Linde Werdelin The One 2.6

Linde Linde Linde. I been wanting one of these suckers for a long time and I finally made it happen with a Linde Werdelin The One 2.6. The heart and soul that goes into the engineering of Linde Werdelins designs is second to none. The watches are designed as pure sport timepieces that allow conversion to an instrument using the indentations on the side of the cases to hold the dive and ski instruments that Linde also makes.

The Linde Werdelin The One 2.6 has an imposing case size of 46 x 49mm, and it shows. The watch is a beat on the wrist, but due to the sleek case shape and angles, it doesnt stick out from the wrist but instead molds to the curvature of the wrist very well. The unidirectional dive bezel has superluminova dots painted onto it, which gives it a neat look.

The strap is held on by two hex screws for each side of strap. They are easily removed with the hex tool that is provided with every Linde Werdelin watch. The strap removal screws are the ones that are located on the watch case, not the ones located on the bracelet. The screws on the bracelet are used to hold the strap retention bars on the strap itself.

The watch is meticulously crafted, with every faceted surface perfect and finished immaculately. Even the surface underneath where the straps mount is perfectly bead blasted with a finish that is the same as the caseback which gives it a sense of perfection. One thing is for certain: Linde Werdelin takes price in their cases.

The dial is a matte black, with large SuperLuminova indices that glow like a hot damn. They are fantastic. The 2.6 has a nice chapter ring also outfitted with some SuperLuminova and seconds markers. The bezel is very easy to turn and quite functional, with nice grippy indentations cut crisply into the edge another hallmark of precision casemaking. The bezel is pressure fit, not screwed in.

The armadillo style bracelet is VERY nicely finished as well. At $750 it is not a cheap bracelet, but still about half the price of a Breitling Pilot or Navitimer bracelet. The links are pinned, not screwed, which I would have liked to see. Nice signed and hidden double butterfly clasp with pressure release buttons tucked away on the sides. The bracelet is semi-rigid and while comfortable, is not the most comfortable I have worn. I like to wear the Linde a bit looser than other bracelets because of this.

The One 2.6 is water resistant to 1000 ft, not too shabby. It also houses a ETA 2892-A2 movement, without too much extras. Linde will be making a switch to Concepto movements in the future I have read. The watch keeps spot on time, which is not surprising for the movement inside fully capable of COSC spec timing.

Overall it is a fantastic watch. I have sent this one to a new home, since I ended up picking up a Linde Werdelin 3-Timer as well, both with a black dial so I only need one. I plan to keep my Linde for quite a while, and wouldnt mind adding another to the collection as well, probably one with a white dial though. Overall a watch that I would encourage anyone to get if they are attracted to the sharp lines and overall look of the Linde Werdelin watches.

At The Maurice Lacroix Watch Manufacture

A few months ago I got to visit the Maurice Lacroix watch manufacture in Saignelégier, Switzerland. No, I still can’t pronounce the name of the city, but the building itself was surprisingly modern and well-designed. While relatively new, Maurice Lacroix as a brand is also pretty new in the scheme of other Swiss watches in the area. The brand was founded in 1975 with ties to the area going back to the early 1960s I believe.

What you need to know about Maurice Lacroix is that they are among the few Swiss watch brands that aim to have an independent spirit, but also a sense of affordability to their products. It is true that they have strived to push themselves upmarket in the last few years, but at heart they still want to be the Swiss watch brands for everybody.

A picture in this article shows a pile of movements cased in plastic housings. I snapped that picture ‘as is’ in the manufacture showing a large amount of ETA movements sitting like candy in a large bin. The majority of Maurice Lacroix’s watches use ETA’s movements which find happy homes in ML’s watches. Maurice Lacroix is proud to feature many different ETA movements (both mechanical and quartz) in many (but not all) of their timepieces. While things might have changed in the last few years due to the Swatch Group’s change in movement supply policies (ETA’s owner), a former ML CEO was quoted as saying that the Swatch Group, while technically a supplier and a competitor, is a very fair competitor. It is true that while there is animosity among many in the Swiss watch industry, there is also a rich amount of camaraderie that I am happy to notice.

Still, Maurice Lacroix is not solely a brand that uses other people’s movements. In 2006 they released their own in-house made movement, and have been continually working on the concept ever since. Entire collections of Maurice Lacroix watches are made using in-house made movements that use a lot of in-house made parts. Being a true manufacture helps to boost the brand’s image and offers their most serious fans some very attractive products. In comparison to many manufacture’s I’ve been to, there was a calm sensibility within the modern walls of the manufacture with watch makers who seemed friendly and talkative. A fun fact that Maurice Lacroix will likely not appreciate me sharing with you is that right behind the manufacture is a traditional Swiss cemetery – and accompanying view. If you see a tombstone style case or hands on an future watch… you’ll know why.

Down the road from the Saignelégier plant is a smaller facility that is also owned by Maurice Lacroix. It is called La Manufacture des Franches-Montagne, and this subsidiary company makes small parts not only for Mauric Lacroix, but for many other high-end (to extremely high-end) brands. This extremely sophisticated little place specializes in the manufacture of very complex little parts that require extreme precision. Using an array of special CNC machinery, many serious brands rely on the modern production capabilities at LMDFM to make certain parts of their watches that would be too difficult and expensive to do in-house. As the facility opened in the last few years, the LMDFM  gave me a chance to check out some of the latest machinery (including some cool robots) being used in the watch industry to bring modernly designed watches to life.

