H. Moser & Cie: Behind the Irreverence Lies Severe Watchmaking

What does a manufacture that makes watches out of cheese seem like…or possibly that needs to be what may it probably style like, by no means thoughts the way it smells! What if the identical manufacture additionally made a be careful of vegetation, which have been actually alive on the case so it was much less a watch than the world’s first and solely wrist backyard?

We would additionally marvel in regards to the scent of such a watch, however we digress… In fact, the advantage of making a watch case out of dairy and one that’s alive (affectionately dubbed Moser Nature) is that you simply routinely know which watchmaker we’re discussing…if the photographs and outline didn’t spoil it.

The irony is that H. Moser & Cie’s manufacture at Neuhausen am Rheinfall appears to be like just about another up to date watch manufacturing facility, minus the bombast of some. In some ways, it’s the not-perfect- but-just-right expression of a family-owned model that’s steadfast in its independence. H. Moser & Cie., underneath the quietly defiant stewardship of the Meylan household, has cultivated a popularity for being technically masterful, audaciously artistic and, at its finest, unexpectedly humorous. It’s a model that honours custom by tastefully (typically) breaking its guidelines, proving that true luxurious is, above all, uncommon. Alright, that could be a bit a lot, even whether it is true. Permit us to again all this up, with out the assistance of anybody H. Moser & Cie watch…

From Imperial Russia With Love

Within the spirit of irreverence, allow us to say that the story begins not in Switzerland, however in St. Petersburg in 1828, the place founder (the correctly Swiss and Schaffhausen- born) Heinrich Moser established a model that will change into a favorite of the Romanov court docket.

An astute industrialist in addition to a grasp watchmaker, Moser later returned to Schaffhausen, the place he harnessed the facility of the Rhine Falls to construct a dam, powering the area’s industrial progress.

Regardless of the auspicious beginnings, with the model’s museum estimating that Moser made lots of of hundreds of watches, historical past had different plans right here. Clearly, we want not clarify in regards to the Romanovs (it didn’t finish effectively) and the Swiss operations light by way of a sequence of possession modifications within the twentieth century.

For many years, the title was little greater than a footnote within the historical past of watchmaking till 2002, when it was formally revived. The true turning level got here in 2012 when the Meylan household, by way of their holding firm MELB, acquired the model.

Led by the charismatic Edouard Meylan, H. Moser & Cie. was reborn with a brand new philosophy: to be “Very Uncommon.” This isn’t only a advertising slogan; it’s a mission assertion reflecting its restricted annual manufacturing of round 4,000 watches, its mastery of roughly 20 in-house calibres, and a proudly contrarian spirit.

This boldness has produced a few of the most talked-about timepieces in current reminiscence, from the “Swiss Alp Watch,” a mechanical center finger to the smartwatch craze, to timepieces fabricated from the aforementioned Swiss cheese (the Swiss Mad watch, which was a strong commentary on the legally protected Swiss Made customary and remarkably prescient about broader international manufacturing issues). But, beneath the wit lies a deep reverence for aesthetic purity.

Moser’s signature is the fumé (smoked) dial—a shocking gradient of color that darkens in direction of the sides, typically left fully sterile, freed from logos or pointless textual content. The model’s design philosophy is one among elegant reductionism, maybe finest exemplified by its perpetual calendar, which cleverly makes use of a small central arrow and the 12 hour indices to point the month, decluttering the dial in an act of horological genius.

Engineering Independence

This artistic freedom is powered by profound technical independence. On the coronary heart of the Neuhausen am Rheinfall manufacture is its sister firm, Precision Engineering AG (PEAG).

This specialist agency is devoted to producing probably the most important elements of a watch motion: the stability wheel and, most significantly, the hairspring. PEAG may additionally manufacture different escapement elements, such because the pallet fork and the escape wheel, however we didn’t see this ourselves.

The hairspring, a minuscule, spiralled wire, is the regulating organ of a watch—its beating coronary heart, as we’ve typically waxed lyrical about. Its high quality dictates the timepiece’s accuracy, but its manufacturing is so specialised that solely a handful of firms on the earth have mastered it. PEAG is one among them.

