Hands-On The Ochs Und Junior Perpetual Calendar

This watch is a lot more complicated than it looks. But also a lot simpler. We've described Ochs und Junior's watches as "rigorously simple" in the past, and this latest addition is no exception. The Ochs und Junior Perpetual Calendar uses just nine additional parts, and a completely number and letter–free display to add a perpetual calendar to a simple time-and-date movement. Back in June we gave you an early look at this new watch, but last week I got some real wrist time with a production model and have to say, I didn't want to send it back home to Lucerne.

The Perpetual Calendar arrived to our office like all Ochs und Junior watches do. It was tucked neatly in a little folded leather keeper (seen below) bound to a piece of cardboard for stability. There's no fancy box or marketing materials. You get the watch, and a place to keep it when you're not wearing it (that makes for a great travel pouch, as well). The watch came mounted on one of Ochs und Junior's signature sturgeon leather straps (that's right, the same fish from which we get caviar) which, while fitted perfectly to my wrist, isn't my favorite strap in the world. It's naturally waterproof, sustainable, and very durable, but if I were order the watch, I'd probably opt for one of the brand's awesome calf leather straps instead. But that might just be me.

Other Ochs und Junior watches come in multiple sizes with nearly endless configurations for colors and materials. The Perpetual Calendar, though, only comes in one size and there is no customization tool available online like for the other watches (though you can contact Ochs und Junior directly if you'd like different colors). The case is 42mm across and made of grade five titanium. It has a solid caseback and a screw-down crown as well. The dial is grey patinated metal, the hands are brushed platinum, the markers rhodium, and the date and leap year dots are orange. It's a handsome combination that's all about subtle differences in texture and tonality, with only the dots offering some high contrast. Overall, I really like it, and can see it working for a wide range of people.

You might be wondering how exactly you read the perpetual calendar information on this relatively sparse dial. Let's take a tour. 

Hours and minutes are obvious. Those are the only two hands on the dial. If you're familiar with Ochs und Junior's other calendar watches, the date display will already be familiar – you read the orange dot on the outer ring as it advances clockwise one dot per day. It's a bit tough at first, but you get good at finding its position very quickly. Also, there are markers at 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12. These act as hour markers, and each also represents 5 days (just as in the Ochs und Junior Annual Calendar) so in practice, reading the date's much easier than you might think at first glance. The central disc rotates forward one increment per month, with the four-circle diamond pointing to an hour marker corresponding to the current month (1:00 is January, 2:00 is February, etc.). Those four dots also act as the Leap Year indicator – each dot turns orange in turn once per year, with the outermost dot turning orange in a Leap Year. Again, very easy to read once you understand the layout.

The other three indicators are also important though. At 12 o'clock you have the power reserve. The white dot sits under the rightmost marker at 12 o'clock when it's full and under the leftmost marker when it's empty, slowly rotating counterclockwise as power winds down. At six o'clock is the simple running second indicator, letting you know the automatic movement is working. And, finally, just above one o'clock is the "control dot," which tells you when it's ok to adjust the date without damaging the perpetual mechanism.

As I said above, all of this is achieved with just nine components added to the base movement (which is a Ulysse Nardin caliber UN 118, by the way). Furthermore, many of the components do double-duty, both serving a mechanical function and displaying relevant information. Hence the non-traditional display. (In fact, it's the omission of a complex additional system for driving a conventional perpetual calendar display that allows such a drastic reduction in parts.) By using exclusively gears, rather than the complicated system of cams, springs, and levers in a standard perpetual, Ochs und Junior also has created a watch that can be adjusted forwards and backwards, all using the crown only. While many brands brag about the complexity of their mechanisms and how difficult they are to manufacture, use, and repair, Ochs und Junior takes a much more sensible approach and instead brags about simplicity and durability. 

Calendar watches are nothing new for Ochs und Junior, though, so it's hard to consider this watch in a vacuum. It's closest in both aesthetics and functionality to the Annual Calendar (my personal favorite Ochs und Junior). Unlike the Annual, this watch does not show the day of the week, something I find very helpful. I understand why it was left out, but I did miss it a little during my time with this watch.

On the wrist, the 42mm titanium case wore a lot better than I expected. I have small wrists and typically favor the 39mm Ochs und Junior case, though with the short lugs and comfortable strap options (the buckle itself is a work of genius) the 42 wore just fine. Also, with this much happening on the dial, I think legibility would suffer with less real estate. I'll probably still opt for the 39mm for the other models, but the 42mm case seems absolutely right here.

One of my favorite things about the watch is the way the dial changes as the months progress. I obviously didn't wear the watch long enough to see it occur naturally, but as the central disc rotates, the vertical brushing on the two main dial components becomes misaligned, and thus the two pieces catch the light differently. The more perpendicular they are, the greater the apparent contrast. You can see in the image below just how different they can look. It adds some character and is another subtle way that the watch displays the passing of time. 

If you couldn't tell by this point, I'm a pretty big fan of Ochs und Junior, and the Perpetual Calendar continues to fan the flames. The no-nonsense approach, minimalist design, and practicality-first watchmaking are a refreshing break from the hyper-marketed, complicated for complexity's sake creations we're used to seeing come out of big manufactures. I don't know that I'd want every watch to be this pared back, but I'm sure glad that Ochs und Junior's are. Understatement might just be the greatest complication of all.

The Ochs und Junior Perpetual Calendar is available exclusively in titanium and is priced at 20,240 CHF (approximately $20,200 at time of publishing). For more information or to order, visit ochsundjunior.swiss.