Something new - and fun, from NOMOS!

Two new colorways for the Orion neomatik date!

Courtesy of NOMOS Glashütte

Nomos has done it again, with a very pleasing, subtle twist on a longtime favorite.  In this instance it is the Orion.  The model above is very aptly named as olive gold described in their own words, so I will let them do it better than I can -

And in a sumptuous shade of green that we call olive gold, paired with golden indexes and hands.

Courtesy of NOMOS Glashütte

And no less a burst of fresh design, is the midnight blue, pictured above.

Here are the pertinents for the Orion neomatik 41 date olive gold-

 

Courtesy of NOMOS Glashütte

 

CASE

stainless steel, tripartite domed sapphire crystal glass back

GLASS
domed sapphire crystal glass with anti-reflective coating

WINDING
automatic

DIMENSIONS
diameter 40.5 mm height 9.4 mm

WATER RESISTANCE
up to 5 atm (suitable for showering)

DIAL
olive gold
stamped indexes date window at three o'clock

HANDS
gold-plated

STRAP
Horween Genuine Shell Cordovan black, remborde
lug width 20 mm

REFERENCE
364

CALIBER
DUW 6101—in-house built NOMOS neomatik caliber with automatic winding, neomatik date mechanism, and bidirectional quick correction feature

MOVEMENT HEIGHT 

3.6 mm

DIAMETER
15 1⁄2 lines (35.2 mm)

POWER RESERVE 

up to 42 hours

SPECIAL QUALITIES 

NOMOS swing system tempered blue balance spring
NOMOS balance bridge, fixed by screws on both sides
stop-seconds mechanism bidirectional winding rotor with gold-plated embossing
Glashütte three-quarter plate
DUW regulation system adjusted in six positions 27 jewels
tempered blue screws rhodium-plated surfaces with Glashütte ribbing and NOMOS perlage
golden engravings


And for the midnight blue -

Courtesy of Nomos Glashütte

CASE

stainless steel, tripartite domed sapphire crystal glass back

GLASS
domed sapphire crystal glass with anti-reflective coating

WINDING
automatic

DIMENSIONS
diameter 40.5 mm height 9.4 mm

WATER RESISTANCE
up to 5 atm (suitable for showering)

DIAL
midnight blue
stamped indexes date window at three o'clock

HANDS

rhodium-plated

 
STRAP
Horween Genuine Shell Cordovan black, remborde
lug width 20 mm

REFERENCE
364

CALIBER
DUW 6101—in-house built NOMOS neomatik caliber with automatic winding, neomatik date mechanism, and bidirectional quick correction feature

MOVEMENT HEIGHT 

3.6 mm

DIAMETER
15 1⁄2 lines (35.2 mm)

POWER RESERVE 

up to 42 hours

SPECIAL QUALITIES 

NOMOS swing system tempered blue balance spring
NOMOS balance bridge, fixed by screws on both sides
stop-seconds mechanism bidirectional winding rotor with gold-plated embossing
Glashütte three-quarter plate
DUW regulation system adjusted in six positions 27 jewels
tempered blue screws rhodium-plated surfaces with Glashütte ribbing and NOMOS perlage
golden engravings

 

 

Wrapping Up a Week with the Orion Field Standard

One of the real pleasures of writing this blog is that from time to time you get to tell an interesting story.

Courtesy of the Orion Watch Project

Nick Harris gradually came to the conclusion that he wanted to not only be a watch "tinkerer", but rather a full-fledged watch maker. This began, as it often does, with a family heirloom being passed down to him.  In this case, an Omega that had a lot of sentimental value, but only provided the right time twice a day as it was missing a few "minor" parts - the crown and stem.  While the watch ran, without those two items, it was a bit of challenge to set the correct time ; )

What started as a desire to restore his inheritance morphed into a passion that has now taken Mr. Harris to school to train full time as a watch maker.  And in the little spare time that he does have, he has launched the Orion Watch Project to not only help explore his design ideas and sharpen his skills, but to help pay for his school expenses as well.  My understanding is that the majority of the assembly work is undertaken by Mr. Harris.

But back to the watch -

 
The Field Standard's case measures 38 mm in diameter and is made of sand blasted stainless steel.  The case features a rather prominent crown guard as well as a very prominent, very tactile screw-down crown.  Per Orion, it is rated to be water resistant to 100 meters.

