The unveiling of MB&F’s HM No.4 on July 7 is arguably one of the most highly anticipated events on this year’s holological calendar. After presenting the mouthwatering HM4 engine at Basel World earlier this year, speculation has been raging as to what could be in store for the brand’s die hard enthusiasts the world over.

The movement itself was 3 years and 311 parts in the making, all of which were created, even the balance wheel and hairspring, specifically for this piece. Now it gives us great pleasure to present to you the very first image of all the new HM No.4 (above). Precious few details can be gleaned from the picture other than we know we want one already!

It doesn’t help things when the brand’s founder and design visionary, Maximilian Büsser, declares that the Horological Machine No4 THUNDERBOLT will be the brand’s most radical creation to date… And if you think we’re exaggerating, why don’t you check out the most recent piece MB&F unveiled just over 2 months ago, known simply as ‘The Frog‘.

All we can say is bring on July 7!

Well, it’s the finale of our special series on the Origins of Legends, where we’ve featured the original sketches of some of the best known (and unknown) brands in the world. It’s been quite a journey of artistic and intellectual enlightenment and as it draws to an end we are proud to present to you our final set of sketches from one our personal favorites. MB&F.

In just a few short years MB&F, lead by their truly inspirational founder Maximilian Büsser, have developed a cult following around the world for their unique, bold designs that continually challenge the commonly accepted conventions of watch-making. In this final series of sketches we focus on all three MB&F models presented to date, with a special focus on HM No.1, as after all, that is where it all began.

Be warned though, there are a lot of images, so you may want to take a moment to ensure there will be no distractions for the next few minutes (hours?) before you proceed.

Enjoy!

Those of you with a keen attention to detail may notice that the logo “B&F” appears in some of the original sketches of HM No.1. Although it’s a little known fact, this was actually the originally proposed name – Büsser & Friends. We think Max and his team made the right decision adding in the ‘M’, what do you think?

HM No.1

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HM No.2

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HM No.3

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We sincerely hope you’ve enjoyed our special insight on the Origin of Legends. If you missed the earlier articles please see here for Part 1, Part 2 and http://thewatchlounge.com/the-origin-of-legends-%E2%80%93-the-sketch-book-series-part-3/.

Being late for an appointment is never a good start, but being late when you were only 5 minutes away to begin with is just embarrassing. Regrettably this was how I started my time with Max Büsser, of MB&F, luckily for me he is a forgiving man.

I am at MB&F headquarters to have a look for myself at the newest variation in their rather exotic stable, the (almost) all new HM3 known simply as “The Frog”.

This variation of the standard HM3 has been garnering considerable media attention both on-line and in print, especially in the Far East, so they very least I could do was go and try it on.

So it’s based on the HM3 and so that means it’s just an evolution of the existing model, right? Sounds feasible, however the best laid plans sometimes go astray. The initial design for The Frog was penned very quickly, however, that of course is where things start to become complicated.

The time indicators of the HM3 are displayed via two separate globes, and so the same was required for The Frog. However, the hour indicator was changed from 24 to 12 hours and the method of indication changed from stationary spheres with moving hands to stationary hands with moving spheres.

No problem right? Ah, no.

Actually these “small” changes required significant changes to the drive chain and some ingenious solutions.

On the HM3, moving the indicator around the stationary hour and minute markers is relatively simple. With little mass, the force required to move the indicators is very small; however moving an entire dial requires considerable power which must be delivered evenly.

The solution?

A strong light material is needed, such as aluminum, which greatly reduces the mass of each sphere. However, rather than pressing the dial they decided to carve it from a block. This is much more difficult and considerably more expensive, but results in a much more consistent product.

In the original design these indicators were set under a frame that allowed you tell the time. To aid clarity the frame has been dispensed with and the numbers have been directly applied to the domes, also known as the “eyes” of The Frog.

The outer cases were ground from a block of sapphire, and presented all manner of challenges; you see unless you make the radius of the curves even between the outside and the inside surfaces you end up with a lens which will look very odd indeed.

