URWERK UR-100V LightSpeed Watch Review
The URWERK UR-100V LightSpeed is the latest model conceived by the creative duo, Felix Baumgartner and Martin Frei. Both men have a profound love of science fiction as well as the world of astronomy. On this occasion, they have produced a watch that displays the ‘time required for a sunbeam to reach eight of the planets in the solar system’. Not only has the avant-garde Maison gained a reputation for creating otherworldy timepieces, it has also become known for crafting models imbued with a high dose of watchmaking expertise, perfectly suited to daily wear.
URWERK and wandering hours
When Felix Baumgartner and Martin Frei established URWERK back in 1997, they unveiled two contemporary watches, the URWERK UR-101 and UR-102, both inspired by the 17th-century papal night clocks produced by the Campani brothers. These silent clocks featured a wandering hour display, with the prevailing hour shown via an aperture.
The orbital path of each hour value could be likened to a satellite orbiting the Earth. Buoyed by the success of its inaugural models, URWERK has since released a series of watches featuring wandering hour displays, forming the ‘UR-SATELLITE’ collection, which sits alongside the firm’s other collections, namely the ‘UR-CHRONOMETRY’ and the ‘UR-SPECIAL PROJECTS’.
URWERK – an obsession with satellites
However, the connection to satellites goes beyond merely indicating the hours. For many years, Martin Frei, co-founder of ‘United Swiss Artists’ (USA), has been fascinated with satellites and Sputnik Art (something I discussed in great detail in my article, Urwerk – 25 years and Counting (Part One)). When Martin and Felix met in 1995, their interests in satellites and wandering hour clocks came to the fore and set them on a fascinating course.
URWERK UR-100 SpaceTime (2019)
Appraising the culture of URWERK, Baumgartner and Frei have demonstrated, on several occasions, an extraordinary fascination with space. Indeed, in 2019, the company unveiled the URWERK UR-100 SpaceTime, a watch that tracks ‘the Earth as it spins and flies through space and time’. The watch featured an ‘orbiting satellite hours and minutes’ and, most notably, two indications showing the ‘distance travelled on Earth’s equator in 20 minutes’ and the ‘distance Earth travels around the sun in 20 minutes’.
URWERK UR-100 family
Avant-garde and highly original, the URWERK UR-100 SpaceTime was also rich in technical virtue and refined finishes. Launched to critical acclaim, the model has since led to new variants, executed in different materials, colours and finishes, including the UR-100 Gold Edition, UR-100V Iron, UR-100V T-Rex, UR-100V ‘Blue Planet’, etc.
When a large watch brand releases a model in a new colour or alternative case material, it is often termed an ‘animation’ and barely receives a cursory glance from the press and public alike. However, with URWERK new versions of an existing model are warmly received for two reasons.
Firstly, URWERK often goes beyond merely presenting a model in a different colour. Take a look at the recently launched UR-100V Time and Culture II Sumer. Presented in a becoming shade of blue, it also features an engraved cover adorned with an Aztec motif.
Secondly, URWERK, like most watch brands, procures dials, cases and bracelets from specialist suppliers. Commissioning a new dial, case or bracelet may not be a significant issue for a company making 50,000 watches per annum; however, URWERK only produces 150 watches per year, hence releasing a new model is a big deal. Most similarly-sized companies only occasionally release new references, mindful of the inherent cost. URWERK is different because creativity and invention are part of the company’s DNA, a mindset that has led to the brand often releasing several new references in a year much to the delight of brand devotees.
URWERK UR-100V LightSpeed case
Now, the high-end brand has unveiled a new model, the URWERK UR-100V LightSpeed that resembles the URWERK UR-100 SpaceTime while being very different. The case, measuring 43 mm (W) x 51.73 mm (L) x 14.55 mm (H), is made of black carbon (54-layer thin-ply) and is paired with a caseback formed of shot-blasted DLC-treated Grade 5 titanium. This marriage of expensive materials would suggest there are few bean-counters at URWERK just a group of highly talented creative types.
URWERK UR-100V LightSpeed dial
Again, Baumgartner and Frei have looked to the heavens for inspiration but this time they have conceived a watch that displays the ‘time required for a sunbeam to reach eight of the planets in the solar system’, namely Earth, Jupiter, Mars, Neptune, Saturn, Sun, Uranus and Venus. For example, the Sun’s light reaches Mercury in 3.2 minutes. However, on a more practical level, stargazers can also look at the brand’s tried and tested combined satellite hour and minutes indication to ascertain the prevailing time when pressing deadlines are looming back on terra firma.
URWERK UR 12.02 movement
The URWERK UR-100V LightSpeed is fitted with the selfwinding UR 12.02 movement that’s endowed with the firm’s ‘Windfänger airscrew’, a device that prevents excessive rotation of the oscillating mass, thereby mitigating undue wear.
URWERK UR-100V LightSpeed – closing thoughts
Once again, Baumgartner and Frei, have masterminded a wholly original composition. The self-confessed ‘Trekkies’ often draw inspiration from the world of science fiction and fuse it with a sizeable dose of real-world physics. There is no escaping URWERK makes seriously exciting and credible timepieces and the URWERK UR-100V LightSpeed proves to be no exception.
Further reading
Technical specifications
- Model: URWERK UR-100V LightSpeed
- Case: black carbon (54-layer thin-ply) with a caseback formed of shot-blasted DLC-treated Grade 5 titanium, width 43.0 mm, length 51.73 mm, thickness 14.55 mm, water resistance 5 ATM (50 metres), sapphire crystal to the front
- Functions: satellite hours, minutes, time required for a sunbeam to reach eight of the planets in the solar system
- Movement: Calibre UR 12.02, automatic movement, frequency 28,800 vph (4 Hz), 40 jewels, power reserve 48 hours
- Strap: red textured rubber with folding clasp
- Price: CHF 65,000 excluding taxes (RRP as of 6.2.2024)