MB&F Legacy Machine 2

Two Balances and Palladium.

When Maximilian Büsser introduced the first Legacy Machine 2 in 2013 with dual balances floating above the dial and an elevated differential, almost all his inspiration came from historic experiments connecting two regulators with a differential to drive a single time indication by Ferdinand Berthoud, Abraham-Louis Breguet and Antide Janvier.

The only modern watchmaker to have worked on his own watches with two balances at the time was Philippe Dufour, who created the Duality model in 1994 (the first double-balance wristwatch).

However, the Legacy Machine 2 was the trailblazer for doubling up, followed by Roger Dubuis with paired balances tilted at a 90° angle, Audemars Piguet with the Royal Oak Double Balance Wheel Openworked, and Greubel Forsey's Double Balancier with two balances wheels and a differential.

The idea of dual balances is still rarely implemented and attracts interest, which is why MB&F returns to it time and time again. The Legacy Machine 2 debuted in 2013 in red gold, white gold and limited edition platinum.

Four years later, a titanium edition was released with a greenish-blue dial, followed by a white-gold version with a purple dial a year later. The last version from 2019 was in red gold with a blue dial. Now it's making a return in 2023 with palladium as the case material and an aquamarine dial.

It's not a dial as such — the metal-plated upper plate of the movement to be more precise. The release is limited to 18 pieces. The design has undergone another transformation: the movement has been given an anthracite NAC finishing which can be viewed through the transparent caseback.

As per tradition at MB&F, the names of the movement's creators are engraved on it: Jean-François Mojon of Chronode and the watchmaker responsible for rendering the finishing, Kari Voutilainen.

MB&F LM2 Palladium remains true to its original style in all other regards. The central role here is played by the planetary differential, which connects the two balances.

It receives vibrations from each balance and transmits the average rate of vibration to the movement’s toothed gear train. Beneath the differential with its polished double arc-shaped bridge with three stones and "Legacy Machine" engraved by hand.