Vacheron & Constantin 4217

     The Patek Phillipe reference 96 is having a bit of a resurgence right now. Especially when you consider steel examples coupled with Breguet numerals. After all, the 96 is the quintessential wrist watch. Its been said but bares repeating: if you were to ask someone to draw a watch on a piece of paper they'd draw a 96.      So why bring up the Patek Phillipe ref. 96 in a listing for a Vacheron & Constantin? Well, the two Maisons have more in common than just sitting together atop traditional swiss watchmaking's mount Everest. The Patek 96 and its bigger brother 570 were created by a case manufacturer by the name of Antoine Gerlach - the same gentleman who designed the cases for the Vacheron 4073 and 4217.      Taking a look at these two references, the 4073 and 4217, we can see a number of similarities with the 96 and 570. We have a 3 piece case design that features a number of beautiful contrasting finishes. Theres the smooth, flat bezel that sits on top of the lugs. We have a