Into Overtime with the H992 x Astro

 

Courtesy of H992

Tempus Fugit = Time Flies.  And it goes without saying that time flies when you're having fun, but all good things must, inevitably, come to an end. Such is my time with the H992 x Astro, a limited edition of 52 pieces.

Now I suspect for many readers, particularly those outside of a few key countries where H992 has established a beachhead, your first question might be: 

"Who, or what is H992?"

And that is more than a fair question as they are a small (but mighty) brand based in La Chaux-de-Fonds. You might remember La Chaux-de-Fonds from such notable figures as Le Corbusier, and internationally renowned brands like Girard-Perregaux, Corum, Tag Heuer, and even that darling of independent watch fans - ochs und junior. It is also home to the MIH, so needless to say, they speak watches there ; )

I got to spend a fair amount of time speaking with one of the H992 team at Time To Watches in Geneva this past April. I was struck by two things - the design and the pricing. H992 was kind enough to forward me the H992 x Astro to review. It is, as far as I can tell based on the H1 collection.

The packaging chosen by H992 is exactly in line with what I believe in - less waste, more fun!

The box itself is cardboard, nice squishy pillow for the watch to rest on, warranty cards and the COSC certificate.... (insert sound of record player suddenly stopping here) wait a minute! A certified chronometer for a watch that retails for 1,592 CHF?!? Yes. And the thing about H992 is that they take it even further - a SW260-1 automatic, COSC certified movement is "standard" even for the H1 collection that retails for 992 CHF! And in many ways, this makes sense as another notable resident of La Chaux-de-Fonds is the COSC itself ; )

And this is part and parcel to the ethos of H992. In their own words, the H can stand for a few things. 1 is the "H" grid of streets in La Chaux-de-Fonds. Having visited several times while working on mandate (consulting gigs) with a few of the brands there, I can attest that this is a real thing, not just folklore. As you may not know, La Chaux-de-Fonds suffered a horrific fire in 1794. When it was "rebuilt" it was laid out in a way to best enable watch making. These special grids maximized natural light, improved efficiency of transport, and most curiously (at least in my opinion) probably birthed the concept of the "live/work" spaces. If you walk through the city (particularly on the main station entry side), you will come across many beautiful homes that at one time had watch making activities going on in part of the house, with the family living in other sections.

The other part of the name is a nod to La Chaux-de-Fonds "place" in the world, specifically being 992 meters above sea level.

But back to the matter at hand - what did I think of the H992 x Astro?

Spoiler alert - I loved this watch! 

There are two key criteria I have for whether or not I like a watch. 

1. Is it nice to look at?

2. Is it comfortable to wear?

Well, the H992 x Astro scores 10/10 on the Henki Scale for both. Anyone who knows me, knows I am a bit goofy for color. Life is too short to live in black and white. With that said, I also realize that while I am a pistachio ice cream sort of guy, there are lots of folks out there who want vanilla or chocolate - and the good news is that H992 still has you covered with other options in the H1 collection if you are not as daring as me.

Beyond the colors, the dial is effectively a work of art. Specifically a work by Astro. 

And this is not your ordinary "painting on a dial". This is an elaborate, labyrinth of color and shape. You can't really pin it down as anything other that truly original.

The other fun part is that the dial will change and morph depending on the light - almost like a mood ring for the wrist ; )

Now while I am all about the looks for the most part, there are a few things that others might critique. Specifically the date window and the sub second. The date window pretty much blends into the dial, and the sub second hand while visible does not benefit from a defined scale or subdial as the other H1 pieces do. And part of me says fair enough. But then again, I think that there are certain things that you embrace when you choose to wear a watch like this. It reminds me of Jean-Claude Biver's all black Hublot Big Bang. The H992 is far more legible, but you get that same feeling - which for me is visceral (in a good way).

The H992 x Astro has proven to be supremely comfortable. The case is of stainless steel and measures 42 mm in diameter. 

Not a rough edge to be found anywhere. And at 42 mm it sits very nicely on the wrist, or at least my wrist -

The bezel has 12 marks that align perfectly with the 12 hour indices on the dial.

