The MB&F HM10 Bulldog Watch is Man’s Best Friend in Horological Form

Maximilian Büsser and friends have once again joined forces to create a new Horological Machine – the canine inspired MB&F HM10 ‘Bulldog’ watch.

The new MB&F HM10 Bulldog is the latest to join the ranks of the brand’s eclectic lineup and those with a soft spot for a British bulldog in all its slobbering wide-jawed youthfulness will no doubt be enamoured with this same friendly beast with its “big eyes”, metal jaws and giant clockwork heart.

Released as two different editions, the Bulldog is offered as the CHF 106,000 grade 5 titanium version with blue “eyes” and blue calf-leather strap or the 18k red-gold version with black “eyes” and brown calf-leather strap priced at CHF 121,000.

If you are familiar with any of MB&F’s previous critter inspired creations like the Horological Machine N°3 ‘Frog’ or the Horological Machine N°7 ‘Aquapod’, it will come as no surprise to see this latest design come bounding from the workshop floor of the self-confessed dog loving founder.

The entirety of the watch concept came to MB&F founder Maximilian Büsser in 2015 while on a bus trip to the Narita airport in Tokyo, Japan.

“I was dozing away and suddenly I see this piece” says Büsser, “what you see now in front of you is more or less exactly what I saw at the time and it was the first time I actually saw a watch in my mind, just like that!”.

That design is the MB&F HM10 Bulldog, a manual-winding watch made up of 301 individual components created by the talented individuals that make up the friends part of MB&F (Maximilian Büsser & Friends). The Bulldog’s “body” is a compact rounded case made of either titanium or red gold that extends into the short sprung strap “legs” connecting it to the calf-leather strap that wraps firmly around the wrist. On either side of the body, two studded-collar like crowns allow the owner to wind the mainspring or set the time, while inside the head, two revolving time-telling eyes peer out as if waiting at the front gate for the postman.

Also enclosed is the “heart” of the Bulldog, an eye-catching balance, suspended beneath the central sapphire crystal dome and beating at the traditional cadence of 2.5Hz (18,000vph). The mechanism first appeared in MB&F’s designs in 2011 as the Legacy Machine N°1 and has since become somewhat synonymous with MB&F, appearing in the majority of Legacy Machines, Horological Machine N°9, and now HM10 Bulldog.

Playing up to its brutish nature, you’ll find it hard to miss the external hinged jaws that look ready to snap shut in an instant but in reality serve a much more playful purpose. If you look closely you’ll notice that the jaws open and shut according to the amount of wind left in the watch’s mainspring – when the Bulldog’s jaws are wide open and you can see both rows of teeth, it’s fully charged and ready to play for 45 hours but when the mouth is closed it means the Bulldog has expended all energy and is in need of a nap (and re-winding).

Like other MB&F creations, the Horological Machine N°10 ‘Bulldog’ is purposely created so that the time indication and power reserve display are visible only by the wearer.

There is one last “only for the owner” detail that will remain hidden to most eyes unless specifically pointed out – a small inscription found engraved on the caseback that reads: ““Forget the dog, beware of the owner”.

MB&F HM10 Bulldog Price & Details

• MB&F HM10 Bulldog 18K Red Gold Price:  CHF 121,000
• MB&F HM10 Bulldog Titanium Price: CHF 106,000

Engine

• Manual-winding in-house movement
• Bespoke flying 14mm balance wheel with four traditional regulating screws floating above the domed dials
• Super-LumiNova on the hour and minute domes and markers
• Balance Frequency: 2.5Hz (18,000bph)
• Power Reserve: 45 hours
• Number of components: 301 components
• Number of jewels: 34
• Two crowns: Left crown at 11 o’clock for winding; right crown at 1 o’clock for setting the time

Functions & Indications

• Hours on left dome (aluminium dome rotating in 12 hours)
• Minutes on right dome (aluminium dome rotating in 60 minutes)
• Power reserve indicated in 3D by the opening and closing of the jaws (closed jaws means it needs re-winding).

Case

• Version Ti: grade 5 titanium
• Version RT: 18k 5N+ red gold and grade 5 titanium
• Dimensions: 54mm x 45mm x 24mm
• Water resistant to 5ATM / 50m / 160ft

Strap and buckle

• RT version: hand-stitched brown calf-leather strap with custom-designed red gold folding buckle.
• Ti version: hand-stitched blue calf-leather strap with Velcro system and titanium buckle.