Who is Quinting really? Swiss watch makers and German jewellers are all wondering. René Quinting. Aha! He could be a Swiss or a Frenchman. The Quinting watch is young. The same goes for its creator, René Quinting. A qualified mechanical engineer, he comes from Münster in Westfalia and is just 30 years old. His product is the most fascinating luxury quartz watch around at the moment. It appears to lack any mechanism, being totally see-through. And yet it has 230 individual parts, more than most mechanical mechanism. Want to know more? Then just read the Quinting story, and find out about the test performed on this sensational watch.

At 15 René Quinting was already interested in watches and at 18 he built his first one. That was not quite in keeping with the occupation of his father, a building contractor. An article that appeared in Uhren magazine in 1992 about a master skeleton watchmaker from Le Locle (Switzerland), Kurt Schaffo, was more to the point. René Quinting was 24 years old at the time, and was fascinated by Kurt Schaffo’s minimalism. How could you reduce mass without restricting function? That was the direction the upcoming mechanical engineer’s mind was taking him. So he enquired amongst the top watch companies in Switzerland. "I was turned away by at least 15 studios, " he recalls. "Can’t be done," they all told me.

Quinting’s idea was to create a completely see-through watch with its mechanism in the rim of the case. Energy would be transmitted to the watchface with the aid of superimposed glass discs. Rather like a Big Mac in its construction. "But don’t write that for god’s sake," says René Quinting. "We prefer the description, ‘Time Mac’ – the finest in the world!"

Ten months elapsed between the idea and the patent application on 12 October 1993.

Finally René Quinting managed to earn himself approving nods, when he presented his idea at the Swiss Exidel studio in St.-Blaise. Two months later he had a prototype.

A major role in this development was played by engineers Norbert Perucchi (development) and Willy Cleusix (structural design) – two men who’ve acted as advisors for many Swiss quality brands.

But that was just the start for a completely new watch. Very quickly it became clear that the normal standard of perfection – always cited in the trade – was not enough. The only glass possible for the ten discs (and the two outside covers) was sapphire crystal. Each disc had to be precisely measured. Then an anti-reflection coating was applied to both sides of the discs, and they were again measured. The distance between the discs had to be between 0.08 and 0.1 mm.

"There was many a time when I doubted whether my idea would be a success," says René Quinting. Because it was not a mass production watch the usual supply problems arose. Then again, there were no existing products that could be used for Quinting watch. Hundreds of parts had to be designed and manufactured. Even the smallest screw head had to be carefully measured before being assembled. This continues to be the case today for the small-lot fabrication undertaken by a little team of experienced watchmakers at the Quinting studio in St.-Blaise (Neuchâtel)

René Quinting also had a hell of a lot of luck with accompanied his vision of the "invisible" watch. His father trusted in him. And there were other people there to help at the right time – the Swiss specialists, but also WGZ bank, whose Board of Management was convinced by the idea – and still is. And then there is Jürgen Nordhausen, formerly Distribution Manager at Citizen, and who these days can hardly contain his pride.

And at least the Quinting watch is available. Over 1000 orders have been received, more than can be produced at the moment. There are, however, no plans to mass-produce the watch.

So what’s so special about the Quinting chronograph?

It takes you by surprise because it is completely see-through. Technically speaking it is a highly complex watch, using a four-motor quartz mechanism only for the drive. Despite its complicated glass disc technology the batteries only need to be changed once every three years (with the chronograph being used 20 minutes a day).

Incidentally, ground-breaking technology went into this, ensuring that a normal quartz mechanism can run 15 years with a normal battery.

One thing is certain – the Quinting watch is no normal quartz watch. And nobody spreading out its set of parts before them, would for a moment be reminded of one.

The Quinting watch is the innovation of the year, a fact that hardly anyone has realised yet. Even specialists have trouble with coming to terms with this. Jürgen Nordhausen, himself, can testify to this on the basis of a whole host of experiences he gathered during of distribution tour of Germany.

"Many jewellers tried to send me away," he recalls. "The watch has no mechanism," they told me. "Come back when it’s finished." Others jumped to conclusions, saying, "It’s only a quartz watch".

Only slowly – very slowly – are people realising that it is probably the most interesting quartz watch collectors and "freaks" have been quicker off the mark.

And here is an example of its value: In 18 carat gold with a gold strap, the watch that appears to have nothing inside weighs a hefty 240 g, - you could call it a "half pounder" in fact. Even McDonalds would have to add a few lettuce leaves at that weight! But it was still worth making the comparison. And Quinting is the clear winner!

