Credits: Article and images by Joshua Munchow @ Quill & Pad. See the original article here - https://quillandpad.com/2023/10/29/urwerk-ur-120-spock-its-great-to-be-a-nerd-reprise/
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Next, each block passes over a pin that engages with a four-position Geneva wheel in the block base to advance the block by 90 degrees, exactly how the original UR-110 advanced the larger square number cubes. This visual dance adds complexity to the triple-arm carriage, but the result is totally worth it.
Since there is more to watch on that side of the display, the UR-120 ditches the small seconds, day/night indicator, and the “oil change” service interval display. Now the area underneath the rotating carriage is clean and much more refined, almost like the bridge in Star Trek The Next Generation.
Okay, that might be a stretch of the analogy but the lack of indications cluttering up the area beneath the carriage really opens up the “dial” and makes the UR-120 lighter and more streamlined visually.
Given the goals for the UR-120 were to turn the 110 into a “thinner, smoother, and more elegant” piece, I’d say this was a success.
Without departing from the space brutalism aesthetic, Urwerk was able to elevate the design with a few key changes and a really clever mechanism, making the UR-120 one of my favorite Urwerk pieces in recent years.
The piece is also a great example of how a nerdy passion can overlap with another nerdy passion that may not be related but fits so well together.
Watches inspired by science fiction and space travel are one of my favorite genres, and to have Urwerk acknowledge just how linked what they create is to well-known properties is such an awesome thing to see.
Urwerk UR-120 “Spock” espousing the Vulcan salute on the wrist
The UR-120 Spock could also inspire the next crop of imaginative engineers and daydreaming writers, becoming a spark for another mechanical renaissance within watchmaking.
So to Frei, Baumgartner, and Urwerk as a whole, I say (correctly this time): live long and prosper!
At the risk of disabling the warp drive let’s try to break this down!
- Wowza Factor * 9.7 The original model was already showstopping, but updating the aesthetic and creating such an amazing mechanical upgrade is marvelous!
- Late Night Lust Appeal * 97 » 951.245m/s2 Being able to simply watch the dance of the new mechanics is enough to keep me up until earthrise!
- M.G.R. * 68.8 Most Urwerk movements are high scorers but this one is so incredibly geeky it’s a stunner!
- Added-Functionitis * N/A There are no added functions on this watch and Urwerk should be proud! It already stands as an awesomely capable movement so everyone can skip the Gotta-HAVE-That cream and just imagine a ship to the stars with this on the wrist!
- Ouch Outline * 12.1 Stubbing the same toe three days in a row! Stubbing your toe once is pretty annoying but stubbing the same one again brings real pain. A third time becomes something akin to cruel and unusual punishment. If I was able to still walk afterwards, though, I would gladly stub that toe if it meant getting a UR-120 on my wrist!
- Mermaid Moment * It splits! There is nothing more you would need to learn beyond the fact that the numerals split into a V before rotating to get you to commit to a ceremony on the beach!
- Awesome Total * 858.4 Start off with the power reserve in hours (48) and multiply by the thickness of the case in millimeters (15.8) and then add the water resistance in feet (100) for an interstellar awesome total!
For more information, please visit www.urwerk.com/collections/ur-satellite/ur-120.
Quick Facts Urwerk UR-120 “Spock”
Case: 47 x 44 x 15.8 mm, stainless steel and titanium
Movement: automatic Caliber UR-20.01, 48-hour power reserve, 28,800 vph/4 Hz frequency
Functions: satellite hours, minutes
Price: CHF 100,000
* This article was first published 20 November 2022 at Urwerk UR-120 ‘Spock’: It’s Great To Be A Nerd
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Credits: Article and images by Joshua Munchow @ Quill & Pad. See the original article here - https://quillandpad.com/2023/10/29/urwerk-ur-120-spock-its-great-to-be-a-nerd-reprise/
