LVMH Watch Week: Hublot Introduces The Latest Big Bang MECA-10, In 42MM
Hublot’s ten day MECA-10 now comes in a new, smaller diameter case.
Long power reserve watches always raise fascinating questions. One of the most relevant for watchmakers, is simply creating a long power reserve watch that’s not unwearably large, although depending on the watch and the client, the extra size that a long-running watch requires may be a feature, not a bug (the Big Pilot’s Watch from IWC, which debuted a quarter century ago with a seven day power reserve, is one example; the Lange 31 with, you guessed it, a 31 day power reserve is another).
One of the first ultra-long power reserve watches I ever had a chance to handle in person was the 2007 Quenttin Tourbillon, from Jacob & Co, which was both the world’s first vertical tourbillon (more exactly, the tourbillon was visible through the case flank) and the first 31 day wristwatch. Hublot I think still holds the all time record for long power reserve, with the 50 day (!) MP-05 La Ferrari from 2014, although there’s the Twin Beat perpetual calendar, from Vacheron Constantin, with a 65 day (!!) power reserve, albeit this is thanks to its ingenious dual oscillator system, which uses a slower-frequency secondary balance running at 1.2Hz in order to enable the watch to eke out its two month running time. This is too slow for the rough and tumble of daily wear but it does mean you can leave the watch off the wrist for two-plus months without having to reset the perpetual calendar when you pick it up again.
These are all exotic and interesting watches for different reasons and on different levels, but from a practical wearability standpoint, the upper limit to the running time you can get from a watch without it starting to look a little gargantuan seems to be somewhere between seven and twelve days, with 10 days a nice round number. Hublot’s MECA-10, with a movement architecture said by the company to have been influenced by Meccano “type” construction kits (better known as Erector sets in the USA) originally debuted in a 45mm case in 2016 and this year, is being re-released in a smaller, 42mm case, with a new and more compact power reserve display as well.
The original MECA-10 had an unusual double power reserve indication. One of them, at 6:00, showed the number of days remaining in the running time of the watch, counting down from 10 to zero; the numbers were cut-outs on a rotating disk. The second power reserve indication was at 3:00, and this showed, during the last 2 days of the power reserve, a red sector which gradually increased in size as the mainspring barrels wound down. Both were controlled by a double sliding rack system at 12:00.
In the new MECA-10, the movement architecture is more visibly rectilinear, consisting of three straight-line bridges attached to the mainplate. The power reserve system merges the two separate indicators of the original design into a single display, which shows both the days remaining and which includes the red sector showing the two remaining days in the power reserve, and which consists of two superimposed disks, rotating in opposite directions and connected by a spiral spring. Hublot says that the actual total running time is greater than 10 days, but that the watch is designed to stop after 10 days in order to ensure that the last turns of the barrels, which don’t generate enough torque for good chronometry, won’t be used (as odd as this might sound at first, it’s a strategy often employed historically in fine watchmaking; the “Maltese cross” stopworks sometimes found on the mainspring barrels of vintage pocket watches are an example of one technical solution to the problem).
The new design overall is not only more compact, it also has a stronger visual presence and feels less cluttered, thanks to the redesign of the movement bridges and the power reserve.
At launch, the Big Bang MECA-10 will be available in King Gold (Hublot’s proprietary red gold alloy) titanium, and Carbon Black, a matte black “frosted carbon” material. Hublot made a point at Watches & Wonders last year of underscoring its technical capabilities and it’s great to see the very meaningful changes to the MECA-10’s original design.
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The Big Bang MECA-10, references 444.OX.1180.RX, 444.NX.1170.RX and 444.QN.1170.NR: cases, King Gold, titanium, and Carbon Black respectively; all 42mm x 13.9mm, water resistance 10ATM/100M. Movement, semi-skeletonized HUB1205, 10 day power reserve, running at 21,600 vph in 29 jewels, with 10 day power reserve and power reserve indicator. Prices: $42,700 (King Gold), $23,00 (titanium) and $27,400 (Carbon Black). Find out more at www.Hublot.com.