Perhaps the biggest difference between the two HM3 models is the weight, the new titanium case is considerably lighter than the previous steel one. As today’s trend is towards thinner and lighter this is very much on the mark.

There are two models available; the “Black”, limited to 12 examples, but if you don’t have yours confirmed you are too late they are already spoken for. The other has a mirrored case and is available in unlimited quantities. The other main difference between the models is the color of the rotor, powder coated blue for the standard model and green for the “Black” model.

The green version was apparently much more difficult to produce and in the right light really stands out, with the color changing between a strong green to one with a blue halo.

While some may find the design of the HM3 challenging, I prefer to see it as a strong statement. For some the price may be in the specialist collector range, it is undoubtedly a fantastic development of an already fantastic watch.

So what’s next for MB&F? Why the HM4 of course. Roll on July

You may recall that a few weeks ago we published a photo of the first and only hint presented by MB&F in relation to their latest creation, known simply as the Frog. Now we are proud to be able to bring you the official photos of this breathtaking new piece, unveiled only a short while ago!

Modeled on the HM No.3 the hour and minute gears as well as date system within the 304 part engine have been entirely modified. The trademark sapphire domes have been perfectly machined on both sides (no mean feat!) so as not deform the numbers and even more amazingly the aluminium domes within weigh just a meager 0.58g which was achieved by machining them down to a thickness of 0.28mm. Only 32 of these special movements will be crafted this year: a limited edition of 12 pieces in black titanium (with green gold rotor) and 20 pieces of a non-limited titanium version (with blue gold rotor).

Although we could go on about this amazing new piece all day we thought you would probably prefer to hear it straight from the man himself, Mr Maximilian Büsser. So we asked him.

Here’s what he had to say.

TWL: What made you choose a Frog as the inspiration for this latest piece? Why not a Tiger or a Cobra, or some other member of the Animal Kingdom?

MB: The creative process did not in fact start with a frog. Like most of our creations, I imagined the piece in my mind first as a “concept piece”, in this case based on the HM3 movement. The idea was, and I know this will seem more than a little surprising, to create a “whacky” version of the HM3. Many will think “isn’t the HM3 crazy enough?”. In my mind, the HM3 is in fact a very elegant piece, and I wanted to push it into another territory.

It is only when we finished the design with Eric (Giroud) that when I looked at it, it was clear that it looked like a frog’s head coming out of water with its two big eyes. Now over a year later, when I look at it, it makes me think of the Martian heads in “Mars Attacks”!

HM3 Frog (Titanium) ©MB&F

TWL: How many different design concepts did you come up with in conjunction with the ‘Friends’ before you settled on the final one we see today? How did you decide?

MB: This was pretty straight forward. The HM3 existed. I wanted a rotating dome version, and we nailed the design very quickly – but to get the proportions of the aluminium and sapphire domes right we did many prototypes…

TWL: Does the final piece look anything like what you first envisioned in your mind when you set out to create this unique model?

MB: That is it. As it was in my head.

TWL: What is your favorite aspect of this new piece and why?

MB: It makes me smile each time I look at it. The Frog has a very mischievous attitude to it.  Also it is super light thanks to the intensive use of aluminium. You practically do not feel it on your wrist.

TWL: What do you think MB&F enthusiasts will like most about this newest addition?

MB: I honestly don’t know. As we create foremost for ourselves, our public’s reaction is always a mystery and a surprise!

The HM3 Frog Engine – 304 components ©MB&F

TWL: Are there any little intricacies you can point out for us that may not be immediately apparent just from looking at the still photographs?

MB: Well, first of all, more than 30% of the movement is different from the original HM3! The Hours run in 12 hours instead of 24, the minutes in 60 minutes instead of 120 minutes, which therefore required us to change all those gear trains. Also the changing of the date which was direct (as the hours turned previously in 24hours on the HM3) is now much more complicated to achieve.  All this for only 32 movements this year… (13 Black and 20 Titanium)

The aluminium domes needed to be as light as possible, which meant we had to machine them down to 0,28mm thick and therefore to 0,58 grams a piece! And the sapphire domes were a headache. How do you machine a perfectly concentric dome from a block of sapphire, especially as there is no way to hold that block in the machine when you are cutting it…?