The strap is integrated and of rubber. It is quite comfortable, and unlike many rubber straps out there did not give the "slimy" feeling you sometimes get from a rubber strap in warm weather.

It is secured with a tactile, yet very comfortable buckle.

So we've got the look, and the feel. But what about the performance?

Under the hood is the previously mentioned Sellita SW260-1 with COSC certification. During the week the H992 x Astro kept very good time with the power reserve true to its advertising.

So overall - I am a big fan. Apart from the dial design (which I really liked), it is a very good looking, sporty watch. The case design is intriguing without being jarring, and although I had mixed feelings about the indices on the bezel, I really grew to appreciate them.

Some things that might put others off:

1. Case design - if you have a set idea of what a case should look like (read perfectly round) then this might not be for you.

2. The integrated strap - I love it, but I realize that it's not for everyone. More importantly, you will be best served reaching out to H992 for a replacement strap rather than going secondary market.

3. The date window - as I mentioned, it sort of blends into the dial itself. While I really find this intriguing, if an absolute clear view of the date is going to be a deal breaker for you, I would recommend a different version of the H1.

Would I buy it - Hell yes!

Here are the pertinents:

Price: CHF 1'592.00

Movement
SW260-1 automatic, COSC certified

Case
Black PVD steel, Steel

Case diameter
42mm

Case thickness
10.1mm

Dial
Astro

Strap
Rubber

Water resistance
10 ATM 100 meters

Glass
Sapphire, double anti-reflective treatment on the inside AR43, thickness 1.40mm

Limited edition
52

As Clear As Mud...

Some will tell you that Switzerland and the US are about to reach a tariff agreement. Some will tell you that this is down to the intervention of Swiss business types like a few of the crown princes of WatchTown. Some will hint that it might have something to do with Gianni Infantino (who has the moral maleability necessary to run FIFA and cosy up to despots and military regimes around the world) hinting that the first annual FIFA Peace "prize" will maybe be awarded to the person who single handedly put them collectively over the barrel while encouraging them to squeal like pigs. And the tacky as f*&k Rolex desk watch/clock on his desk has some of Watch Town's "smartest and sharpest" looking at their Magic 8 Balls and informing the anyone who will listen that sunny skies are coming.

The truth? It's as clear as mud...

The Edition Notre Dame

From MeisterSinger -

Courtesy of MeisterSinger

This is the latest offering from the folks in Münster.

Courtesy of MeisterSinger

The Edition Notre Dame is special for many reasons, not the least of which is its hourly chime mechanism.

Courtesy of MeisterSinger

Limited to 70 pieces, it is priced at 4.599€

Here are the pertinents -

Model	Edition Notre Dame (ED-BHO-NOTRE DAME)
Movement	MS Bell, Basis Sellita SW 200, Automatic, power reserve 38 h, hourly chime
Case	Stainless steel, 4 screws exhibition back, water resistant up to 5 bar, sapphire glass
Diameter	43 mm
Dial	Ivory with Sunburst Blue
Strap	Cow hide with egg dyeing, Cognac
Speciality	Hourly chime: „Sonnerie au Passage“, limited to 70 pieces
Origin	German watch brand; Swiss Made
Retail price*	4.599€
Availability	Exclusively available at Ocarat in Paris or MeisterSinger

*Manufacturer’s recommended retail price incl. 19% statutory sales tax.

Fathers, Sons, And All That Comes With It

If there were a Facebook section for father-son relationships, my status would read:

"It's Complicated..."

I made my debut in Zanesville, Ohio back in the summer of 1968. The day before I dropped, my grandfather presented my anxious soon-to-be father with this -

I had it for a good while, and then I passed it on to my niece who now has a son of her own.

While I don't regret passing it on, I would be less than forthright if I didn't admit to a pang of loss. And in truth, not for the object itself, but rather what that Mido represented.  When I think about my relationship with my father, it is in many ways a play in three acts. The first act would be happiness, growing up in a small town. The second act would struggle as we tried (often unsuccessfully) to maintain a positive relationship after he remarried. The third would be acceptance, as we grew further apart in terms of geographic distance, but reconnected now and again and tried to focus on the positive memories that we shared. 

