GET YOUR FREAK ON
Freak Out, the latest iteration of the Freak, comes with a new advertising campaign from Ulysse Nardin
WHEN THE ORIGINAL Freak was launched back in 2001, it raised more than a few eyebrows for being dierent, to put it mildly. Here was an avant-garde timepiece sans dial, hands, and crown, running on a strange, rotating movement that was fitted with silicon components. Even its name was peculiar — devoid of romantic or aspirational elements, “Freak” was playfully meta, and very self-aware of its status vis-à-vis traditional watches.
On hindsight, the fi rst Freak laid the foundation for an entirely new collection within Ulysse Nardin’s line- up. The timepiece also heralded the current age of watchmaking as we know it today, with novel movement architectures backed by new materials and production technologies.
The Freak itself hasn’t remained static. Rather, Ulysse Nardin has used it as a platform for experimentation, and as a channel to flex its watchmaking muscles. The Freak DIAMONSIL from 2007, for instance, saw the brand using DIAMONSIL ( Diamond- on-silicon) for the fi rst time. This composite material isn’t just lightweight and hard, but also requires no lubrication when used in moving parts. The Freaklab released in 2015, on the other hand, introduced Ulysse Nardin’s proprietary silicon- based shock absorption system, Ulychoc.
The latest of the Freak family is Freak Out, which closely follows the Freak Vision that was launched just months ago at SIHH in January. Stylistically, Freak Out has an updated exterior, with a restyled case and bezel drawn from the
Innovision 2 concept watch that Ulysse Nardin unveiled in 2017. Rest assured, however, this new watch is a Freak through and through. For a start, it retains the familiar operations that have been defi ned from the very fi rst Freak. To set the time, one unlocks the tab at 6 o’clock by lifting it, then turns the bezel to move the indicators. Winding the watch, meanwhile, is done by turning the rotating case back instead.
Mechanically, Freak Out is powered by the calibre UN-205, a familiar movement that debuted in 2013’s Freak Cruiser. This baguette-shaped calibre is mounted on a carriage that’s driven to rotate once per hour within the case, e ectively making the entire movement and carriage the watch’s minute hand. Apart from providing visual interest, spinning the movement like this also turns the balance ( pun not intended) into an orbital carrousel with a rotation period of one hour. As the movement advances around the dial, it also drives a separate indicator that rotates once every 12 hours to serve as the hour hand.
A central element of every Freak timepiece is its use of silicon, and Freak Out is no exception. Its calibre UN-205 here prominently features two escape wheels rendered in silicon — one in teal, and the other in purple. These colours are achieved with coatings applied using vapour deposition, and highlight the movement’s Dual Ulysse escapement, which promises less friction compared to the traditional Swiss lever escapement. Friction is, of course, further reduced thanks to the silicon escape wheels themselves; silicon isn’t just lightweight, but also has nearly no friction, which removes the need for lubrication.
Freak Out is only available in titanium, but comes in four di erent colourways. The Freak Out Black Gold is arguably the most traditional- looking, with a plain titanium case and black inner case surfaces punctuated by a gold- coloured gear train fixed under a bridge of the same hue. The Freak Out Blue Gold is a variation on this theme, but with blue inner case surfaces and bridges instead. The Freak Out Of The Blue, meanwhile, reduces the watch’s palette to an almost monochromic blueon- grey, with only the teal and purple escape wheels providing accents of colour. Finally, the Freak Out Full Black is, as its name suggests, nearly completely blacked out to exude a decidedly masculine and sporty vibe.