I met up with a buddy the other night, and he picked up a new watch the day before and brought it over to show me. What a treat! I got to handle, admire and try on a beautiful H. Moser & Cie Perpetual 1 with Fume dial in Palladium! The Moser Perpetual 1 is the ultimate clean and understated dress watch that has just the right touch of modern styling combined with classic lines. This is beautiful timepiece.

The beautifully crafted 40.8mm Palladium case is 11.05mm thick and is paired with a unique Sunburst patterned Fume dial which changes color from the middle to the edges and at different angles as well. It wears on the large size for a 40.8mm case size, which is fine by me as I think the size is perfect. The front features a power reserve indicator at 9 o’clock and a large aperture perpetual flash date display at 3 o’clock. This means the date knows which month it is (even though it doesn’t display it) and changes the date accordingly. Additionally, at the end of a short month, the date changes instantaneously to the 1st without slowly cycling through the remaining “extra” dates. The leap year indicator is present on the back through the exhibition caseback.

Here is the left side of the case, which has a single pusher at 9 o’clock. The sides of this palladium case also feature some polished, scalloped areas that really bring the case to another level. VERY nice touch and sets off the impeccable casework. The flats on the sides of the watch are brushed as you can see giving the watch a nice two-toned finish.

The crown side of the watch is equally stunning, with a nice large slightly oversized crown which compliments the case very nicely. The crown is signed with a large M, presumably for “Moser”. The Palladium case reminds me a bit of Platinum in its color, but is less dense and weighs less. This also means the raw material will end up costing less since it is cheaper to begin with and also will weigh less for a given amount. Oddly, this doesn’t always translate to a lower price for a watch – we’ve seen many a Panerai in Palladium value quite high. I don’t have the MSRP prices for these watches so I can’t say for sure whether this palladium is more or less than the platinum and gold versions.

Now there’s the shot many of you were waiting for – the exhibition back. The hand-wound movement in the Moser Perpetual 1 is the Calibre HMC 341.101. The movement is Swiss crafted, with a 7 day power reserve, features some serious stuff like a perpetual flash calendar and an interchangeable escapement with straumann double hairspring among other noteable features which are listed below. Overall, its a beautiful movement, beautiful watch, and just kicks serious ass. I love it.

One final shot to show off the beautiful sunburst Fume dial. The photos on the website show a bit too much color range as its mostly greyish with inflections of brown. It looks more brown on the website than in person. I am really happy for my buddy with his recent acquisition of this watch, but it has me really pining for one of my own now! Can’t have the same one, but I have my eye on a Moser now!

Moser movement cal. hmc 341.101
Hand-wound with true bevel wheels
Double barrel, min. 7-day power reserve
Moser tooth system in wheel train and pinions
Power reserve display
Perpetual flash calendar display
Calendar adjustable forwards and backwards at any time via the crown independently of the movement
Double pull crown mechanism
Hacking second
Screwed gold mounts
Moser interchangeable escapement with straumann double hairspring
Pallet fork and escapement wheel made of solid white gold
Fumé dial with sun pattern ground finish
Three-part, round case in palladium
Discreetly convex sapphire glass
See-through sapphire glass back
Alligator leather strap with solid white gold folding clasp