 
The crown operated very smoothly, making time and date adjustment and winding from a dead stop a breeze.
 
The dial is black, with 12 large indices as well as an interior set with a military time scale on the interior of the dial, with a very prominent, very legible date window at 3 o'clock.

The cathedral hands are a good match for the watch, and the second hand is made even more visible with a red tip.  The hands are filled with lume, providing quite decent readability in dim light.

The case back is solid steel, and was (I am presuming) provided with a special flourish added by Mr. Harris to practice and further his craft -

 
Under the hood is Seiko's NH35 automatic, which features a hand winding, and hacking function.

The time keeping was quite good, no major variances experienced, if any complaints, just a wee bit fast (literally a gain of a handful of seconds over the entire week).

The size and fit of the watch is quite good owing to the slightly elongated lugs.  It was comfortable all day long and while prominent, was not overwhelming to wear.

The Orion Field Standard is a very solid watch, and at $450 is priced at a level that is affordable. 

Here are the pertinents, straight from the source -


Specifications:

• 38mm case diameter not including crown, 41mm including crown
• 20mm lug width, 49mm lug tip to tip
• Integrated black croc patterned leather strap
• 9mm knurled and screw down crown
• 100 meter water resistance
• Drilled lugs
• Domed sapphire crystal with blue AR coating
• 316L steel case
• NH35 automatic, hand winding, and hacking movement
• Date wheel (don't adjust date between 10pm-4am!)
• Luminous dial and hands (C3 lume)
• 1 Year warranty against manufacture defects

Why NOMOS Matters - More and More

I am, for better or worse, a prisoner of my emotions.

So one of the crazy things about leaving a full-time job in the watch industry and starting a blog - even one as small as this one - is that you suddenly have access.  You get to meet some really interesting people and you get to see some really, REALLY cool watches - first hand.

As this is the start of 2014, and I started this little exercise four years ago - I thought it about time to thank some of the people who helped make it happen.

And first on the list is NOMOS.  Now, I am under instructions to refer to them as NOMOS Glashütte, and I get that, but I need for you (and them) to understand that I have followed them since way back when - back in the earlier part of this century ; ), when they were NOMOS.  As my auntie and sisters still call me Jim, well, I will use NOMOS.

I still remember the email that I sent - essentially saying "I want to write this blog, and can I write about you?"  Well, the answer was yes, but (in fairness) "who the hell are you?"  Well, it wasn't quite that extreme, but in fairness - who the hell was I?  What the HELL was TEMPUS FUGIT?

Well, to their credit, the good folks at NOMOS were the first people to jump on board and take this ride with me, and I think (although selfishly)  that this deserves a big thank you.  I could go on and on about movements, unique designs, etc. - but for those of you who read this regularly (perhaps likely when you can't sleep and need a soporific), you know that beyond technological wizardry, I value people first and foremost - and as it is ultimately about people, thank you NOMOS for your people.  They are what make you special, and they are truly why NOMOS matters.

NOMOS Lambda Roségold

Courtesy of NOMOS Glashutte 

And Now for Something Completely Different - Lux Weißgold

This just announced from NOMOS Glashütte -

Courtesy of NOMOS Glashutte 

I WANT ONE!

Is it Local? Part Deux

So let's talk about "down-home".  I have come to realize that fewer and fewer things are actually made where we assume that they are.  More car companies than I care to mention trade on the idea of a GERMAN car that is perhaps about as German as I am.  Point of clarification - I am not German!

But let's talk about something that IS German, and in a wonderfully eccentrically German way -
NOMOS Glashutte!

NOMOS is all wet

And so the folks from Glashutte have now come up with something you can splash around with. 

First Post Revisited - Where it all begins

I looked up the other day and realized that in a little over two years I had accumulated more than 1000 posts!  So it seemed as good a time as any to hop in the "way-back" machine and revisit the very first post.  You know, sort of bringing it all back home -

This post originally ran on June 29th, 2010


Courtesy of NOMOS Glashütte

Time is fleeting. To measure it is a nearly futile protest against its inevitable forward momentum. How do we measure time? The folks at Nomos have been good enough to share some images and some stories. The watch pictured above is the Nomos Tangente. I have always been obsessed by this watch. Beyond the obvious - i.e. the design, I had always found the name quite evocative - Tangente. I had always believed that the name had a design reference. As if Mies himself had lent a hand (albeit from the great beyond) in the design of this great watch. It was only many years later when traveling through Switzerland with my German speaking boss that it was explained to me. The name Tangente had nothing to do with design. In fact, the Tangente was named for the roadways that you must travel in your car on a daily basis in Germany. At first I was a bit bummed out. But then I thought about the genius of this name. I have been smiling ever since.

