Héli Reymond Green Setting chronograph Valjoux 234

This piece is truly unique, featuring the Valjoux 234 "Green Setting" movement, visible through the exhibition case back, as originally intended by the factory.

The "Green Setting" refers to a more affordable variant of the Valjoux 234 movement, where green plastic bearings were used for the balance, resulting in a reduced jewel count of just 13. It's certainly an unusual. One can only speculate that it was a cost-cutting measure. Given that many of these Héli Reymond "Green Setting" chronographs feature exhibition case backs, it seems they may have intended to highlight this new solution, which is likely why the movement was also gold-plated. And such a case backs from those days were rare.

It almost seems as though the watch was specifically made for this movement. If anyone has more information on these, please get in touch! However, it's clear that the design itself isn't original, as the same dial and hands configuration was used by Mathey Tissot chronographs.

I have found multiple dial variations of this model - green, purple, white, and blue.