MB&F, Laurent Picciotto Come Up with Yet Another Winner: The 15-piece LMX Paris Edition

MB&F has unveiled a stunning new edition of its LMX timepiece. The new LMX Paris Edition sports a deep purple dial plate, housed in a complementary white gold case. For creating this watch, the luxury watch brand collaborated with Laurent Picciotto, founder of the iconic Chronopassion boutique in Paris. 

MB&F’s association with Picciotto started when Swiss entrepreneur Maximilian Büsser founded the brand in 2005. Büsser needed the support of a few retailers and Picciotto stepped up to become one of the six retail partners who took this leap of faith with the MB&F founder.

Last year, they teamed up to open the MB&F LAB on Rue Saint-Honoré in Paris. To celebrate this exceptional friendship, the MB&F LMX Paris Edition, limited to 15 pieces, will be available exclusively at the Parisian location. 

Celebrating 10 Years of Legacy Machines (LM)

MB&F launched the Legacy Machine N°1 in 2011, the first piece of a new collection, alongside the existing Horological Machines. The LMX version harks back to the earliest iterations of the Legacy Machine collection, retaining the central flying balance wheel and two dials but with new updates. In the world of MB&F, ‘X’ signifies 10th anniversary. It also symbolises the inexplicable and the uncharted, based on how it is used in Algebra and even cartography.

Dialling Up

The latest LMX edition operates just like the original Legacy Machine models from MB&F. The watch features two dials in stretched white lacquer, each one displaying hours and minutes. The dial on the right can be set by the crown at 2 o’clock, which has the MB&F battle-axe engraving and can also wind the movement. The crown at 10 o’clock sets the time on the left dial and is engraved with a globe motif to signify the potential use of a second time zone. However, unlike the dials of the first Legacy Machines, both these dials are tilted at an angle. This is a more complex feature added to the most recent Legacy Machines, requiring the transfer of energy from horizontal to vertical planes with the help of conical gears. 

In terms of looks, the new MB&F LMX Paris Edition boasts a purple sunray dial plate housed in an 18 ct white gold case, paired with a hand-stitched alligator strap with purple lining and a white gold folding buckle.

The Mechanics

Following in the footsteps of the recent LM models, such as the LM Perpetual and the LM FlyingT, the new LMX model reveals its functional elements, such as the battle-axe-shaped escapement bridge and the gear-train components. The three large wheels can be seen next to each winding crown. Two are set in motion when setting the time on the corresponding time display while the gear at 6 o’clock is the common seconds wheel.

There’s also a new bespoke balance wheel – a 13.4 mm behemoth with inertia blocks that marks a departure from the more traditional screwed balances. It also offers greater accuracy to the watchmaker in regulating the heart of the LMX. 

The new LMX watch also includes other refinements, such as the polished arms of the straight bridges exposed on the dial plate, which are hand-finished to lend a curved or bercé profile on their upper surfaces.

Power Reserve Display

The new LMX has an updated power reserve indicator with a completely novel three-dimensional display that showcases the engine’s remarkable seven-day (168 hours) power reserve. The evolved display offers the option of selecting between two modes of counting down the power reserve. There are two markers positioned on opposite sides of a hemisphere; one framed by an arched scale, numbered 1 to 7, while the other features a scale showing the days of the week.

This upgraded and intricate interplay of components has been made even more complex by the rotation of the entire power-reserve display itself. This will allow the wearer to pick his or her preferred mode of power-reserve indication. This can be done by winding the battle-axe crown even after the power reserve is fully replenished and adjusting the orientation of the indication in order to enhance the visibility of the day-of-the-week or numeric scale when the watch is on the wrist.

All about Symmetry

Just like the letter X, the engine of the LMX watch also looks symmetrical – not only from the dial side, but also as observed through the sapphire caseback, revealing the three barrels placed evenly around the centre, highlighted by the sunray pattern of the Côtes de Genève finishing. For those who can decipher the language of watch movements, this timepiece is a veritable treat.

The MB&F LMX Paris Edition can be described as the crossroads on which the first two decades of the Legacy Machine collection converge.

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