TWL: Are there any plans to release any further special editions prior to the introduction of the highly anticipated HM No.4 in July 2010?

MB: The HM4 will theoretically be unveiled on July 8^th (with deliveries anticipated for last quarter of the year), so in the two months from now to beginning of July, we have not planned a new launch!

TWL: As always, thank you for your time Maximilian.

MB: As always a pleasure. Thanks Tom!

Vous vous souviendrez peut-être que nous avons publié il y a quelques semaines la toute première et unique photo de la dernière création MB&F, tout simplement appelée la « Grenouille ». Aujourd’hui nous sommes fiers de pouvoir vous montrer les photos officielles de cette pièce hors du commun, dévoilée très récemment.

Reposant sur la base de la Hm No.3, les moteurs des heures, des minutes, comme celui de la date ont été entièrement modifiés au sein de cette machine de 304 composants. Les dômes de saphir, brevetés, ont été parfaitement usinés des deux côtés (un défi!) de manière à ne pas déformer les chiffres ; de plus, ces incroyables dômes d’aluminium ne pèsent que 58g grâce à un travail sur le verre qui a permis d’en réduire l’épaisseur à 0,28 mm. Seulement 32 pièces de ce mouvement spécial seront produites cette année : une édition limitée de 12 pièces en titanium noir avec rotor en or vert, et 20 pièces d’une série limitée en titanium avec rotor en or bleu.

Bien que nous aurions pu vous parler une journée entière de cette pièce extraordinaire, nous avons pensé que vous préfèreriez  entendre son histoire de la bouche de l’homme en personne, M. Maximilan Büsser !

TWL: Pourquoi avoir choisi la Grenouille comme inspiration pour cette création ? Vous auriez pu choisir tout autre créature du règne animal, comme le cobra ou le tigre…

MB: En réalité, le processus créatif n’a pas débuté avec l’idée d’une grenouille. Comme pour toutes nos créations, j’ai d’abord imaginé la pièce dans mon esprit, en tant que concept, en l’occurrence sur la base du mouvement de la HM3. L’idée était, aussi curieux que cela puisse paraître, de créer une version encore plus extravagante de la HM3. Beaucoup se demanderont à ce stade en quoi l’on pouvait faire encore plus atypique que la HM3 ! Mais dans mon esprit, c’était davantage une pièce d’élégance, que je voulais faire évoluer vers d’autres territoires.

Ce n’est que lorsque nous avions fini le design avec Eric (Giroud) que je l’ai regardée, et qu’il m’est clairement apparu qu’elle ressemblait à une grenouille dont la tête sortait de l’eau, avec ses deux gros yeux. Bon, aujourd’hui, plus d’un an plus tard, elle me fait davantage penser aux têtes de martiens dans « Mars attack » !

HM3 Frog (Titanium) ©MB&F

TWL: Combien de concepts avez-vous développé avec vos Amis avant d’en arriver au produit fini que nous voyons aujourd’hui ?

Ca a été assez rapide. La HM3 existait déjà. Je voulais une version avec dôme rotatif, et nous avons fixé le design assez rapidement ; toutefois, pour obtenir les bonnes proportions entre l’aluminium et les dômes de saphir, de nombreux prototypes furent nécessaires…

TWL: La pièce finale ressemble-t-elle à celle que vous aviez imaginée ?

MB: Oui. Telle que je l’avais pensée.

TWL: Qu’est-ce qui vous plaît le plus, dans celle pièce ?

MB: Elle me fait sourire à chaque fois que je la vois. La Frog a vraiment quelque chose de malicieux. En plus, elle est vraiment très légère, grâce à l’emploi important de l’aluminium. On ne la sent pratiquement pas sur son poignet.

TWL: A votre avis, qu’est-ce qui va le plus plaire aux aficionados de la marque ?

MB: Très honnêtement, je ne sais pas. Comme nous créons à peu de choses près pour notre propre plaisir, les réactions de notre public sont toujours source de mystère et de surprise !

