Last Tuesday a completely new chapter was opened in the book of note Austrian watch manufacturer Habring2 : On the occasion of the 10th anniversary of their brand, Maria Kristina and Richard Habring made themselves a magnificient birthday present: The presentation to the world of their first completely in-house (and thus also bearing the first Austrian manufacture movement of all modern times, the Cal. A11) timepiece, the Habring2 Felix :
The 'Felix' and its engine the Cal. A11 represent a remarkable milestone for a tiny manufacture such as the Habrings' - it is nothing else than their declaration of independence after they received, shortly before Christmas 2011, ETA's letter informing them on the suspension of deliveries for movement parts.
The decision was foreseeable and thus the couple was very quick in their decision to escape of the chains of dependence and develop, in collaboration with like-minded, family owned and - to the extend possible - regional suppliers, their own base movement.
10 years after, time to celebrate!
Three years down the line, on 16 September 2014, time was ripe to release the new 'baby' to the public, together with a small group of close friends and journalists who joined Maria and Richard in their small atelier in Völkermarkt, Carinthia:
Thus I had the chance to attend the ceremony. Mâitre de conférénce and 'godfather' of Maria and Richard, Arnold Mettnitzer (psychotherapist, Habring2 collector from the first minute and long term friend of them), who considered the new movement as Maria's and Richard's token of affection to Austria, combining magnanimity, ingeniousness, finesse and love for their home country for the benefit of society.
Mr Mettnitzer brought with him musician, artist and composer Edgar Unterkirchner, who delighted is with impress improvisations inspired by the ticking of one of the Habrings' table clocks:
That was the keyword (or sound?) for Maria and Richard to propose the final toast on the watch and...
... release the object of desire to all of us anxiously waiting aficionados.
And here it is, the first truly Austrian-made timepiece: Habring2 Felix :
Before I could intervene it was immediately grabbed by those less restrained (or simply quicker) than me:
Noted journalists Peter Braun and Elizabeth Doerr had lots of fun with it, and needed a long time to pass it on, but did me a great favour:
Not only did they pose for a group shot of the
two dial variants (roman or arabic numerals at 12 o'clock as only difference), but also they demonstrated that with
38.5mm diameter, the watch is a very versatile
unisex accessory:
The Habring2 Felix - a lucky foundation for an independent future
Close-up to the novelty: A very wearable 38.5mm watch in steel, with a silvery brushed no-nonsense (and almost literature-free ;-)) dial featuring a permanent seconds hands at 9 o'clock. In contrast to all previous Habring
2 offerings this watch comes with a new case, shaped after the elegant watches of the 1950 years with a
height of only 7mm:
Prices start at € 4450 and represent Habring2's new entry price level. Customers can not only chose between either a Roman or an Arabian "12", there is also the option of foregoing the permanent second hand in favour of an even simpler dial design. Other than that, the Felix represents the new entry level option and does not share the customisation/extendability all other Habring2 watches offer.
As sober as the face is also the back: The Cal. A11B ('B' for base) matches perfectly the understated conception of the timepiece, and as well the character of both Maria and Richard. A 30mm hand wound movement with 48h of autonomy, antimagnetic and with a chronometer-grade escapement:
One might say the movement still resembles the Valjoux 7750/7760 movement, and the response to this is yes, for a very good reason: Maria and Richard decided to design their movement such that the existing functional modules, e.g. the jumping seconds, the foudroyante, the split-seconds chronograph etc. can still be used without further modification. This requires that the dimensions as well as the
interfaces are identical to the Valjoux movement.
Other than these constraints, the movement has been developed de novo with improved gear train, wheel design and escapement.
'Manu-Factum' as a necessity
Given the size of the Habring
2 atelier and the envisages output the new Cal. A11 family sets a new benchmark for
true handmade production in this price range. Lacking the financial backing of large groups or an investor, the couple sought ways to maintain as large an independence and self-sufficiency as possible. The logical consequence was in-house manual production of most key parts:
- movement plates & bridges
- all wheels
- escapement parts such as pallet
- hand termination of balance and hair spring
Where making their own parts was not feasible, Habring
2 resorted to like-minded (local) and in most parts family-owned suppliers. The chronometer-grade antimagnetic hair spring for example is custom produced by Carl Haas, the case is made by a small workshop in the Carinthian alps who normally specialised in car parts, its steel is sourced from Austrian specialist smeltery Böhler.
Thus, it is a truly Austrian 'Alpine' watch...!!
Richard was more than happy to demonstrate to us on the spot many of the numerous steps performed in-house and pieces produced there.
