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Quill & Pad
Many brands claim to have unique watches in their collection, but one that really owns this claim is Ulysse Nardin’s Freak. At Dubai Watch Week 2023, UN released the Freak One Ops.
Worn & Wound
There’s a narrative that has emerged around the Ulysse Nardin Freak over the years that its an extremely niche product, and something of a difficult watch to fully wrap your arms around. It’s strange, yes, even avant-garde, but as I’ve spent more time considering the Freak, I’ve come around to the other side of this story. I wonder, how can anyone not love the Freak? Even if it’s not to your specific taste, the Freak is an original, and one of a handful of truly important designs that would set the stage for a generation of interesting, independent watchmaking that we’re still living through today. The Freak might not be for everyone, but everyone should be able to agree that there’s something special about it. The latest Freak, the Freak [X OPS] is part of the still relatively new Freak X lineup, a collection that aims to make the watch more approachable. Blake went hands-on with a Freak X here, and both the review and video (complete with commentary from a watchmaker) are worth a look if you’re new to the Freak universe. But the gist of the Freak X is relatively easy to understand: it’s smaller than a traditional Freak, and it has a crown. Historically, the Freak was marketed as a watch with “No Dial, No Hands, No Crown.” A curious rallying cry for sure, and a tough thing to picture. But when you see it, it all (kind of) makes sense. For me, the addition of a crown doesn’t feel like too much of a transgression. The visual impression of the Freak...
Time+Tide
Ulysse Nardin's Freak X OPS takes the brand's proprietary Magma carbon composite and gives it a camo lookThe post Ulysse Nardin Freak X OPS appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Quill & Pad
Twenty-one years after the launch of Ulysse Nardin's Freak changed the watch industry forever, the Freak S reinvigorates the collection with a new aesthetic and crazy mechanics reminding us of the modern roots of this company.
Deployant
Ulysse Nardin continues to enrich the Freak X model lineup with a new reference with an blue enamel guilloché dial. Limited Edition of 50 pieces.
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Time+Tide
Ulysse Nardin’s original Freak shook the watch-o-sphere to the core when unveiled at Basel in 2001. It was like nothing anyone had seen before; a complete reimagining of how a watch can function and display time where there was no crown, no dial and no hands. Seemingly so complex with a gear train sprawled across … ContinuedThe post The Ulysse Nardin Freak One is a super-freak and chic appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Time+Tide
The Ulysee Nardin Freak ONE has surpassed its shock-factor roots and embraced beauty, The time is adjusted via the 5N gold bezel, negating the need for a traditional crown. Its train of wheels and flying tourbillon are all integrated into the minutes hand. Mechanical watchmaking has evolved drastically over the last few decades, which is … ContinuedThe post The Ulysse Nardin Freak ONE embraces and dresses-up the atypical complication appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Deployant
UN goes back to the original Freak roots with the new Freak 1. Live report from the Ulysse Nardin Booth at Watches and Worders 2023.
![[VIDEO] The Freak Gets an Edit, The Curious Ulysse Nardin Freak X Reviewed](https://wornandwound.com/library/uploads/2023/01/Ulysse-Nardin_freak_022.jpg)
Worn & Wound
Ulysse Nardin is a peculiar brand. They have long been at the forefront of horological innovation, from marine chronometers in the 19th century, to creating stuff like DIAMonSIL in the 21st. However, they lack a singular, cohesive aesthetic that’s coalesced in broader culture in the same way watches like the Speedmaster, Submariner, or Royal Oak have. Except for a watch called the Freak, that is. A concept first released upon the world in 2001, the Freak was as impressive technologically as it was shocking to behold. With a movement that pivoted on itself to display the time, it was (and remains) daring, innovative, and downright novel. But, it never quite enjoyed a ‘hip status’ in the same way other exotic watches from the likes of MB&F; or Urwerk have since. This is likely due to a few reasons, but with the release of the Freak X in 2019, Ulysse Nardin is a whole lot closer. The Freak is a watch that has always commanded attention, both technically and visually speaking. The concept placed the gear train atop the mainspring, within a carousel that itself served as the minute hand. There was no dial to speak of, but rather a rotating plate containing the hour hand underpinning the structure. Winding and setting was managed via the deeply scalloped, somewhat steampunk-ish bezel unit. The launch of the Freak also marked the very first appearance of silicon within a watch movement, something the brand has been a pioneer of developing. This is a dramatic watch to behold ...
SJX Watches
Utterly bizarre and thoroughly ingenious when it debuted in March 2001, the Freak remains avant-garde even two decades later. But unlike the highly modern creations from brands like De Bethune and Urwerk, the Freak arguably gets less credit than it deserves, simply because Ulysse Nardin isn’t a niche, independent watchmaker. But that takes nothing away from the concept, which has been made more avant-garde than ever. Launched earlier this year, the Freak S is now the flagship model in the Freak line-up. In a first for a Freak, it reimagines the trademark carousel display, which now carries twin inclined balance wheels linked by a differential. Initial thoughts The landmark creation of the modern-day Ulysse Nardin (UN) brand, Freak was and still is interesting because it turns conventional movement construction on its head. Most of the moving parts are mounted onto a carousel on the dial that doubles up as the minute hand, while under the dial sits a massive mainspring that occupies most of the case volume. No other watch combines unorthodox form and function like the Freak even though it was launched in 2001, well before most of today’s best known avant-garde timepieces. That was four years before Urwerk unveiled its satellite-cube hour display, for instance, ensuring the Freak’s place as a pioneering creation. The Freak S (left) and the original Freak from 2001 While the essence of the Freak has been mostly retained over the various iterations since its launch, ...
