Hands-On With The New Anthracite Armin Strom One Week Manufacture Edition
We kick off this Tuesday morning with the world premiere of the new Armin Strom One Week Manufacture Edition. It is the follow-up to last year’s inaugural redesigned One Week First Edition, which was nothing short of impressive. Both watches celebrate Armin Strom’s debut in-house caliber from 2010 in a sleek, modern way. The ever-impressive movement is paired with a stylish, sporty case and an integrated bracelet. This exterior pairs beautifully with the industrial aesthetic of the movement to create an impressive new One Week Manufacture Edition. Can it top last year’s First Edition? I had a chance to find out.
When Armin Strom presented the One Week First Edition, my colleague Dave was an immediate admirer. The watch even made it to his year-end list for 2023. So when I had a chance to go hands-on with the new One Week Manufacture Edition after talking to Dave, I jumped on the opportunity to do so. The successor to last year’s edition switches from a light blue hue for the mainplate and bridges to anthracite. As a result, this new version looks even more technical and serious than the previous one.
The story of the Armin Strom One Week Manufacture Edition
This watch is all about the ARM21 caliber. It was the brand’s first in-house movement and debuted in 2010. The ARM21 was optimized with a more open and architectural look for the new version introduced last year. That watch also introduced a sporty new stainless steel case with an integrated bracelet. In terms of style, it fits in the popular realm of modern luxury sports watches, which was born with the creation of the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak.
In that category, it finds its peers in watches like the Czapek Antarctique, the H. Moser & Cie. Streamliner, and the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Open-Worked models, to name just a few. There are many more examples, but the Czapek and H. Moser & Cie models are direct competitors for this Armin Strom. What immediately stands out about the One Week is the spectacular movement. It’s an absolute feast for the eyes that takes center stage when you put the watch on your wrist.
The specs of the One Week Manufacture Edition
But let’s first zoom in on the canvas that brings the horological artistry to life. The One Week Manufacture Edition has a 41mm stainless steel case that measures 10.6mm thick and 44.35mm long with a 100m depth rating. The integrated bracelet is 22.5mm wide at the case and tapers to 20mm at the butterfly clasp. It’s not a dramatic, elegant taper, but it suits the watch nicely. What immediately stands out is that the watch feels substantial in size. I would even state that it feels larger than its dimensions might suggest.
I do not mean that in a bad way because the combination of the case, movement, and bracelet feels visually balanced. The One Week Manufacture Edition wears like a charm on my wrist, so I do not feel that it has too much presence. The reason it feels substantial has everything to do with the expansive open dial side of the watch. The tonneau-shaped case has a fairly slim bezel that flows closely along the edges of the case. As a result, the movement gets the maximum exposure, so the watch feels bigger than it truly is.
The visually stunning Armin Strom ARM21 caliber
As I said, it’s far from a complaint because the in-house-created ARM21 movement is spectacular in every way. It’s one of those calibers that combines functional wizardry with architectural beauty. Generally, I’m not a huge fan of open-worked watches as they tend to create a visual sensory overload. I usually prefer an aesthetical balance and stillness rooted in functionality. You could say that open-worked watches are not my thing by default, but that would put it too harshly because the ARM21 caliber shows the concept can work wonderfully well if done right.
That’s because the caliber’s architecture doesn’t feel like a visual labyrinth of elements. Instead, it feels logical and makes it easier to digest. The ARM21 caliber is a manual-winding movement that features two mainspring barrels. They make sure to provide consistent levels of energy to the gear train. Two finger-style bridges come in from the right side to hold the barrels. The bridges emerge from under the markers at 2 and 4 o’clock, which sit on top of a black chapter ring holding all the indexes and the white minute track. Other than this, the sub-seconds register is the only element there to remind you of a traditional dial.
The magic is in the motion of the movement
The magic of the movement is visible as soon as you start winding the watch. The two ratchet wheels winding both barrels start turning in opposite directions, creating an instant and beautiful interaction with the movement. Another great feature is the power reserve indicator. It is inspired by the ones used for traditional pocket watches. It sits just below the 11 o’clock position with a mirror-polished cone driven by a conical gear. As the movement provides a seven-day power reserve, the cone rotates slowly, and you can see the up/down indicators making the rounds just below the 11 o’clock marker.
