Debuting at WatchTime New York 2024: H. Moser & Cie. x Massena Lab Endeavour Chronograph Compax (with Hands-On Photos)
A little while back, I attended a lively H. Moser & Cie. event with The 1916 Company in the Philadelphia suburbs. After speaking with collectors and the brand's charming leaders, the Meylan brothers, I then had the chance to see a couple prototypes of new watches ahead of their releases. Announced today, the H. Moser & Cie. x Massena Lab Endeavour Chronograph Compax was one of them, and it was unlike any Moser watch I'd seen before— more retro-referential and yet still resolutely modern. It immediately grabbed my attention.
This weekend, you'll have the chance to see it too at WatchTime New York 2024 at Gotham Hall in Manhattan, running from October 18-20. Tickets for Sunday, October 20, are still available, here.
It wasn't totally surprising to learn that this was the product of a Moser collaboration with Massena Lab, the prolific collab master. It uses the Endeavour collection case design but makes room for traditional chronograph pushers flanking the crown. It's also been bumped up to 41mm in steel, which is a little different from most Endeavour collection watches which are mostly 40mm or 42mm. The case's relative simplicity helps highlight the main attraction: the dial.
Though "inspired by Moser models from the mid-20th century," according to the brand, this dial design is a familiar motif of chronographs from that era. In fact, it might also recall the style of watches such as the Massena Archetype 0.0 from 2021. But when modern watches reference those designs, they almost always stick to traditional colors and executions. And deviating from that expected approach is exactly what makes this model so cool looking.
The dial's scales, indices, wordmark and other text pop out from the blue background in a sharp neon green lume. The dial is a Moser signature: fumé "Funky Blue" with a sunburst finish. Together, the effect is striking, and every element being in a crisp lume offers a lot of contrast and legibility. The only thing that dismayed me (and made the photographs more challenging) when seeing it in person, was that the hands were polished and tended to disappear against the dark dial. However, it appears that this was only on the prototype, and that the production models will offer lume-filled hands. It's going to look damn cool when it lights up in the dark, too, though I didn't have a chance to see that.
Visible through the caseback is the Moser HMC 220 automatic 3Hz movement making use of a Dubois Depraz chronograph module and offering a minimum power reserve of three days. Relatively thin for a chronograph, the case thickness measures just 13.3mm. Only 100 examples will be made at a price of US $27,600 each.
To learn more, visit H. Moser & Cie., click here
And to secure your tickets to WatchTime New York 2024, click here.