Quinting – a name to remember! When you match up ingenuity from Münster with high tech from Switzerland, you end up with something like the Quinting chronograph. It’s so see-through that even the magician Davis Copperfield would be amazed. Incredible though the design is, we have conducted our test on the watch as objectively as possible.

The steel strap looks weighty and filigreed, and is 20mm wide. However the six narrow links, three on each side, are not flexible in themselves. 4.16 mm thick, the strap is also decorated on the sides. Width adjustments can only be made in 10 mm steps, one link at a time, so that the strap can easily become too narrow or too wide.

Strap: 10 out of 12 points

Very flat double fold buckle with Quinting letters on a high-gloss finish. Although the buckle snaps in very securely, it is still not entirely protected against unintentional release.

Claps: 6 out of 8 points

With so much perfectly non-reflecting sapphire crystal – a total of 12 pieces in all – we have to award this watch top marks. The "non-existence" of glass is the key selling point of the watch, especially since the coating makes it extremely light-permeable

Glass: 12 out of 12 points

The crown is 6.42 mm across and rippled on two sides. In between it is smooth. If you turn the crown it always reverts to the same final position. What perfection! Just think of the Rolex crown or the fish on the IWC crown. The push-buttons (diameter, 4.98 mm) look as if they are windable, though they aren’t. So what then is the point of a windable crown? The area at the tips of the buttons is very small, but with their soft points the buttons are very comfortable to use. All in all, however, the combination seems somewhat illogical.

Crown: 10 out of 12 points

The strap design continues on the casing edge. In total the steel watch weighs 175 g. The casing has a depth of 14.08 mm and a diameter of 43.45 mm. It is uniquely crafted, just like everything else on this watch. At the side, around the "8 o’clock" position there is a button for the date change. There are two segments a day – morning and afternoon. The edge of the spring-lid is china-enamelled in the colour of the dial and bears the lettering "Quinting fabriqué en Suisse". The battery compartment is behind a screw-in plate bearing the serial number of the watch, in other words easily accessible without having to open up the entire back. The watch is water-resistant to a depth of 50 m, and conveys a feeling of security.

Case: 30 out of 30 points

The visibility of the polished steel hands depends on the angle of lighting. Overall they match the appearance of the watch. As usual in the case of quartz chronographs, the small hands return to their original position after being released and stopped. In other words, they do not jump as in the case with a mechanical chronograph. There is no large second hand in the middle. This would have required an additional glass disc and greater depth of construction. It would probably have increased energy consumption as well.

Hands: 10 out of 10 points

This consists of one large and four small rings. Otherwise the watch is see-through. In this respect the lettering has been well through out. The size of the figures on the calendar is appropriate.

Dial: 10 out of 10 points

The movement (diameter 39 mm) is built in the rim of the watch casing. The sapphire crystal discs are driven from there with the aid of toothed rings. The Quinting has about 230 individual parts – a remarkable structural design achievement. Despite the many superimposed discs, the battery is said to last three years, event if the chronograph is in use for 30 minutes a day. Incidentally the mechanism counts a maximum of 12 hours. A perpetual calendar would be conceivable for the future, as well as a radio receiver for the "atomic age".

Movement: 22 out of 40 points

Operation:

In order to make better use of the available power the minute hand moves in five-second steps rather than continuously. The accuracy on the Quinting watch corresponds to that of a normal quartz mechanism with a deviation of about one second a week. We cannot make statements about the mechanism, their operation and duration of operation without testing them for a longer period. Such a test could also demonstrate the sturdiness of the watch as a whole. Even the manufacturer would only be able to provide theoretical data in this respect.

Operation: 22 out 24 points

Wearing comfort:

Wearing comfort varies from one wrist to another. The Quinting is a big and heavy watch. The strap appears flexible, overall, though does not twist easily. Under normal circumstances the strap will not become undone, although some care is necessary here.

Wearing comfort: 10 out of 12 points

Generally speaking, skeleton watches are not particularly easy to read! However, since the Quinting has a "super skeleton", with only the display figures being visible, it is fairly easy to read the watch. The date display could be a little clearer in artificial light.

Clarity: 10 out of 12 points

A hand-crafted quartz watch with a huge mechanical section consisting of 230 parts. In terms of the effort put into this watch, it is worth every penny. The price for the tested watch, serial number 81, is DM 9,900.

Price/performance: 18 out of 18 points

The Quinting chronograph will not be to everyone’s taste, but it’s worth taking note of, particularly with regard to its see-through construction. All in all an unusual watch deserves to be held in high esteem.

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