In truth, this type of evolving relationship is not unique, we all go through it in our own way with our families and relationships. And to some extent, I always connected that first, "happy" period with his/then my/now my niece's Mido. I tried to recapture the feeling with other vintage Midos, but it was really never the same. It almost felt as if I was trying to channel my memories through someone else's horological talisman.

I recently found myself face to face with a relative of my father's Mido, and decided it was finally time to buy one for myself. I waffled back and forth for a minute, and finally made my move.

Now to be completely clear:

No. This new Mido did not make me more handsome, did not make me any smarter, food does not magically taste better, and I am not suddenly capable of tremendous feats of strength or daring-do.

But there is something that this new Mido did do, almost instantaneously - it hit me with a visceral sucker punch that I really wasn't expecting. I felt (and feel) a strange familiar calmness that takes me back to 1977 in that small Ohio town. My sisters and I are under the giant oak tree in the Pierce's side yard, we're playing jailbreak, and Dean Mason is "it", and he is the fastest runner any of us have ever seen so we have to be quick, sneaky, or simply cheat if we're not going to get tagged out ; ). And it finally gets so dark that we have to go inside, and my father is there in the living room, watching another hopelessly cursed Cleveland Indians team end the season in the same morass and ineptitude that have come to be a hallmark for the big city to the north. He comes up to my room to say goodnight. We talk about what we did that day - which really means that I tell him about my day, the ups and downs. And he smiles, gives me a hug and says "don't worry, things will look a lot brighter in the morning!" And with that he turns out the light in my room and heads to bed.

I thought it might be appropriate to wrap this up with a quote from that other great commentator on watches, the poet philosopher - Master Po from TV's Kung Fu:

Shamelessly borrowed from the worldwide infoweb

Caine: Is it good to seek the past, Master Po? Does it not rob the present?

Master Po: If a man dwells on the past, then he robs the present. But if a man ignores the past, he may rob the future. The seeds of our destiny are nurtured by the roots of our past.

Enjoy your watches - and give your dad a call!

The ARCEAU Toucan de Paradis

 From Hermès -

Courtesy of Hermès

Here are the pertinents -

Numbered limited edition of 24

MOVEMENT

Manufacture Hermès H1912 movement
Mechanical self-winding, crafted in Switzerland
Diameter: 23.30 mm
Thickness: 3.9 mm
Power reserve: 50 hours
Frequency: 28,800 vibrations per hour / 4 Hz
Functions: Hours, minutes
Decoration: Circular-grained and snailed baseplate,
oscillating weight and bridges adorned with a sprinkling of Hs

CASE

Shape / size: round, 38 mm in diameter
Material: white gold, bezel set with 82 diamonds Glass: anti-reflective sapphire crystal and case-back Water resistance: 3 bar

DIAL

Enamelled miniature and silk threads on a white gold base

STRAP

Zanzibar blue calfskin

A Few Minutes with Anders Brandt

Okay, in fairness, some of you might be scratching your heads and saying something Henki-esque like, "A few minutes with who?" 

Courtesy of Arcanaut

Well, gentle reader, I'm glad you asked! Because while Watch Town keeps churning out endless numbers of divers, fliegers and "not-so-smart" watches, there are a handful of folks out there designing, creating and assembling some truly beautiful, unique and beguiling time machines that are absolutely not just like everything else out there. Here's the thing, it takes something special to be willing to sack up and invest in your own vision, and see it through rather than take the easy path out. And if you are really lucky (in addition to being really talented)? People will respond! And in the case of Arcanaut's first series (now sold out in fairly short order), that is just what has happened.

So without further delay, a few minutes with one of the men behind the new darling of small batch watch making, Anders Brandt -


James Henderson - Tell us about Arcanaut? What was the inspiration to create a new watch collection?