The method is a marvel of persistence and precision, starting with a 0.6 mm wire of a proprietary alloy named PE5000 (which is as totally different to Nivarox as Nivachron is to silicon) that’s painstakingly drawn over two weeks to a thickness of simply 0.01 mm (we’re rounding up so you’ll have to think about that it’s even thinner, when you can).

This wire is then flattened to be finer than a human hair (0.07 mm, in case you are counting) earlier than being meticulously hand-coiled – with the assistance of particular device, as proven within the pictures – into an ideal spiral. PEAG not solely provides Moser but additionally a choose group of different high- finish unbiased manufacturers, producing as much as 800 of those very important elements every day.

Streamlined Manufacturing

On this be aware, even a devoted maker of watches like H. Moser & Cie can’t declare to make every little thing. The size merely doesn’t match up, which is clear when you think about what number of hairsprings PEAG could make.

Moser says it makes 80 per cent of its calibres,with the rest produced by Agenhor and Vaucher. These producers, likewise are intertwined with one another, with Moser proudly owning a minority stake in Agenhor. For its circumstances, Moser depends on the amenities of a Vaucher sister agency, Les Artisans Boitiers, which you’ll learn extra about in our revisit of the Parmigiani Fleurier manufacturing websites.

Returning to PEAG, amongst its improvements is the Straumann Double Hairspring®, the place two equivalent hairsprings (a problem to seek out!) are paired and set to oscillate in reverse instructions. This ingenious system averages out errors in timekeeping charges, reaching a stage of precision akin to a tourbillon however with out its complexity or fragility. Moser additionally has a modular escapement, the place the whole regulating organ will be eliminated as a single unit for servicing. This can be a sensible innovation, additionally seen at different extra up to date watchmakers, that streamlines upkeep with out compromising efficiency.

We’ve got spent fairly a little bit of time on hairsprings and the like however it needs to be remembered that it’s not solely PEAG doing the work of creating elements. The remainder of the bridges, plates, pinions and gears are made in-house at Moser, which additionally shares its capabilities and capacities with Hautlence, one other sister firm. Like many different manufactures, there are CNC machines, computer systems and extra conventional lathes and the like. Mainly, every little thing you count on from T1 and T2 stage manufacturing is accounted for.

Arguably, all this isn’t sufficient to make a manufacture, and H. Moser & Cie will get the concept that individuals are on the centre of watchmaking. Because it occurs, for its anniversary this yr, Moser has launched a sequence of movies starring its personal watchmakers, machine operators and museum curator.

Reimagining Problems

Moser applies its personal model of pragmatism and creativity to excessive horology. Minute repeaters are engineered with gongs and hammers on the dial aspect, not hidden inside the motion, even when that may be extra in tune with the H. Moser & Cie ethos.

Chronographs have been designed with the winding rotor positioned on dial aspect, making certain that the intricate great thing about the calibre, with its column wheels and levers, is absolutely seen by way of the caseback. However, chronographs have additionally been made to be to be fully centralised in show type, which could be very a lot in step with the Moser method.

Every complication is reconsidered not only for operate, however for aesthetic and emotional affect, reflecting the aforementioned ethos: to grasp time, not simply measure it. This dedication to excellence has not gone unnoticed. Moser has earned prestigious accolades, together with the Tourbillon Prize on the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève. In 2026, it’ll graduate from the incubator part of the Watches & Wonders honest to the primary corridor, a transfer that alerts its arrival as a significant pressure in unbiased watchmaking.

With its present facility at capability, a brand new manufacture is already underneath building, set to be accomplished in 2028. In the event you do go to, we suggest not skipping the museum, the place the aforementioned curator will enjoyment of telling you in regards to the implausible historical past of the Mosers. You can not make these items up, however we needed to skip it right here, for area.

This story was first seen as a part of the WOW #81 Autumn 2025 Difficulty

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