Oris Artelier Jumping Hour

I kind of liked where I was going with this series, so I though I might as well take the chance while I'm shopping around for a new purchase to write about the watches available in the market.

Hope this gives the readers a little more information before they put down their hard-earned cash for a timepiece.

Next up in the series is the Oris Artelier Jumping Hour - a fine piece of horology that has both art and modern class for the discerning gentleman looking for 'not just your average dress watch'.

The Good

The Oris Artelier Jumping Hour gives the regulator style dial a face lift with a large hour window at 12'O, its main design code revolving around four rings - the case, the applied hour indices, minute track and the small seconds sub dial. The design makes good use of the dial space, resulting in enough detail to keep your attention without being too busy.

I personally like that there is a lack of text on the dial, Oris obviously opting for the 'less is more' mantra for this guy. I know of a few classic designs ruined by the need to expressively tell people that the watch is an annual calendar. That's right IWC, I'm looking at you.

Continuing the spiel for its design is the balance between modern polished and traditional guilloche and beveling on the dial. The photo does't give a good a good indication, but there are actually three layers on the dial - the first being the flat white of the outer dial where polished hour markers sit. On the inside of this first layer is the machined waves of the minute sub dial.

The minute ring is cut into the dial, with its intercepting small seconds sub dial forming the last layer of its well-made dial. This, and the two piece case construction, gives for very good loupe shots.

Last but not least is the interesting functionality of the watch. The window at 12'O is home to the numeric hour display, that snaps to the next hour on the passing of the last second. A joy to watch, a pleasure to anticipate. It's not something you usually get in a watch, and it's good to have Oris offering the consumers a little something different.

The Bad

While Oris made good use of the space on the dial, one has to feel that the watch could come in a smaller size to pay homage to the smaller girths of the vintage era. Coming in at 41mm might be a little too hefty for this guy, made worse by the large amount of white.

Adding to that would be the overall whiteness of it. One could wonder what the watch would look like with a grey variation that would bring out the different levels and guilloche on the dial. Handsome as it is, I personally find that the finer details of the watch cannot be appreciated by the passerby simply because there's not much to see at first glance thanks to the white dial.

Perhaps a bigger hour window might serve to balance out the dimensions on the dial. For a watch with a name like the Jumping Hour, the show stopper seems to be a little stunted. Certainly there is a little more space for a larger numeral or winder to make the double digit hours less of a squeeze.

I also felt that the leather strap that came with the watch was a little lacking in value. For something that costs upwards of S$5,000 I suppose a little quality might be warranted. The deployant buckle is well made, with the Oris logo laser cut on, only to be let down by the poorer quality leather strap.

The Verdict

The Oris Artelier Jumping Hour is a curious addition to collector of dress watches who wants to venture out a little more into something a little more avant-garde. The regulator style time display is quite a rare sight now, and with a jumping hour complication thrown in, Oris have themselves a choice piece.

This interesting watch sets itself apart from the myriad offerings from the the likes of Baume & Mercier and Longines, and could be well worth the closer look.

Oris Artelier Jumping Hour

ref. 01 917 7702 4051-07 1 21 73FC

Oris 917 (base SW 300-1 / DD 14400)

28,800vph with 42hrs reserve

50m water resistance

Jumping hour display with central minutes with small seconds sub dials

41mm stainless steel case

Display caseback with Oris red automatic rotor

The watch was listed at S$5,900