Ulysse Nardin Dual Time 42mm Initial Impressions

Introduction:

I travel from time to time for business and for pleasure internationally and I was looking for a travel watch. A watch that is comfortable in the water or one that could be worn at more formal business setting. A watch that can tell me the time at home or where I am at and can be easily adjusted to where I am going. A dial with good luminosity so you can read the time easily in a darkened cabin of a red-eye flight (which it seems that I am too frequently on these days). A watch that would not draw unwanted attention from strangers on the street when traveling. After looking at a myriad of GMT/Dual Time watches from may makers (and there are some outstanding choices out there), I chose the Dual Time 42 mm model from Ulysse Nardin.

This model has been around in a number of forms since 1994, with a large date complication being added the following year with the current version with a small seconds being introduced at Baselworld in 2005. Aside from UN's Marine/Marine Diver line, it is likely their next most popular line of watches.  In 2010, it was reported that UN made about 18,000 per year. So it would not surprise me if UN didn't produce a few thousand of these a year across all the variants of this watch. It is a watch that in my opinion, borders upon “sport” when on a bracelet with swimmable 100 meter water resistance or dress usage with its elegant dial, reasonable size and polished stainless steel features. Unlike a classic watch such as the Rolex GMT (sorry to pick on you), no one other than a fellow WIS will ever know that you are wearing a special watch when in public. It is a perfect travel watch (unless your travels take you to the few 1/2 hour time zones out there!).

Function:

This watch is really about ease-of-use changing time zones when traveling from home. Unlike most travel watches, there is no need to touch the crown to reset the hour. The two pushers can either advance (+) or subtract (-) the hour hand. The hour shown in the small window located at 9 o'clock is shown in 24-hour time and is your home time and works intuitively well despite asking one's mind to combine digital and analog displays together (at least to me). The hour hand advancement and decrement is of course integrated into the date wheel function. Another uncommon function is a large date that can bet set forwards or backwards by the crown. This is a very useful feature for a watch worn in a rotation speeding up your morning set up. I can't tell you how many times when you advance a date function you pass by the date or I am required to go through an entire month to get to the days date. With this watches date function: problem solved.

Dial:

Like many UN watches, the dial is a visual journey of dimension and detail. A plated silver dial with a brushed “sun-ray” pattern sets the background. A round window for home time is located at 9 o'clock with a raised polished steel bezel and a polished steel tube projecting inward to further capture light to the 24-hour ring below. The 24-hour home time ring is set back deeper than the large date ring. The large date is located at 2 o'clock with two chamfered rectangular windows in the dial. The white raised outer chapter ring has a do-decagon inner profile (one facet for each hour) and is decorated with minute indicators with small square hour indices with thickly applied greenish cast C3 Super Luminova. 10-brushed steel hour appliques with heat blued tops are arranged on the silver dial along its perimeter, inward of the raised outer chapter ring. To accomplish this, they must be blued first and machined later. A blued applique small seconds register ring is located at 6 o'clock and is decorated with silver indices at 5 second intervals with a concentric guilloche textured silver area within. The hour and minute hands are elongated rhomboidal shapes with polished blued edges surrounding applied greenish cast C3 Super Luminova within. The small seconds hand is silver to catch light and contrast against the blued small-seconds register ring. A blued applique UN anchor has been placed below the 6 o'clock indice.

Case:

The round case measures 42 mm and is about 12 mm thick and fits easily under a sleeve. This size easily fits under the sleeve of a dress shirt. It is polished stainless steel with graceful, outwardly curving crown guards protecting a blue enamel decorated crown with a contrasting UN anchor logo. A radiused, polished bezel surrounds a slightly domed anti-reflective coated sapphire crystal. The polished +/- pushers are located at 10 and 8 o'clock with a brushed, engraved serial number plate between them. The engraved case back has a traditional array of perimeter screws with a flat sapphire display back to visualize the movement within a maintaining the 100 m water resistance rating. The 21 mm lugs gently arc downward around your wrist and catch light with their radiused, stepped edge features. The overall design aesthetic is elegant, and leans somewhat dressy but is not out of place in outdoor activities in my opinion.

Movement:

UN designates the calibre as UN-24, which is of course an ETA 2892-A2 "workhorse" base caliber with Ludwig Eochslin's  clever, gear based +/- time and large date modules integrated on top.  This movement is about combining a robust, reliable well regulated timekeeper with a unique functional user interface. This level of modification truly makes the movement unique despite its ubiquitous base caliber. The fact that it is a geared system speaks to the inherent robustness of the modules.  Also, >15 years of manufacturing and field experience on a complication along with >35 years on a base caliber are good things in a World of mechanical uncertainty. UN has ruthenium; bluish-gray colored and decorated the rotor to compliment the color themes of the dial and the based movement (a nice touch). While clearly not "haute horlogerie", it is a very nicely finished compared to many other ETA movements that I have seen with decorated bridges, gold gilt engraving and polished screws. Some folks will point out that this calibre has a large obscuring rotor hiding the movement and a relatively small balance, but I am glad they show the movement.  It is obvious that UN goes to great care in finishing and tuning the calibre. Unfortunately all of the novel mechanics shown in the patent illustration are hidden from view beneath the dial.

Bracelet:

The 21 mm bracelet is quite comfortable and the overall the watch has a very light weight feel compared to other bracelet based watches that I wear (I actually like a little heft to a bracelet). A polished, screwed link bracelet smoothly integrates with the case between the lugs. Center links near the case have raised UN anchors decorating them. The bracelet has wide center links surrounded with two rows on either side of smaller links. The clasp has raised UN anchors on each end link. The clasp is a double-folding clasp and is one area that I find a bit disappointing given the watches price point and what UN's peers have been producing in recent years. There is no clasp button, nor micro-adjustment. To open the clasp you must stick your finger beneath the bracelet and inner folding clasp and press outwards (To be fair, my JLC deployant clasp works similarly). I suspect like all polished bracelets, the underside will become a scratch magnet (par for the course).

Conclusion:

I would encourage anyone looking for a watch to travel with to consider this watch. It simply is easier to use than any other dual-time/GMT watch that I have handled. It is an "everyday" type watch that leans towards dress, but due to its water resistance and when placed on a bracelet is at home at the beach and sport/outdoor activities. It has an elegant, distinct look that stands out from other dual-time/GMT offerings. Personally, I far prefer a large date complication to a cyclops magnifier.  It is an "under-the-radar" watch, that will not draw attention from non-WIS crowd while traveling (to quote Martha Stewart, a good thing...).

It seems in recent years the traditional role of a watch company as an etablisseur using an excellent ebauche from a movement maker is looked down upon and at this price point using an exclusive in-house caliber is deemed as a superior quality approach. This is a valid and traditional Swiss manufacturing supply chain.  I would encourage you to see past the marketing of exclusivity and the down-market brand equity perception of using a ubiquitous ETA base caliber and look at how it has been finished and what has been done by the watchmaker to address the problem at hand: easily resetting to time to where you are at or are going and knowing what time it is at home. This was accomplished by integrating an exclusive/ingenious/unique set of mechanical complications designed by UN. Solving this problem has been attempted in a number of ways by different makers over the years. With this design goal in mind, in my opinion; this watch truly stands above its peers (functionally).