NOMOS' Zürich watch awarded Good Design Award

Courtesy of NOMOS

Glashütte, January 2012. NOMOS Glashütte is proud to have been awarded the Good Design Award 2011 by the Chicago Athenaeum for NOMOS' Zürich watch. The Swiss design legend Hannes Wettstein created this watch for the independent German manufactory as one of his last projects before he died.

"The Good Design Award is an internationally recognized prize with a long history. We are very pleased about it and about the American design scene's appreciation of beautiful and well made watches, " states Simon Husslein, Studio Wettstein chief designer.
While it is not its first recognition, the Good Design Award is a very special prize for the Zürich watch, which also won the Red Dot Design Award 2010 and the iF Product Design Award 2011.  This underlines NOMOS' aim to combine traditional watchmaking skills at the German watchmaking mecca Glashütte with a timeless modern design.The Good Design Award's legacy dates back to 1950, when the prize was created by Charles and Ray Eames, Eero Saarinen, and Edgar Kaufmann, Jr., in Chicago.  Today it is awarded by The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design, and the European Centre for Architecture, Art, Design and Urban Studies in Dublin.

Manufacturer...

We all have, to some extent, a fairly grand and exalted opinion of what the inside of a true manufacturer must look like.  Sometimes that image is sold and packaged as part of a luxury image, and you almost expect the watch makers to be offered a hot towel and champagne as they arrive to start the day, emerging from their Bentleys.  I think in all of the hype and noise about luxury- what it is and what it means... we've lost sight of actual watch making and the real people who do this for a living.

I was shown this picture at BaselWorld by the folks at NOMOS, and this to me really summed it up -

Courtesy of NOMOS

It's nice to remember that real people are actually still making real watches.

A visit to Glashutte by way of Basel

I am always curious what Nomos will have to share each year, and this year was lucky to get a meeting with Ute Fischer-Graf to check it out in person.

Nomos has moved to a much bigger space and I have to say that it is a very impressive booth.

Over a coffee I was introduced to a watch that I had seen from a distance, but never in person -

Courtesy of NOMOS

This is the Tangomat GMT Plus.  I will be very forthright and honest here, gentle readers - I did not want to like it.  For me, the Tangente is the original, accept no substitute, blah, blah, blah.  And yet, I must say having spent some time getting to know this timekeeper, I really DO like it!

www.glashuette.com

NOMOS ENCYCLOPAEDIA - Todays entry is...

Once again it's time to turn to NOMOS Glashutte - The Great Universal ENCYCLOPAEDIA
Today's entry is - Orion!

Reprinted with permission from NOMOS.

Orion
The Orion is a much sought-after standard model by NOMOS (and secretly our favorite watch).  Its movement is the NOMOS Alpha movement.  Orion is available with a dial in white (silver-plated) and in anthracite.  These watches usually have silver index markers and hands.  The white version is also available with golden index markers and tempered blue hands.  All Orion watches are also available with or without a glass back.

( Page 184, NOMOS Glashutte - The Great Universal ENCYCLOPAEDIA, 1st English Edition, copyright  Kommunikationsverein, Berlin, 2006)

NOMOS Orion
Visit NOMOS at:  www.glashuette.com

At NOMOS, exceptions prove the rule...

As promised, I am trying to dip in once a week to the NOMOS Encyclopaedia to share with you who do not have it on your bookshelves.

Today's entry is:  FUSS

Reprinted with permission from Nomos.

Fuss
Roland Schwertner, part of the management duo, wants nothing to do with fuss.  So you'll find none of it here, at least not officially.  Exceptions, of course, prove the rule.

( Page 84, NOMOS Glashutte - The Great Universal ENCYCLOPAEDIA, 1st English Edition, copyright  Kommunikationsverein, Berlin, 2006)

NOMOS Tetra Power Reserve

Exceptions do indeed prove the rule!

