BY HARLAN CHAPMAN-GREEN
Czapek is one of the several brands marking a significant milestone in its history in 2025, as the brand as we know it today turns ten years old. We’ve already seen special watches from this small but mighty brand, including a limited run of Antarctique watches featuring colourful stained glass dials. Now, we’re seeing something very different and unlike anything they’ve done before in the form of their new watch, called the Time Jumper.
The new Time Jumper draws inspiration from the classical pocket watches that would’ve been made by Franciszek Czapek in the mid-19th century, but it does things a little differently. The dial’s front is made with a half-hunter lid, which, unlike a full hunter lid, allows you to read the time through the sapphire crystal windows.
The hours are displayed by a patent-pending system using disks in the centre with a magnifier over them, with another window at the bottom showing the passing minutes. A three-dimensional guilloché pattern is cut into the top, evoking the traditional look of old pocket watches to counteract the futuristic time display. The 40.50mm x 12.35mm case is also quite futuristic, with its side profile resembling a flying saucer. Water resistance is rated at 30m.
Flipping up the Time Jumper’s half-hunter lid allows a clearer look at the new Calibre 10.01 underneath. The parts dominating the view most are the time displays, with the blue laser-coloured disks providing the backdrops for the numerals, while those numerals themselves are painted onto sapphire crystal disks.
The rest of the movement is visible through the sapphire crystal caseback, again with a more futuristic appearance than perhaps one would expect from Czapek, much like the Deep Blue Antarctique we reviewed here not too long ago. The keen-eyed Czapek enthusiasts amongst you will have spotted the self-winding rotor on this model, which is a full rotor, rather than a micro rotor, a departure from what we’ve seen in almost all self-winding collections apart from the Faubourg de Cracovie and the Antarctique chronograph watches.
Czapek clearly drew on all their recent technical knowledge to make their new Calibre 10.01 movement come to life. Czapek says the movement was conceived, designed, and assembled in-house and that 75% of its finishing is now completed in-house by the team as well. Although they say they are not looking to be fully vertically integrated, this reflects the increasing level of technical and artistic capabilities available to the brand, which bodes well for future products. The movement beats at 4Hz and has a power reserve of 60-hours, powered by the recycled platinum rotor.
Czapek is only making 130 of the Time Jumper watches. 100 will be made with a stainless steel case, presented on a blue rubber strap, and are priced at CHF42,000 before tax. The remaining 30 will be made of 18k yellow gold and will also be presented on a blue rubber strap; those pieces will cost CHF64,000 each before tax.
The new Time Jumper is a most unexpected watch from Czapek. When I was presented with the press kit for it, I was surprised that they went in the direction of fusing older designs with newer technology and display concepts, but then again, Czapek has always done things its own way, coming up with surprising combinations that work. The Time Jumper, to me, is evidence of that.
