By Jovan Krstevski
Montblanc released the TimeWalker collection reminiscent of modern and urban line of watches with sophisticated elaborations such as sculptured lugs. Even so, the watchmaker managed to keep the watch in its traditional form that is both classical and elegant. Over time, the TimeWalker collection has seen many changes particularly innovations. The look and feel of the watches changed with subtlety though so you normally see changes on the outside but most of us horology fans like it when the changes are really noticeable such are the ones present on the Montblanc TimeWalker Pythagore Ultra-Light Concept sporting a beautiful skeletonized Minerva movement weighing at mere 15 grams. The ultra light description here must not be taken lightly since the watch is really engineered to be as light as the feather when its inspiration really involves a shuttlecock in the sport of badminton. I am excited about this watch especially remembering last year’s TimeWalker ExoTourbillon Minute Chronograph LE100 sporting a carbon fiber case and superb technical movement.
Talking about its inspiration Montblanc found it in its brand ambassador Lin Dan, a Chinese World Badminton Champion. In this sport light is king so why not build a super light watch – possibly what Montblanc thought that bore fruit to the Montblanc TimeWalker Pythagore Ultra-Light Concept. I like it when sports are involved but for this one, I like it more since a super light technical movement design is hard to come by. Bravo Montblanc.
The case of the watch is 40mm and 9.7mm in size. Note that this is typical of casual watches but the size is very reasonable for a sporty watch too. The case uses a material combined with Kevlar/carbon to achieve a new composite. Montblanc names it ITR² for Innovative Technical Revolutionary Resin. This composite is four times lighter than titanium and is very hard to create. Owing to Lin Dan’s country, the red circle surrounding the dial is also made of ITR². The glass here is made of mineral crystal for its lighter mass. The brushed and black DLC-coated titanium used for the lugs also accounts for this lightness. The case is able to withstand water pressure down to 30m.
The dial is superbly technical – it’s skeletonized. For this review, the dial and movement goes hand-in-hand so let’s get on with the movement too. All the indications and hands are directly attached to the movement including the large index at the 12 o’clock. The design is really geared to shave weight particularly the hands with hollowed openings making for nice aesthetics too. Plus the materials used are extremely light such us the anodized aluminum small seconds subdial and titanium for the mainplate and five bridges. This is very cool indeed.
The movement, Calibre MB M62.48 powering the Montblanc TimeWalker Pythagore Ultra-Light Concept watch beats at a quiet 2.5Hz sporting about 50 hours of power reserve. The whole movement is just 4.73 grams which is really light. The finishing is modern with industrial looks but the chamfered edges combined with the sharp angles just screams for a sporty attitude. The movement alone is nostalgic since it is a complete redesign of the famed 1943 Minerva Pythagore. This is also the reason why we see Pythagoras’ golden ratio embedded on the watch’s design. The 8 stars engraved on the bridge at 8 and 2 o’clock also allude to Lin Dan’s career. I don’t know about you but I think Montblanc is courting the Chinese bourse with this new handsome timepiece. For more info, please visit montblanc.com
