The third and newest robot table clock in the MB&F line-up is the new Balthazar. First came the Melchior we featured here and earlier this year a small robot-like sibling Sherman as we reviewed it here. The newest member of the MB&F clock family is also a collaboration with. the oldest and most renowned clock maker L'Epée 1839. The new MB&F Balthazar is a sophisticated and imposing high-precision robot clock displaying jumping hours, retrograde seconds and a 35-day power reserve.
Posts filed under MB&F
Insider: MB&F Horological Machine No. 8 HM8 Can-Am. Hands-on with a Very Impressive Timepiece with a Very Unique Case Construction.
A little bit over a month ago, we brought you the news about the release of the new MB&F HM8 Can-Am. Since we know how much you guys like to read about MB&F timepieces here on WCL, we decided to finally post our hands-on review of this impressive timepiece.
Insider: MB&F Caran d'Ache Astrograph Pen. Hands-on with the 99-Piece Limited Edition Writing Instrument Shaped Like a Rocket.
As you guys know, MB&F always bring the most creative thinking to watches, clocks, musical boxes and now mechanical pens. MB&F are the makers of all things cool and their newest addition is the rocket-shaped pen designed and manufactured in collaboration with the most reputable Swiss writing instruments maker, Caran d'Ache. Complete with rocket-shaped fuselage, a miniature astronaut, shock-absorbing “switchblade” landing gear and a case designed like a launch pad, the new MB&F Astrograph is nothing short of uber cool.
News: Presenting the New MB&F Horological Machine No. 8 HM8 Can-Am. A Timepiece Like no Other Inspired by Can-Am Car Racing.
Over the last decade, two indelible forms have often marked MB&F’s Horological Machines: the distinctive angular form and optical prism displays of the revisited 1970s Amida watch, which first manifested in the Horological Machine No. 5 HM5 we reviewed here and then on the HMX we featured here; and the now signature “battle-axe” winding rotor, which took center stage on top of the Horological Machine No. 3 HM3, MB&F's most popular model to date.
News: Presenting the MB&F Balthazar Clock in Collaboration with L'Epée 1839. All Details & Pricing.
Last year, we brought you the news regarding the robot-like table clock Melchior by MB&F here and earlier this year the news about its small robot-like sibling Sherman here. Well, just as if those two robot-looking table clocks were not impressive enought, today we present you the newest member of the MB&F L'Epée 1839 clock family. Joining all the other clocks that MB&F had produced in collaboration with renowned clock maker L'Epée 1839, the new MB&F Balthazar is a sophisticated and imposing high-precision robot clock displaying jumping hours, retrograde seconds and a 35-day power reserve.
Insider: Presenting the New MB&F Legacy Machine No.1 LM1 Silberstein. Hands-on with This Very Unique Looking 12-piece Limited Edition.
In 2009, MB&F approached Alain Silberstein to create its very first piece of ‘Performance Art’, the result was the MB&F HM2.2 ‘Black Box’. For this new Performance Art series with Silberstein, the creative minds at MB&F have taken the Legacy Machine No.1 and tweaked it resulting in three watches available in a super exclusive limited edition of 12 pieces each —titanium, black titanium and 18K red gold.
News: Presenting the new MB&F Legacy Machine LM1 M.A.D. Dubai Edition. 13 Pieces in Titanium Exclusively Sold at the M.A.D. Gallery in Dubai.
The concept of Friends is such an integral part of MB&F that it's right there in the name: the “F” in MB&F stands for Friends. And few Friends have been as supportive to the creative horological lab as the Seddiqi family in Dubai. Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons was one of the six core retailers that supported —well before the first watch had been produced— Büsser's vision of a horological laboratory focused on creating kinetic sculptures that give time.
Insider: MB&F Starfleet Machine Black Badger. Hands-on with the Newest Coolest Mechanical Table Clock that Now Also Glows in the Dark.
As part of their recent collaboration with James Thompson a.k.a 'Black Badger', MB&F has just released at Baselworld 2016, a new iteration of their Starfleet Machine launched during Baselworld 2014 and that we reviewed here. This new clock named MB&F Starfleet Machine Black Badger is just like the first Starfleet Machine clock by L'Epée 1839 and MB&F —from an horological and functioning standpoint— but more visually striking thanks to the long lasting luminescent material added for this release.
Baselworld 2016: Presenting the new MB&F HMX Black Badger. Hands-on Review, Live Pictures & Pricing.
