Freak Designer launches Analog Perpetual Calendar
Ludwig Oechslin, the watchmaker behind Ulysse Nardin’s Freak has launched a perpetual calendar watch for ochs und junior, a first perpetual calendar without numbers or letters.
Oechslin who has done watchmaking projects for Ulysse Nardin like Moonstruck, Trilogy of Time, Perpetual GMT, and Sonata started ochs und junior with entrepreneur Beat Weinmann with the goal of creating useful mechanical watches. The perpetual calendar watch’s pure analog display addresses the key functional challenge of calendar watches: making the date easy to read from the same distance as the time.
The sum of 40 years of watchmaking experience, Dr. Oechslin’s perpetual calendar watch is designed for everyday use. It correctly displays the date for every month including February. Analog dots represent the year, month and date to address a key usability challenge with calendar watches: making the date legible, without resorting to an oversized display which distracts from reading the time.
Oechslin’s perpetual calendar function comprises just 9 additional parts. Fewer parts mean fewer interactions between parts and higher reliability. A lifetime warranty covers all parts designed by Oechslin.
In general, perpetual calendars are a laborious affair to set. Most require a complex system of pushers, and the date cannot be adjusted backwards. Oechslin’s perpetual calendar can be set simply using the crown, and the date is adjustable both forwards and backwards.
ochs und junior expects to manufacture about 20 perpetual calendar watches this year. The case is manufactured by Peter Cantieni in Hinwil, Switzerland, while the gear system, dial, hands, buckle and crown are manufactured by Helfenstein in Alpnach, Switzerland. Each perpetual calendar is hand-assembled and hand-regulated by Sandra Flück at the ochs und junior workshop in Lucerne.
The reference execution designed by Oechslin comes in a 42mm grade 5 titanium case with a patina dial, platinum PT950 hands, rhodium markers, and orange dots.
