I checked with IWC given that this question has been raised a few times. Here's the answer:
[i]...to set the moonphase you can set the time to 22:00h, turn it to 2:00h in the morning (1. click). Turn the hands back to 22h and again to 2h (2. click). In this way you can adjust the moonphase very quick like a date. But you can't set the moonphase backwards!! [i]
I should add a few further comments about this:
--it's basically the same semi-quickset mechanism as used in the original, Ref. 5251.
--the "not setting it backwards" is different than an integrated moonphase with calendar, like IWC's perpetuals. It's just that, here, the moon doesn't set backwards.
--however (and I've owned several watches with this feature) the "not settting it backwards" is a non-issue. You basically need to set the moon to a full moon, and then count the days between then and today's moonphase (there are a lot of charts showing that on the Net). You then reset the moon, one day at a time, until you reach today's date.
Regards,
Michael
