If you’ve ever looked at your wrist and wished you were wearing a Cold War memento that cost as much as a hypercar, Urwerk has you covered with its EMC SR-71 watch, which incorporates material from an SR-71 Blackbird supersonic spy plane.
From 1964 to 1998, the US Air Force operated an aircraft that has become something of a legend in aviation circles. With a top speed of Mach 3.3, the SR-71 could outrun any aircraft or missile that came against it. During its career, it set several speed and altitude records that have not been broken to this day, and it is known as one of the first stealth aircraft.
To commemorate the Blackbird, Urwerk released its Electronic Mechanical Control (EMC) SR-71 watch in 2014, with a design that reflects the aesthetics of the spy plane. Today, the company has updated the watch for its 10th anniversary, releasing it in a strictly limited edition of 10 pieces. Improvements include the inclusion of titanium alloy parts from the fuselage of an SR-71.
Original work
As with many Urwerk watches, the only word that doesn’t describe it is “understated.” With a case measuring 49.57mm, its chunky appearance makes it look less like a watch and more like a 1960s aircraft instrument worn on the wrist. If that doesn’t pique your interest, there’s a large crank on one side that suggests either daring watchmaking or incredible absent-mindedness.
It is, however, a crank with a purpose. The EMC SR-71 is a hand-wound mechanical watch that places a high value on accuracy. The display includes a standard hour/minute dial, a seconds dial, and a power reserve indicator. But there is also a very unorthodox display that shows how accurately the watch is running at all times.
This is where the crank comes in. It turns a micro-generator that drives a high-precision electronic oscillator running at 16,000,000 Hz and an optical sensor that monitors the mechanical movement and compares it with the oscillator. The result is displayed on the accuracy indicator to show how far the watch deviates from chronometer precision, allowing the wearer to adjust it using the time adjustment screw.
Original work
Oh, and the crank is made from titanium, which was taken from the fuselage of an SR-71 aircraft acquired by watch collector Jason Sarkoyan and aeronautical engineer Dr. Roman Sperl. Technically, it’s an alloy of titanium, aluminum, vanadium, silicon, iron and molybdenum that has been reworked to make it suitable for incorporation into a watch.
The EMC SR-71 runs on UR-EMC’s in-house Urwerk movement with Swiss lever escapement and flat balance spring. It runs at a frequency of 28,800 A/h (4 Hz) and the vertically mounted, series-connected double barrels provide enough energy for 80 hours.
All of this is housed in the EMC SR-71’s case, which is made of steel with a matte shot-blasted finish. The crystal is scratch-resistant sapphire and it’s water resistant to 30 m (100 ft, 3am). In a strange understatement, there’s a NATO strap with Velcro fastening to keep the watch and wrist together.
There are only 10 EMC SR-71 watches and if you want one, you will have to pay a whopping 150,000 CHF (177,000 USD).
Source: Urwerk