Anders Brandt - Arcanaut started when I met Simon, ­­­my co-founder, at a bar in Copenhagen. We kinda just stumbled into each other one evening when I overheard him bragging about his Breitling Navitimer, to which I jokingly shouted across the room something like: "But you cannot see what the freaking time is!" And from there we spiraled into a very spirited discussion about watches and design that lasted until the sun came up. During this conversation we fell in love with this idea of creating a truly Nordic watch, not just visually but also in having this authentic approach to what a Scandinavian watch should feel like.

The concept of Arcanaut comes from this straightforward idea, or question, that Simon and I asked ourselves when we started out: "How would a truly Nordic watch look and feel?"

Courtesy of Arcanaut

For the next edition we are really taking this approach up a notch with almost every part of the watch being manufactured in Scandinavian countries, and assembled in Copenhagen. It’s easy to paste a Scandinavian label on something, but we’ve found out we can often do things smarter if we’re close to the manufacturers of the parts.

Anders Brandt and James Thompson

The inspiration for the next design is going be centered around light and contrast. Light has always influenced Scandinavian art and design. It’s probably because our part of the world are plunged into darkness every fall and winter. We cherish every little ray of light we get, and have a special relationship with contrasts that’s apparent in the way we design things.


JH - Denmark is well known and admired around the world for the design originating there. I would imagine that this could be both a spur and a bridle - so I realize it is a cheezy question, but what are some of the Danish Design Codes in the Arcanaut?

AB - When people think about Danish or Scandinavian design, most will think about that sleek minimalist look – but that’s too lazy. Anyone can make something minimalistic if form trumps function at every step. The truth is that making something "minimalistic" is not what makes something Nordic. In my mind, Scandinavian design is all about creating your own rules, with a very functionalist approach in mind. You have to think about what the role this "thing" you are trying to design has, and how it interacts with people; what gives it purpose? When you look at a watch from this perspective, it was really very simple to us:

The watch needs to tell time effectively, be comfortable to wear, and look nice but not be intrusive – to me that’s really Scandinavian.                    

JH - Tell us about the "Twin Triangles". 

AB - The Twin Triangles are a simplified version of a rune called the “Valknut”, which is often connected to knowledge and the old Norse god Odin. Arcanaut means “travelers into knowledge”, which is just a nice way to say “nerds”. When I first designed our logo I knew I wanted some kind of modernized rune as a symbol – Not just to subtly tap into Nordic heritage, but because I wanted something so simple that you would be able to carve it on a piece of wood in 3-4 cuts like our far Viking ancestors did. That I thought would be truly iconic. 

And after many hours and days of drawing runes over and over again, I suddenly had these two triangles on the paper – and immediately I knew this was going to be our logo.

We’re not unique in trying to harken back to our Danish or Scandinavian heritage, but we’re not in this to make some cheap pastiche or slap a Scandinavian brand over some piece of junk. We go Scandinavian all the way, not just as a gimmick. And that included serious writing cramps when I worked on the runes!

Courtesy of Arcanaut

JH - Tell us about the square crown? What was the inspiration?

AB - We knew from the beginning that we wanted to do something different with the crown, as it almost always seems like an afterthought in watch designs. You have this beautifully shaped case, and then there’s this ugly bump on the side. Also every watch geek knows about those red marks you get on your left wrist from watch crowns burrowing down into your skin. So I started sketching this idea of an integrated square crown in the design, which would fit with the curves and shape of the watch case. We got told by almost every manufacturer that it would be extremely difficult to actually make, but by trial and error we finally managed to get it right – and Voilá the square crown was born. 

And let me just add here: I’m not an artist. I draw because my mind is filled with ideas, both visual and otherwise. And most of them are pretty bad – it’s a lot easier to find out if they’re worth anything if you get them out of your head.


JH - So contrary to what some people might think, Arcanaut is not exactly a "new" brand, at least for the founders. It would seem that this is something you have been working on for quite some time. When did you start out on this adventure?

AB - Yep! You could almost say that we have 5 years of experience fucking up watch brands. 

We actually started back in 2015 on an entirely different watch brand, and then two years ago released our first watch the ARC 1. 

