The Himalaya 40 mm Marcel Livet

 From Lip & Marcel Livet -

Courtesy of Lip & Marcel Livet

This is the latest Lip mash-up, and it's well worth checking out!

Courtesy of Lip

Ever wonder why the Lip Himalaya is called the Himalaya?  Well, strap on your crampons and let's go climbing back in time to 1951.  This marked the third French expedition to the Himalayas, and Marcel Livet (the namesake of the particularly drip handmade French skis) was one of the organizers for the French Alpine Club.
Lip provided the watches for the team.

While ill-fated (not all who set out returned and were forever lost to the mountains), it was also marked a pivotal time in mountain exploration.

To commemorate the expedition, Lip and Marcel Livet have teamed up to offer this limited edition.

Courtesy of Lip

The case is of stainless steel and measures 40 mm in diameter.  the movement is Miyota's 9132 automatic/self-winding with date at 3 o'clock, and a small sub-second dial.

This is a limited edition and priced at €549.00

Lip

An important note to this story - in the time since my visit, my partner Rick Marei and I have been in discussions with Lip to represent them in North America and sell them through our soon-to-open online store.  So while everything I am writing here about Lip is absolutely from the heart, it is important to disclose to you, the reader, that I am in discussions to make that relationship more of a business one, so I am biased, and I do have a potential business interest.  They have not paid for this content, it is my own.  Both Rick and I are looking forward to bringing Lip Watches to North America.  Stay tuned!

I have held off on posting this because I was still taking some time to digest my visit to Besançon this past November.  

I feel it is safe to say that if you are looking for technical content, or brownie hounding then Tempus Fugit is probably NOT the outlet for you.  

But, contrary to what some brand managers out there might think, I do have feelings, and sometimes my heart will draw me in what I would honestly say are unexpected directions.

And this past Thanksgiving week, I returned to Besançon pretty much four years to the day that I first visited.

And while there were some touristy things that I did, the most important part of this one-day stop was to visit Lip. 

Lip has become something of a cult figure here in the US.  Not for nothing, the Mach 2000 is something of a anomaly in the world of watch fans.  If we are honest about it, in its current format is essentially, a quartz chronograph.  But this is a watch that demonstrates that a watch is far more than the sum of its parts.  Think I'm kidding?  While in France I received a Facebook message from a fellow watch journalist stateside asking me to pick one up while I was there and bring it back for him.  There are certain watches out there that hit visceral nerves, and for me Lip has a few models that speak to me on levels I can't really quantify.  They are emotional as much as pragmatic.  Lip, at its very heart, is as much a feeling as it is a brand.

I refer you to an article by Adam Sofineti -

http://www.watchpaper.com/2020/02/02/lip-nautic-ski-hands-on-review/

A part of Lip's history is a "passing around" of the brand.  When I visited four years ago, Lip had been living sort of a diluted life, really treated by the (then) owners as a label to brand watches under, and not the watch brand that they truly were.  

Enter the Berards - Philippe and Pierre-Alain.  In the time since my last visit, they have taken ownership of Lip, and reinvigorated it.  I am not here to criticize the previous owners.  I am, however, here to applaud the Berards, and the entire team at Lip.  

How do you manage a legend?  Curious to relate, Lip stirs a LOT of emotions in not only watch fans, but in the French consciousness.  But prior to the Berard's, that emotional connection was more of a sense of nostalgia.  

Since the Berard's?  I hate hyperbole, but walking around the streets of Besançon, Paris, and the offices and workshop at Lip, I really felt the energy, the passion, I really felt why some brands connect on the level that they do with fans and the public at large.

It would be easy to do a Blancpain and "start from year zero", but the team at Lip live in the real world, one where you don't manufacture history.  To that end, they have a rather unusual (in today's watch world) department that handles vintage Lip questions, assessments, and if I understood correctly, possible restoration (but my French is lacking, so I will need to get clarification on that point).

And while it would be easy for the Berards to simply have bought the label and turn to a white label company for everything, it was very clear to me that Lip clearly represents something special to them, and I got that same feeling touring around the new facilities that they have installed for mechanical watches.

It is not enormous, but it is not insignificant either.  And I think what is encouraging about it to me, is that it represents the first step forward.

It also bears mentioning that Lip has stayed true to its roots.  

While it would be easy for them recreate themselves as something that they are not, and never were, they have held the line on pricing.  In a world where brands both big and small jack up their prices only to jettison their unwanted stock to the grey market where it is discounted down to the bare bones, Lip offers something novel - a great watch at a fair price.

Now I realize that everyone wants to go to Switzerland to visit the historic Maisons, and that's fair enough.  But if you are really a fan of watches, history and culture?  Get yourself to Besançon and soak up all of the history and charm that this wonderful city has.

and pick up a Lip watch while you're at it, either here, or the City of Lights.  You don't have to be a Hipster to be a Lipster ; )

Love Overdue - A Week with the Lip Himalaya 40 mm Mecanique

Full disclosure, I am a long-term fan of Lip.  I visited the factory in Besançon 4 years ago, and I am somewhat pre-disposed to like what they do.  I recently had the opportunity to wear and review one of their watches and I have to say that I am a reaffirmed fan.

This is the Lip Himalaya 40 mm Mecanique.  It does not have a chronograph, an alarm, is not solar powered, does not make coffee ; )

The Himalaya originally appeared in the Lip collection from 1954 to 1973.  It has made a comeback over the past few years and today is available in a few different versions.

In other words?  It is a watch!  Hours, minutes, seconds and date.  The case is of stainless steel, and measures 40 mm in diameter.  The movement is a mechanical one. 

