaster with a Rehaut

 

Why? Because it's black? Whatever is sloped, is framing the dial and is beneath the crystal can be called a rehaut.

 

And this is EXACTLY what drives me nuts. No, it can't.

Tom

 

Yes, exactly!

Tom