Le moteur de la HM3 Frog – 304 composants ©MB&F

TWL: Y’a-t-il des éléments sur lesquels vous pourriez attirer notre attention et qui ne seraient pas visibles au premier coup d’œil ?

MB: Eh bien, en premier lieu, plus de 30% du mouvement sont différents de son modèle d’origine, la HM3 ! Les heures tournent en 12 heures au lieu de 24 et les minutes en 60 au lieu de 120, ce qui nous a demandé de changer tous les barillets des moteurs. Il y a aussi le changement de date, qui était direct (puisque précédemment les heures tournaient en 24h sur la HM3), et qui maintenant est beaucoup plus compliqué à mettre en œuvre. Et tout ceci seulement pour 32 pièces produites cette année, 13 noires et 20 en titane.

Les dômes d’aluminium devaient être aussi légers que possible, ce qui nous a conduit à réduire leur épaisseur à 0,28 mm, et par conséquent leur poids à 0,58 g par unité. Leur réalisation en verre saphir fut vraiment problématique. Comment voulez-vous usiner un dôme parfaitement concentrique issu d’un bloc de verre saphir sans avoir la possibilité de le maintenir dans une machine pendant que vous le taillez… ?

TWL: Avez-vous planifié la sortie de nouvelles séries limitées d’ici la sortie très attendue de la HM No.4 en juillet 2010 ?

MB: La HM4 est théoriquement le 8 juillet, ce qui nous amène à des premières livraisons au quatrième trimestre de l’année ; par conséquent, dans les deux mois qui nous séparent de début juillet, non, nous n’avons pas planifié de nouvelles sorties !

TWL: Une nouvelle fois, un grand merci pour votre temps, Maximilian.

MB: C’est toujours un plaisir. Merci Tom !

Traduit de l’anglais par Olivier Müller – © The Watch Lounge

It is not often that you come across an authorized retailer that deals in some of the most exclusive timepieces in the world. That’s why we felt obliged to share something extra special with you today. Based in Milan, Italy, with another store in Porto Cervo, Sardinia, the Grand Masters of Time is Italy’s answer to France’s Chronopassion. 

Established in 2007 the focus of this young company is to bring together some of the most exclusive and innovative names in Swiss watch-making, working closely with the brands to offer their clients a selection of some of the finest timepieces ever made.

Don’t just take our word for it though, see below for a selection of some of the current rare and limited edition pieces they currently have on offer within their stunning boutiques.

F.P. Journe – Centigraphe Souverain

© GMT Italia

MB&F – Horological Machine 2 – White Ceramic (L.E. 5 pieces for the World)

© GMT Italia

Harry Winston – Ocean Chrono Tri-Retrograde Baguette (L.E. 5 pieces for the world)

© GMT Italia

Richard Mille – RM 008 Tourbillon Split Second Chronograph

© GMT Italia

Harry Winston – Project Zalium Lady Z (L.E. 300 pieces for the World)

© GMT Italia

Urwerk 202 – Turbine Automatic Black Platinum (L.E. 10 pieces for the World)

© GMT Italia

Harry Winston – Project Zalium Z5 (L.E. 150 pieces for the World)

© GMT Italia

These are just a small selection of some of the truly amazing pieces that GMT have brought together in their two exceptional stores. Certainly for any watch enthusiast who finds themselves in the vicinity of either one a visit is all but mandatory.

If you would like to know more check out the GMT website: www.gmtitalia.com

Maximilian Büsser and his veritable litany of “friends” are at it again, announcing the introduction of an exciting new model known simply as The Frog. Precious few details are available other than the above picture and that this piece will be introduced to the market on the 3rd of May 2010.

It’s definitely got us stumped but knowing MB&F it is bound to be something amazing!

The question is; what do you think it will be?

Over the last few days you may have noticed that The Watch Lounge was a bit quieter than usual and I apologize for this. However, once you hear the reason I think you’ll agree it was quite understandable. You see I spent 3 1/2 very hectic days touring all over Switzerland with industry veteran Ian Skellern visiting some the best known watch makers in the world so that I could bring you guys all the latest information and insights from the world of high-end luxury watches. In the coming weeks I will be publishing a series of more in-depth articles on the people I visited and the sights I saw.

