MB&F has never treated the wristwatch as a flat exercise in timekeeping, and the HM12 The Guardian pushes that instinct into full character design.
This is a flying-tourbillon Horological Machine conceived as the head of a robot, with a full mechanical companion built by L’Epée 1839 to complete the idea.
It’s playful at first glance, but the engineering underneath is anything but casual.
At a glance
- MB&F has introduced the HM12 The Guardian, a robot-inspired Horological Machine paired with a 38.2cm mechanical companion by L’Epée 1839.
- The titanium watch features jumping hours, trailing minutes, a flying tourbillon, a double-sided micro-rotor and a mechanical face-shield system.
- Three colour editions will be made in green, blue and purple, each limited to 12 pieces, with pricing still to be confirmed.
A Horological Machine with a robot’s face
The HM12 begins with a deceptively simple idea, turning a robot’s head into a functioning wristwatch.
Its display is arranged like a face, with the jumping hours on the left, trailing minutes on the right and a visible micro-rotor below like an animated mouth.
Above that expression sits the flying tourbillon, positioned as the robot’s mechanical brain and visible through the sapphire construction.
The case is made from Grade 5 titanium and measures 49.3mm long, 43.6mm wide and 13.8mm thick, which is expressive without becoming unwearable by MB&F standards.
A curved case profile and articulated upper lugs help the watch sit more naturally on the wrist than its architecture might suggest.
The face shield is more than theatre
The HM12’s most theatrical gesture is also one of its most mechanically involved details.
A crown on the left side of the case operates a pair of mechanical shields that slide across the dial, allowing the wearer to reveal or partially hide the robot’s face.
The mechanism can be stopped in different positions, giving the watch a changing expression rather than a single fixed look.
This face-shield assembly is independent of the timekeeping movement and uses more than 200 components on its own.
That level of complexity gives the feature weight, moving it beyond novelty into the kind of mechanical playfulness MB&F has made its signature.
The new HM12 calibre
Inside is a newly developed in-house automatic movement created specifically for this watch.
The calibre uses 646 components and 86 jewels, combining jumping hours, trailing minutes, a flying tourbillon and a double-sided micro-rotor in a compact and highly architectural package.
Power reserve is rated at 84 hours.
The dial side leans into MB&F’s futuristic Horological Machine language, while the reverse has a more symmetrical and traditional flavour.
Hand-finished bridges and softly curved forms give the movement a quieter personality from the back, with guilloché decoration on the domed rotor executed with Kari Voutilainen and his team.
The Guardian robot completes the concept
The HM12 is a wristwatch, but it has clearly been imagined as part of a larger mechanical character.
L’Epée 1839 developed The Guardian robot body with 755 components, giving the watch a standing companion rather than a conventional presentation stand.
The robot stands 38.2cm tall and weighs around 15kg with its base.
A quick-release system allows the HM12 to be removed from its Velcro strap and mounted directly onto the robot as its head.
The Guardian also includes a mechanical thermometer positioned as its heart, a magnifying loupe in one arm and a detachable UV torch in the other to activate the Super-LumiNova elements on both the watch and robot.
Even the strap has its own place, stored inside a concealed drawer built into the base.
Details & Specifications
| Brand | MB&F |
|---|---|
| Model | HM12 The Guardian |
| Case size | 49.3mm x 43.6mm x 13.8mm |
| Case material | Grade 5 titanium with sapphire crystals |
| Display | Jumping hours on the left, trailing minutes on the right |
| Movement | In-house automatic HM12 calibre |
| Complications | Flying tourbillon, jumping hours, trailing minutes, mechanical face shields |
| Movement components | 646 components, 86 jewels |
| Power reserve | 84 hours |
| Winding | Double-sided micro-rotor |
| Robot companion | L’Epée 1839 Guardian, 755 components |
| Robot dimensions | 38.2cm tall, approximately 15kg with base |
| Editions | Green, blue and purple |
| Production | 12 pieces per colour edition |
| Price | To be confirmed |
The HM12 The Guardian is the kind of object that makes sense only when a brand is willing to take imagination seriously.
It’s a watch for collectors who respond to MB&F’s most expressive side, where haute horlogerie, sculpture and childhood science fiction are allowed to share the same mechanical body.
