SEVENFRIDAY releases stunning FREE-D 3D printed watch
The 10th anniversary piece features watch-industry-first multiple PA11 parts, printed using HP's MJF technology
SEVENFRIDAY, a global lifestyle brand that aims to constantly challenge the norm with the designs of their industrial-inspired watches, eyewear, apparel, and accessories – is doing just that. For its 10th anniversary, the Swiss company has created the FREE-D watch – a 3D printed, industrial-style watch.
“The newest release challenges everything you expect from your run of the mill watch. Reminiscent of space travel in both form and feel, the FREE-D is the fantasy of any back to the future fanatic.”
Described as being a “harmonious marriage between the long-standing traditions of horology and the present developments combined in 3D printing”, which, according to SEVENFRIDAY, “maximizes wearing comfort: light, flexible but nonetheless resistant”.
The FREE-D watch is constructed, almost entirely, from PA11, a sustainable, castor-based polyamide. This material encases the titanium and sapphire crystal capsule with ‘architectural precision’, thanks to 3D printing. Many of the PA11 parts are digitally manufactured using HP’s Multi Jet Fusion technology in conjunction with dyeing RAL (an advanced dyeing technology, specially developed, in Munich) 5004 and 7035. Using MJF for such high-precision components is a clear demonstration of the technology’s resolution capabilities.
When packaged, the FREE-D watch sits on an American-walnut ‘cushion’ and is encapsulated by an entirely 3D printed watch case, which is made, in a single print, using the PA11 material.
Finally, in the spirit of futurism – “SEVENFRIDAY believes in the merging of industries and the elimination of boundaries set by closed-mindedness and tradition. In this spirit, the FREE-D is equipped with an NFC chip that bridges each watch to its own NFT collectible and certificate.”
The FREE-D watch retails for USD 3,800 (ex. VAT)
SEVENFRIDAY is among a pool of early adopters of 3D printing within the precision watch-making industry. For other related case studies where watchmakers have turned to 3D printing, see the AddUp and KIF Parechoc partnership and Michiel Holthinrichs’ 3D printed Ornament 1 watches.
