The Tangente is the most well-known model from NOMOS. Most people probably think of it when they hear the name NOMOS. This shouldn’t be a surprise since the Tangente is the company’s best-selling and most-made watch. This watch has a round case, tempered hands, a small second dial, and thin, angular lugs. The clean design of this watch is highlighted by how the Arabic numbers and long indices change places. Like most NOMOS watches, the Tangente has a cordovan leather strap that keeps it in place on the wrist. This type of leather comes from the back of a horse and is very strong and resistant to water.
Styles
The NOMOS Tangente comes in many different styles. The classic model has a diameter of 35 mm and is powered by the Alpha caliber, which was made in-house. The Tangente ref. 101 is only 6.2 mm thick because it has a very flat manual caliber. Used, this classic NOMOS costs about $1,000. For about $1,400 USD, you can buy a new watch. Prices for a Tangente that shows the date and the amount of power left range from $2,200 to $2,500 USD.
If you find 35 mm too small, you might like the 41-mm Tangente Update. This watch came out in 2018, and it has a new way to show the date: two red markers frame the date around the edge of the dial. This helps the Tangente Update stay surprisingly flat. Even though it is automatic, it is only 7.9 mm thick. This watch is run by the DUW 6101 neomatik caliber and the NOMOS Swing System. This watch, which has never been worn, sells for about $3,100 USD.
The NOMOS Orion’s prices
The Orion is made of domed crystal and has only the most important features. It looks more simple and understated than any other NOMOS watch. The dial has thin lines that show the minute and hour. From the side, the Orion looks like a UFO because its sapphire glass is shaped like a dome. The Orion is like the Tangente in that it can have either a classic manual caliber or a flat neomatik movement.
The Orion has cases that range in size from 33 mm to 41 mm, with the smaller models being more for women. A watch is perfect condition with a steel case back costs about $1,400 brand new or $1,300 used. If you want a sapphire glass case back so you can see the movement, you’ll have to spend another couple hundred dollars.
The 35-mm model with a stainless steel case back costs around $1,600 new and less than $1,200 used. Pieces with a neomatik movement are only a little bit bigger at 36 mm. This model’s price ranges from $2,300 for a used watch to $2,700 for a brand-new one.
The diameter of Orion’s bigger watches is 38, 39, or 41 mm. The 41-mm version shows the date and is powered by the same in-house caliber DUW 6101 that runs the Tangente Update. Still, NOMOS put a classic date window at 3 o’clock on the Orion 41. Set aside about $3,100 USD for a NOMOS Orion Neomatik 41 Date in perfect condition. If you choose the 39-mm model that doesn’t show the date, you can save a few hundred dollars.
