Forenregeln » MB&F Legacy Machine Perpetual Calendar Max Büsser

Salmon Dial MB&F Legacy Machine Perpetual Calendar Max Büsser knows how to satisfy his fans.

It's day two of Watches & Wonders - the information overload from dozens of brands, countless new releases and endless safety lines have my head spinning. So I checked into MAD House.

I mean it literally. After my first date of the day, I absconded for about an hour and a half to my new home at Max Büsser & Friends' studio in Geneva. After a short drive, I arrive at a more than three-century-old house on the southern edge of the city that the company has called home since late last year.

The building has many original finishes and millwork; the entrance features a classic wooden staircase with carved Newell columns. Halfway up the stairs hangs a clock by the famous maker Jean Kazes. But what I'd really like to see is what's on display at the bottom of the stairs: a new stainless steel Legacy Machine perpetual calendar with a salmon-coloured dial. Man, is this everything I hoped for?

Let's get this out of the way for all the nerds out there: MB&F calls a dial (platinum, for those who appreciate their watch lingo in the most beautiful language) a "dial", at least when they refer to the beautiful salmon-colored spiral sunburst The finish, above which is about half of the movement and all its important displays (and the actual lacquered dials and sub-dials). So what if the Legacy Machine had more than one thing that could be called a watch face? This is a salmon watch in every way.

The combination of salmon and steel has always been special in the watch collecting world. But part of the appeal of these watches — especially in the vintage realm — has always been that this combination is so rare. Rare means that someone must be excluded from the club. I've finally spoken to Büsser a few times over the past few days, and if I've learned anything in such a short amount of time, it's that he doesn't want anyone to feel left out.

Well, a $180,000 watch is far from financially inclusive - but price aside, almost everything Büsser does is about making sure friends, family, fans and members of his "tribe" owner are treated fairly . Perhaps the best example of this is the affordable MAD 1, which brings an approachable price to fans of Max and his stories (yes, I still hope to win a raffle one day).

Making his first steel Legacy Machine with a salmon dial – and then choosing not to make it a limited edition – was the ultimate tribute to true watch fans and supporters. It's really good.

This is the same fully integrated 581-component movement designed by independent Irish watchmaker Stephen McDonnell. I believe the technical term for its appearance is "glamorous". The movement parts stand out atop salmon platinum, a higher finish than I think most people talk about. Check out the angle on the bridge below.

As for concerns about the size and thickness of the watch — on paper, it’s pretty heavy at 44mm wide and 17.5mm thick — in person, it doesn’t look particularly bulky. The only thing that might make the watch look a bit out of place is the stiff strap, although this one is pulled directly from the display and has barely been worn in. I'm surprised how thin the watch is to wear, with its low lug setting and flat case back.

Beneath the display case bottom covers are even better designs by Stephen McDonnell, showing that MB&F is still giving us the best of both worlds, classic and futuristic.

But the function of the movement is simpler than the design looks. The power reserve indicator is located on the dial around 4:00, and the hours, minutes, day, month and date are all clear at a glance. But if you want to change the calendar function, you can use the correction buttons on each corner of the watch, 10:00 to move the date, 2:00 to move the day of the week, 4:00 to move the month, 7:00 to move the date year (leap year). Much easier than using pushpins.

Overall, I think this piece represents a true love of watchmaking and community. During Watches & Wonders, you start to question whether certain brands are listening to what collectors really want. MB&F is undoubtedly driven by the unique intuition of its founder, but it always seems to be fan-friendly in one way or another. It keeps collectors (and would-be collectors) in a constant state of wondering what's going to happen next.