Twenty years in the past, Austrian couple Maria and Richard Habring (the latter being well-known already for his earlier work at IWC, together with creating the 7750-based Doppel Chronograph, amongst different intelligent mechanisms) began their very own journey, an unbiased watchmaking model often called Habring². Now some of the revered indie watchmakers of their section, one of many few manufacturers to really make watches and actions in Austria, Habring² has determined to have fun 20 years of passion-fueled timepieces with two new fashions: a moon section mannequin that we’ll cowl in a later article, and this new Josef watch, a regulator that does extra than simply show the time in cut up sub-dials.
Whereas some unbiased watchmakers are all about ultra-high-end ending or record-breaking issues, Habring² went one other route. Much more pragmatic, barely authentic however nonetheless very usable every day. This mixture of originality, cleverness of building and seek for true reliability and serviceability of the watches began with the event of the Doppelchronograph and additional developed when the Habring couple determined to fly solo (properly, in duo) in 2004.
The latest watch from the Austrian model, the Habring² Josef, introduces a brand new regulator show. Watches that show the three time indications in separate sub-dials, regulators may very well be described as the final word benchmark, at the very least in the case of exact time show. In these watches or clocks, the main target isn’t on the hours however on the minutes, as these had been utilized in watchmaker workshops and observatories as reference clocks for the exact setting and calibration of different clocks. Habring² tackles this show for the primary time with this new watch, the Josef.
The Habring² Josef launches in a case we’ve beforehand seen within the assortment – it’s near the Erwin Tribute to WWW restricted version – with a gorgeous cushion form, an affordable 38.5mm diameter and a comparatively quick 47mm size. The thickness can also be pretty first rate, at 8.4mm with out the crystal. The metal surfaces alternate between brushed and polished finishes, and the case is a well-balanced mixture of magnificence and sportiness. It’s water resistant to 30m and outfitted with sapphire crystals on each side.
The dial of this new Habring² Josef is, surely, the speaking piece. A basic regulator at first sight, with hours, minutes and seconds learn individually, there’s, nonetheless, greater than meets the attention. Designed with Lee Yuen-Rapati (aka @oneourwatch on Instagram), it has a shiny white lacquer base with black printed railroad tracks – legible and typical of regulator watches – and authentic sub-dials that mimic the general form of the watch. Blued metal palms are used for the totally different indications, together with an influence reserve at 3 o’clock. However there’s one thing extra to this watch that static photographs can’t present… The seconds hand isn’t a basic sweeping seconds, however it makes use of the Habrings’ signature leaping seconds (dead-beat or seconde morte) show. Due to the escapement being positioned at 12 o’clock beneath the dial, Josef is likely one of the few regulator watches to accurately have its seconds displayed on this place. This makes Josef a posh reinterpretation of Erwin, the model’s first leaping seconds watch based mostly on the brand new manufacture calibre.
Speaking about this, Josef is powered by the calibre A11GSP, which shares its structure with a lot of the model’s fashionable watches – the A11 base motion is utilized in Felix or Erwin – and if it shares a few of its conception with an ETA Valjoux 7750, it’s nonetheless a robust enchancment over the previous base and is completed nearly completely in-house or due to finely chosen suppliers from Austria and Switzerland. The motion runs at 4Hz, shops 48 hours of energy reserve and is finely embellished by hand with polished edges, ornamental engravings and perlage.
Worn on a nubuck leather-based strap, the Habring² Josef Regulator is launched as a part of the everlasting assortment and shall be priced at EUR 7,450. For extra particulars, please seek the advice of www.habring2.com.
