Ulysse Nardin - Freak ONE

Ulysse Nardin introduced the Freak ONE, which returns to the original Freak's roots: no dial, no hands, and no crown. Price is CHF 65,000

Ulysse Nardin has been pushing boundaries with their watchmaking techniques for over 20 years, and one of their most iconic creations has been the Freak, first introduced in 2001. This watch was revolutionary for its time as it had no dial, no hands, and no crown. Instead, the time was set by a system integrated into the bezel and wound using a device built into the case back. And it had no hands, instead using the rotating one-hour carrousel tourbillon to show the time.

The new Freak ONE and, on the right, the original Freak from 2001

The Freak was a watchmaking laboratory, and it was the first Swiss watch to feature a silicon escapement, which was considered radical and expensive in 2001. Since then, Ulysse Nardin has filed over 20 patents for the Freak, and it has been the inspiration for many contemporary watches with silicon parts.

This year, Ulysse Nardin introduces the Freak ONE, which returns to the original Freak's roots, - featuring no dial, no hands, and no crown - while synthesising the visual dynamics of previous generations of the Freak. 

The 44 mm x 12 mm case is crafted from black DLC-coated titanium with satin finish and equipped with a rose gold 5N bezel and black titanium case back with sapphire porthole. It is water resistant to 30 metres / 100 feet.

Although it is loaded with advanced technology, the Freak ONE remains pretty easy to use, as described below.

The Freak’s unconventional time-setting system is operated via the bezel. It is activated when the locker ① at 6 o’clock is lifted, releasing the setting system. Turning the bezel rotates the entire movement, which doubles as the watch’s hands. Pushing the locker back down fixes the bezel in place so the time-setting system cannot be disturbed.

The black sunray-engraved barrel cover ② sits underneath the movement and doubles as the rotating hour disc. It makes a full rotation once every 12 hours, indicating the hour via a V-shaped pointer that is filled with Super-LumiNova to aid low-light legibility.

The Freak’s distinctive minute bridge ③ hovers under the sapphire crystal and carries the entire gear train, an oversized silicon oscillator and an orbital 60-minute flying carrousel tourbillon. The escapement is treated with Ulysse Nardin’s patented DIAMonSIL coating, a synthetic diamond and silicon plasma surfacing treatment that makes the movement abrasion and shock-resistant.

The Manufacture UN-240 self-winding  movement beats at a frequency of 3 Hz (21,600 vibrations per hour) and offers a 72-hour power reserve. Its patented Grinder winding system ④ has been designed to capture energy with even the smallest of wrist movements. Its rotor is connected to a frame carrying four blades, which gives the system twice the angular stroke, a bit like a bicycle fitted with four pedals instead of two. This makes it twice as efficient as typical winding systems.

Matched to a rubber strap made of 30 per cent recycled production waste by Ulysse Nardin’s Swiss partner BIWI, the new Ulysse Nardin Freak One ref. 2405-500-2A/3D has a suggested retail price of CHF 65,000. ulysse-nardin.com

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