Machiel Hulsman’s tourbillon began as a personal project after he left banking for watchmaking. He made an unusually large share of its components himself, but “from scratch” does not mean every material came from his workshop: the 2020 account notes exceptions including the balance spring and leather strap. The bespoke watch was still in progress when Monochrome interviewed him in late 2019; a 2021 follow-up reported it finished. Hulsman now presents the Tourbillon Solstitium as a serially produced model, with a different, current chapter in the story.
From banking to watchmaking
In Monochrome’s 2020 profile, Hulsman recalled that he first considered making a watch in 2013, while working at a bank. Dissatisfaction with that career led him to study at the Schoonhoven school of watchmaking. For the first two years, watchmaking remained a hobby alongside his job; in 2015, he decided to pursue it full-time.
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His first complete timepiece followed in 2018. It had a movement he made himself, but no tourbillon. The more ambitious project came next: in 2019, a client commissioned a bespoke tourbillon watch. When Monochrome interviewed Hulsman in Q4 2019, the watch was still under construction. The completion plans described in that story belong to that moment, not to a current schedule.
What “from scratch” meant in Hulsman’s workshop
The phrase describes the extent of Hulsman’s in-house work, not literal independence from every outside material or component. The 2020 profile says he aimed to make each component he could in his Hilversum workshop, down to screws, wheels and rubies. It also notes exceptions such as the balance spring and leather strap. Hulsman’s later official description similarly says the watch’s components were created from scratch on mostly manually operated machines; that is the maker’s account of his process.
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The difficulty, Hulsman told Monochrome in the Q4 2019 interview, was not simply the number of pieces. “It is the extreme precision that’s the hardest.” That distinction helps explain why making components is only part of the challenge: each must also work with the others in a mechanism where small errors can matter.
How his tourbillon escapement works
In Monochrome’s 2021 follow-up, published after the bespoke watch was complete, Hulsman explained a spring-assisted escape wheel. In his account, a small spring mounted on the escape wheel takes energy from the gear train and releases it when a pallet unlocks the wheel. As the tourbillon cage turns, he said, it rewinds the spring; the spring also absorbs the impact when the escape wheel is stopped.
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This is Hulsman’s explanation of his design, not an independent assessment of its performance. A tourbillon places the escapement and balance in a rotating cage. In Hulsman’s watch, that familiar arrangement is paired with his described spring mechanism, as well as a display combining a tourbillon with retrograde minutes and jumping hours, according to the 2021 interview.
The bespoke watch and the current Solstitium
The original commissioned watch and the Tourbillon Solstitium should not be treated as the same product. Monochrome’s 2021 account describes the completed bespoke watch in a white-gold case, with a tourbillon, retrograde minutes and jumping hours. Hulsman Timepieces’ current model page presents the Tourbillon Solstitium, while Monochrome’s 2026 coverage describes it as Hulsman’s first serially produced model.
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| Watch | What the sources establish | Production status in the cited account |
|---|---|---|
| Bespoke tourbillon | Monochrome’s 2021 interview describes a white-gold case, tourbillon, retrograde minutes and jumping hours. | A completed, client-commissioned watch, according to the 2021 account. |
| Tourbillon Solstitium | Hulsman Timepieces lists a one-minute tourbillon, retrograde minutes, jumping hours and a winding indicator integrated into the dial logo. | Described by Monochrome in 2026 as the first serially produced Hulsman model. Current availability is not established here. |
The Solstitium’s official model page specifies a free-sprung balance running at 21,600 vibrations per hour and a 14 mm tourbillon cage. These are manufacturer specifications, not independent measurements. The official examples page also describes the model’s retrograde-minute and jumping-hour displays.
How Hulsman describes commissioning a watch
Hulsman Timepieces describes bespoke commissioning as a process that moves from an initial conversation and design through construction, testing, handover and maintenance. That outline explains the service, but it does not establish current pricing, lead times, order terms or whether Hulsman is accepting commissions. Those details need to be confirmed with the watchmaker directly.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Later projects
A 2025 Hodinkee profile reports that Hulsman was working on further ideas, including a three-axis tourbillon and an Easy Perpetual concept. The account presents them as projects, not as completed products. They show the direction of his work without changing the status of the earlier bespoke watch or the current Solstitium model.
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