Transformer Time

Grant presented by MB&F + L’epée 1839

Grant is a triple-tracked, Mad-max-crosstransformer robot clock with a time display on his shield and a mission to slow things down when time runs too fast. There are no incessantly flashing digital numerals on Grant’s shield, no constantly spinning second hand. Grant transforms the frantic chaos of modern timekeeping into relaxing hours and minutes.

While Grant’s time moves relatively slowly, he can travel quickly over rough terrain or the messiest of desks and tables on his three operational rubber tracks. Grant can also transform into one of three different modes, lying horizontally over his chassis for a low profile, crouching at 45 degrees, and sitting up 90 degrees. Grant’s time shield can always be set to a comfortable and optimal viewing angle.

Whatever the angle, Grant’s highly polished clockwork is on full display, allowing every click and turn of the gears to be witnessed. The mainspring barrel click near his ‘belly button’ is particularly mesmerizing in operation. The isochronal oscillations of the regulator keeping time in Grant’s glass-domed ‘brain’ are evidence of the clockwork’s high precision. Watching Grant “thinking” in real time is a stress-relieving activity in itself.

Grant's 8-day, in-line manufacture movement features the same superlative fine finishing as found on the finest wristwatches such as Geneva waves, anglage or chamfering, polishing, sandblasting, plus circular and vertical satin finishing. Hand finishing a clock movement is significantly more challenging than that of a wristwatch due to the larger surface areas of the clock components.

While he doesn’t look for fights, Grant packs appropriate weaponry. His left arm holds a spinning disk, while his right arm clasps a removable grenade launcher. Grant even has a surprise up his sleeve, his grenade launcher is removable and doubles as the winding and time-setting key for his 8-day clockwork, so he doesn’t run out of either firepower or time.

L’epée 1839 developed Grant to MB&F’S design using its 8-day, in-line manufacture

movement as a structural base. Grant doesn’t just look like a complicated piece of high-precision micro-engineering, he is an incredibly solid piece of complex high-precision micro-engineering with an impressive 268 components going into the construction of his body and clockwork, more pieces than in many complicated wristwatches.

Under the transparent mineral glass dome on Grant's “head”, the clock movement’s regulator, consisting of the balance and escapement, features an Incabloc shock protection system to minimise the risk of damage when the clock is moved or transported. Shock protection is fairly common in wristwatch movements however, it is unusual in clocks, which are generally stationary. But then Grant is no stationary clock, he is a robot on a mission to transform time.

Grant is available in three limited editions of 50 pieces each in Nickel, Black, and Blue.