A Look at MB&F’s Collection of Driver’s Watches
Driver’s watches occupy a niche category of watches. Crafted originally for racing drivers, these watches feature a dial that makes it optimal to read the time while hands are firmly planted at 10 and 2 o’clock on the steering wheel. The theory is, even the most minor inconvenience could cause a millisecond difference in the performance of a racer, and every millisecond matters.
While racers now receive their timing info via headsets, this category of timepieces continues to showcase novel designs and timekeeping mechanics well into the 21st century. One of the brands that offers the most innovative driver’s watches is MB&F. Max Büsser, the founder of the brand, has long been inspired by race cars and driver’s watches occupy a major portion of the brand’s Horological Machine collection.
One of the major forces to keep the driver’s watch category thriving in the modern era, we’re examining MB&F’s driver’s watches from the Horological Machine (HM) 5, HM8 Mark 2, and HM9 “Flow Road.”
The Horological Machine N°5
Heavily inspired by vintage timepieces and cars, namely the Amida Digitrend and Lamborghini Miura, this is MB&F’s twist on 1970’s aesthetics. A driver’s watch, the HM5 was the brand’s first truly sporty timepiece, released originally in 2012.
Supremely automotive in its aesthetic, the HM5 is a race car on the wrist.
While it may appear more “subdued” than some of its siblings like the HM4 or HM2, the case and movement are truly marvels in engineering. The case is crafted out of 80 components with two integrated cases coming together – one external for the louvres system and one internal to house and protect the movement. On the external case, a small lever opens the louvres on the top, similar to the Miura’s design, to allow light into the movement. This charges the lume on the time-telling discs and allows for easy nighttime legibility. There’s also two vents by the crown, both act as exhaust ports for water to escape the case. It does justice to the glory days of vintage automotive design, looking very much like a sports car on the wrist.
The HM5’s movement is based on Girard-Perregaux's GP3300, a jumping hour movement with significant modifications to meet the needs of the case and unusual display of time. Jumping hour and running minutes discs are mounted horizontally on top of the movement. How does one see the time then as if it were vertical? Behind the sapphire crystal is a wedge-shaped prism that reflects the discs 90 degrees into their upright, legible positions. This is one of the early experiments for MB&F in their ultra-innovative engineering of sapphire crystal, exemplifying the brand’s “Sapphire Vision” timepieces. One notices an additional, slight magnification on the display of time. This is created by an overlaid convex prism that enlarges the discs by roughly 20% and improves legibility at arms length.
MB&F’s iconic battle ax rotor on full display through the HM5’s caseback .
The Horological Machine N°8 Mark 2
After a nearly 6 year hiatus from the brand’s “automotive inspired” timepieces, Max Büsser and friends returned in 2023 with a new, driver’s watch release – the HM8 Mark 2.
The exposed movement through the top of the HM8 Mark 2’s case.
Pulling from the iconic Porsche 918 Spyder and Ugo Zagato’s “double bubble” roof for the sapphire crystal, the HM8 Mark 2 (like the HM5) is built from an independent water-resistant chassis. The body panels of the watch are added on top. One thing that is very self-evident from MB&F’s catalog: each timepiece is its own experiment that pushes the brand’s engineering capabilities farther and farther. With the HM8 Mark 2, we see that the material science and engineering of the case’s sapphire crystal move to another level.
The case is made of CarbonMacrolon®, a composite material composed of a polymer matrix injected with carbon nanotubes. It offers superior tensile strength and stiffness than traditional carbon fiber reinforcing. A solid that can be coloured, polished, bead-blasted, lacquered, or satin-finished, it additionally weighs eight times less than steel. It’s an extremely versatile and interesting material from a technical, design, and ergonomic point of view. For the onlooker, this type of experimentation with materials is a solid indicator that MB&F prides itself on innovation in every possible layer of watchmaking.
The driver’s watch display of time, easily legible with hands on the wheel.
As for the sapphire, the HM8 Mark 2 is yet another push beyond the “normal” engineering limits of watchmaking. The creation of this double-curved sapphire has reached a complexity that is 30 to 40 times more expensive than a dome sapphire. Only one supplier agreed to take on the challenge. During the many hours required to produce each sapphire crystal, the risk of breakage is incredibly high – and if it is going to break, it is always at the very last moment, much to the utter desperation of all concerned. Once safely completed and fitted into the timepiece, however, it is just as robust as the sapphire crystal on any sports watch.
From an aesthetics perspective, the sapphire crystal hood of the HM8 Mark 2 makes this timepiece a pleasure on the eye. The brand’s iconic battle ax rotor is in full view, spinning often at a remarkably fast rate.
The Horological Machine 9 “Flow Road”
Released in 2018, the HM9 “Flow Road” is an homage to 1940’s automotive aesthetics. While every Horological Machine finds inspiration in a multitude of different domains, a pulling-together of all of Max Büsser’s disparate interests, there’s a heavy resemblance to the curves of the Pontiac Streamliner.
1940’s automotive lines to the max, the HM9 “Flow Road” is maximalist horology
This is the most technically sophisticated driver’s watch that we’ll cover today. The HM9 movement is nothing short of a marvel in modern watchmaking. Both of the case’s lateral “bubbles” house and showcase two balance wheels. Not the first time that MB&F has used two balance wheels and escapements in a timepiece, the Legacy Machine 2, but it is a first for the Horological Machine collection. The central “bubble” of the case houses the mainspring barrel as well as differential. Here, both balance wheels are averaged to ensure that error
The HM9’s three-dimensional movement is a spectacle in modern watchmaking
One of the most spectacular “Sapphire Vision” versions of any MB&F watch comes in the HM9. The original titanium and red gold versions are masterpieces, but those metals obscure the wonder of observing the three-dimensional movement in action.
These three timepieces are a snapshot of our favorite driver’s watches from MB&F. It is not all of the brand’s driver’s watches though. The HM8 “Can-Am” – the precursor to the HM8 Mark 2 – is another. The HM4 isn’t usually defined as a “driver’s watch,” but fits “driver’s watch” criteria with its perpendicular display of time. It flies under the radar that MB&F gravitates toward driver’s watches – through Max’s creative interest in cars – but also because the perpendicular dials offer a design requirement met with extremely modern, three-dimensional movements. These are the driver’s watches of the future, keeping the tradition alive through an avant-garde evolution.