Wrapping up the Montfort Strata James - Part Two

What makes the Strata James, and Montfort special?

Well, it is actually several things.  Starting with the dial -

A close up of the dial reveals that it is, in fact, full of texture.  And holes!  Well, not exactly holes.  But what the dial of the Strata James and all of the other Strata pieces proudly displays is the result of a 3D printed dial.  Now in fairness, you could easily print 3D dials... if you simply wanted a flat, typical dial.  But that is not what the folks at Montfort were after.  There are plenty of flat dialed watches, but not too many out there with actual texture.  Add to that the challenge of making hundreds of dials that will be exactly the same?  Well, that's more than just an afternoon's worth of tinkering ; )



Long story short, Montfort partnered with the Swedish firm Digital Metal to create the dials for the Strata collection.  

The goal was to create a dial reminiscent of the birthplace of Montfort which is not exactly flat.  To this extent, the dial of the James Strata is somewhat topographic in nature.  Although you will likely never take the dial out and touch it, you can almost feel the rise and fall of it's texture with your eyes.    

Now for me (and this might just be my take on it) the dial was what really made the watch for me.  The pattern is described as "Clous de Paris".  It is extremely pleasant to look at, and wonderful to see displayed on a watch at this price point.  Montfort was also aware that this is a watch that also needs to be, well, readable!  And to that end they used an outer chapter ring with a 60 minute/second scale as well as six very prominent markers at 1, 3, 5,7, 9 and 11 o'clock.  There is nothing printed on the inner (main) dial itself, the logo and text are on the crystal, almost floating above the mountains and valleys of the dial.

Now the second innovation is the case.  It is not made from mere stainless steel.  It is, quite literally, Super Stainless Steel.  And I have to be honest, this is where my ability to adequately describe technical stuff hits the wall, so I am going to quote Montfort -

Super Stainless Steel has been developed in conjunction with AIM SA of Switzerland and Expanite A/S of Denmark. Initially developed for offshore and aerospace applications this gaseos carbo-nitriding technology is unparalleled in its flexibility, hardening performance and anti-corrosive properties.

By diffusing at low temperature both nitrogen and carbon into the surface of the material, a layer is formed with a case depth of approximately 0.04mm (0.0016 in) with a surface hardness around 1200 HV (Hardness Vickers scale). The treated steel is 8 times harder than standard steel improving drastically the resistance to scratches.

Now if you're like me, and I know some of you are, you will scratch the bejeepers out of your watches.  I have fortunately not had to put this technology to the test, but it is comforting to know it's there.

One last point I'd like to make is the finishing of the movement, most specifically the rotor -

Courtesy of Montfort

I opted to use Montfort's own photo for this as they have captured the movement much better than my own ham-fisted attempts.  The movement is the Sellita SW200, it features a black galvanic coating, blued screws and "CÔTES DE GENÈVE" on the rotor.  Is this an "in house", manufacture movement?  Of course not, and thank goodness!  Because sooner or later, you will want to get your watch serviced, and the way things are going, I will wish you good luck if you are trying to get anything other than a "standard", mass produced one taken care of without having to pay to put your watch maker's kids through private school.

And while we are on the topic of the movement, it ran very accurately with no major deviations.  I also wound very smoothly with very good crown engagement.  The screw-down crown is solid and secure without being too tight or too loose.

To sum it up, this is an intriguing watch.  Comfortable to wear, and  very versatile, you can wear it with pretty much anything.  It has some great technological advancements, offers some fun surprises and very real value at its suggested retail price point of 1,990 CHF.

For the record, here are the specs straight from the source -


CASE: 4 PIECE CASE IN HARDENED "SUPER STAINLESS STEEL”

SIZE: 44 MM

WATER RESISTANCE: 100M/330FT (10ATM)

CRYSTAL: SAPPHIRE CRYSTAL GLASS (TOP AND BOTTOM) WITH BLUE ANTI-REFLECTIVE COATING

DIAL: 3D PRINTED STAINLESS STEEL DIAL "CLOUS DE PARIS"

HANDS: HOUR & MINUTE : SKELETON RHODIUM POLISHED WITH ‘COOL GREY’ LUMINOVA, SECOND: BLUE PVD COATING

MOVEMENT: SWISSMADE SELLITA SW200 AUTOMATIC MOVEMENT IN BLACK GALVANIC COATING, BLUED SCREWS, "CÔTES DE GENÈVE" ON OSCILLATING MASS AND 26 RUBIES

STRAP: BLACK, SEMI MATTE ITALIAN LEATHER STRAP WITH BLACK STITCHING AND BLUE ‘LORICA’ LINING – 22/20MM

Wrapping up the Montfort Strata James - Part One

The past seven days have been pretty eventful - I turned fifty, France won the World Cup, and I got the opportunity to wear a watch that bears my name!

For those of you who are not yet acquainted, Montfort is a relatively new brand that currently occupies the "microbrand" space, but has the potential to grow beyond it.  

The model that was sent for review is the Montfort Strata James, which is part of the original Strata collection.  Spoiler alert, I really have enjoyed wearing this watch, and have been very impressed with its build quality, look, and wearing comfort.