Visit NOMOS at:  www.glashuette.com

Something a bit whimsical from Glashutte

As you have probably figured out by now, I have a tough time going more than a week without talking about NOMOS.  David has been kind enough to keep feeding me with great bits of information and has gone well above and beyond the normal scope of what a PR guy would usually do - or at least above and beyond what I used to do!  This is the greeting card you get when you receive a communication from the folks at NOMOS.  Think about this for a moment.  Usually the image and message you are receiving from a watch company is all about the history, the beauty, style, strength, accuracy, etc.  and as the guy who sometimes writes these messages - I am not necessarily disagreeing.  BUT - what happens when you take a classic watch from a company making their own movements, operating in one of the most famous sites in the world of horology... and let them really communicate with you?  You get the NOMOS Encyclopaedia.  And unless you are just a boring person - you smile!

This is 300 PLUS pages of pure fun!  Yes, there is a lot of information about NOMOS, watches, movements, etc., but there is more!  So this will begin my examination of the ENCYCLOPAEDIA and I will be sharing a weekly entry.  All credit for text goes to NOMOS Glashutte.  Today's topic is - 

Kissing with NOMOS - and why NOMOS is called "NOMOS"

From 1906 to 1910 there was already a company in Glashutte with the name NOMOS, founded by Guido Muller, and advertising specialist from Dresden.  He produced only pocket watches.  They were beautiful, tasteful models that very quickly became cult objects of the intellectual scene.  However, they were watches with a catch: the ebauche that ticked in them was very good - but it came from Switzerland.  So, after a few years, Muller had to shut his workshop.  A. Lange & Sohne had started proceedings against NOMOS, which ended with a settlement.  The company was no longer allowed to distribute its products from Dresden either because it did not submit to the rules that the court imposed.  

What had caused outrage in 1910 was necessary in 1990, when Roland Schwertner came to Glashutte.  Everyone who, like him, started making watches in Glashutte again, initially obtained components from Switzerland.  So too did the newly founded company NOMOS, which had nothing in common with the old company except for the name.  Schwertner, the managing director, simply liked the name.  Firstly because of what it actually stands for - "NOMOS" is Greek and means law, convention and just distribution.  Secondly, because Bruce Chatwin wrote about NOMOS in his book "The Songlines" and Schwertner likes Chatwin a lot.  And thirdly, "when you say NOMOS, your mouth forms a beautiful kiss."

From:  NOMOS Glashutte - The Great Universal ENCYCLOPAEDIA, copyright Kommunikationsverein, Berlin, 2006

   

And of course there has to be some watches!  These are three different versions of the NOMOS CLUB.

Not just Black or White

On the surface of things, it would be easy to jump to the conclusion that NOMOS makes either white or black watches. But the great thing about NOMOS is that nothing is as obvious or "standard" as that.

To quote the NOMOS press release regarding these watches -

Exciting, Colorful Gray

Gray dominates, reigns, but in the most beautiful way. There is a limited edition of 20 Orion models - "Unification -NOMOS" - twenty years after the Fall of the Berlin Wall. Each one in gray and each one carries the name of a town.

These were released last year 2009, and I got to view a few up close and personal while in Europe for BaselWorld.

For more information on this collection, please visit the NOMOS website:

http://www.glashuette.com/index.php?id=315&L=1

I would like to thank my contact at NOMOS - David, for his support and providing us with images and information.

Where It All Begins

Courtesy of NOMOS

Time is fleeting. To measure it is a nearly futile protest against its inevitable forward momentum. How do we measure time? The folks at Nomos have been good enough to share some images and some stories. The watch pictured above is the Nomos Tangente. I have always been obsessed by this watch. Beyond the obvious - i.e. the design, I had always found the name quite evocative - Tangente. I had always believed that the name had a design reference. As if Mies himself had lent a hand (albeit from the great beyond) in the design of this great watch. It was only many years later when traveling through Switzerland with my German speaking boss that it was explained to me. The name Tangente had nothing to do with design. In fact, the Tangente was named for the roadways that you must travel in your car on a daily basis in Germany. At first I was a bit bummed out. But then I thought about the genius of this name. I have been smiling ever since.