BY DHANANJAY PATHAK
Since it acquired Minerva, Montblanc has come up with some nice vintage-inspired pieces that pay a tribute to the rich watchmaking past of the latter. Not only are the watches good to look at but what makes them special are the highly sought-after Minerva movements that power them. The latest entry to this small but growing collection is the Heritage Small Second Limited Edition 38, a sweet little watch powered by a true new old stock movement.
Let’s begin by talking about the real deal here, the caliber MB M62.00. If you paid close attention to what I wrote above, you would have noticed that I used the word ‘true’ while referring to the movement. That is because Mont Blanc recently discovered a hidden treasure trove of 38 M62 calibers in great condition with exceptional finishing, making it possible to use them in almost untouched condition without being worked upon much. To keep the nostalgic charm intact even the ‘Minerva’ and ‘Villeret’ branding on the movement remains unchanged. As for the specifications, the movement is a hand-wound, operates at a frequency of 2.5Hz and offers a power reserve of around 50 hours.
A beautiful movement like the MB M62.00 deserves a great looking face and Montblanc has given this watch just that. The salmon-colored dial is stunning to look at and given that it is not a common sight in the current horological landscape, it makes the perfect choice on a watch like this. Color aside Montblanc has shown great attention to detail on the execution front mixing several different textures to enhance the visual appeal. The center features a fine sunburst finish, followed by a grained section and finally there is another sunburst section on the outermost periphery. The hour markers are a mix of applied lume filled circular plots and Arabic numerals at the 4 quadrants, and the minute track comprises hash marks and numerals printed in blue except for the indication at 12 and 6 that are presented in red to provide an added dash of color. Time can be read easily using the elegant dauphine style hour and minute hands along with the baton-style seconds hand that is nestled within the subsidiary seconds dial, which is nicely recessed but unfortunately cuts the numeral at 6 slightly disturbing the coherence of the dial.
The case on this watch is crafted from stainless steel. It measures 39mm in diameter and has a thickness of around 9.5mm which means that this watch would sit comfortably on a variety of wrists and would also slide easily under those cuffs. It is nicely finished and is water-resistant to 50 meters.
The new Montblanc Heritage Small Second Limited Edition 38 is a handsome looking watch that packs all the necessary ingredients a great luxury dress watch should have. It is well-sized, is dripping with character and elegance and most of all has a deep-rooted history to back it up. The watch would be limited to just 38 pieces and would come attached to a genuine black alligator strap. The retail price has been set at EUR 17,900.
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