So, who did I visit you ask? Good question.

To get a real snapshot of the industry I thought it was important to visit a mix of independent watch makers as well as larger manufacturers. Although I couldn’t hope to visit absolutely everyone in the short amount of time I had, we still managed to fit in a pretty good cross section, including:

• Thomas Prescher
• Peter Speake-Marin (Speake-Marin)
• Daniel Roth
• Maximilian Busser (MB&F)
• Felix Baumgartner (Urwerk)
• Hublot
• Ludovic Ballouard
• Roland Iten
• Girard-Perreguax
• Jean Richard
• Greubel Forsey
• Christophe Claret SA

I have already started uploading some of the photos from the trip on our Facebook page with the rest to follow soon, so make sure you get over there to check them out.

A special thanks again to Ian Skellern for not only helping me organize the trip but also for his excellent photography. We also have a couple of extra special prizes to giveaway, the details of which will be announced in the coming week, so make sure you stay tuned for that!

Thank you again for your understanding, I really hope you enjoy the photos and please feel free to leave your comments below.

For the last week of Baselworld I wanted to do something a little different, the constant round of parties and entertainment were beginning to take their toll. As a journalist we are often in a very privileged position, we are able to swan around the show and sometimes people are happy to see us and sometimes not. However, I have never myself had the opportunity to take the stand on a watch fair and so I thought that it was about time I put my money where my month was and got on the other side of the table for a change.

I should point out first that I have done this at other trade shows for computers so I’m not a novice, but not for many years and those intervening  years have not been altogether kind both  physically and mentally. Secondly after the weekend the crowds are considerably lighter so I certainly wasn’t going in at the front-end of the war!!

I had mentioned this idea to Peter Speake-Marin and he very kindly agreed to let me loose on his clients and friends, which if you’ve ever met me is a pretty brave thing to do. The choice of PSM was not at random, by choosing an English watchmaker I was reducing the client’s expectations that I speak good French, but also I wanted to learn much more about the people and personalities that inhabit the world of independent watchmakers up close and PSM knows a lot of people.

So bright and early, 10:00am is early to me, I presented myself at “The Dream Factory”, washed, brushed and ready to go. As we’ve discussed previously “The Dream Factory” is the Baselworld home to Urwerk, MB&F, Christophe Claret and Speake-Marin situated in “The Palace” which was a superior tent arrangement opposite the Ramada hotel. The room was pleasant at 10:00, but the weather forecast was for warm temperatures for the next few days, the tent had heating but no air-conditioning, it was going to get warm!

It soon became clear that the main task for the two days was to keep everything moving smoothly. Watches are needed from the safe, from the front display cabinets and coffee keeps the wheels turning. The main halls at Basel are extremely busy, and if you want to see a watch there are plenty of people to help you, but at the big brands you will never meet a watchmaker face-to-face and never learn the real details; marketing yes, talking movements and cases? Rarely.

The independents are very different and rightly so. To spend thousands on a watch you want to know where your money is going and so if you want to shake the hand of the man who made it, it’s literally no problem. Here you will find the specialist press, for instance The Watch Lounge, all languages and cultures, investigating what they hope is the cutting edge of the industry. The big brands do make an appearance from time to time, not sure if it is just general interest or scouting out what is going on, and the opportunity to lock horns with a big brand’s marketing manager is a fun thing to do.

A custom made Speake-Marin Serpent Calendar hand-engraved by master engraver Kees Englebarts.

There are several things that I would take away from my time on the stand, first it’s hard work; standing for that length of time is tough on the back. How some of them manage to do the whole show I don’t know.

Then there is the fact of being nice to so many people for such a long time, no matter what they say or ask; you know it’s not that hard. I would say most of the people, on the other stands, clients and friends are some of the nicest and most genuine people you could wish to meet. People who search out these watchmakers have a lot of traits in common and this makes them interesting. In my two days I don’t think I met anyone I wouldn’t want to meet again, and I met a lot I would very much want to meet again.