Video
Revolution
The flying carrousel equipped Freak X receives a dose of artistry inspired by naval camouflage and Cubist art.
Time+Tide
Watching on from the sidelines, consumers on social media constantly beg the watch industry to put the novel in novelties, asking for original, fresh, and forward-thinking designs in a conventional and traditional industry. Instead, we get 1mm variations in size, a new dial colour, and the crowd goes wild to the extent that boggles the … ContinuedThe post HANDS-ON: The Ulysse Nardin Freak X Magma is the creativity you asked for, but do you really want it? appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
SJX Watches
Revolutionary for its construction and use of silicon, the Ulysse Nardin Freak is still a unique watch almost two decades after its introduction. And the full-featured Freak is still a relatively costly watch, until the Freak X came along last year. The most affordable version of a watch that helped kickstart the age of high-tech mechanical watchmaking, the Freak X retains the essence of its bigger brother while simplifying the rest of the movement. Several iterations of the Freak X have been rolled out since then, including one that ironically takes silicon out of the movement – the Freak X Silicium Marquetry. The watch has a dial decorated with inlaid tiles of iridescent silicon, using the material for its aesthetic potential, rather than the usual functional purposes in the escapement. The Freak X Silicium Marquetry Initial thoughts The Freak X Silicium Marquetry is an aesthetic variant of the standard model, so it’s identical in all respects except the dial finish. A combination of metallic and glassy, the silicon dial is different from any other dial material and suits the look of the watch well. That means the case is compact, so it wears quite well. And more importantly, the watch has a cutting-edge balance wheel amounted on the minute hand, making one revolution an hour. It’s a surprisingly advanced regulator in a watch at this price point, and probably the most advanced of all watches in the price segment. But the Freak X Silicium Marquetry is substantiall...
Revolution
Celebrating The Hour Glass 40th anniversary, Ulysse Nardin introduces the Freak X Carbonium Gold, limited to 30 pieces.
Revolution
The Ulysse Nardin Freak Out feels right at home amidst the colors and flavors of Thailand’s busy streets and waterways.
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Deployant
The Ulysse Nardin Freak is an icon in the watch industry, but does the new and more accessible Freak X lives up to its namesake?
Revolution
Ulysse Nardin makes some noise with its all new Freak X, the Skeleton X, and an x-rated collection of unique pieces with graphic novel illustrator Milo Manara.
Time+Tide
Over the last few years, Ulysse Nardin has been greatly expanding its Freak family (a smart move say I), and the latest member is the Freak X, which joins the Freak Out and Freak Vision. Now, before we break down this watch, a quick word about X, which is serving as something of a thematic … ContinuedThe post INTRODUCING: The Ulysse Nardin Freak X, more accessible, but still freaky appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Revolution
Back in 2001, most watchmaking brands stuck to making the same old, same old timepieces while struggling to stay relevant. Then Ulysse Nardin unleashed the Freak.
Deployant
Ulysse Nardin introduces a new Freak incorporating innovations from the Innovision 2. We bring you the details and our thoughts on the Freak Vision.
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Time+Tide
Ulysse Nardin recently introduced four new members of its freaky family. With titanium cases and unmistakable style, these watches are known collectively as the Freak Out, and today we’re taking a look at the Freak Out Blue. First, though, a quick primer on the Freak. Conceived by genius watchmaker Ludwig Oechslin, the Freak first came … ContinuedThe post INTRODUCING: The Ulysse Nardin Freak Out of the Blue appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Deployant
Ulysse Nardin grows its Freak universe wider by introducing a mix of materials on the new quartet of Freak Out timepieces.
Deployant
Named after the famous snorkeling reef of Coral Bay in Western Australia, the two latest Freak Vision Coral Bay timepieces showcase an exciting new decorative bonding technique as well as Ulysse Nardin's renowned meticulous micropainting capabilities.
Deployant
Introducing the first automatic watch in the Freak Collection, the Ulysse Nardin Freak Vision Vision: incorporating a super-light silicium balance wheel with nickel mass elements and stabilizing micro-blades and a new case design made even thinner by a box-domed crystal.
Time+Tide
After a warm reception to the forward-thinking Freak-based Ulysse Nardin Innovision 2 at SIHH in 2017, the highly anticipated production variant - dubbed the Freak Vision - took centre-stage at the brand’s ocean-themed booth at SIHH. Of the original 10 patents (four issued, six pending) that found their way into the concept watch, three have … ContinuedThe post HANDS-ON: Ulysse Nardin get their Freak Vision on at SIHH 2018 appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
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