Independent luxury Swiss watch brands H. Moser & Cie. and MB&F have jointly created a pair of limited edition horological masterpieces whose DNA blends the main characteristics of each Maison.
The brands have in fact been working together for more than ten years, with Precision Engineering AG – a sister company of H. Moser & Cie. – notably supplying MB&F’s balance springs. This year, H. Moser & Cie. and MB&F have jointly created two models, available in several versions and issued in 15-piece limited series. This number is a nod to the 15th anniversary of MB&F as well as honouring the 15th anniversary of the relaunch of H. Moser & Cie.
By pooling their strengths, these two competing yet friendly brands are working to harness the combined strengths of talented artisans, entirely in keeping with the philosophy adopted by MB&F.
LM101 MB&F X H. MOSER
The Legacy Machine 101 represents the purest form of fine mechanical watchmaking: the balance wheel, the power reserve and the passing of time. MB&F has chosen to revisit this model – one of the purest and “simplest” in its collection – since it is indeed minimalism that guided the creation of the LM101 MB&F x H. Moser model.
Like H. Moser & Cie. and the “back to basics” approach embodied in its Concept watch series, MB&F has chosen to remove its logo and return to its roots and indeed to the very origins of horology, when only the movements were signed. In the same understated spirit, it has abandoned the floating domed subdials to display the hours and minutes as well as the 45-hour power reserve by means of hands placed directly on the main dial.
The fumé dials borrowed from H. Moser & Cie. can thus be expressed in complete freedom, also enhanced by a refined bezel.
Four fumé dials have been chosen for the LM101 MB&F x H. Moser: Red fumé, Cosmic Green fumé, AquaBlue fumé and, of course, the famous Funky Blue fumé. Topped with a domed sapphire crystal, the case is made of steel, for only the third time in the history of MB&F.
The mesmerising large suspended balance wheel continues to take centre stage, albeit completely redesigned on the LM101 MB&F x H. Moser in order to highlight the beauty of the fumé dials. This beating heart has been fitted with a double balance spring produced by Precision Engineering AG.
Thanks to this pair of matching balance springs, the displacement of the point of gravity undergone by each spring as it expands is corrected, significantly improving precision and isochronism in a continuous quest for perfection.
In addition, the paired balance springs also reduce the friction effect normally encountered with a single balance spring, resulting in optimised isochronism. Through the case back, the curved sapphire crystal reveals the ‘engine’ driving this timepiece.
Unlike the base movement of the Legacy Machine 101, of which the finishes were determined by co-creator Kari Voutilainen, the aesthetics of the calibre that powers the LM101 MB&F x H. Moser is more contemporary, with a subtle NAC treatment to enhance its beauty.
Technical details
Model: LM101 MB&F X H. MOSER Limited Edition
Edition
LM101 MB&F x H. Moser is available in 4 limited editions of 15 pieces in stainless steel: Funky Blue fumé dial, Cosmic Green fumé dial, Red fumé dial and a special edition with Aqua Blue fumé dial made for the retailer Ahmed Seddiqi& Sons.
Engine
Three-dimensional horological movement developed in-house by MB&F
Movement aesthetics and finishing specifications: Kari Voutilainen
Manual winding with single mainspring barrel
Power reserve: 45 hours
Bespoke 14mm balance wheel with four traditional regulating screws floating above the movement
Balance spring: Straumann® double hairspring
Balance frequency: 18,000bph/2.5Hz
221 components
23 jewels
Chatons: gold chatons with polished countersinks
Fine finishing: superlative 19th century-style hand finishing throughout; internal bevel angles highlighting hand craft; polished bevels; Geneva waves; hand-made engravings, NAC black bridges
Functions
Hours, minutes and power reserve indicator
Large balance wheel suspended above the dial
Case
Available in 4 limited editions of 15 pieces in stainless steel 316, including a special edition with Aqua Blue fumé dial made for the retailer Ahmed Seddiqi& Sons.
Diameter: 40.0 mm
Height: 16.0 mm
35 components
High domed crystal sapphire on top and box sapphire crystal on back, both with anti-reflective coating on both sides
Dial
Funky Blue fumé, Cosmic Green fumé, Red fumé or AquaBlue fumé with sunburst pattern
Strap
Hand-stitched calfskin strap
Steel 316L and titanium folding buckle
Endeavour Cylindrical Tourbillon H. Moser X MB&F
H. Moser & Cie. has borrowed from MB&F the concept of three-dimensional movements, a strong element of the Geneva Maison’s identity, protected by a sapphire dome and featuring a one-minute flying tourbillon that rises above the main dial through a ventricular opening appearing at 12 o’clock.
Benefiting from the expertise of its sister company Precision Engineering AG, H. Moser & Cie. has equipped its tourbillon with a cylindrical balance spring, the same as that developed by Precision Engineering AG for MB&F’s LM Thunderdome. Invented in the 18th century, the cylindrical balance spring is reminiscent of a worm- or corkscrew, rising perpendicularly around the upper rod of the balance staff.
Commonly used in historical marine chronometers at the time, it offers the advantage of developing concentrically, and therefore geometrically, since it works perfectly along the axis of its pivots. This gives it a significant advantage over the flat balance spring, whose opposite ends tend to exert forces on the pivots, despite the Philips or Breguet terminal curves which were specifically developed to partially correct the non-concentric opening of the balance spring.
Fitted with a Breguet overcoil at both attachment points, the cylindrical balance spring reduces pivot friction and greatly improves isochronism. Due to its specific shape, the cylindrical balance spring is far more difficult to produce and takes ten times longer to make than a traditional balance spring.
Another reference to MB&F’s identity lies in the tilted dials, which H Moser & Cie. has adopted for its hour and minute subdials. These are inclined at 40° so that the owner of the watch is the only one to whom it reveals the secret of time, and mounted on a conical gear train ensuring optimal torque transmission from one plane to the other.
Available in five different versions, the Endeavour Cylindrical Tourbillon H. Moser x MB&F model comes in a steel case topped by Funky Blue, Cosmic Green, Burgundy, Off-White or Ice Blue dials, all of the fumé variety.
Technical details
Model: Endeavour Cylindrical Tourbillon H. Moser X MB&F Limited Edition
Edition
Endeavour cylindrical tourbillon H. Moser x MB&F is available in 5 limited editions of 15 pieces each in stainless steel: Funky Blue fumé dial, Cosmic Green fumé dial, Burgundy fumé dial, Off-White fumé dial and Ice Blue dial.
Case
Steel topped by a high domed sapphire crystal
Diameter: 42.0 mm
Height: 19.5 mm
Height without crystal sapphire: 9.4 mm
Crown at 9 o’clock, engraved with a “M“
See-through sapphire crystal case back
Dial
Main dial: Funky Blue fumé, Burgundy fumé, Cosmic Green fumé, Off-White fumé or Ice Blue fumé with sunburst pattern
Hours and the minutes displayed on a 40° vertically tilted sapphire dial at 6 o’clock
Leaf-shaped hour and minute hands, blued on the reference 1810-1203
Movement
HMC 810 three-dimensional automatic Manufacture calibre
Diameter: 32.0 mm or 14 1/4lignes
Height: 5.5 mm
Frequency: 21,600 vibrations/hour
29 jewels
184 components
Automatic bi-directional pawl winding system
Oscillating weight in 18-carat gold with engraved H. Moser & Cie. logo
Power reserve: minimum 72 hours
Cylindrical hairspring
One-minute flying tourbillon at 12 o’clock with skeletonised bridges
Functions
Hours and minutes
Strap
Hand-stitched black alligator leather
Steel folding buckle engraved with the Moser logo
