Building the Perfect Collection: Complicated Watches
Every watch collector seeks something different. Some look for colorful dials or interesting case shapes. All of these specifications fall up to the personal taste of the collector. Regardless of design preference, every watch collector can appreciate the technical mastery that goes into watch complications. Aficionados begin collecting high-end mechanical timepieces with complications such as tourbillons, perpetual calendars, minute repeaters for a variety of reasons. They are marvels of engineering, precision, and craftsmanship, reflecting centuries-old traditions, techniques, and innovations that connect collectors to the past. There is something particularly special about the mechanical complication where a watchmaker, against all odds, was able to create a mechanism that displays something out of the ordinary.
A good place to start a perfect complicated watch collection would be with some of our very favorites:
Ulysse Nardin Freak X OPS 43mm Carbon/Epoxy Resin
No hands. No dial. No boundaries. According to the New York Times, the Ulysse Nardin Freak is one of the ten watches that have revolutionized watchmaking over the course of the last twenty years. This model, the Freak X OPS, is powered by UN-230, a self-winding movement with a 72-hour power reserve. The movement’s flying carousel with its silicon balance wheel and escapement are suspended by a bridge that acts as a minute hand, and a second bridge serves as the hour hand. The case is equally revolutionary—khaki green carbon flanks in Magma, an original composite, blending black carbon fibers and green epoxy resin, and a sapphire crystal case back. The 18K rose gold bezel sets time. The hour and minute indicators and hour markers are coated in a matching khaki green Super-LumiNova® that glows green in low light conditions. This mind-boggling complication and unique case material gives an “it factor” that no other can match.
IWC Portugieser Hand-Wound Tourbillon Day & Night
The Portugieser Hand-Wound Tourbillon Day & Night doesn’t just have one interesting complication, but two. The Portugieser is built around a flying minute tourbillon at 6 o’clock—one of the most sophisticated complications in watchmaking history. The tourbillon, originally created by Abraham Louis Breguet to counter act the effects of gravity on timekeeping, places the balance wheel and pallet lever inside a small cage that rotates around its axis once every minute. The pallet lever and escape wheel are treated with a special diamond coating that reduces friction and improves the flow of energy in the movement. Additionally, this watch features an innovative day and night complication at 9 o’clock that shows the eternal cycle of day and night with the help of a three-dimensional planet rotating around its axis. The 42.4mm 18-carat Armor Gold® case has an obsidian lacquered dial with gold-plated hands and gold applied numerals. Armor Gold® is significantly harder and more wear-resistant than conventional 5N gold alloys. The highly polished black dial radiates tremendous depth and makes the perfect background for the golden complications to pop against.
Ressence Type 3 White
Ressence’s brand ethos is nothing less than the deconstruction of the traditional watch in order to express time in the purest way possible. Their original concept is summed up by their motto, “Beyond Hands.” They’ve managed to replace the conventional horological hands with rotating discs for an intuitive reading of the time. Their innovative, patented movement—the ROCS 3.6 Ressence Orbital Convex System—is a module driven by the minute axle of a customized 2824/2 base calibre, vibrating 28,800 times per hour. The iconic Ressence dial is convex grade 5 titanium with four eccentric biaxial satellites inclined at 3° (hours), 4.75° (thermal gauge and day), and 6.25° (runner). During the course of the day, the dial will make a full 360° rotation around itself. Engraved indications are filled with blue Super-LumiNova®. The 44mm case is grade 5 titanium with two separate sealed chambers, the upper one filled with 3.75ml of oil, and domed sapphire crystals top and bottom with anti-reflective coating. The volume of horological innovations alone in this watch makes it perfect for the collector who has it all or wants it all.
Seiko Luxe Prospex Speedtimer GPS Solar Dual-Time
Unlike previous watches on this list, this watch isn’t mechanical. This next-generation GPS Solar Dual-Time Chronograph combines an evolution in advanced technology with Seiko’s heritage of horological innovation. The 42mm stainless steel case with super hard coating encloses a world of quartz complications, including: automatic hand position alignment function, chronograph up to 12 hours in 1/20 second increments, dual-time function, GPS signal reception function, perpetual calendar, power reserve indicator, power save function, satellite acquisition status display function, world time function (38 cities) and much, much more. The dark grey dial features LumiBrite hands and markers. The sleek stainless steel bracelet has a clasp with Smart Adjuster function. These complications could never be replicated by a mechanical watch. This Seiko Luxe Prospex Speedtimer remains an excellent deal for collectors looking for something useful and unique.
Frederique Constant Manufacture Classic Power Reserve Big Date
The Classic Power Reserve Big Date Manufacture brings to life Frederique Constant’s thirty-first Manufacture calibre, the FC-735. It’s their first calibre to offer a big date, a moon phase, and a power reserve indicator that shows the total of 50 hours. Your power reserve is indicated at 9 o’clock by a slim, dedicated hand that travels along an arc marked from 0 to 50. Between 2 and 3 o’clock, the big date proudly displays its encircled double window, and the perfect balance is further highlighted by a radiant, poetic moon phase at 6 o’clock on a starry blue background. The 40mm case is crafted of stainless steel, with a transparent case back. A brilliant silver sunray dial has applied diamond cut indexes. The dial harmony of the three complications plays with the straight-lug case to create a visually stunning piece of horology.
Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch 50th Anniversary – Silver Snoopy Award
Introducing one of the fabled Speedmaster Heritage Models, the “Silver Snoopy Award” 50th Anniversary model, dedicated to the award that Omega received from NASA in 1970 for unique contributions to space exploration. In order to capture the iconic design history of the Speedmaster, Omega has included a 42mm case in stainless steel, inspired by the chronograph’s legendary 4th generation style (famous for being the first watch worn on the moon). The silver dial is laser-engraved with Ag925, and features Snoopy, NASA’s official mascot in the 1960s, as an embossed silver medallion on the blue sundial at 9 o’clock. He’s shown wearing his famous spacesuit, in the exact style of the famous Silver Snoopy Award pin. One of the coolest features of this watch is the case back where Snoopy appears inside his Command and Service Module on a magical hand, so that when the chronograph seconds hand is used, Snoopy takes a trip around the far side of the moon. There’s also an earth disc, which rotates once per minute in sync with the watch’s small seconds hand. These fun additions to the Speedmaster “Silver Snoopy” makes it a more desirable and interesting option than a traditional chronograph.
Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Quantiéme Complet Phases De Lune
The Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Quantiéme Complet Phases De Lune is a perfect melding of art and technology. Built into one incredible watch, the innovative case material and high degree of mechanical complication make for a piece that is hard to beat. This Bathyscapthe packs a complete calendar. This practical, and practically beautiful, complication indicates the date, day of the week, and month, while the changing face of the moon on the dial adds a poetic note that evokes the time-honored ties between watchmaking and astronomy. The 43.6mm ceramic case features a unidirectional satin-brushed black ceramic bezel with ceramic insert, and a sapphire crystal. Liquidmetal hour markers ornament the sunburst black dial. The 6654.P.4 Caliber automatic movement has a 72 hour power reserve, and it is all attached to a remarkably hard to manufacture, black ceramic bracelet. For diving enthusiasts, this marvel of a timepiece is water resistant to 300 meters, making it still useful in everyday life.
Chronoswiss Delphis Dracula
Striking doesn’t begin to describe the Chronoswiss Delphis Dracula. A true collector’s piece, it melds timeless elegance with a dark, daring nod to the supernatural worthy of the Dracula moniker. The design aesthetic begins with a 42mm 18K gold case has an onion crown, polished bezel with side fluted decorative ring, screwed and satin-finished case back, with cambered, double anti-reflective sapphire crystal. The stunning dial features a hand-guillochéd, blood-red fire enamel dial on an 18 carat gold curved surface, over a black layered background, with brass gold-plated and skeletonized hands, ceramic indexes, and pointer shape ‘Viking.’ Today, Chronoswiss’s guilloché dials are both a tribute to and a celebration of enduring craft, timeless appeal with a modern twist. The new manufacture movement from Chronoswiss marks a significant advancement in engineering excellence. Paired with a black rubber strap. Don’t miss your chance to own this extraordinary timepiece, released in a limited edition of just 50 pieces.
Parmigiani Fleurier Toric Chronograph Rattrapante Rose Gold
Limited to just 30 pieces, the Toric Chronograph Rattrapante Rose Gold is a timepiece of rare elegance, sophistication, and technical artistry. The 42.5mm case is crafted in luminous 18K rose gold with ARunic anti-reflective sapphire crystal and case back. The dial features hand-grained finishing, alpha-style hands, and 18K rose gold appliqués. The integrated PF361-SLIM Caliber movement beats at a high frequency of 5Hz and incorporates a double column wheel—its structural elements are skeletonized, and suggest an arabesque, leaving ample room for visual appreciation of the moving components. The Toric features a double chronograph complication, which is capable of timing two events independently. Like a regular chronograph, it has a start/stop and reset buttons in the traditional 2 and 4 o’clock positions and a split button in the crown. A richly appointed, supple grey alligator strap perfectly accompanies this limited edition masterpiece of the horological arts without dulling the beautiful gold hue of the metal.
Zenith Defy Skyline Tourbillon
The Defy Skyline Tourbillon blends the beauty of kinetic movement with an iconic design aesthetic. The 41mm black ceramic octagonal case features a faceted bezel, and a black sunburst-patterned dial that revisits the emblematic Zenith four-pointed star. The opening on the dial at 6 o’clock reveals the 60-second tourbillon with a star-shaped carriage. This stunning timepiece is powered by the El Primero 3630 high-frequency automatic manufacture movement with a power reserve of 60 hours. Luminescent applied markers, hands, and rose gold-plated indices add a warm and elegant glow to the sunray-patterned black dial. Matched with an interchangeable black ceramic bracelet and black patterned rubber strap this watch is a sporty way to wear an awesome complication.
Discover these and other complicated watches from Feldmar. Browse our online store or stop into our flagship location.