Something you need to know about Arcanaut is that we design and pay for everything ourselves – so if something goes wrong, there's nobody else to blame, or solve our problems. My day job used to be helping people with designing processes where problems become apparent immediately and people get to work solving them instead of everything going through six layers of committee at every step – and the watch is designed the same way.

Also, I’m a bit of a perfectionist, so things take a lot of time – also because I tend to choose the path of most, not least, resistance, because I want to try every option out there to make sure we make the right choices. The usual outcome of taking the hardest path is that other improvements tend to show up on the way. 


JH - What have been some of the biggest challengers?

AB - One of the major problems we have been trying to solve since we launched the ARC 1, was that all the Swiss manufacturers wanted us to order hundreds of parts before wanting to work further with us. Swiss watchmaking is mostly a numbers game, and most manufacturers don't really want to bother with little gnats like us. The whole system is built around making large quantities of the same watch over and over again, which is just not what we want to do. 

So, that really only left us with two options: Either try to get a large investment to pay the Swiss, also running the risk of compromising our own vision for the brand, or try to come up with ways in which we could make everything in small quantities back home in Denmark. We chose the latter, which has turned out to pay off.


JH - What have been some of the nicest surprises?

AB - It’s been a long and not entirely cheap process during these five years, but it’s been a very effective way to weed out every bad idea we started out with. And the nicest and most fulfilling experience has been to realize the true value of good craftsmanship – you can say that before I was an astronomer who had the whole universe figured out, but now I’m training to be an astronaut and actually seeing things up close. I mean, we were two twentysomethings who thought we knew all about watches and just needed one shot to make the perfect watch. We still have much to learn, but now I cherish every cock-up because it means the next version will be even better.

Lately I’ve been really positively surprised that every part of a watch which can be manufactured in Switzerland (except for maybe the movement) can be manufactured just as well or even better in Denmark or other Nordic countries; you just have to be very creative about how you design and plan out your production process. It’s a hard exercise in design and manufacturing, but man, it pays off.

Take the hands-on our next watch for example; instead of the usual method of stamping the hands out of brass, which requires a large initial investment, we found a way to cut the hands out of steel in two parts: One standard and one custom part, and then fuse them together later when we need to. This method would be a very costly method if we needed to make thousands of watches each year, but the fact of the matter is that we would rather make small quantities and always have the opportunity to come up with new designs: Flexibility is key for us. 

And I’m sure there are loads of nice surprises waiting for us out there. In fact, whenever I find out something new about watches and watchmaking I just get even more excited about the whole affair.

The Poya

From Claude Meylan -

Courtesy of Claude Meylan

This one's been out for awhile, but it's still one of my favorites.  

The case is of stainless steel and measures 42 mm in diameter.  The movement is the 6497 from Unitas (i.e. ETA, i.e. SWATCH). 

Time is short - have fun with it!

Here are the pertinents -

Movement

16“ UT 6497

Description

• Stainless steel case
• Ø 42 mm
• Hand winding
• Skeleton
• Crystal back
• Sapphire front crystal
• 3 atm- water resistant
• Leather strap

The Outlaw Drift

From Gorilla Watches -

Courtesy of Gorilla Watches

This one is a bit of a departure for Gorilla. Those of us who have been following them for awhile have gotten used to what has become the standard grammar used in the design. A rounder, oval shaped case has stepped into the spotlight.

This is also (and the guys at Gorilla can please correct me if I have this wrong) the first Gorilla watch case not to feature multiple materials (i.e. carbon fiber, aluminum, etc.), but rather it is crafted entirely of titanium.

Courtesy of Gorilla Watches

The movement and it's display effect is something of a departure from the more "standard" Gorilla models (which again sounds like a misnomer as there is really nothing "standard" about Gorilla).
The "base" is ETA's 2824-2, but the secret sauce is what Gorilla describes as a:
Proprietary G-5238, Swiss Made,
wandering hours complication
Engineered & manufactured by VAUCHER Manufacture

Now owing to the world we are currently living in, I have not seen, held, etc. this one.  But I wanted to take a moment to congratulate the team at Gorilla for their willingness to evolve and grow. It's easy to continue to play your greatest hits again and again, but evolution, growth and development? Those are the things that you see in dynamic brands.

