Stefan Kudoke Mysticum

Welcome to the world of Stefan Kudoke, where every watch begins its life in a notebook.

Stefan is one of those master watchmakers who writes things down in a small book - in fact the word "doodling" might be a better term.  When he thinks of a new or interesting complication, he makes the initial drawing in his notebook and lets the design process sink in.

The Mysticum is an example of a watch with a lot of notebook brain power - it is one of the most interesting watches we have carried.  And it is one of the very few watches in which the hands and dial are completely hand made by the watchmaker.

When we first met Stefan Kudoke, he was quite excited about the Mysticum and for good reason - it contains some of the most sought after features in a mechanical watch: hand engraving, hand skeletonization, unique complication and enough hands on workmanship to spice up any collection.


The Front

The Mysticum tells time in a unique way.  The dial is actually built using two layers - the first layer is a rotating disc system which displays the hour, and the second layer is elaborately engraved with dot indicators for the minutes.  Again, we must stress that these dials are completely made by hand - this is unheard of with most mechanical watches.

At first glance this watch appears to be a single hand watch, and in a technical sense that's true - there is only one traditional hand.  Stefan cuts and produces this hand using traditional methods - his hands, and the design is in a unique serpentine style.  But unlike most single hand watches, this watch indicates both the hours and the minutes, with the hours shown by a triangular pointer on a rotating disc.

Take a minute and expand the pictures above to view the dial.  The hand engraving, finishing and small touches are extraordinary, and the design is all Kudoke.


The Back

Stefan loves to tinker with the movements in his watches, and this movement is no exception.  To begin his work, he first completely disassembles all movement parts, and begins the long process of hand skeletonization using traditional tools.  We've seen many skeleton watches, but Stefan's are among the most elaborate. 

You'll notice from the pictures above that Stefan has cleverly engraved his brand logo and the initial from his last name "K" within the design of the movement.  Other interesting touches include a skeletonized winding gear and regulation system - the first time we have seen these features in a movement.

In addition to the hand skeletonization, you'll find hand engraved bridges, perlage and blued screws throughout.  It is obvious that the design and workmanship necessary to finish this movement are as labor intensive as any we have seen.

This is a watch that looks as great from the back as from the front.