Now it bears mentioning that this is a Miyota movement.  The interesting part of this movement's winding action is that it does not achieve a "full" wind stopping point when winding.  What does that mean, exactly?  Essentially that you can wind and wind, but you will not feel the tension growing, resistance increasing, and finally find yourself unable to wind it further.  Also?  You will never over-wind or break the spring!  Over the past week I have wound 20 - 25 times and call it done, and the power reserve has been great.

ON THE FACE OF IT

It would be simple (and accurate) to say that the Himalaya Mecanique had me at "hello".  The dial is beautiful in its simplicity.  And remember, here at Tempus Fugit simple isn't dumb, it's beautiful.  The dial is laid out with applied numbers (a personal favorite), with minute/second indices in between.

The hands are elegantly, and appropriately long and shapely.  The second hand is tipped red.  These are little details, but for me they really add that certain je ne sais quoi to a wonderful watch.

The date window is another point of joy for me. 

Clear, well-defined and easy to read.  Moreover, what I find more and more is that the date window is an after-thought.  And that is the case with big, small and micro brands.  How often is the number or marker where the date window appears either partially, or fully obscured due to lazy design?  This is a truly satisfying dial to look at.

The strap is a wonderful soft, of brown leather.

The buckle is branded, subtle and a perfect match for the watch as a whole.

And the little details matter -

So let's get down to brass tacks, how much is this all going to cost you?

€399.00

That's just a wee bit under $450 by this morning's conversion rate.

The time keeping was steady, the comfort of the watch was beyond reproach, and the value for money can't really be argued with.  Is it for you?  Well, that is something down to the individual, to be sure.  Me?  I am a bit of a romantic.  I have visited the Lip facility, I have walked the streets of Besançon, seen the Silberstein clock, had (a few) beer/s with the students in the college bars.  This one speaks to me.

Something Special from lip

Courtesy of lip

This is the Himalaya 40 mm automatic sapphire - 671579.  And it's a little bit special.

First and foremost, it is REALLY nice to look at.  Purists and pooh-poohers out there will wring their hands, decrying that the dial is not real guilloche, well that's nonsense.  The dial is meant to be pleasing to look at, elegant in appearance, and priced at a level that is consistent with the values of lip.  It scores on every point.

The case is stainless steel, and measures 40 mm in diameter, the movement is Miyota's 821A.

Hours, minutes, seconds and date.  It is, to quote Goldilocks, just right.

 

The Himalaya Chronograph

From lip -

Courtesy of lip

Well, technically the full name is the Himalaya 40 mm Chronograph Sapphire ; )

Courtesy of lip

 This is a LOT of watch for a very little bit of money - 249,00 €!

The case is stainless steel (not coated brass) and measures 40 mm in diameter.  Bi-compax chronograph, date at 6 o'clock.  Miyota quartz movement, sapphire crystal.  A lot of bang for your buck... or Euro!

 
 

A Hand-Winding Treat

From Lip -

Courtesy of Lip

So this is truly a fun morning for me.  I had not had occasion to visit the Montres Lip website in some time, and as BaselWorld is still four months away, this was a very nice surprise for me.  

I am a very, very big fan of Lip.  I have visited their HQ in Besançon, met the owners, and would LOVE to see them have actual representation here in the US.  And while they make several clever pieces, they have finally come up with one that I would want to wear pretty much every day of the week.

This is the Lip Himalaya 40 mm mechanical - 671552.  It is not a chronograph.  It does not have a second time zone.  No smart features, no flashy extras.  

A beautifully simple dial with 12 numerals as opposed to indices.  And again, simple does not mean dumb.  In fact, simple it this particular instance means incredibly well-informed in terms of design that will stand the test of time.  Hours, minutes and seconds.
The date window is enhanced to offer better than normal legibility.

The case measures 40 mm in diameter, and is of stainless steel.  And perhaps one of my favorite aspects of this timekeeper - the movement is a hand winding, mechanical movement - the Miyota 821A SPE.  And I suppose that this is where I probably differ from many of my friends and colleagues in the industry and covering it.  I am not a huge fan of automatic watches.  If I am being really honest about it, I really prefer something that is hand-winding.  Now there are those who will rhapsodize about the communion between man and time as one winds the life into the watch each morning by hand.  

Yeah, maybe.

As for myself, I can just picture myself in that city I fell in love with two years ago - Besançon, getting up early in the morning to walk the city streets as I did back then, winding my watch and heading out of the hotel.  Wandering the old streets and taking it all in, with a clear head, an open heart, and the thrill of being in such a wonderful place.

So clearly, my identification with the Lip Himalaya 40 mm mechanical - 671552 may indeed be simply personal, and one that does not relate to everyone.  Fair enough.  That's what makes a horse race ; )

Enjoy your watches!

The Shit That Killed Elvis 12 / 12

I actually got to see the prototype of this watch when I visited Lip in Besançon last November.

This is the Himalaya Power Reserve -

Courtesy of Lip

It is beautiful to look at, but what I really like about it is that it offers something a little special while staying true to the DNA of the Himalaya collection.


Here are the pertinents -

case
steel diameter 40 mm

dial
Indexs with silver batons and Arabic numerals hour and minute dark blue silver second hand at 3 o'clock date display

glass
Sapphire

strap
Black genuine leather 
width 20 mm black

buckle
Butterfly silver

waterproof
50 meters

movement
Automatic Miyota 9132 

Seven Days with the Lip Himalaya

Starts now.

Doing Good - The Kobold Himalaya

Michael Kobold is a curious fellow.  At a time where it might be easiest to lay up and do the "normal" things like making watches as "usual" he has committed himself and his company to helping the people of Nepal.

Courtesy of Kobold

And to that end, he and Kobold released two watches to raise money and awareness - The Kobold Himalaya -