Ondrej Berkus Perpetual Calendar Watch

Key Points from the Discussion

• The watch features a distinctive finishing style, initially developed to allow for blued movement backs while retaining anglage, which evolved into a signature aesthetic for the movement and dial.
• The use of Damascus steel for watch cases, a material the author has worked with for knives for over a decade, gives his watches a unique and immediately identifiable personality.
• The author custom re-forges Damascus stock from the factory to achieve a less uniform pattern, enhancing the material's visual appeal for watch cases.
• The perpetual calendar watch took two and a half years of on-and-off work to complete, demonstrating the significant time investment in independent watchmaking.
• The watch incorporates subtle details like a thin blue ring under the bezel, a unique moon phase, and a distinctive ratchet in the crown wheel, all contributing to its charm.
• The author also created a small, functional 'toy' with gears and bronze bushings, demonstrating his mechanical ingenuity beyond the main timepiece.