© Meyer & Kangangi
Precision tools aren’t exciting. I’m sorry, there’s just no way around it. Sure, they’re an important part of many an industry but then so are tax returns and god knows I avoid them for as long as possible. Still, they do require an impressive level of skill to make and use, so I can understand Japanese brand Minase deciding that, after years specialising in step drills, they wanted to do something a little more creatively fulfilling.
Still, it wasn’t as simple as a drill manufacturer deciding to strike out in a completely different path; Minase was honing its horological skill and technique long before it released its first watch. The drift into watchmaking began when, using its precision engineering expertise, the manufacturer was asked to build watch cases. Not simple cases either, but built for some serious timepieces.
After a while the engineers asked themselves the obvious question: why don’t we just do this for ourselves? And so Minase watches were born. The name comes from where its workshops are, a part of Akita prefecture that bears a striking resemblance to the Vallée de Joux, albeit without quite the horological heritage of Vacheron Constantin and Audemar Piguet’s home turf. Still, it’s a strikingly beautiful, snowy and remote part of the world – not to mention homeland of the best dogs in existence – and as fitting a place for an artisanal craft as any.
Given the way they entered watchmaking, it almost goes without saying that Minase cases are beyond reproach. Well, really that should be case-in-cases, given the construction of the HiZ series pieces. Essentially there’s an inner watch surrounded by a larger outer cases. The result is something strikingly structural, with an unusual gap between the two for what at first glance could be mistaken for a touch of skeletonization.
The signature piece of the collection is, without a doubt, the Seven Windows, a watch that proves you can put a circular peg into a square hole and that perhaps you should. The open sides of the case let you see the timekeeping module inside, as well as the exceptional sallaz polishing on every surface. It also has Minase’s signature gaps where the circular dial can’t deal with the corners of the rectangular case.
If that’s all a bit avant garde for you though, the Five Windows closes the sides, while the Horizon closes everything and adds a crown guard for more of a tool watch feel. If for whatever reason you simply can’t stomach squared watches – for shame – then there’s always the Divido, which funnels all those signature Minase touches into a simpler, circular timepiece.
Minase is never going to be the biggest Japanese watch brand – between Seiko, Citizen and Casio it has far, far too much competition for that – but it might just be one of the most unique which, in the watch world, is just as valuable. More details at minase-watches-com
