While Armin Strom is no longer involved with Formula One as a timing partner for one of the racing teams, the Racing Regulator Limited Edition released in 2011 still seems to be the perfect companion for when the 2021 F1 season kicks-off with the Bahrain Grand Prix from March 26th thru the 28th. Armin Strom had a short stint as the timing partner for the Anglo-Russian F1 Marussia Team based in Banbury, Oxfordshire in the U.K.
Even though Formula One Team Marussia was nothing like Ferrari, McLaren, or Red Bull, the team had the honor to have —the now-deceased young driver— Jules Bianchi as one of their drivers. A promising driver and the first F1 driver to die as a result of an F1 racing accident since Ayrton Senna’s death at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix. The F1 Marussia team scored its first championship points at the 2014 Monaco Grand Prix when Jules Bianchi finished ninth. Sadly a few months later, Jules Bianchi would lose control of his Marussia under very wet conditions at the Japanese Grand Prix crashing into a recovery vehicle crane. After the accident, he remained comatose until July 17th, 2015 when he passed at age 25.
The Armin Strom Racing Regulator was released in a 100-piece limited edition bearing the colors of Team Marussia. Equipped with a 43.6 mm case in black PVD titanium and delivered on a black rubber integrated strap with a pin buckle, the watch is powered by the Armin Strom in-house calibre ASR07-MVR which features plates and bridges made from metal coming straight from the F1 Racing engine monobloc from Team Marussia and finished with a cross-grinding finish.
The metal from the Formula One engine came straight from the U.K. and was melted down at a small foundry in St. Gallen, Switzerland. Afterward, the metal would be rolled and pressed into sheets from which the movement components were stamped by Armin Strom.
The multi-layer construction of its partially skeletonized dial is extremely racing-inspired and visually appealing. Four rings in black and red indicate the hours, minutes, seconds, and a retrograde date indicator that is controlled by a pusher located on the caseband at 10 o’clock.
Located between 8 and 9 o’clock, a bright red ring with white transfers indicates the hours and half hours. A black ring at 6 o’clock indicates the running seconds with a three-spoke hand. Since this is a regulator-type of watch, the minute indication takes the center stage with an off-centered black ring with white oversized Arabic numerals indicating the minutes in increments of five. Unfortunately, is hard to tell accurate time as the track does not include the four minute markers in between each five-minute indication.
A regulator or 'régulateur’ —in French— is a watch with non-coaxial hour and minute hands, which means, that the hour and minute hands do not share the central pinion position on the dial but are independently placed. On regulators, the minute hand is traditionally the most important hand and it is typically placed on the central pinion at the center of the dial. In the case of the Armin Strom Racing Regulator, it is off-centered as this is one of the signature design elements of Armin Strom.
Lastly, the date is indicated by a black red-tipped pointer hand that moves along a semicircular retrograde ring in red. A fascinating timepiece that combines the unconventional look of a regulator along with a retrograde date indication and with the looks of a racing machine for the wrist.
At the center of the dial, a bridge is engraved with the limitation information as well as the certification that the movement has been manufactured from the VR02 F1 Engine. To provide perfect readability under any lighting conditions the sapphire crystal is treated with anti-reflective treatment on both sides.
Turning the watch over reveals the Armin Strom in-house calibre ASR07-MVR which features plates and bridges made from metal coming straight from the F1 Racing engine monobloc from Team Marussia. This manual wound movement features 26 jewels and provides a power reserve of 46 hours when fully wound. Despite having a sapphire crystal display case back the watch is water resistant to 50 meters.
The Armin Strom Racing Regulator Limited Edition is one of those watches that we have been looking to get for a very long time. Thankfully a handful of examples still remain in the market in NOS —new old stock— condition.
Sticker Price $20,500 USD. For more info on Armin Strom click here.
