Adding to the intrigue is that this clock was designed by MB&F’s Creative Designer, Maximilian Maertens. He’s the young German who is slowly and purposefully starting to take the lead on some of MB&F’s pieces, as Max Büsser begins to step back and give up a bit of creative control over the collective brand project he founded more than two decades ago.
So what makes this Maison Alcée kit interesting and different? It’s certainly expressive of the MB&F design language, with the arched base legs or feet giving it an extraterrestrial personality. Maertens says he’s a fan of and inspired by the late Swiss artist H.R. Giger (check out the wild Giger Museum in Gruyères if you’re ever there), and the Nostromo takes its name from the spaceship from the first Alien film that Giger designed the creatures for.
While the clock kit is based on Maison Alcée’s original Persée kit, significant design changes have been made. Like the Persée, the movement is based on that of a wristwatch, built on a larger scale and marks out hours, minutes, and seconds. For the Nostromo kit, the clock has been turned on its side and can be rotated on its feet, creating an additional element of play once it is completed. The time display is also angled upwards for a better view of the dial, and the Nostromo also features an hour chime that can be enabled and disabled.
With a fourteen-day power reserve, the movement has been designed so that it can be assembled by anyone with the patience and time to produce high horology, in about 10 hours’ time. It is accompanied by an illustrated 250-page book, which serves as an instruction manual and includes QR codes for additional video explanations and support via a private discussion group. The kit also includes watchmaker tools, some of which have been specially developed for amateurs, with parts in beryllium copper to avoid scratches.