Here are the pertinents -

MODULE
Proprietary G-5238, Swiss Made,
wandering hours complication

BASE CALIBER
ETA 2824-2, Self-winding
4 Hz / 28.800 vph, stop seconds
38 hours power reserve

FUNCTIONS
Hour, minute, sweeping seconds

CASE MATERIAL
Grade 5 titanium

CASEBACK
Titanium grade 5, engraved, sapphire crystal

DIALAnodized aluminum flange & discs, Super-Luminova™ coated numerals on flange & satellite discs

CRYSTAL
Domed, scratch resistant sapphire,
anti-reflective coating on both sides

STRAP
FKM rubber & Cordura™ hybrid

BUCKLE
Titanium grade 5 pin buckle

CASE DIMENSIONS
42 mm case diameter
13.8 mm case thickness
52 mm lug-to-lug

WATER RESISTANCE
100M/330FT/10ATM

The 1964 Spirit Bronze

From ZRC -

Courtesy of ZRC

My understanding was that this was originally a pre-order item, but if I have understood the information, there are still some pieces available for purchase.

CASE

---

MANUFACTURE

Monobloc case
Screwed case back & crown

DIAMETER

40,5 mm

MATERIAL

Nonmagnetic Bronze CuSn8

BEZEL

ECSTM system
(Patent pending N°1462496)
Unidirectional 60 divisions rotating bezel

CROWN

Located at 6H (Crown Protection SystemTM). Inverted screwed thread with dual sealing

GLASS

Sapphire 4mm padded Vintage Glassbox

WATER RESISTANCE

Up to 300 meters

MOVEMENT

---

CALIBRE

2824-2 elaborated - ETA Manufacture

SETTING

+7sec/day

AMPLITUDE

(± 7sec/day) = from 0 to 14 sec/day max.

WINDING

Automatic winding

POWER RESERVE

38 hours

LEATHER STRAP​

---

MANUFACTURE

Leather strap equipped with an automatic sizing folding buckle

CLASP

Single buckle

Introducing Allemano

Now in fairness, you may already be acquainted.  But something new for me was found deep in the bowels of the less-than-fancy section of Hall 1  -

Courtesy of Allemano

Allemano.  And if you're scratching your head as you read this, you are not alone.  But I have to be honest, it kinda' caught my attention.

Allemano started out life as something quite different.  How different?  Well, you know that expression "all roads lead to Rome"?  Well, I can't speak to a Roman destination, but I can tell you that Allemano originally manufactured the machines that flatten the tarmac when roads are created, and here in the Northeast, repaired.

Courtesy of Allemano

From road work, the company went into gauges for cars, airplanes, and even wrist-bound depth gauges.  So the jump to watches is not as random as you might think.

Per the info I have received, the watches are assembled in Italy, using Swiss movements.

There are three models families, the one featured in this post is called, MAN.  No, I am not kidding ; ) 

Courtesy of Allemano

 It is available antique white (above), and black -

Courtesy of Allemano

The movement is hand-wound, and provides the basis for a regulator set-up with small seconds at 6 o'clock.

Courtesy of Allemano

Pretty basic, but then again, this is not a watch claiming to be something that it is not.  

Like I said, kinda' digging this one!

For those of you interested in such things, here are the pertinents, straight from Allemano -

CASE:
44 mm
All 316L Stainless steel with sandblasted, brushed, polished finish
5 ATM water-resistant
Sapphire crystal case front and back

MOVEMENT:
Swiss made manual movement
Functions: center hours hand, retrograde minutes hand at 12 o’clock, small seconds hand at 6 o’clock
21600 A/h frequency 
48 hours autonomy

DIAL:
Antique white or black
Traced serial number 

HANDS:
Matt black and red or matte rose gold and red 

STRAP:
Brown or black soft premium Italian leather
Steel buckle paired with the finish of the case