ORIS Calibre 400 — Anti-Magnetic, 5 Days Power Reserve And A 10-Year Warranty
Big news from a small Swiss village! Oris proudly introduces its in-house caliber 400.
It is not the first time Oris has come up with an in-house developed movement. The brand’s back-catalog an already boast the Calibre 111, 112, and 113 movements hailing from the Atelier collection. But this time, Oris shows us a totally different caliber. Not one with a specific complication as we’ve seen in the Atelier collection, but a no-nonsense three-hander (with a date). Oris made its Calibre 400 movement available to us, to have a closer look at and take some images of it.
Oris Calibre 400
According to Oris, this Calibre 400 was conceived five years ago. The watch manufacturer in Hölstein, not too far away from Basel, realized that today’s consumer is exposed to different things than, let’s say, 30 years ago. Computers, iPhone cases, other electronic equipment, we are surrounded by them in our daily lives. All these devices have a magnetic field, which influences the performance of a mechanical watch negatively. Ergo: Oris thought it needed a movement that can withstand strong magnetic fields. The traditional solution is to house the movement in a soft iron case within the watch case itself (known as a faraday cage). But a more thorough solution would be to create the movement itself from non-magnetic alloys.
Anti-Magnetic
Oris selected silicon for the anchor and escape wheel of the Calibre 400, and non-ferrous metals for the axes of the balance wheel, escape wheel, and anchor. Additionally, there are 30 other movement parts made of non-ferrous or non-magnetic alloys to ensure anti-magnetism. With these developments in place, the Oris Calibre 400 can withstand magnet fields of up to 2,250 gauss. In other words, when your watch gets exposed to magnetic fields during your daily activities, there will be no impact on its accuracy. Talking about accuracy, Oris guarantees the performance of +5/-3 seconds per day on average, which sits nicely within the commonly-referenced COSC standards of +6/-4 seconds per day.
5-Day power reserve
But there’s more, of course. The Oris Calibre 400 movement has a power reserve of 5 days (120 hours), with an operating frequency of 28,800 vibrations per hour. The energy is stored in two barrels, each good for 2.5 days of power. What Oris did, is concentrate on reducing the torque in the mainspring. This helps to keep as much energy in the barrels and put less pressure on moving parts. A new wheel design for the gear train also helped to achieve better efficiency. Five days of power reserve is a lot, compared to the 48-55 hours we normally see, even if we see some watches cranking it up to 70-80 hours by lowering the train count of the watch.
A 10-Year warranty
What I find interesting, is that Oris is able to give watches with its Calibre 400 movement a warranty of no less than 10 years. Sure, you have to register your watch in the brand’s “MyOris” system first, but it will give you 10 years of no hassle. The confidence Oris has in this movement is very high. This 10-year service interval is the brand’s new standard of expectation. It’s impressive stuff, especially when you consider that this warranty also covers the performance (accuracy) of the movement. Aside from an accident that might happen to the watch, or the occasional water-resistance check of the watch, there’s no need to visit the Oris boutique other than to buy another watch in those first 10 years.
A poor aftersales process can be a logistical, financial, and reputational drain on brands.
Which Oris watch?
The question now is, in which watch will Oris first install this movement? From what we understand, it is not a movement that will simply replace all other three-hand calibers. It is something extra — something special. And what will the price be of an Oris with the Calibre 400 movement? As soon as we know, we will share it with you here on Fratello. But please, join us in a bit of healthy speculation in the comments section below. For more information, please visit Oris online.
