Move Over Royal Pop: The MB&F HM12 Takes Modular Watchmaking to the Next Level

Over its trailblazing two decades in existence, MB&F had only made 11 of its signature “Horological Machines.” Introduced today, HM12 The Guardian is its dozenth, and it’s vintage brand fare — in other words, completely beyond the scope of what seems possible or even reasonable as a wrist-worn horological object. And though it only tells the time in hours and minutes it’s, at least in some sense, the most complicated Horological Machine from MB&F yet.

That latter point should get the attention of anyone familiar with the famously avant-garde brand. It’s certainly got some elaborate creations under its belt. What makes something complicated isn’t always straightforward, but one thing can be quantified: number of components. In those terms, the new HM12 The Guardian qualifies for the record with 646 in the movement alone. The titanium case has 84 components. That’s 730 for the watch, and that’s not even including the 755 parts that make up its robot-shaped "companion" (stand). 

Like other MB&F creations, however, it’s more than the sum of its parts: it’s an abstract spectacle packed with concepts, technical details and little surprises.

Toys

Looking at the HM12 as a watch, you might at first think it’s giving pareidolia — causing you to see faces in things. You’re not crazy. It’s a normal phenomenon, first of all, but also quite intentional in this case. You’ve probably also already scanned this article for pictures and gotten a sense of the basic concept: that the watch head can easily be removed from its strap and snapped onto the head of a giant robot sculpture that comes with it. But your chances to fiddle and play don’t end there.

There are two symmetrical crowns on the watch like ears. The righthand crown is for winding as well as setting the time as normal on the two discs that tell the hours and minutes, respectively, and look like eyes. They might at first appear to be dials with traditional hands, but they’re in fact discs and those “hands” that indicate the time are immobile. The hour indication disc jumps at each hour while the minute disc is “trailing,” meaning it turns incrementally as normal. Those are all the time-telling functions, with the microrotor in the position of a mouth and a flying tourbillon in the “forehead” as a "brain." So what does that other crown do?

The lefthand crown extends and retracts a “shield.” When the shield is retracted, it’s invisible and the watch is overall monochromatic and somewhat less pareidolic. It comes in blue, green or purple, and it emerges from under the bezel (if that’s what to call it) at the upper and lower portions of the “face” as well as in blade-like shapes that cover the top of the discs. In terms of the face, they point down and inward in a kind of scowl. And, though they don’t serve much practical purpose, they can help focus the wearer’s attention on the current time by covering some of the other numerals.

This shield mechanism alone comprises over 200 parts, and turning the crown extends it in increments that come with satisfyingly tactile little clicks. You can extend it partially, if you so choose, and the crown disengages at full extension. The shield colors are matched to highlights on the robot stand which measures 22cm across by 38.2cm tall and weighs about 15kg including its base (which features a little storage drawer). At the center of the robot’s chest is a mechanical thermometer. 

The robot’s arms can be articulated up and down, its left arm bearing what looks like some kind of sci-fi weapon but which is in fact a removable UV light with which you can enjoy its glow-in-the-dark elements. The right arm appears to be carrying a battle shield but this is in fact a loupe, again, for appreciating all the sculpture’s and the watch’s details. You’d probably want to keep something like this on your desk at arm’s length for messing around with it. That distance is also probably ideal for its use as a table clock when the “face” (watch head) is installed, as the small hour and minute discs will likely be hard to read at much greater a distance. 

Concepts

Anyone new to MB&F reading this might be having a little brain explosion right now. Those who have followed it over the years, however, will likely note echoes of familiar concepts as well as specific brand signatures. The general sci-fi reference is perhaps foundational to the brand, and robot motifs are recurring as are tourbillons and the retractable “shield” concept. The brand has produced robot-shaped desk clocks before in collaboration with clockmaker L'Epée, who also produced the Guardian robot here, but this is the first to combine it with a wristwatch. 

The modular concept also seems to occasionally surface within the industry, but few go nearly as far as MB&F has with its Guardian robot. And this is no Swatch x Audemars Piguet Royal Pop made to be dangled from your backpack. It’s reminiscent in some way of pocket watches or clocks that could be installed on dashboards from the likes of Jaeger-LeCoultre and Cartier back in the day, or even Vacheron Constantin (collaborating with Rolls-Royce) more recently. But, of course, this one transitions between your wrist and a robot-thermometer-stand.

Thematically, for me anyway, it brings to mind something like Transformers or the sci-fi trope of giant robots piloted by humans inside. The closest analog, in fact, is perhaps the G-Shock x Transformers collaborations in which your G-Shock, strap and all, could be mounted on a desktop-sized, transforming Autobot or Decepticon. The comparison is superficial, of course, as the MB&F HM12 The Guardian is an overengineered luxury-watchmaking product with high-end finishing throughout its case, movement and robot body. What’s coolest about it creatively, in my opinion, is that it leaves room for interpretation. 

Also foundational to MB&F is avant-garde design to the extent of challenging even what a wristwatch can be. Fans expect the unexpected or unthinkable, but the HM12 isn’t quite as extreme in form as some. Its surprise is more in its overall combination of ideas. In the wider context of watches, however, it’s nearly as out-there as they get and appropriately bizarre to wear. On a 6.5in/17cm wrist like mine, the ergonomics of its 49.3mm lug-to-lug distance are aided by articulating lugs at the top (the 6 o’clock lugs are fixed) and the lightness of its titanium construction. 

In contrast to the overall contemporary aesthetics, the watch’s caseback features nods to traditional horology. There are grained plates contrasting with polished and brushed elements, and a convex-shaped rotor with guilloché executed by Kari Voutilainen’s team. It offers a power reserve of 84 hours and, of course, was specifically developed along with the entire project for the HM12 over four years.

This is the first project to result from MB&F founder Maximilian Büsser collaboration with Maximilian Maertens rather than Eric Giroud. The latter has been involved as Büsser's primary design partner since the beginning and continues to work on other MB&F projects. Maertens, on the other hand, has been part of the brand’s past clock (L'Epée) and music box (Rouge) projects. “HM12 The Guardian is not a watch; it is a complete horological concept,” say brand materials, and the robot is “a companion, not a stand.” 

Initially planned as a 20th anniversary celebration last year, its complexity led to delays and the release is now being reframed as a beginning to the next decade. Ahead of the announcement, the brand showed HM12 The Guardian to media in its newly opened Lounge in Manhattan. It’s definitely worth a visit for brand fans. With a price of USD 384,000 (+ tax), there will only be 12 MB&F HM12 The Guardian examples in each color ever made — no more variants or editions.

Learn more on MB&F’s website, here.