Vianney Halter And The Antiqua Perpetual Calendar

Vianney Halter - an artist who became a watchmaker extraordinaire. His claim to fame? Well the Antiqua perpetual calendar of course!

I first saw the Antiqua way back when the Hour Glass was hosting Tempus in Singapore. And what a revelation it was for me. A totally unusual layout for a timepiece - with 4 windows. The watch can be described as somewhat “steampunk” style.

At first look, the shape is somewhat odd and it needs a little time to grow on you. From the picture, the watch looks big but actually is fits well onto the wrist. If you know the size of the Vianney Halter Classic you can see from the photo how big the timepiece actually is.

This example in yellow gold is rather rare… I understand there are more examples in rose rose.

First up the time “pothole”. At the top right hand corner is where the time is - the largest of the potholes. Typical Vianney styling.

The hands and dial is signature of VH.

To the left is the pothole that displays the days of the week.

The pothole at the bottom left corner displays the Leap Year indication and the Months of the Year.

And last but not least is the date display found and the bottom right to the right of the leap year/month indicator.

A rather interesting was to display all the information - not typical of perpetual calendars from other brands whose sub-dials are normally displayed at the 3, 6 and 9 o’clock positions. In this case, the display is not traditional which makes the timepieces more alluring.

The timepieces is also not as thick as one expects. Nice height too.

As for the movement side, another interesting feature - the “magic” rotor. Vianney patented the magic rotor - a slight shake and the rotor spins and winds the movement. Very well done!

The ribbing on the movement base plate gives the movement a nice finish. I only have one issue - Vianney could have used blued screws. Would have given the movement more “color”.

A close up of the movement. Nice but not the highest quality finish - still good though.

Overall an interesting timepiece. One more look at the Antiqua perpetual calendar.

If only I could afford it.

The Dark Knight Rises - Urwerk 105M

Just a couple of months ago, I was in Switzerland and met with one Mr. Baumgartner and here I am back in Singapore meeting with another Mr. Baumgartner - Felix Baumgartner of Urwerk together with Mr. Martin Frei for the launch of the Urwerk UR-105M.

Thanks to the Hourglass who hosted the luncheon at Au Petit Salut. We had a wonderful lunch starting with the Ballotine of Norwegian mackerel with Bergamot puree. A well paired combination.

Next up was the smoked chestnut and mushroom veloute. This soup was added with a touch of truffle vinaigrette.

For the main course, I chose the fish which in this instance was a Fillet of Snapper with cauliflower & white chocolate emulsion. I have to say that this was also a superb dish - done just right.

And the dessert was also wonderfully rich. Date and fig cake with chocolate.

The food was good but that was not why we were there. The main attraction were the timepieces - works of mechanical wonder. Present to unveil the watch were the dynamic duo, Felix Baumgartner and Martin Frei.

Named the Urwerk UR-105M, there are two versions - the Iron Knight (left) and the Dark Knight (right). The Iron Knight is encased in titanium and steel while the Dark Knight comes with a titanium case and a special aluminum treated steel bezel. First, the Iron Knight.

The 105M as with all Urwerk features the Satellite hours disc gliding along the minute scale at the bottom of the case. The crown is positioned at the 12 O'Clock. In the picture below, the time shown is 12:38. Notice at the right side of the display that you can probably see the seconds display just above the 5 minute mark.

What is special about this variation is the fact that the power reserve and the seconds are displayed at the side of the watch. Quite literally at the side.

And at the back of the watch, you find a skeleton head with a smiley face staring back at you. Called the "Control Board", the indicators will show you the power reserve as well as when an oil change is required and also how the watch can be fine tuned.

Felix and Martin are proud of the fact that their watches are "self" regulated and what is meant by "self regulated" is the fact that the 105M has a fine tuning adjustor at the "Control Board". With a simple screw driver like tool, one can adjust the watch to run faster or slower to suit the owner's profile. The indicator will show the adjusted position.

The Dark Knight on the other hand looks more handsome to me. Fully black, I feel this version adds a little more stealth to the whole watch.

According to Felix, their yearly production numbers will remain within 150 pieces and there are no plans to expand that number. They would like to keep the production to a manageable number.

