Ulysse Nardin's Freak S returns in a 50-piece limited edition with a 45mm titanium case and a guilloché-flinqué hour disc coated in semi-transparent purple enamel, made in-house at Donzé Cadrans. The watch keeps the Freak concept of no traditional hands, no dial in the conventional sense and no crown, with the rotating movement indicating the time. Both sources frame it as a new colorway of the Freak S, following earlier turquoise and red enamel versions.
- Limited to 50 pieces
- Titanium case, bezel and caseback
- 45mm diameter by 16.65mm thickness
- Purple enamel hour disc by Donzé Cadrans
- Calibre UN-251 with 72-hour power reserve
- Automatic Grinder winding system
- Twin balance beating at 18,000 vibrations per hour
- Vertical differential described as the smallest of its kind
The Freak S carries two silicon oscillators inclined at 20 degrees on distinct planes, held by gold bridges within the carousel movement, with the vertical differential averaging their rates.
The author links the Freak's mix of forward-looking mechanics with classical enameling, noting that enameling has been part of watchmaking as long as the craft itself.
The movement spans six gear planes compared with the two typical of conventional movements, and the purple lacquer is semi-transparent so the engine-turning structure of the underlying guilloché-flinqué shows through.
The source calls the double balance automatic a first, and frames the Freak's no-hands, no-dial, no-crown design as a deliberate challenge to watchmaking norms.