H Moser & Cie timepieces

[decksurgeon]

H. Moser & Cie Show off the new "Fume" Dials

Had the opportunity of viewing these in the flesh recently and they are exceedingly beautiful!
The new dials are named "Fume". If my latin serves me correctly this is derived from "Fumus" in Latin.

The fume dial with the palladium case comes on the following models:
(1) Mayu
(2) Henry Double Hairspring
(3) Monard (no date version)

Here are some pictures of this Fume version close up.
They were all taken handheld without any light tent or extra gear.
Hence I do apologise in advance if you find the photography below par complete with some specs of dust.

Enjoy :-)

PS: they should arrive in Singapore soon in the coming months.

HENRY Double Hairspring with Fume Dial in Palladium








MAYU with Fume Dial in Palladium





MAYU Fume with Caliber HMC321.503



Now in the Mayu Fume this has a Straumann double hairspring with stabilized breguet overcoil
(*look carfully in the picture, you will see twin hairsprings in the balance wheel area
and two attachment points for the ends of each hairspring)
Handwound excellence with true bevel wheels
Min. 3 days of power reserve
Pallet fork and escape wheel in solid gold - Hardened
Note the the fourth wheel and the third wheel are arranged beneath a common bridge
Movement is adjusted to SIX positions (the usual is 5)


MONARD with Fume Dial in Palladium



MONARD with Caliber HMC343.506

Now in the Monard Fume this has a Straumann double hairspring with stabilized breguet overcoil too
Handwound excellence with dual barrels
Min. 7 days power reserve
Gold Chantons
Pallet fork and escape wheel in solid gold - Hardened
Movement is adjusted to SIX positions (the usual is 5)

[decksurgeon]

been diggin up on the word "Straumann" and found that they are a global medial implant company!
in the dental implant website with the press releases they also have an association with H Moser.
One chap basically sits on the same board of both companies, how interesting.....

sorry to digress, but it was an interesting find thanks to google.
back to the double hairspring.......

The double hairspring basically prevents excessive forces on the center of the Arbor.

(1) FLAT CURVE HAIRSPRING:
In its most simple form of hairspring terminal curves is a flat curve and makes room for the hairspring stud.
While oscillating, the center of gravity is not remaining in the center, but is moving to and fro as the spring does not "breathe" concentrically about the center of the balance arbor/balance stuff.


so Breguet came along.........

(2) "BREGUET" OVERCOIL HAIRSPRING
Actually this is a description of hundreds of many different overcoil configurations described in watchmaking books.
There are other curves like the Grossmann curve with a special curve round the center of the collet. This allowed for compensation for the error which is called the Grossmann effect (it has to do with center of gravity in vertical positions of the watch and is complex).

Perhaps he best known of which are the Lossier curve and the Phillips curve. A Phillips curve has a characteristic "flat" spot while the Lossier curve is fully radiused and so on et cetera. What this overcoil attempts to achieve is to allow the hairspring to "breathe" more concentrically around its mounting axis. This still has some slight variation in the center of gravity & forces acting on the arbor/balance staff.


Then Straumann came along.......

(3) STRAUMANN DOUBLE HAIRPSPRING
What Straumann have done is to take two such "breguet" overcoil hairsprings and mount them on the same balance wheel in an opposing fashion.
This gives opposing symmetrical paths during oscillation and therefore any cumulative effects of forces are cancelled out. The resultant forces on the center of the arbor/balance staff remain constant and this has much less / no negative effects on the timing of the watch.




GRAPH SHOWING CENTER OF GRAVITY WITH DIFFERENT HAIRSPRINGS USING DIFFERENT TERMINAL CURVES
The trident like symbol shows the amplitude rotation of the hairspring, positive and negative denote the clockwise and counterclockwise rotation.
The resultant forces on the central arbor are then measured and plotted on a graph to show the deflection and forces along the X & Y axes.



The Straumann hair spring is made from Nivarox CT (PE 3000).
Nivarox was invented by Prof. Reinhard Straumann.
And the Straumann dental implant and H Moser hairspring companies now have the decendent of Prof Straumann sitting on the management boards.

How very interesting indeed when things go full circle (excuse the pun).......just like im told JLC make micro screws for another dental company.

[cedric]

OMG.... three very beautful dials.... very very nice...

Deck, thks for sharing...

[triton]

the finishing and workmanship is great.

i understand that there were some issues with the mechanism in the first batch of monard. i was looking @ the brand couple of years back.

recently the brand manager assured one of my friends that the movement is fixed.

can this be verified?

[decksurgeon]

can this be verified?

yes indeed, was fortunate to be in Neuhausen not too long ago and personally viewed the assembly of the perpetual while talking to the watchmakers also.

