Introducing: The H. Moser & Cie. × Massena Lab Endeavour Chronograph
H. Moser & Cie. is not the type of brand that revels in its heritage. The brand’s catalog consists of forward-focused offerings that are hardly ever sentimental in this sense. This is quite admirable as there is plenty of history to lean on, but the Schaffhausen-based company prefers to lean on its present-day prowess. Enter Massena Lab. William Massena’s collaboration laboratory challenged Moser to pay homage to its chronographs from the 1940s. The result is a bridge between the old and the new — the Endeavour Chronograph.
This is a 100-piece limited edition. To become one of its lucky owners, you will have to part ways with €28,800. Let’s have a closer look!
H. Moser & Cie.
Moser has a fascinating history. The company was founded by Schaffhausen-born Heinrich Moser in 1828. He found a profitable market in Russia, so he set up shop in St. Petersburg. The Russian branch of the company was dispossessed after the 1918 October Revolution, but the Swiss side of the business continued under the ownership of Paul Girard. Eventually, the brand name was dropped after struggling during the Quartz Crisis. Then, in 2002, Jürgen Lange reregistered the name and rebuilt the brand with the support of the Moser family. The company officially relaunched in 2005.
As mentioned before, Moser tends to use its rich past sparingly. Out of the current catalog, only the aptly named Heritage line builds on historic designs. The Endeavour collection, contrastingly, is much more forward-focused. The line is about minimalism and clean lines. Not the place where you would expect a heritage-minded release, then. Still, this is exactly what this collaboration with Massena Lab pursues.
The H. Moser × Massena Lab Endeavour Chronograph
So, what do we have here? The Endeavour Chronograph takes the style and function of a 1940s chronograph and blends it with the clean, modern aesthetic of the H. Moser Endeavour collection. That should not work, but it does.
The watch masterfully combines elements of both eras. The dial is seemingly purely vintage, but it shows clever updates. The typical modern Moser fumé effect and the greenish-beige printing lift the otherwise vintage design out of pure throwback territory. You don’t get the impression that it is supposed to look old. I especially love the color of the printing. It isn’t faux patina, which is partly due to the exact hue and partly due to the monochromatic printing.
The hands and case clearly reference Moser’s modern evolved-classical design. I cannot help but admire the clever ways in which past and present are blended here. The new Endeavour Chronograph pays homage to the brand’s past without falling out of line with its present. Neat!
Endeavour Chronograph specifications
The Endeavour Chronograph features a steel case measuring 41mm across and 13.3mm thick. That isn’t exactly super slim, which is the result of a Dubois Dépraz chronograph module mounted on top of Moser’s in-house automatic caliber HMC 220. The movement runs at a pace of 21,600 beats per hour and will continue ticking for three days without winding.
The dial is “Funky Blue” with Moser’s signature fumé effect. You may know I am not too fond of fumé dials. However, Moser turned them into a brand archetype and, admittedly, does some of the nicest fades. To my liking, the effect is not quite so noticeable here as the eye is drawn to the busy printing. I will even go so far as to say that I like it.
On the dial, we find two registers, with running seconds at 3 and a 45-minute chronograph counter at 9 o’clock. The dial’s tachymeter scale accounts for two rotations of the central chronograph hand, doubling its range of possible readouts. Lastly, this chronograph comes on a kudu leather strap with white stitching.
Initial impressions of the Endeavour Chronograph
I usually remain rather factual until I reach the “initial impressions” section. This time, I already weaved quite a few opinions into the factual descriptions. Undoubtedly, you have gathered by now that I love what Moser and Massena Lab have done here.
My admiration is specifically focused on the design side of the Endeavour Chronograph. As a fan of evolved-vintage design, I am well aware of the challenges this style presents. It is so hard not to end up with something too modern, too vintage, or, worse, fragmented. I think Moser and Massena nailed it here.
I am less convinced by the modular movement. The Moser part looks wonderful through the sapphire display case back. However, the modular construction makes it quite thick. I have to reserve judgment until I see it in real life, but it looks quite chunky in the pictures.
What do you think of the H. Moser & Cie × Massena Lab Endeavour Chronograph? Let us know in the comments below!
