Project LpX by MB&F and Loupe System (Price, Pictures & Specifications)
If you’re a serious watch enthusiast, you have undoubtedly heard of Loupe System – quite simply the most advanced portable magnifying loupes in the world today.
Loupe System has teamed up with MB&F to create Project LpX: an intergalactic magnification station enabling accurate viewing of watch movement details, while simultaneously reminding you of the immensity of our galaxy. Five elements combine to make a rocket entity much larger than the sum of its parts.
This versatile rocket ship offers dust-free storage of the highest quality magnification loupes, but does much more than that while sitting on a desk looking pretty: Project LpX is a smile-on-your-face reminder of the space-themed stories many of us read as a child, inspiring countless dreams of space travel and explorations of the unknown.
And then, you turn off the lights to discover an eerie greenish glow emanating from underneath the rocket base, making the capsule appear to lift right off the desk. The smile on your face broadens as more childhood memories flood back.
Project LpX is made up of five modular parts, perfectly packaged in a sturdy travel case:
The Base
The anodized aluminium rocket base contains a tritium capsule “booster” emitting a cosmic glow in the dark, making it ready for take-off in search of new lifeforms. The light comes from a self-luminous tritium capsule with a half-life of 15 years; torches/flashlights using the same technology were part of the equipment that NASA issued to Apollo astronauts. The glow requires no supplementary power sources and it is not affected by temperature, humidity, or altitude. Polished and satin-finished stainless steel, non-articulated landing struts are also attached to the base so that Project LpX can stand on its own.
Three Modular Body Components
The rocket can be configured to accommodate one, two, or three Loupe System loupes, each hidden inside the rocket to be revealed at the owner’s leisure (and pleasure). The three anodized aluminium “stage” components attach to each other using a clicking bayonet system (similar to the lens mount for an SLR camera), making them easy to assemble and disassemble (or play with). Project LpX comes with two Loupe System loupes in different strengths: 3x and 6x magnification.
The Nose Cone
The anodized aluminium top rocket section doesn’t just minimise aerodynamic drag, it points toward space providing a constant reminder that there’s more to discover out there. The nose cone can be attached to any of the modular “stage” components using the same bayonet system.
Bonus: the universal clip
Loupe System’s universal clip is also included in the case, allowing you to attach the loupes to any mobile phone or tablet, and thus use them to take macro photos or videos.
Project LpX launches in 4 limited editions of 99 pieces each in black, blue, red or green.
Project LpX: inspiration and design
Synchronous, forward-thinking imagination knows no bounds: the idea for this ballistic project began when the founder of Loupe System saw MB&F’s just-launched Arachnophobia at Baselworld 2016. As fate would have it, he simultaneously presented a spider-shaped holder for his high-quality loupes at his booth at the same fair. The following year at Baselworld, when MB&F launched the rocket-shaped Destination Moon clock, Loupe System had a rocket-shaped loupe-stacking system. And then again at Baselworld 2018, when MB&F launched the spacecraft-like Fifth Element weather station, Loupe System had a flying saucer-shaped loupe holder at its booth. That final act of synchronicity convinced MB&F founder Max Büsser that a cosmic co-creation with Loupe System was virtually predestined.
“For three years running, we separately came up with the same ideas presented at the same editions of Baselworld,” says the founder of Loupe System. The third time was obviously a charm!
Project LpX was designed by Maximilian Maertens, the same designer responsible for the recently introduced clock T-Rex (which MB&F co-created with clock specialists L’Epée 1839). Maertens, who began as an intern working with Büsser on various projects, was loosely inspired by both past MB&F projects and the SpaceX Falcon, a partially reusable two-stage heavy-lift launch vehicle.
“Project LpX” (pronounced “loupe ex”) derives from the working code name for the project begun in 2018 – “Project X”. The X caught on, and prefixed with an abbreviated version of Loupe, became Project LpX.
Project LpX by MB&F and Loupe System
Technical specifications:
Project LpX launches in 4 limited editions of 99 pieces each in black, blue, red or green.
Functions: Accommodates one, two or three magnifying loupes (delivered with two); rocket booster glows in the dark.
Rocket Body
· Dimensions: 28cm (diameter of base’s legs) x 33cm (maximum height)
· Materials: anodized aluminium with polished and satin-finished stainless steel; non-articulated landing struts (stand) in polished and satin-finished stainless steel
· Composition: 5 elements (base, three modular body parts, nose cone) connected using bayonet assembly, allowing configuration to accommodate one, two, or three loupes
· Light: in base, tritium capsule
· Total weight: 600 grams without loupe; 850 grams with two included loupes
Packaging:
· Case: ABS waterproof case
· Dimensions: 44 x 35 x 19cm
· Contents: rocket split into base with tripod, three stages and nose cone; 2 loupes with own protective cases; and a universal clip to attach a loupe to a mobile phone or tablet
· Loupes included: Model 02 (3x magnification) and Model 01 (6x)
· Weight: 4.8 kg
The price for the MB&F + Loupe System Project LpX is CHF 3,300 + VAT (USD 3,300 / EUR 3,100 before taxes).