Moser have a capacity now of 4 per month max for the perpetual.
they are backordered so it will take a while to complete the orders - this is good news and healthy.

with regards to the delay - it is not a problem with the movement or design etc. the engineering is very sound! Andreas Strehler design was very innovative.

what the problem was exactly was that the flash calendar had 2 very thin discs that were made by a supplier. these disc were stacked on on top of the other & were very hard to keep flat - they warped a bit and this jammed the entire calender as one disc was stacked on top of the other.

Today Moser make these discs in-house themselves and are not subject to supplier delays. therefore the problem is solved and assembly/delivery has begun to the happiness of many waiting customer.

Also Moser has recently upped its investment in the company with a huge cash injection to buy more manufacturing equipment for specialized projects.

here is the pics:

Assembly of the Moser Perpetual


This is the calendar disc in question, now in-house manufacture
*raw unfinished date disc shown obviously, the window cut out is to display the disc underneath (2 sandwiched discs construction for the moser flash calendar)

[chrislaihk]

Much thanks and appreciation !

Great stuff ya got there !

cheers
chris

[Nooch]

Very poisonous haha

[Arcmagi]

Questions regarding H Moser & Cie timepieces

Hi hi,

I have come across this interesting brand on the net. I hope that anyone can help on the estimated pricing for certain models in their collection

a) H Moser & Cie Mayu (White gold / Rose gold / Palladium / Platinum)

b) H Moser & Cie Monard (White gold / Rose gold / Palladium / Platinum)

c) H Moser & Cie Monard with Date (White gold / Rose gold / Palladium / Platinum)


Thanks

[PeeCeeBee]

Hi hi,

I have come across this interesting brand on the net. I hope that anyone can help on the estimated pricing for certain models in their collection

a) H Moser & Cie Mayu (White gold / Rose gold / Palladium / Platinum)

b) H Moser & Cie Monard (White gold / Rose gold / Palladium / Platinum)

c) H Moser & Cie Monard with Date (White gold / Rose gold / Palladium / Platinum)


Thanks

The entry level model like Mayu list starts from about $19K and can be as high as $60K+ for the Perpetual 1.

[wahaha]

H.Moser & Cie, worth considering?

Dear watch aficionado,

I'm considering to get a affordable discerning watch- something beyond the regular Rolex, Panerai etc. What do you guys think of the sustainability and prestige of this brand H.Moser & Cie- independent watchmaker with long history? It is discreet in local watch scene but it's technical prowess is notable and of course that captivating timeless gentlemen demeanour classic looking dial. Or, should I hedge my collection with the mainstream brands like Patek, AP, A.lange, JLC etc. By the way I'm looking at the HMC Monard Date, rose gold with black dial... Thank you for your opinion in advance. Cheers~

[agong]

I love Moser's design! They are timeless classic with an arty feeling! I can't comment on its quality since I've never own one before. However I feel it has one of the best value for a gold watch. Usually gold watch of a prestigious brand can easily go up to 20k and above. And don't you love the idea of wearing a decent watch under the public radar?

[wahaha]

Hey hi, I kind of agree with that "arty" feeling as i re-look at their design. Retail price wise for the Monard Date I'm looking at is $30+K before discount. Indeed it is timeless and the mechanic is something to marvel at. But if you look deeper, the concern with their brand longevity is real as their independent watchmaker status has just changed hand- end 2012- under a Swiss holding company that pool together financial ailing independent watchmakers, i.e. Hautlence & H.Moser & Cie. I'm kind of uncertain about their future and their ability to operate independently. The greatest worry is to buy a watch from a company that defunct years later and servicing become an issue, on top of that, the brand value also depreciate in that sense. For now I'm teetering among a few brands, even Glashutte Original or back to "basic", a Rolex... As for Patek, AP and JLC, they will always remain the traditional staple that I will consider as I grow mature in horology. For now, a bit of attention on my wrist doesn't hurt me at all~ Haa.

[aleksandr]

Mosers pricing is really quite out there.. At that sort of pric range I would most definitely go for a PP, or ALS maybe. something elegant that I find not so mainstream is Glashutte Original, as has been mentioned. Big fan of their PanaMatik series.

[Iceheller]

I remember that they went through restructuring(may mixed them with another companies like i did with harbing and LW last time round). But their watch damn solid classic! Maybe they should lower their entry level price. Hehe

[turboducky]

Dear watch aficionado,

I'm considering to get a affordable discerning watch- something beyond the regular Rolex, Panerai etc. What do you guys think of the sustainability and prestige of this brand H.Moser & Cie- independent watchmaker with long history? It is discreet in local watch scene but it's technical prowess is notable and of course that captivating timeless gentlemen demeanour classic looking dial. Or, should I hedge my collection with the mainstream brands like Patek, AP, A.lange, JLC etc. By the way I'm looking at the HMC Monard Date, rose gold with black dial... Thank you for your opinion in advance. Cheers~

Good choice, I love Moser cos it's non mainstream & timeless too. At least you are paying that amount for a piece of art & not into some brands' marketing department