Harry Winston

foversta
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The Midnight Automatic: more than a simple watch

I would like to come back to the Midnight Automatic. This is a watch which may look very simple at first glance but which contains some unusal details. Obviously, the Midnight Big Date looks more sophisticated... maybe more Harry Winston in its spirit. I will try to explain why the Midnight Automatic is as valuable as its "complicated" sister.

In fact, the Midnight Automatic is a sort of  mix between classic Harry Winston details and more original ones. Let's browse them.



I) The classic details in a Harry Winston context

- the applied Harry Winston logo: yes, we don't see it in each and every Harry Winston watch but it is a sort of symbol. This raised part breaks the very smooth side of the dial. Maybe without it, the watch would have been perceived as too simple. Its color is the same than the case one (the Midnight Automatic is available with PG or WG cases).

- the finishings of the dial and of the case: these finishings are a bit the Harry Winston trademark. The dial with its sunray satin-brushed finish is a true beauty: it attracts the light and creates nice glints on it whatever is its colour (Rosé Champagne or Grey). The case is as beautiful and it is maybe the most complex part of the watch. This is the pure "in-house" element of the watch because as you know, Harry Winston produces its own cases in the Manufacture of Plan-les-Ouates. The dials are produced by the "Les Cadraniers de Genève" company which totally belongs to Montres Journe now.



- the use of the GP 3300 caliber. I'm very happy to find again this old friend. It is a thin and efficient caliber, perfect in the context of an elegant watch. It is a caliber which powers a lot of Harry Winston watches, mainly with additional modules. Its finishings are very sober despite the presence of the gold Harry Winston rotor. The trouble brought by the use of this caliber is the gap between its diameter (26,2mm) and the case diameter (42mm). So the main challenge for the designers was to successfully insert the date window on the dial without disturbing its balance. The trick was to put it over the indexes at 6 o'clock without reducing their sizes. You can also notice that the other indexes are almost as long. The GP 3300 has a thickness of 3,2mm, a 4hz frequency and a power reserve of 45/46 hours. The haunting question is of course: why doesn't Harry Winston use an in-house caliber ? I would answer you by this argument: it is not the Harry Winston objective to use its own movements but to use nice and reliable calibers and for the most complicated watches, exclusive ones (like the Z6 or some additional modules). Frankly speaking, I'm not sure than an in-house movement would bring an added-value here.







II) The original details in a Harry Winston context

- it is a two-hands watch. I can't imagine the effort from Harry Winston !!! When you think that the story really began with a QP retrograde watch, that the Opus collection is maybe the most impressive gathering of UFO on Earth... you can imagine the long long way to take the decision to create a simple watch, a two-hands one above all. And... I don't regret the absence of the second hand. Moreover, it would have been very complicated to hide dial side that the caliber was much smaller than the case. Good point.





- the watch doesn't have an off-centered time display: yes, in a Harry Winston world, that's something unusual. We all have the feelings that the off-centered dials have been a big part of the DNA of the Harry Winston men's watches. And this feature gave its name to a line of watches: the Excenter one. Of course, Harry Winston, with the new collection, couldn't resist: there is one watch with the off-centered dial, the Midnight Big Date. It is maybe the reason why I consider the Big date as more "Harry Winston" in its design than the Automatic one.



- the hands: I already wrote a topic about them. These hands are complex, at least more complex than the sword/blade or stick hands used in the Ocean or Premier collection. I especially like the shape of their base which makes me think about the Harry Winston logo. They obviously contribute a lot to the overall elegancy of the watch.





- the indexes. It is very funny but this year, I noticed two watches with similar indexes which look like exclamation mark: The Saxonia Thin from Lange and the Midnight Automatic. This type of indexes are dedicated to dials without a minute scale. To add a bit of spice on the dial, the indexes at 3,6 and 9 o'clock are in one part, doubled and applied. To preserve the indexes at 6 o'clock, the "swiss" word is located on their right side. I think I would have prefered the watch without.



- the case. This is the key feature of the new collection: the use of the Midnight case with more "simple" watches than the Tourbillon Chronograph or the Minute Repeater (both with Renaud&Papi calibers). Its slender design, the more discrete parts around the crown, the curved shape of the lugs make this case very elegant and very comfortable. Some may think that it loses a bit of personality in front of the Premier or the Ocean cases. I'm not sure about this. This case unveils its charm very slowly. I do believe about its potential. For the time being, I put it in the "original part" of my report but I'm sure that it will become very quickly a classic within the Harry Winston collection.

III) Conclusion

If I had to choose between the Automatic and the Big Date, I would go to the more complicated watch. It is a question of taste, of feeling... maybe because the off-centered time display and the very discrete presence of the diamond on the dial seduce me. But the Midnight Automatic is a very worthy offer by Harry Winston in the world of simple and dress watches. Some little details break the quiet design and enhance its elegancy: as I say very often, to create a simple watch is a very difficult task. Harry Winston managed to do it thanks to this mix of classic and unusual characteristics.