The biggest change in the movement compared to the original is the beat rate, which has gone up from 2.5Hz (18,000vph) to 3.5Hz (25,200vph). This has made the movement’s chronometric performance more stable. However, by increasing the operation frequency, the watchmakers at Armin Strom also had to recalculate and reconfigure the entire gear train. The result is a movement that has improved in its horological performance and looks rather stunning to boot.
Centrally mounted hands as an exception to the norm
If you are familiar with Armin Strom’s collection, you are aware that the two One Week models are different in how they display the time. Usually, the brand’s creations feature offset hour and minute hands. A good example is the Gravity Equal Force P.03 Night Ops for Collective that Thomas wrote about last week. However, for the One Week models, the brand opted for centrally mounted hour and minute hands and small seconds at 9 o’clock. The hour and minute hands are mounted on a geometrically shaped bridge that adds to the 3D experience of the movement.
The large hour and minute hands are filled with white Super-LumiNova. This not only helps the wearer read the time in the dark but also contrasts nicely with the gray and silver backdrop in the light. The mainplate and bridges are anthracite PVD coated to create a nice monochromatic look that is technical and stylish at the same time. The contrasting minute hand also hovers nicely over the baton-style indexes on the chapter ring, which are filled with Super-LumiNova too. All in all, the visual spectacle on the dial side of the watch is impressive and what makes this watch so special.
The finishing of the One Week Manufacture Edition
If you turn the watch around, you will be greeted by the almost serene sight of the beautifully finished base plate. The only exception is the balance wheel, which you can see in action. This reversed architecture may make the back side less spectacular, but it emphasizes the manual finishing. From the Geneva-striped plates, polished screws, and sinks to the straight- and circular-grained surfaces and chamfered and polished bevels, a lot of craftsmanship went into creating the movement.
The same goes for the case and the bracelet. While both the design of the case and the H-link bracelet are familiar, the finishing is nicely done. The mix of brushed and polished surfaces amplifies the luxurious feeling of the One Week Manufacture Edition and makes wearing the watch an even greater joy.
Wearing the Armin Strom One Week Manufacture Edition
After getting used to the initial visual impact, I enjoyed wearing the Armin Strom One Week Manufacture Edition. The case shape and the bracelet make the watch comfortable. That said, it is not a watch for people with smaller wrists. The 41mm size combined with the impressive technical presence of the movement makes the watch jump off your wrist. It’s one of those watches that keeps pulling you in. It’s a great reminder of the general attraction of high horology and the ARM21 caliber in particular.
That becomes more apparent if you unscrew the crown to wind the movement or set the time. Operating the crown is super satisfying because it allows you to feel the great quality and craftsmanship of the movement. The best example is setting the time. If you pull the crown out to the second position and turn it, the hands start rotating with exactly the right amount of resistance. Setting the time is a joy as there is no “wiggle room” when stopping the minute hand to the right position. It cemented my conclusion that this is a special watch with a stunning movement resulting from Armin Strom’s expertise.
Final thoughts on the Armin Strom One Week Manufacture Edition
As you can tell by now, I was impressed by the new Armin Strom One Week Manufacture Edition. While I went into this experience with reservations due to not loving many open-worked watches, wearing the One Week Manufacture Edition was truly something else. The visual brilliance of the ARM21 caliber in combination with the aesthetic of a modern luxury sports watch works well. I love how the relatively simple case shape and familiar aesthetic of the H-link bracelet create a perfect canvas for the brilliant movement.
As a result of that combination, I interacted with the watch constantly, either visually because of the beauty of the movement or simply by winding it. While you will only have to wind the watch once a week thanks to the impressive power reserve, I found myself wanting to do that much more often. All in all, I was greatly impressed, and I seriously enjoyed wearing the watch. Armin Strom will produce 100 pieces of this One Week Manufacture Edition that will cost €37,100. Last year’s 25 pieces of the One Week First Edition sold out quickly. With this new model, all the people who couldn’t get their hands on last year’s get another great opportunity to enjoy the One Week. I am sure plenty of collectors will jump at the chance to do so.
The Armin Strom One Week Manufacture Edition will be available starting tomorrow, the 26th of June. For more information, visit the brand’s official website. Let us know in the comments section what you think about this new One Week version.
