Ice, Ice Baby: Armin Strom Debuts the Mirrored Force Resonance in Ice Blue

If you’ve been keeping score, the busy team at Biel/Bienne-based Armin Strom is having one heck of a summer in terms of new releases.

Recent weeks have brought us not one, but two, gorgeous executions of its triple-bridged Gravity Equal Force Ultimate Sapphire timepiece, one in rose gold and one in alluring blue.

Today, the glorious new Mirrored Force Resonance Ice Blue serves as “icing” on the novelty cake (but who knows? There may be even more to come).

For this first time, the signature off-center dial of the Mirrored Force Resonance carries a sunray-patterned guilloche motif, and this classic approach is not only perfectly at home on the 43mm stainless steel technical timepiece, in ice blue, it presents an alluring target for your eye amid the visible movement’s multitude of components.
 

The Mirrored Force Resonance received an artful update in 2022, which required a redesign of its movement, resulting in a slimmer profile and a more symmetrical appearance that exuded three-dimensionality and depth. Now, the wonders of the manually wound, 48-hour power-reserve Caliber ARF21 are made even more attractive to explore with this new, colorful execution.

Tapping into the physical phenomenon of two oscillating bodies achieving a natural synchronization when they are close together, the movement represented a modern breakthrough in resonance technology when it was introduced in 2016.

The short explanation: the Caliber ARF21’s two oscillating arrays, each with its own balance wheel and hairspring, utilize a proprietary clutch to enhance the natural inclination towards proximate synchronization. The result is enhanced precision and chronometric accuracy.

The Caliber ARF21 provides its own proof-in-the-pudding with twin seconds counters; a dedicated pusher at 2 o’clock resets those counters so you can see just how exacting the dual resonance actually is, even over time.

These components are laid out in what resembles a four-circle arc along the left side of the dial, providing some kinetic technical drama to complement the visual coolness of the time-telling dial.

As with all Armin Strom timepieces, exquisite hand-finishing is to be expected on this new Mirrored Force Resonance. And while that work is visible from the front, this piece’s exhibition caseback reveals even more visual delights.

Hand-beveling, polished bridgework, black-polished screws, pearlage details, Geneva striping, and circular graining all coalesce to add a layer of beauty to the groundbreaking technicality of the movement.
 

Limited to 15 pieces, the Armin Strom Mirrored Force Resonance Ice Blue is presented on a dark blue Alcantara strap with white stitching that “resonates” well with the ice blue dial hue. Expect to pay CHF 78,000 for this example of a mechanically enhanced version of the natural synchronization phenomenon.

Visit Armin Strom’s website for more information.