The LM Sequential EVO, released in 2022, was MB&Fs’ first chronograph and 20th calibre; it featured significant technical innovations and an unprecedented combination of timing modes thanks to its “Twinverter” binary switch: independent timing, split-second, cumulative and lap-timer modes. It won the GPHG ‘Aiguille d’Or’, the most coveted prize in watchmaking. The new Flyback edition goes further than the previous EVO editions: on top of the previous timing modes typically associated with motor racing, it adds the flyback function originally conceived for pilots, bringing the Sequential into the world of aviation.
Conceived by Stephen McDonnell, one of the original MB&F Friends and the mastermind behind the 2015 LM Perpetual, the LM Sequential EVO was one of those timepieces that was so profoundly useful that it made you wonder why no one had thought of it before.
But if the LM Sequential EVO wasn’t mind-blowing enough, there was another feature that Stephen and MB&F were keen to include: the flyback function.
Two years of secret-keeping and testing were required so that the system would be robust enough in the long term, and now the LM Sequential Flyback Platinum is ready, steady, go!
more pictures in press section
There are situations when one needs to stop a running chronograph, reset it to zero, and start it again as quickly as possible. The flyback does exactly that: stop, reset and restart in a single press on the reset pusher, rather than fumbling through 3 clicks on 2 separate buttons. Combining the new flyback function with the other timing modes of the Sequential calibre offers even more functionality. For example, a pilot can keep track of overall flight time on one chronograph, while using the other chronograph to accurately time each leg with the flyback function.
The internal jewelling of the vertical clutches is the key to the whole Sequential chronograph, and the new flyback system also requires jewelling, without which it would not work. The system is very subtle, and a great deal of work went into reducing all the friction to a minimum so that the flyback did not cause the return-to-zero to block. To achieve this, McDonnell incorporated a special jewelled roller into the flyback mechanism. Such a component is unavailable directly from any supplier of jewels, so for the first prototype, McDonnell made the jewel himself in order to prove the concept of this ground-breaking mechanism (one of five patented elements).
The new Flyback edition with sky blue dial plate comes in the more classic Legacy Machine styling, in a platinum case with screwed lugs and white lacquered dials – including a tilted hours and minutes dial – on a leather strap.
For more live pics, wristshots and other cool images, check out our Instagram account.
The flyback was originally developed in the 1930s for airplane pilots, to allow accurate timing of flight paths from waypoint to waypoint. It was found that the time to stop, reset, and restart a chronograph took so long that errors in navigation would result, which would be compounded as these accumulated over the course of a journey with multiple legs.
After the success of the LM Sequential EVO released in 2022, its significant technical innovations and an unprecedented combination of timing modes thanks to its “Twinverter” binary switch, the new Flyback edition goes further than its predecessor.
On top of the previous timing modes typically associated with motor racing, it adds the flyback function originally conceived for pilots, bringing the Sequential into the world of aviation.
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