Hands-on with the Habring Jumping Second with Power Reserve

Habring² is the small independent watch brand of Austrian watchmaker Richard Habring and his wife Maria. Today we bring a hands-on experience with the Habring² Jumping Second with Power Reserve. 

Monochrome already brought you information about about the Habring² Jumping Second back in 2009. Especially if you like to know more about the jumping second mechanism Habring developed, after the n.o.s. Doxa calibers he used before ran out, than it’s a recommended read. Another great watch made by Habring² is the Foudrayante… this time no second hand that ticks like a quartz watch, but the second hand flies around the dial with an incredible speed. Today our contributor Y.Chan brings you a hands-on experience with the Habring² Jumping Seconds with Power Reserve.

Habring² is Very much a family business, they only produce around fifty watches per annum, to commission, with each model limited to a maximum of twelve pieces per year. Richard is known for his development of the rattrapante mechanism for IWC and also having worked with A. Lange & Söhne, and together with his wife he established Habring² in 2004.

One of the really interesting things about getting a watch from the Habrings is that it is a very engaged process with the watchmaker. Richard and Maria take the view that a watch’s aesthetics and the functions are decisions to be made in close collaboration with the customer. If you take a look at their website, and speak to any Habring owners, you will find that they are open to a wide range of customization options.

First introduced in 2005, the Habring² jumping second is one of their most popular models, and I recently had the opportunity to have a look at a friend’s newly arrived one. A white lacquer dial (quite lovely when looked at under a loupe, and not a stark pure white so much as a soft one which the owner says changes colour slightly under different lights, ranging from white to ivory to light grey), with black markers, black hour, minute and power reserve hands with a contrasting blued seconds hand round off what is a very classic dress watch. It has a nice bit of heft to it but is classy, discreet and timeless.

The movement is based on an ETA Valgranges and can be delivered as a manually or automatically wound version. It features a Triovis regulation system and the escapement parts are in chronometer quality. The watch has a modified top plate to show the wheel that is part of the in-house developed dead beat center seconds device. Blued screws (not chemically blued but by flame, and the same for their blued hands) were available as an option but not taken up, but another option, that of an engraved balanced cock, was.

Habring²’s personalisation options mean that even the same model can look very different. I’ve been fortunate enough to have seen another colour combination for the jumping second, with an coppery brown dial. The effect is quite different, though both the dials share the common attribute of looking slightly different under different lighting conditions.

The owner of this particular watch is very happy with his new acquisition. He loves its look, its finishing and particularly the development and close consultation with Richard and Maria Habring about colour choices for the dial, hands and straps that made it very much a joint watchmaking process. But that’s one of the joys of independent watchmakers, isn’t it? The chance to have personalised engagement with a watch and its makers. The owner’s final thoughts about his latest horological toy? It’s a keeper!