For now, I show just a few of it. Here is how the hairspring is tuned and attached to the balance:
While the Haas company supplies precisely manufactured hairsprings they still need to be cut individually to match each single balance wheel. Individually, the springs are mounted on 'their' (in-house hand-poised!) balance...
... and cut to the correct length using a micro-calliper.
Afterwards, the balance is fixed permanently by a cramp.
Here is the beautiful result:
Also, the anchor is assembled completely in house. I'll cover the process in detail in a separate post (some time...):
So, the Habrings apparently go out of their way to ensure their self-sufficiency. Asked why they went the difficult road and did not simply resort to alternative movement suppliers like Sellita & co, they mention two very compelling reasons: (i) the experience with previous reliance on ETA was troubling enough not to repeat it, and (ii) while Sellita offers clones to many ETA movements, crucial aspects of the gear train and other details have been reworked and functional interfaces changed, making revisions of Habring
2's own modules necessary.
Thus, the decision for a full in-house movement under their full control was made. Much to our (the collector's) benefit!
Regional delicacies with integrity and character - just like Maria and Richard!
A bit exhausted after the concentrated news and information, we all went for a festive evening much in the style to Maria, Richard and Felis (of course!). After checking in at the hotel Convent St. Georgen monastery (still active in andragogy and often used as seminar centre)...
...we just walked down the street to the winery
Georgium am Laengsee where we were welcomed by
Marcus Gruze, owner and wine maker, who dedicated himself to organic winemaking, producing natural wines by spontaneous fermentation without additions like sugar, acids or wood chips. His wines are also not consternated or filtered. Very characterful, I was quite surprised!
We enjoyed an intensive tour...
.. and sampled maturing wines:
Craft beer from
Klaus Feistritzer, private micro brewery
Loncium:
The whole came nicely together later at the restaurant
Rathhaus im Georgium am Laengsee, which belongs to Marcus Gruze's winery, where
Markus Rath and
Bianca Hirschmugl follow a regional approach as well.
Saibling (samlet), in Austria considered as the 'alpine salmon', a delicate freshwater fish thriving only in clearest waters. Here with ravioli and a squash cream soup:
Assortiment of finest Carinthian pork with a warm bacon and cabbage salad...
Assortiment of roe deer with polenta...
... followed by sweet curd cheese dumplings filled with Marille, an Austrian apricot, served with a sour cream ice cream. A feathery touch of apricot schnaps sprayed on top finished it off stupendously:
Finally (and certainly a highlight for me), artisanal sheep cheese crafted by
Margit Nuart. Particularly the blue-veined cheese was to die for, so tender and with a well defined structure.
Digestion was incinerated with stupendous distillates produced by Anita and Valentin Latschen (distillery Pfau Brand), who also demonstrated how nicely the liquors accentuate a dessert if sprayed on top.
At the end of this memorable evening, all of us and even watchdog Mickey were more than exhausted and a bit dizzy (I guess). Anyway, Mickey voiced his concerns about my presence in his kingdom (i.e. the atelier) clearly anyway... Time to call it a day and head back to our monasterial home.
The next morning a thick weather covered the mysteries of Austria watchmaking... Perfect ambiance for an early walk reflecting what I had the chance to experience the previous day.
At the end of the day: the bottom line
Maria & Richard showed us a very interesting new family of manufacture movements, presented in a new entry level watch. Core watchmaking tasks are performed manually in their atelier using parts precision & custom manufactured by similar small workshops mostly located in the region. Often, even the suppliers of the suppliers are local.
Compared to most other in-house products both the Felix watch and the A11 movement family are remarkable in many ways:
- they demonstrate that advanced watchmaking can be practiced successfully in the 'diaspora', i.e. in a decidedly non-watchmaing country, using suppliers outside the watch industry (the latter is also practiced by ochs und junior, for example)
- watch and movement are a case-in-point that - given certain constraints (size, financial backing, conception) - handiwork is a true necessity
- by making clever decisions, movement design does not require multimillion investments
But most of all, the new Habring2 Felix is a most charming example of honest watchmaking, absolutely consistent in design, technology and execution, and thus an excellent ambassador for what both Maria and Richard stand for!
A famous latin saying in Austria states: „Bella gerant alii, tu felix Austria nube.“ (let others go to war, you, lucky Austria, marry) - I think this applies here nicely. While the watch industry is fighting for resources, talents, movements et al., Habring2 combines all resources they have available locally in a very intelligent way, thereby defending their independence and not wasting time, money and energy on competing with the big boys.
Maria & Richard, thank you so much for letting me be a tiny part of your journey. Good luck, and many happy returns to you both ! I am so proud of you!
I will return to the watch and its production in detail (and in due time)!
Cheers,
Magnus
This message has been edited by Ornatus-Mundi on 2014-09-24 10:38:10 
