For many years, I have always felt that the latest high-end watch Ulysse Nardin was made to attract Silicon Valley yuppies-and this impact can only be enhanced by Blast. In these four iterations, one thing in common is that Blast looks and “feels” more like a bracelet than a watch, precisely because of the aforementioned integrated features. Blast has a different atmosphere of white or black ceramic. Although I’m not sure if my inner nerd would say “no” to the laser-etched surfaces on the algorithm, they are regarded as high-tech materials to some extent and plastics in other cases. Both are good looks for Blast.
If it’s not obvious at first glance, Ulysse Nardin clarified that they treat Blast as an all-in-one watch, because the case, dial and movement must all work together visually and structurally, rather than a beautifully designed case that moves around routine And dial. In this way, the front and back of the movement have a striking double “X” shape, which can be used as a hollow dial and the back plate of the movement. The combination of dial, movement and case makes the entire watch really give the impression of an integrated design when viewed in person. Every line, structure and component seems to be tied together and connected to each other.
The dial ultimately looks like a cage, designed to prevent the movement and its shiny silver wheels and gears from flying into your face. If anything, it is indeed a high-energy dial. The traditional parts in the movement and dial seem absolutely zero. I think these components are exactly the kind of things that make CAD watch movement part designers, CNC operators and component decorators lose their sleep. It takes weeks (or even months) to design and complete this kind of parts, and years of dedicated work can produce a movement that is completely processed by these parts and multi-axis machining worth millions of dollars Become. At least I heard it from every watch manufacturer and OEM movement manufacturer. Ulysse Nardin designs, prototypes, manufactures, assembles and finishes completely in-house (and has decades of experience in designing quirky watches), designing it in lightning-fast 18 months Be proud of the facts of Blast.
The UN-172 movement that powers the Ulysse Nardin Blast provides a 72-hour power reserve, supplemented by a platinum micro-rotor, which is only visible on the side of the dial because it is located on the top of the barrel at 12 o’clock. The visual counterweight is a flying tourbillon at 6 o’clock on the dial. It is as crazy as the rest of dynamite. It uses Ulysse Nardin’s silicon escape wheel, anchors and hairspring, thereby eliminating people’s fear of magnetism or lubrication. The movement beats at a lazy 2.5 Hz (18,000 vph) speed, allowing the wearer to appreciate the slow breathing of the escapement.
The list of obvious possibilities depends on the case. Anyone with knowledge of basic geometry (or advanced case polishing) will realize how the triangular, almost vertical facets of these lugs cannot be polished. The edges and corners of these facets make there is no obvious way to polish and brush one or the other in any sequence of surface treatments. The usual way to obtain alternating surfaces on a watch case is to polish the entire object first, and then apply the desired fragments. When I asked Mr. Sabatier about this, he clarified that the titanium and rose gold Ulysse Nardin Blast case was indeed finished in a novel way.
Use laser etching to paint these parts so that they can start and end painted surfaces precisely where needed. However, the trick comes from the fact that when you use a laser to etch a surface, you will end up seeing the appearance of stripes, such as a shirt, and the distances between them are uniform and the lines are uniform. In order to ensure that these odd-angled surfaces imitate the appearance of “pure” brushes, an algorithm must be developed that randomizes the laser pattern to faithfully replicate the uneven and elegant surface obtained with traditional brushes that appear on other Ulysse Nardin (and other) luxury watches. Therefore, even the case itself has incredible nerd details.
Finally, let’s put all appearances and lava flows and all of them aside. Ulysse Nardin Blast is a third of the price of flying tourbillons from Glashütte Original, fake Audemars Piguet or Parmigiani Fleurier. one third. Click any link to compare the construction of the case, movement, and dial with the complexity of the blast furnace, not to mention all the silicon escapement and case manufacturing technologies.