Continuing with their interesting collaborations for what they refer to as the 'Performance Art Collection', MB&F released a new HMX —Horological Machine 10— in collaboration with the founder of ‘Black Badger’, James Thompson this Baselworld 2016. Like MB&F, Thompson is a creative mind very well known for his luminescent creations. Thompson mills three-dimensional objects out of blocks of luminous material.
SIHH 2016: Presenting the new MB&F Sherman Limited Edition Desk Clock. Hands-on Live Pictures & Pricing.
Continuing their collaboration with L'Epée 1839 —Switzerland's only specialized high-end clock manufacture— MB&F presents another amazing clock at the SIHH 2016. As we go hands-on with the new Sherman —a cute little robot— that doesn't walk, talk, weld cars, or roam Mars, but that tells time and puts a smile on your face every time you look at it. Conceived and developed by MB&F and engineered and crafted by L’Epée 1839, Sherman is the result of Maximilian Büsser’s on-going quest to revisit his childhood, during which he hankered for a robot friend.
SIHH 2016: Presenting the new MB&F Horological Machine No. 6 SV HM6 Sapphire. Hands-on Live Pictures & Pricing.
One of our favorite releases at the SIHH 2016 Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie is MB&F's new iteration of their Horological Machine No. 6. This time, the MB&F Horological Machine No. 6 HM6 'Space Pirate' —reviewed by us here— comes with a sapphire crystal case instead of titanium or 18K rose gold and also with a new name.
News: MB&F Launches 'The Tribe' Owners Section On Their Website and Gives an Extended 2-Year Warranty on all Watches Ever Created Regardless of Their Purchase Date.
Some great news from MB&F this morning. In order to celebrate the end of this amazing year and their 10th year anniversary, they have a very special gift for all collectors of MB&F Machines.
Insider: Introducing the New MB&F Legacy Machine Perpetual. Hands-on with Live Pics and Pricing. The Brand's First Perpetual Calendar Changing How We've Looked at Perpetuals so Far.
Perhaps one of the top five biggest news of the year and a watch that we think for sure will be a prize recipient at the GPHG next year. May we now present you MB&F's first perpetual calendar. The new MB&F Legacy Machine Perpetual is a perpetual calendar timepiece that is reinventing the most traditional horological complication. The new MB&F LM Perpetual, developed from the ground up with independent Irish watchmaker Stephen McDonnell, breaks all codes and perspectives on how we've looked at perpetual calendars up until now.
While conventional perpetual calendars are generally modules comprising the complication which is fitted on top of an existing movement, the calendar indications are synchronized by a long lever —called 'grand levier' in French— running across the top of the complication and passing through the center.
Insider: MB&F Legacy Machine 101. Dominated by the Monumental Suspended Balance Wheel. Live Pictures and Pricing.
MB&F does it again and this time they're wowing us with the new Legacy Machine 101. For a classically sized 40 mm watch with a immaculate satin-brushed finished case, the Legacy Machine 101 —LM101— covers a lot of ground. Or to be more precise, LM101 covers a lot of time: over 100 years between inspiration and realization. Legacy Machine 101 embodies and accentuates the very essence of what is essential in a wristwatch: the balance wheel, which is responsible for regulating precision; how much power remains in the mainspring, which indicates when it needs to be next wound; and of course, the time.
Insider: MB&F Horological Machine No. 6 HM6 'Space Pirate'. Hands-On Review of a Biomorphic Extraterrestrial Looking Watch.
By now, we are used to seeing some of the most spectacular space inspired creations coming from MB&F. The new MB&F Horological Machine N°6 —HM6— ‘Space Pirate’ has been designed with space in mind and its inspiration came from a Japanese anime TV series from Maximilian Büsser's childhood called "Capitaine Flam" —Captain Future in English. "Capitaine Flam" had a spaceship called the Comet that consisted of two spheres joined by a connecting tube. The curved lines of Horological Machine N°6 make it a softer, more organically shaped Machine than its predecessors. The inspiration for this came from the biomorphism art movement, which takes its cues from design elements based on the shapes of living organisms. In each of the four corners of HM6's biomorphic case there is a 360° sphere, capped top and bottom by transparent sapphire crystal domes.
News: Presenting the MusicMachine 3 Reuge by MB&F. Inspired by the TIE fighters from Star Wars.
