Wow Watch Wednesday: Armin Racing One Week
A few months ago watch-maker Armin Strom announced a new partnership with the Russian-British Formula 1-Team Marussia Virgin Racing. Not satisfied with just adding the team’s colors and a logo to an existing timepiece however, the manufacturer set out to create three new pieces to celebrate this union, including the stunning Armin Racing One Week.
Armin Racing One Week
The new Racing One Week is based on the very successful One Week series from Armin’s elemental collection, which feature the brand’s own hand-wound, in-house movement offering (as the name suggests) a 7-day power reserve. However, to ensure that this collaboration was truly imbued with the spirit of motor-racing the brand decided to incorporate some of the materials used in a Virgin Formula 1 car into the construction of the actual movement.
It sounds simple enough but really it’s not.
According to Claude Greisler, Armin’ Product Development Manager and design engineer, the aim was to not only combine these unlikely elements together but also to highlight the extreme contrasts between watch-making and motor racing, despite the obvious level of complexity involved with each; “A Formula 1-Engine lasts about 40 hours, then it’s had it. A watch movement, when properly serviced will last forever. We wanted to illustrate and demonstrate this extreme contrast” explains Greisler.
The Challenge
Whilst manufacturing watch components from unusual material is not something particular new to an industry built on the premise of one-upmanship, each project has its own set of unique challenges, especially when you are only producing in an extremely limited quantity! Therefore, the first hurdle for the brand to overcome was finding a suitable supplier who could process their chosen material into a state which they could then refine.
After a lengthy search a suitable art foundry was located in St. Gallen and agreed to take on this all important first task. After melting down the specially chosen aluminum alloy in their prototype vacuum oven, the liquefied material was poured into blocks to set. The only problem though (as you can see above) is that these first blocks are still too thick to be used directly for the relatively thin watch components and consequently must be milled further before any of the real work can begin.
Once the foundry has performed its role it’s time for the real work to begin at the Armin manufacture. The process is painstakingly slow as this alloy is rarely used in watch-making and so it is quite difficult to mill it with the usual tools, especially given the wafer thin proportions required. And it is here that the exceptional talent of this young manufacture is truly on show. Whilst the construction of the exterior forms of the bridge parts for the Racing One Week are the same, their surfaces are totally different. Various, technically advanced decoration elements have been applied to ensure that the finished parts are visually stunning and in truth the end result is really quite attractive.
The Armin Racing One Week is a limited production of just 40 pieces and is finished in the Marussia-Virgin team colors of red and black.
The Final Word
I have to say I am really taken with this timepiece, and indeed the whole Armin by Armin Strom collection. It’s eye-catching and exotic without being over the top and even though the Elemental collection in itself is not particularly sporty, this particular watch for me really evokes thoughts of motor racing and high-speed. And whilst it doesn’t feature any fancy complications (such as completely unnecessary tourbillons) the fact that it is powered by an in-house movement is a very strong selling point in my book.
To see more from this interesting new brand please visit their official website: www.arminstrom.com.
If you’ve seen enough already and would like to purchase a piece from the Armin Strom collection then we encourage you to visit friend of The Watch Lounge and authorized retailer Define Watches to place your order now.
Category: Wow Watch Wednesday
Tom
Very interesting post. I assume the alum used for the movement parts was from a Virgin engine, your post doesn’t make it clear. I must say the watch looks stunning and the concept is quite unique, especially for a FI fan like me. My only quibble: Marussia-Virgin? Really? On the other hand maybe that’s a good thing for collectors because that team is not long for the grid!
Hi Randy,
Thanks for your comments – you are quite right in saying the material comes from the car itself and so I have updated the post to make this clearer
With regards to your second point, I didn’t want to spell it out in the post but I think this is where Armin has been quite clever as aside from the color scheme, there is no reference made to Marussia-Virgin on the watch itself. So in my opinion, regardless of the team’s longevity, this is still a highly attractive, highly functional timepiece that will still look cool in 5 or 10 years!