Independents

Max Busser and Friends (MB&F) is one of the favorite independents worldwide and has a strong following on PuristSPro.  And here is the latest new Horological Machine! 

Feast your eyes on this puppy...

Aviator Edition with an Aviator's dial. 

A quick video that showcases how the HM9 is made.  Notice the laborious process for the crystals and the filing/polishing of the escapement bridge/arm. 

Driver's edition with a Speedometer dial. 
I CAN'T WAIT to see this latest watch in person!  And as a hopeful future owner of the HM4 Thunderbolt and other MB&F creations, I've noticed every piece comes with a super-cool presentation box.  I wonder what the presentation box will look like to this piece... 

Awesome curved sapphire crystal windows that lets the world peek into the movement!  The satin finished case with beautiful convex bubbles is beautifully brushed.  The deep concavities where the three sections meet have a nice polished recession which is an excellent concept; and also a difficult concept as it's generally more difficult to polish concave surfaces evenly. 

Much like the Philippe Dufour Duality movement; the movement features two balance wheels which operate entirely independently, a central differential averages the timekeeping of the two balance wheels which operate at 18,000 VPH (2.5 Hz).  Also, notice the two "arm-bridges" holding the escapements.  Those are beautifully shaped, and filed/polished by hand.  This is definitely a watch for those who not only like radical design but also very high levels of finishing. 

The handsome and humble Max Busser.  One of the great guys in the watch industry!  A genius.  A visionary.  And a genuine Nice Guy! 

This latest piece follows another all-original piece; the HM7 Aquapod (link to Aquapod coverage from Don Corson below).  MB&F has consistently produced winning avant-garde designs that are well recognized within the horological community, collectors on PuristSPro, and even the design community at large; a couple years ago MB&F even unexpectedly received a coveted RED DOT Design Award for their SPACE PIRATE timepiece, an award not commonly bestowed upon the luxury watch industry. 

I really like the Aquapod (aka Jellyfish); it's even a tourbillon!  Take a look: www.watchprosite.com

Here are some other inspirations/musings of MB&F and their work compared to a sports car: www.watchprosite.com

Prices start at arm and leg levels (don't sell the arm, you'll need it for the watch).  But for the ones who have had a good year (or a REALLY GOOD quarter), pricing is expected to be around 168,000 Swiss Francs plus taxes.  There are only 33 pieces of each dial; so decide if you want the aviator or driver dial (a difficult choice, toss a coin) and get on the phone with either the rockstar Monsieur Hervé at the M.A.D. Gallery in Geneva or with super-VIP-experience Miss Linda at L'Atelier in Singapore; both are rockstar MB&F secret agents that I've personally met and will take great care of you!  Thanks for reading!  This message will NOT self-destruct in 10 seconds. 

Engine

Manual-winding in-house movement

Two fully independent balance wheels with planetary differential

Frequency: 2.5Hz (18,000bph)

Single barrel with 45-hour power reserve

301 components, 44 jewels

Hours and minutes on vertical dial display

Case

Grade-5 titanium

Dimensions: 57mm x 47mm x 23mm

43 components

Water resistant to 3ATM (30m); assembled in three segments with patented three-dimensional gasket

Sapphire crystals

Five sapphire crystals treated with anti-reflective coating

Strap and buckle

Hand-stitched brown calf-leather strap with custom-designed titanium folding buckle

 

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