Next are people from the other brands; what a great bunch of guys they are and certainly a lot of fun, a mine of interesting information and people who are lucky enough to do a job they quite clearly love. I won’t detail some of the conversations, I see no reason to smear the guilty, but doing this job you will learn a lot.

The Final Word
Should you ever find yourself lucky enough to get a chance to do this I would thoroughly recommend it, the days are long, wear comfy shoes, drink plenty of fluids, don’t drink too much alcohol in the evenings and keep smiling. You will get to borrow a brand watch to where on the stand, hooray, and then give it back, boo, and feel like a million dollars in-between.

I would like to thank Peter Speake-Marin for the fantastic opportunity to help out, and I hope I didn’t put off any buyer. To all our readers out there if someone in the future gives you the same chance I had take it, your feet will hurt but you will have a great time

Before reporting on the Press Day of Baselworld I should make it clear that the life of an itinerant journalist isn’t as glamorous at it might seem.

Where as the first public day is Thursday, the first day of Baselworld is actually the Press Only day on the Wednesday, As you might expect for a Swiss event everything is laid on and as long as you follow the procedure everything will be fine, trying to get around the rules will not do you any good.

The press area is upstairs in the main hall with plenty of lockers for you to store your stuff, please take note SIHH, and a key can be yours for a 10CHF deposit, bargain. With a central area with about 50 internet PCs and a separate area with WiFi for laptop users everything is looking good. So pausing only to store the very heavy catalogue I set off to bluff my way into “The Palace”.

Opposite the Ramada hotel there is a rigid tent area which houses “The Dream Factory”, Rebellion and… Casio. Go figure!! This will be site for the Press lunch but I wanted to meet up with Peter Speake-Marin and Max Büsser before the show got too busy. Speake-Marin, MB&F, Christophe Claret and Urwerk have a nice dedicated area with comfy seats, demo rooms and soft carpet, very swank.

As I reported last week MB&F have the new Thunderbolt machine along with their watches, the one on show today however has the hands mounted and now it is clear that the layout is going to be time on one arm of the machine with the power reserve on the other. So this will be the first MB&F Horological Machine that has a conventional time layout, that’s a surprise. For a little bit of added spice Max B. wants to show the thunderbolt without the hands, but where to find a watchmaker when you need one? Well Peter Speake-Marin worked on Horological Machine No. 1 so can be trusted.

I can assure you there is nothing like watching a master at work.

Peter Speake-Marin’s stunningly simplistic “Marin 1″ © Speake-Marin

For Speake-Marin this year is about making the most of the in-house movement, the Marin 1. While much of the watch range is classically inspired and for one-off pieces clients can have any decoration they feel appropriate, there was one watch on display that was a bit of a departure. Based on a Roman numeral dial with the numbers at the quarters, the dial has been cut away between the quarters to reveal the movement. The remaining dial from the edge to the centre holds the numbers but rather than enamel they are “blued” with the numbers cut out and filled to make them luminous. With the oversize hands also luminous, this is an equally striking watch in daylight and at night.

So a good start to the day time to head back into the main halls. For press day the halls are open but generally unfinished, here you get to see the “greasy” side of shows, how all the magic works behind the scenes. The halls are generally pretty empty but the stock is usually on show so it is a great time to study the trends without being hassled by the booth staff or fighting with the large number of visitors that descend at the weekend.

The main halls are dedicated to the major brands with their huge stands, there are lots of watches on view but it all pretty standard fair and not the main stomping ground of “The Watch Lounge”. Then there are the jewelery halls but all the wonderful independent makers are in smaller venues around the periphery. The AHCI has a nice booth, by all accounts better than last years, with a range of members showing their watches and clocks. The star is most certainly Thomas Pescher with his “Anniversaire” watch that reminds you of birthdays and anniversaries, no excuse for missing your partner’s birthday ever again.

Next, interviews with a few, hopefully interesting, smaller brands, and then home to Geneva.

Life’s tough at the top apparently. More to follow.