Here another view of the satellite disc mechanism. Not only is the mechanism a technical feat, the material used for the discs have to be durable and lightweight. Urwerk uses a special PolyEtherEthercetone material for this disc.

The number of parts used for the 105M is not as much as the 110 but Felix says the production cost for the 105M comes very close to that of the 110.

Overall a well made technical feat that boasts many patents and the watch is very Urwerk. One more look at the 105M

I like the brand and what it stands for and hope to be able to get my hands on the 103 at some point in time.

Back to Basics - LM101 MB&F

So Max Busser was in town recently to launch the new Legacy Machine named LM101.

Back to basics is what the LM101 is - the "least" complicated piece by Max Busser and Friends. And what a beauty the 101 is. First. let's start with a comparison - the LM2 versus the LM101, side-by-side.

The LM101 is a very wearable 40mm bearing the hallmark of the LM series - a domed shaped sapphire glass and a suspended balance wheel.

The crown is at the four o'clock position and the dial displays the time and a power reserve. As with all LM art pieces, the dials are beautifully shiny and resembles enamel. But Max says they are not enamel but rather a special form of lacquer.

A closer look at the watch - the bottom dial is the power reserve.

And the case back - the hand wound movement signed by Max and Kari Voutilainen. Level of finish is what you would expect from an MB&F.

Another look at the watch - sorry for the poor quality of the pictures as it was taken in restaurant lighting. The timepiece is in white gold.

A final look at the LM101 in B&W. Understand the pricing is sub 90k SGD. A very beautifully crafted piece and one for the ladies too. Kudos to Max and his back to basics! Thanks to the Hour Glass for hosting the dinner.

That is Max unveiling the LM101 from his pouch. Congrats to a new wonderful art piece by MB&F!

Something is Brewing - MB&F

Max Busser was in town recently and we had the chance to have dinner with him.

And what for you might ask? Well, something is up for sure. For the time being, enjoy the shot of the LM2 that was on Max's wrist that night.

You may want to check out my blog on the LM2.

Count down… 7 days to go to a new Machine!

Thanks to the Hour Glass!

Ulysse Nardin - The New Anchor Escapement

Ulysse Nardin is a name in innovation and creativity - The Freak proved it many years ago and now they have moved ahead and there is more to come. Today, we got to see the new Anchor Escapement amongst other new innovations.

Ulysse Nardin opened their largest boutique in Asia in Singapore in partnership with The Hour Glass at the Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands. As part of their official opening, we were invited to witness a few new works. Presenting the new innovation was UN CEO Patrik Hoffmann and Datin Chai Schnyder, President of the Board of Directors. First off, the most innovative new escapement developed in-house by UN - the Anchor Escapement.

The new escapement is made from silicium and the pallet arms are suspended unlike in normal pallet arms. In the prototype above, the tourbillon is off centre.

According to Patrik, this is a prototype featuring the escapement on a tourbillon and so the focus was not of the rest of the watch. Notice how simple the dial is? Raw dial that is simple and uncluttered. Takes your attention straight to the tourbillon with the anchor escapement.

Pardon the poor pictures - taken in restaurant setting. The timepiece is so simple that I am so tempted to just take it home… if I only could! Patrik mentioned that the new escapement works with the tourbillon as well as with normal balance wheel. But it is likely the first iteration will come in the form of a flying tourbillon. For more information on the Anchor Escapement and a video presentation, please visit the UN Page.

The event also revealed that UN has developed 6 new in-house movements and within the next 3-4 years, more than 80% of their movements will be totally manufactured in-house. One of the in-house movement is featured in the Perpetual Manufacture.

Unlike the older version, this new Manufactured movement comes in a 43mm case in both rose gold and platinum. Seen here is the platinum version. Both will be limited to 250 examples each.

The movement is an automatic in-house UN-32 caliber that is chronometer certified. The feature of this perpetual calendar is the ability to adjust using the crown instead of the normal pushers. Windows make it more visible instead of some complicated sub-dials.