We tend to take for granted many of the impossibly small parts that go into watches. I don’t just mean movement parts either. Case and dial components can just as difficult (if not more) to produce, and the machinery will allows for it is just as impressive. The newest CNC machines for example can cut in a dizzying array of axises, and do so with incredible precision. Though being able to program them and figure out how they work is still a highly specialized and time consuming task.

A good example of modern technology making a watch concept work in reality is with Maurice Lacroix’s Masterpiece Roue Carree Seconde watch. This is the watch that uses two exposed moving gears on the dial that are not round (as the seconds indicator). Years ago mathematicians proved that you could have non-round gears work together, though putting them into watches has not been done before Maurice Lacroix. Why? Well the reason as I understand it is that the precision needed to cut gear teeth in the right way apparently didn’t exist until pretty recently. The watch model uses Maurice Lacroix’s in-house made ML 156 mechanical movement.

In the US I believe that the brand’s most popular watches are those in the Masterpiece and Pontos collection. Though Maurice Lacroix has quite a large family of timepieces in a range of families (for both men and women). I am a big fan of their large-size limited edition skeletonzied chronograph watches, as well as the Pontos Decentrique pieces. While prices for the coolest watches are a bit higher overall than they would have been several years ago, the overall collection of Maurice Lacroix watches is much cooler these days it was in the past.

The brand’s product has really moved around from being a mainstream watch to an avant garde watch, and back again to something in the middle. Their modernly designed dials and cases are however here to stay in addition to their more classically inspired pieces. The brand has a pretty solid base of conservative customers looking for nice, but not ungodly expensive watches, but as a (mostly) independent brand that need to get attention and respect for being more than just a solid watch maker. Design and glitz does a long way these days.

I did like seeing so many Maurice Lacroix watches on the wrists of the people working at Maurice Lacroix. While that might seem like an obvious thing, it isn’t. At many brands you don’t see the watches people are making on their own wrists (save for the executives). At Maurice Lacroix many of the employees even had older Maurice Lacroix watches on their wrists – showing that it was not just a matter of the brand giving out pieces to their employees. While I believe in a free workplace – if I were running a watch maker I would highly encourage employees to get into the spirit of things and wear the brand’s watches (yes, especially if they were $100,000 pieces).

Recently Maurice Lacroix received a new CEO. Actually, his official title is “Managing Director.” Maybe that is a good idea because people in the watch industry with “CEO” titles are sometimes prone to going a bit insane. The real reason for the title is due to the complex business entity and shareholder structure of the “Maurice Lacroix Group.” The new guy is Marc Glaser, and I am curious to see what will happen next in the brand. What is interesting is that while the ML manufacture is in Saignelégier, the business headquarters is in Zurich. Having a bigger city executive team does of course effect how a brand operates and the products they end up designing.

Glaser has actually been at the brand for the last several years so I assume we will end up seeing a lot of the same in the long run. Though I anticipate some retro-themed designs, more sport watches, and of course a big focus on Asia over the next few years. As a consumer I think Maurice Lacroix is a good brand to look at if you are interested in pieces from the $2,000 – $6,000 price category. They do have more expensive watches, but I think their strongest value offerings are in that range.

ARTYA – Son of a gun

The strange marriage between Swiss high watchmaking and firearms.

 

 

Many high-end collectors are also gun lovers, delighting in the craftsmanship and attention to detail of a high-end firearm.

To celebrate this slightly strange marriage between Swiss high watchmaking and firearms, Yvan Arpa for ArtyA introduces the Son of a Gun Watch.

 

Son of a gun  ArtyA

 

A collector has ordered this exceptional timepiece from Yvan Arpa, creator and consultant in high watchmaking for his brand ArtyA. 

To debut the collection Artya has imagined a watch containing real bullets. With a bezel and inner dial like a target sight, the piece showcases six 6mm Flobert bullets suspended in the dial almost like the barrel of a revolver. Use of copper wire like dynamite wire and the iconic 47mm wide steel case display Artya brand DNA. 

Bite the Bullet: Guns don’t always kill people, time always does. 

A complete new line of products incorporating the world of fine firearms will take shape in the near future.

 

Son of a gun  ArtyA

 

 

Technical specification – Son of a gun

Unique piece

Movement:
Self-winding movement entirely manufactured in Switzerland with rotor upgraded with three real 38 mm cartridges 

Power reserve: 42 hours
Jewelling: 25 jewels 

Case:
Stainless steel grade 316, with target bezel engraved, between the dial and case six REAL 6mm Flobert bullets are suspended (like in Russian Roulette) 

Dial: 

Follow up of the target engravement 

Diameter: Ø47mm  

Crystal: Sapphire  

Back: Open, fitted with a sapphire crystal
Water resistance: 50 meters 

Bracelet: Ballistic style  

Warranty: 24 months