New: MB&F LM Perpetual EVO

MB&F releases a new EVO version to their GPHG winning Best Calendar Watch: the LM Perpetual EVO, now in a titanium case with an icy blue plate.

Press Release information with commentary in italics.

New: MB&F LM Perpetual EVO

The MB&F LM Perpetual EVO will retail at SGD 273,000 inclusive of GST. Also at CHF 168,000 / USD 198,000 / EUR 176,000 excluding taxes. Shipments have started to MB&F retail partners and you’ll also find it at the MB&F eShop:

Commentary

The EVO design was released on the LM Perpetual in 2020 in a zircronium case in three dial plate colour variants. The zirchronium editions were limited to 15 pieces in each dial plate colour. This was followed up with a non-limited titanium version in a green CVD dial plate. And now the green edition is replaced with this novelty, also in titanium, but with an icy blue dial plate, which is also not limited.

The EVO line is interesting because this was MB&F’s entry into the genre of the sporty, go everywhere watch. The watch case is developed with a shock absorbing FlexRing system to protect the movement from an active life. The 2020 release photographs show the wrist shots being taken with an active lifestyle vibe, depicting the watch being worn while on a bicycle and on a boat. The case features a somewhat curious 80m water resistance rating, but is sufficient for most elegant sporting activities.

The LM Perpetual line is also interesting, because this is one of the few perpetual calendars in the market with no restrictions to as to when the calendar can be set. It can be manipulated at any time, in both directions without harm to the mechanism. Traditional perpetual calendars use a grand levier which runs across the top of the complication and passing through the center to synchronise the multiple indications carried by the perpetual calendar. The LM Perpetual eliminates this grand levier, and uses a series of cams to do the same. This technique was first used in the Ulysse NardinPerpetual Ludwig in 1996. This was probably the first perpetual calendar which allowed the owner to use the crown to manipulate the calendar display. Later, H. Moser renewed the idea with their Perpetual 1, with what they call the Flash Calendar. And Greubel Forsey also introduced their Invention 7: The Computeur Mécanique which uses a mechanical computer which is programmed by cams to achieve the same.

And as perpetual calendars go, the LM Perpetual EVO is not exorbitantly expensive. At its release in 2020 it was priced at CHF 152k, and the current novelty is released at CHF 168k.

Release information

MB&F creations have transported their wearers to destinations that exist only on maps of the imagination: from star-cruisers to deep-sea jellyfish, Maximilian Büsser’s Machines are the mechanical cartographers of the multiverse. The EVO line marked a significant evolution, with the release of the first LM Perpetual EVO pieces in 2020: their wearers became the navigators of their active lifestyle; the map was their life. On this journey, they would never have to leave their watch behind.

The LM Perpetual EVO was initially launched in three limited editions in zirconium, followed by a titanium edition with green CVD dial-plate. In 2024, MB&F introduces a new icy blue dial-plate in the same highly-resistant titanium case, replacing its green predecessor. All editions feature a closely-fitted, integrated rubber strap for the smoothest wearing experience of any MB&F Machine ever.

A 44mm case in zirconium or titanium, modern metals with material properties surpassing stainless steel. A case profile that emphasises openness and extreme clarity. A specially developed monobloc shock-absorbing system – “FlexRing” – that makes for the most robust Machine ever to emerge from MB&F. The LM Perpetual Engine, designed by Stephen McDonnell, an award-winning perpetual calendar that replaces traditional constructions with an innovative mechanical processor. 

The MB&F collection has welcomed several complications and horologically prestigious mechanisms. In terms of combining prestige, tradition and innovation, however, Legacy Machine Perpetual has remained at the apex of MB&F watchmaking savoir-faire since it was introduced in 2015.

Although the 44mm diameter is unchanged from its 2015 iteration, the new EVO case design features a no-bezel construction, with the domed sapphire crystal fused directly to the case. The increased openness of this design highlights the equilibrium between the legibility of LM Perpetual EVO’s calendar indications and the cinematic play of the engine components — surmounted by the iconic MB&F hovering balance wheel. This expansive new presentation of the LM Perpetual Engine was no simple design reconfiguration. New geometries for the sapphire crystal had to be calculated, achieving the mechanically opposing aims of maintaining structural strength and decreasing its height-to-diameter ratio. Freeing LM Perpetual EVO from the bezel also necessitated the use of a sophisticated thermal bonding system between the sapphire crystal and the case. 

The previously circular pushers for adjusting the perpetual calendar have been enlarged into double-sprung oblong actuators, boosting the tactile comfort and ease of adjustment. The LM Perpetual EVO is rated at 80m of water resistance, enabled by its screw-down crown. A small, but essential, detail of implementing a screw-down crown is the débrayage of the winding stem, disengaging the crown from the winding mechanism when it is pushed in and tightened, which eliminates the chance of manually over-winding the mainspring barrel.

An additional new element of the LM Perpetual EVO is the FlexRing: an annular dampener fitted between case and movement, providing shock protection along the vertical and lateral axes. Machined from a single block of stainless steel, the dampener imparts exceptional robustness to the perpetual calendar, a function that is associated with classicism and elegance, but is arguably the most pragmatic and utilitarian of all the high complications.

When Stephen McDonnell set out to redesign the perpetual calendar for MB&F, he proposed a system that rethought the entire mechanical basis of the complication. The LM Perpetual uses a “mechanical processor” consisting of a series of superimposed disks. This revolutionary processor takes the default number of days in the month at 28 — because, logically, all months have at least 28 days — and then adds the extra days as required by each individual month. This ensures that each month has exactly the right number of days, and removes the possibility of the date jumping incorrectly. An inbuilt safety feature disconnects the quickset pushers during the date changeover, so that even if the pushers are accidentally actuated whilst the date is changing, there is no risk of damage to the movement.

In design, in technique, in spirit, Legacy Machine Perpetual EVO has been an evolution of your story with MB&F.

The LM Perpetual EVO is not a watch for sports. It is a watch for life.

MB&F LEGACY MACHINE PERPETUAL EVO TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Legacy Machine Perpetual EVO has been created in five versions:

– Zirconium editions: three limited editions of 15 pieces each with a choice of orange CVD dial plate, blue CVD dial plate or black PVD dial plate;

 – Titanium editions: with green CVD dial plate or icy blue CVD dial plate.

Engine

Fully integrated perpetual calendar developed for MB&F by Stephen McDonnell, featuring dial-side complication and mechanical processor system architecture with inbuilt safety mechanism. Manual winding with double mainspring barrels. Bespoke 14mm balance wheel with traditional regulating screws visible on top of the movement. Superlative hand finishing throughout respecting 19th century style; internal bevel angles highlighting hand craft; polished bevels; Geneva waves; hand-made engravings.

Galvanic black dials with both SLN numerals and hands (except for the leap year and power reserve) 

FlexRing: an annular dampener fitted between case and movement, providing shock protection along the vertical and lateral axes. 

Screw down crown

Power reserve: 72 hours

Balance frequency: 18,000bph / 2.5Hz

Number of components: 581

Number of jewels: 41

Functions/indications

Hours, minutes, day, date, month, retrograde leap year and power reserve indicators

Case

Material: Zirconium or Titanium

Dimensions: 44 x 17.5mm

Number of components: 70

Water resistance: 8ATM / 80m / 270 feet

Sapphire crystals

Sapphire crystals on top and display back treated with anti-reflective coating on both faces

Strap & buckle

Rubber strap with titanium folding buckle.