The big date is placed at the one o'clock while the two digit year is located at the six. Another signature of the UN Perpetual is the ability to forward or move backwards the hour hand by depressing the "+" and "-" push pieces at 4 and 8 o'clock. And the GMT hand in red can be used to indicate home time or a second time zone. The dial comes in a fish-scale motif. Very wearable at 43mm.

More to come on the new UN timepieces but I like to leave you with another look at the prototype watch featuring the new anchor escapement.

Patrik, please don't take apart the prototype. I like it just the way it is. Thanks to The Hour Glass for hosting the event.

De Bethune - My New Hero

De Bethune is a brand I am new to and the more I learn about the brand, the more I am liking it. Recently, The Hourglass hosted a luncheon to introduce the DB28 Digitale and the Dream Watch 5.

But I was busy busy busy and therefore had no time to post about the event. Only now having returned from a long trip do I have time to sit down and enjoy my hobby again. The lunch was hosted at Garibaldis and a rather small group of collectors and press. Here, is Pierre Jacques with Jim and Timmy with Prof Harry Tan in the background.

And while we were waiting for lunch to start and admire the new releases, I had the chance to admire someone's first generation De Bethune DB8 mono pusher chrono. The signature tear-drop lugs of De Bethune. 45 minute counter at six with the centre sweeping seconds. Beautifully finished - another feature of the brand.

And when the lunch started, the watches were rotated around the table. Appearing in front of me was the perpetual calendars.

The trio was mesmerizing and I love the way De Bethune does the perpetual calendars. Only a few brands display them the way they do - using windows instead of sub-dials. I find the windows easier to read whereas sub-dials if not properly done crowds the entire dial.

First the DB16QP. This is the rose gold version of the perpetual calendar. Very legible and beautifully crafted. Another signature of the brand is the three dimensional moon at twelve.

And the open case back displaying the calibre DB2509 manual winding movement with a 4 day power reserve. The boomerang bridge is another signature of the brand.

And a special Limited Edition salmon dial version of the DB25QP.

A closer look at the salmon dial version. According to Pierre, salmon dials will only be used for their platinum series and will be limited.

The timepiece comes with an automatic Calibre DB 2324QP with 5 days power reserve. And for a watch that is 44mm, it wears comfortably as the lugs are another special feature of De Bethune.

And now, the pièce de résistance… The DB29 mono pusher chronograph tourbillon. The mono pusher chrono has a centre display - very unusual and definitely more complicated to make. And then to add a tourbillon? Well if this is not complicated, I don't know what is.

The timepiece comes with a hunter case. The tourbillon is featured at the back. As with all DB timepieces, they are immaculately finished.

The dial features a 24 hours chrono indicator, 60 minute counter and also a 60 seconds counter. The minutes hand indicator is a rose gold hand but I had not activated the chrono function and therefore it is hidden behind the blue seconds hand.

Then the feature of the event - the DB28 Digitale. Another unusual display - a digital hour indicator at twelve and a three dimensional moon at the centre. The minute indicator is a revolving disc. The dial is a hand-guilloché barleycorn motif - flawless in my opinion. Crown is found at the twelve.

A closer look at the window between nine and three features a blue sky depiction complete with stars. The moon is right at the centre with a two hemisphere three dimensional moon - one in palladium and the other flame-blued steel.

The back features the Calibre DB 2144 which is a manual winding in-house movement featuring a 5 day power reserve. The level of finishing it outstanding - I have come to expect nothing less from De Bethune.

The Dream Watch 5 was also unveiled but due to the conditions in the restaurant, I was not able to take a decent shot. Not that these are good shots but under the circumstances and with a point and shoot, that's the best I could muster.

The Dream Watch series brings horology to a different level - reinterpretation of what horology is to De Bethune with a twist of art. With DW 5, the artistic side of De Bethune comes alive in their creation playing with shapes and complications. For more information, please visit www.debethune.ch.

For me, the DB29 Maxichrono was the highlight, not that I can afford it. Pricing is always an issue when it comes to De Bethune. Definitely out of my reach. But I still hope - hope that one day I will own a De Bethune. In the meantime, I continue to dream that someone out there might be kind enough to present me one as a gift. Wishful thinking but then again, who knows.

Thanks to The Hourglass for hosting the event.