Nearly 150 years on, and still in Sainte-Croix, Reuge is the only remaining manufacturer of high-end music boxes in the world. Reuge's collection has grown to offer both quintessentially classical pieces and contemporary designs —including a service for specially commissioned bespoke pieces. With the MB&F MusicMachines, Reuge has pushed the frontiers of music box design: MusicMachines belong more to the 25th century than the 21st. Designed by MB&F and made by Reuge, the first MusicMachine was launched at Baselworld 2013. Building on the success of this initial collaboration, Reuge and MB&F joined forces in 2014 for MusicMachine 2 and again in 2015 for MusicMachine 3, which completes the trilogy.
The TIE fighter-inspired MB&F MusicMachine 3 Reuge is positive proof that both the child and the Force are still going strong within MB&F founder Maximilian Büsser —who was 10 years old when he first saw Star Wars in 1977.
News: Introducing the MB&F Horological Machine 'X' HMX. Celebrating the Brand's 10th Anniversary with an Entry Level Priced Limited Edition.
MB&F celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2015, and there is one basic fact about birthdays that is fairly safe to assume: The one celebrating usually gets the presents. However, for the most significant anniversary of its decadelong existence, MB&F turns that one basic assumption on its head. Rather than expecting to receive, the creative lab has conceived HMX —“X” as in the Roman numeral for ten— as a thank you to the friends who have supported the brand over the last 10 years. Instead of developing an ultra-complicated, ultra-expensive anniversary piece —the standard practice in the luxury watchmaking world—, MB&F has cut sales margins without sacrificing quality, offering a true Horological Machine at an unprecedented price. Paradoxically, creating such a Machine also made HMX one of the most difficult to develop as MB&F considered, tested and rejected a plethora of combinations of forms, finishes and details before being satisfied that everything was “just right”.
Insider: Introducing the New MB&F Legacy Machine 101 'Frost' LM101. Live Pictures and Pricing.
First presented in 2014, Legacy Machine 101 embodies and accentuates what is essential in a wristwatch: the balance wheel, which is responsible for regulating precision; how much power remains in the mainspring, which indicates when it needs to be next wound; and of course, the time. Inspired by the frosted finish on timepieces created in the old days, MB&F presents the new Legacy Machine 101 'Frost' LM101. While the word 'frost' refers to those uneven ice crystals that cover your lawn during the beginning of the cold season, when it comes to horology it conveys something different. Abraham-Louis Breguet is credited with inventing the 'frosted' finish —'finition grenée' in French— in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. At the time, the operation of frosting protected dials and movements from oxidation —more common in Breguet’s day— and added subdued vivacity to movement plates.
Baselworld 2015: Introducing the MB&F Melchior L'Epée 1839 Table Clock. Live Pictures and Pricing.
Last year at Baselworld 2014, MB&F surprised everyone with its Starfleet Machine table clock in partnership with legendary clock maker L'Epée 1839 as we featured it here. This year at Baselworld 2015, in order to commemorate their 10th anniversary, Max Büsser and friends —MB&F— presented a new super cool table clock that looks like a robot out of a sci-fi scene named Melchior. Additionally, the Geneva-based Horological lab will present a number of Anniversary Pieces during the year, under the theme: ”A creative adult is a child who survived”.
Melchior, created with L’Epée 1839 is an impressive kinetic robot which may remind you of your childhood dreams, but also happens to be an impeccably finished, 480-component mechanical table clock with five barrels and a steel and brass armour. Fitted with articulated arms —the right one packing a rocket launcher and the left a Gatling gun that serves as the clock key winder—, jumping hours, sweeping minutes, double retrograde seconds and a 40-day power reserve this clock is a true tribute to refined, classic clock and watchmaking.
Pre-Baselworld 2015: Introducing the New MB&F Horological Machine No. 3 MegaWind 'Final Edition'. Live Pictures and Pricing.
The new MB&F Horological Machine No. 3 HM3 MegaWind 'Final Edition' is the last iteration of the fascinating HM3 Series saga launched by MB&F several years ago. The Horological Machine No. 3 collection is one that makes an MB&F watch immediately recognizable and the HM3 Frog is one of the predecessors in the line that everyone can easily recognize from any angle. Derived from the iconic HM3 series, the new HM3 MegaWind 'Final Edition' combines a giant 22k gold and titanium winding rotor with highly legible time indication cones rising up from the complex asymmetric case, like truncated gold-framed monoliths. Rotating within their twin gold and sapphire crystal frustums, the cones display hours —left side— and minutes —right side, with the time clearly visible from both the large numbers on the sides of the cones as well as duplicate indications on their flat caps.