Jumping straight to the "wearability" of the watch -
The case measures 44 mm in diameter, and is crafted of some pretty special stainless steel (more on that in a moment).  While the case has ample size on the horizontal, it falls into the "Goldilocks" size and fit category (at least for me) in that it is "just right".  The actual thickness of the case is much more sane -

This allows for a very pleasing wearing experience.  The temptation for a lot of watch brands is to make something "macho".
By that, I mean that a watch has to be bigger in every way, not just a large diameter, but it should sit like a hockey puck on the wrist, and the strap should be more reminiscent of something to put around your waist as opposed to something to secure a watch to your wrist.

In terms of wrist size I am, to quote Joe Walsh, "an ordinary, average guy".  The Strata James fits and wears very comfortably.

The strap is really something fun.  It is made of leather, with a stitched and padded exterior which adds an extra level of texture.

It is subtle, and it adds an extra little "whats-it".  While the exterior of the strap is leather, the interior of it is lorica.  Don't worry, no loricas were harmed in the manufacture of the strap linings ; )  

Lorica is a synthetic type of leather.  The advantage of this is that because it is synthetic, it does not have the same "rot" factor of leather, meaning that the strap will last longer.  And with a fun little twist, the interior of the strap is a different color, in this instance it is blue.  You will also notice that the strap uses quick change spring bars, which allows for easy strap changes.

The lug width is 22 mm, and the strap tapers down to 20 mm at the buckle.  The buckle itself is interesting -

It is also of stainless steel, it is structured, well shaped and ample without being excessive.  You notice anything else?  The buckle itself is not polished in the same manner as the rest of the watch case and crown.  This was not an oversight from the folks at Montfort. This was very intentional.  As yourself a question - where does the buckle of your watch strap usually sit?  Moreover, it is safe to assume that it will be coming into constant contact with tables, desks, doors, etc.  So Montfort opted to have a buckle of hardened steel without polishing.

Wait a minute, what is hardened steel?  We'll get into all of that and more when Part Two of this review goes up this evening.

Stay Tuned!


 

When They Name A Watch After You...

Okay, no, not exactly!  But at the Wine and Time event held two Fridays' back, I got the chance to lay hands to a really cool watch that was constructed using some truly alternative ideas, and it didn't hurt that this little wrist-borne bijoux bears the same name as yours' truly ; )

Courtesy of Montfort

I've said it before, and I'll say it again.  There are no shortage of watch brands out there.  What makes a brand or a watch interesting is when they take a fairly mainstream idea, and try to bring something new to it.

The new Montfort collection is known as the Strata and is available in four variations, with the James being one of them.  Montfort is a departure for a few reasons.  The most seemingly obvious, that it was financed through crowd-funding is perhaps the one thing that is becoming more and more common these days.  But it does bear mentioning that the Montfort crew set the bar at CHF 80,000 and managed to triple that amount!

Now more near and dear to my heart were two of the other new ingredients that were added to the Strata secret sauce:

Super Stainless Steel.  

Courtesy of Marvel

No, this is not something that was used for Captain America's shield.  It is, however, a very well-thought out solution to one of the greatest sadness that any owner of a new watch will experience - the first scratch the new watch receives.  You don't generally go to the supplier and request Super Stainless Steel, so what exactly is it?  I'll let the Montfort explain it in their own words -

The solution was to diffuse carbon and nitrogen into the surface of the steel to make it 8x harder than normal stainless steel. The result is a brighter glowing steel that is way more scratch resistant. What’s more, by treating the steel in this way, the grain of the material appears, thus giving it a granularity similar to that of rock.

Okay, maybe it's just me, but that's pretty dope!  But there is one more twist to this tale, the dials are not your typical metal.  No, these are created with a 3D printer.  And this means that the dial has texture, depth, surface gaps that allow the movement to be partially viewed through the dial itself.  
 
As mentioned, the case is assembled from 4 pieces of "Super Stainless Steel".  It measures 44 mm in diameter and is water resistant to 10 ATM (that's 100 meters or 3330 feet for you land lubbers).  The front crystal and display back are both of sapphire crystal and treated with a blue anti-reflective coating.  The movement is the Sellita SW200, self-winding. 

Here are all the pertinents, straight from Montfort -

• 4-piece 44 mm hardened "Super Stainless Steel" case
  
• Swiss automatic movement (Sellita SW200) power re- serve approx. 38h and 26 rubies. Movement with ‘ruthe- nium’ surface treatment, blued screws and oscillating mass finished with ‘Côtes de Genève’ decorations
  
• Sapphire anti-reflective glass (top and bottom)
  
• Waterproof to 100 M (10ATM)
  
• "Clous de Paris" 3D skeletonized stainless steel dial
  
• Italian Leather bracelet with black stitching 22/20 mm
  
• Limited to 333 pieces
  
• Pre-tax price excluding shipping : CHF 1’599.–
  

And yes you saw that right, the price is a very reasonable CHF 1,599 pre tax!