What would happen if we could evolve our debut watch – the 17.01?

Continuity and advancement

The answer is the MING 27.01: the spiritual successor to the very first watch we produced, reflected in configuration – two hand, manual wind – and naming. The 27.01 advances the concept of a versatile, collector-centric and accessible daily wearer by a significant step and is appropriately the first watch to feature our second-generation design language.

Design language 2

After two and a half years, fifteen models, a Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genéve win and literally hundreds of design studies – MT finally learned 3D CAD (all watches released to date were designed in two dimensions and Photoshop) and went crazy: the 27.01 is one of the first watches created in 3D, from the start.  

Our core elements were further distilled down to radial symmetry; legibility; the 0 marker; flared lugs and smooth case transitions; mixed finishes; and visual dissonance in layering to make watches seem much deeper or shallower than their physical dimensions might suggest. On top of the additional layering and material transitions, the case now incorporates our flying blade lugs, a feature new to design language 2.

Minimalism in all areas

At just 38x6.9mm, the 27.01 is the thinnest watch we have made to date but has surprising wrist presence while retaining wearability for all wrist sizes.

The overarching brief of reduction has been carried through to the case and movement: excess material has been removed from the periphery of the case, with hollows extending through the lugs (a serious machining challenge given the thickness, or lack thereof, of the monobloc caseband). We elected to leave the case in stainless steel to provide the right tactile feel.

The 27.01 is powered by a movement so heavily reworked that we probably should have started from scratch. We begin with an ETA Peseux 7001 and retain only the gear train and escapement. The bridges and plates are remade, courtesy of Manufacture Schwarz Etienne, in a configuration of our design, retaining the same aesthetic as the 19-series: solid baseplate with maximal opening of upper bridges to put the moving components on display. It is a continuation of our belief that a display back must have something worth seeing behind it.

Stepping up

We have once again partnered with Manufacture Schwarz-Etienne for the production of the 27.01, Jean Rousseau Paris for the straps and Studio Koji Sato for our travel pouches. We are proud to apply consistent quality control standards across the range, be it for flagship or entry-level watches. Given the refinement and extensive level of customization in the 27.01, we believe this represents an interesting new offering for the brand, and a next step for collectors of our 17 series.