Behold - the SISTEM51!

Okay, now as much as I rail and rant about some of the Big Dogs of the watch world, you have to give credit where it's due.

Courtesy of SWATCH

I think it is easy to get cynical - and dare I say it, profoundly frustrated by some of the machinations of the SWATCH Group.  I am NOT always ready to bow down and kiss the ring.

BUT - I also have to remember where my "horological" were made - 1985, Higbees in Elyria, Ohio.  It was a Swatch Calypso Diver.  Having recently converted from the church of Duran Duran and Big Country to a steady diet of Lou Reed, the Velvet Underground and others you might think that a Swatch was a bit too of the moment - but I LOVED that Calypso Diver!  And so did all of my "far too serious", deep thinking friends ; )

Courtesy of SWATCH

And with all of the mechanical marvels I get to write about every day, it seems somehow fitting that it is a Swatch again that has my attention shortly after BaselWorld - sort of "Bringing it all back home"!

So here are the details, straight from Swatch -

• SWATCH SISTEM51•
• World premiere: fully automated assembly of a mechanical movement 
• • 51 components - Swatch’s lucky number
• • 1 central screw 
• • 90 hour power reserve
• • Swatch—100% Swiss made 

Thirty years ago Swatch turned the watch world upside down. Today, Swatch SISTEM51 presents a new point of view, sets new standards and celebrates the Swatch credo: simplify and innovate. Never before has simplicity been made so intriguing and surprising. 

SISTEM51 is an automated (self winding) mechanical movement made from 51 components—no more, no less—made possible by a simplified and more efficient design. Most mechanical movements have at least twice as many parts; some have more than 600! 51 is the magic number (and Swatch’s lucky number, too). 

SISTEM51’s components are welded together to form a single assembly centred on a single screw. When Copernicus put the sun at the centre of the solar system, he changed the whole way we perceive and understand life. SISTEM51 is a Copernican idea in contemporary terms!

SISTEM51 is a world first: it is the only mechanical movement ever made whose assembly is 100% automated. The high-tech escapement has no regulator; the rate is set at the factory with a laser, making the manual rate adjustments normally required by a mechanical watch unnecessary. The movement features a 90 hour power reserve.

SISTEM51’s movement is made entirely of ARCAP, an alloy of copper, nickel and zinc with exceptional anti-magnetic qualities. And since all movement components are hermetically sealed within the case, no moisture, dust or foreign objects can interfere with its operation. The resulting inner peace guarantees the movement a long, serene life and enduring performance. 

  

SISTEM51 offers one last surprise—transparency. A distinguishing feature of Swatch, the transparency of SISTEM51 creates a unique look, distinct from any other Swatch. Automatic movements are driven by an oscillating rotor; the rotor in SISTEM51 is a transparent disc that rotates in both directions around the central screw. This signature feature opens up fascinating views of the movement beneath it, a movement whose visible surfaces are printable. The design reaches beyond appearances to reveal the innovative depth of the watch itself. 

Finally, and this is no surprise, SISTEM51 is 100% Swiss made—a guarantee of quality, end to end. 

Courtesy of SWATCH

I want one!