Hublot has updated its Fusion Concrete chronograph by expanding the amount of the material used to construct the watch, and by enhancing the resilience of the material itself.
The watchmaker first debuted the watch in 2016 with only a concrete bezel set on a ceramic case that framed an open-worked dial. Now, Hublot introduces the Fusion Concrete Jungle New York, a second generation example of the unusual watch with concrete not only forming the watch’s bezel, but also its 45mm case and its two-subdial chronograph dial.
With the new watch, Hublot says it has created a more durable concrete mixture, now made of sixty-five percent to seventy-five percent fine cement, twenty-five percent to thirty percent epoxy resin (replacing the water in standard concrete) and five percent to ten percent fiberglass, replacing steel to reinforce the concrete.
Hublot in-house design team upgraded the epoxy resin with an anti-UV additive. This will prevent any color changes from occurring within the concrete components. In addition, Hublot added an anti-graffiti treatment to the finished components to prevent the concrete from becoming contaminated with dirt or other particles.
Like the first edition of the watch, this new limited-edition model is also dedicated to New York City, known historically as the first ‘concrete jungle.’ Hublot will first make the watch available at Hublot’s Fifth Avenue boutique in New York, and online, prior to being launched in stores across the United States.
Hublot has installed its in-house HUB1143 automatic chronograph movement into the watch, which also features black ceramic pushers and crown and an all-black textile strap with black stitching. Limited to fifty pieces, the Classic Fusion Concrete Jungle New York is priced at $18,800.
Specifications: Hublot Fusion Concrete Jungle New York
MOVEMENT: HUB1143 manufacture automatic chronograph, frequency of 4Hz (28’800 bph), power reserve of 42 Hours.
REFERENCE 521.XC.3604.NR.NYC20 Limited to 50 pieces.
DIAL: Composite Concrete Dial, micro-blasted and ruthenium anthracite plated hands, bezel made of composite concrete with 6 H-shaped black PVD titanium screws.
CASE: 45 mm x 13.85mm Composite Concrete, water resistance to 50m, caseback is micro-blasted black ceramic engraved with “LIMITED EDITION XX/50” and sapphire crystal.
STRAP: Black rubber and black textile with black stitching, micro-blasted black ceramic and black PVD steel deployant buckle clasp.
Price: $18,800