The Ming x J.N. Shapiro 37.06 Lightning is a small independent watchmaking collaboration with a very big dial idea.
It brings together Ming’s taste for colour, light and layered minimalism with Josh Shapiro’s engine-turning craft in California, resulting in a titanium dial that looks less engraved than struck by weather.
For collectors who follow contemporary independent watchmaking, this is the kind of project that explains why small ateliers remain so compelling.
At a glance
- Ming and J.N. Shapiro have created the 37.06 Lightning, a collaborative watch centred on a new hand-guilloché titanium dial.
- The dial combines Shapiro’s lightning guilloché pattern with Ming’s heat-treated colour gradient in orange, purple and blue tones.
- Orders for the first batch open on 5 June 2026 at 13:00 GMT, priced at CHF 6,250 excluding tax.
A dial cut in California and coloured in Kuala Lumpur
The centrepiece is a grade 2 titanium dial decorated by J.N. Shapiro Watches using traditional rose-engine lathes.
The pattern is new for Shapiro and radiates outward in jagged, angular paths, giving the guilloché an energy that suits the Lightning name without feeling literal.
Ming then adds the colour treatment at its Kuala Lumpur atelier, using heat from a handheld butane torch to draw out a gradient that starts with warm oranges and yellows before moving into purples and deep blues.
That process is delicate, and the brand discards roughly one in three dials when the heat exposure or titanium structure doesn’t deliver the right result.
It also means each watch should carry slight variations in tone, which is part of the appeal here rather than a flaw to be engineered away.
The collaboration is also rooted in a shared indie-watchmaking circle, with Ming Thein and Josh Shapiro both founding members of the Alternative Horological Alliance and previous collaborators on Ming Project 21.
Ming’s 37-series case keeps the dial in focus
The watch uses Ming’s stainless steel 37-series case, measuring 38mm across, 10.9mm thick and 44.5mm from lug to lug.
Those proportions sit in the sweet spot for a modern daily-wear watch, especially given the visual intensity of the dial.
The case has the familiar curved architecture, large notched crown and sweeping pagoda-style lugs, with brushed and polished finishing to catch light without competing too heavily with the dial.
Water resistance is rated to 100 metres, and domed sapphire crystals with anti-reflective coating are fitted front and back.
Ming’s luminescent signature remains present, with laser-hollowed cavities in the underside of the sapphire crystal filled with HyCeram for the indices.
The hour and minute hands use Super-LumiNova X1, giving the watch a second personality after dark.
A slim manual movement and a restrained strap choice
Inside is the manually wound Sellita SW210.M1, a slim movement with a 42-hour power reserve.
Ming has customised it with skeletonised bridges and an anthracite-coated baseplate, details that suit the watch’s independent character while keeping the mechanics pragmatic.
The movement displays hours and minutes only, which feels right for a dial this expressive.
The watch is delivered on a blue Barenia calfskin strap made by Jean Rousseau, finished with an Alcantara lining, curved quick-release spring bars and a flying-blade tuck buckle with micro-adjustment.
Production hasn’t been assigned a fixed number, but it will be constrained by the dial work.
After the initial batch, Ming and Shapiro plan to make around 10 pieces per month, with availability through ming.watch and authorised retail partners.
Details & Specifications
| Brand | Ming x J.N. Shapiro |
|---|---|
| Model | 37.06 Lightning |
| Case size | 38mm diameter, 10.9mm thickness, 44.5mm lug-to-lug |
| Case material | Stainless steel, brushed and polished |
| Crystal | Domed sapphire front and back with anti-reflective coating |
| Water resistance | 100 metres |
| Dial | Grade 2 titanium with hand-guilloché lightning pattern and heat-coloured gradient |
| Lume | HyCeram-filled indices in the sapphire crystal, Super-LumiNova X1 on hour and minute hands |
| Movement | Sellita SW210.M1, manual-winding |
| Frequency | 28,800vph, 4Hz |
| Power reserve | 42 hours |
| Functions | Hours and minutes |
| Strap | Blue Barenia calfskin with Alcantara lining by Jean Rousseau |
| Price | CHF 6,250 excluding tax |
| Availability | First batch opens 5 June 2026 at 13:00 GMT, with planned production of about 10 pieces per month |
The 37.06 Lightning won’t be the quietest Ming in the room, but that’s the point.
It’s a vivid meeting of handcraft and controlled risk, made for collectors who want an independent watch with a dial that genuinely couldn’t be mass-produced into anonymity.
