Bell & Ross, the military aviation watch specialists have been known to deviate beyond the comfort of their aeronautic base in search of new worlds;
the watchmaker launched its first diver’s watch in 1997 and ever since then, they have gained a wealth of expertise in the underwater realm.
With the new BR 03-92 Diver White, Bell & Ross have taken an icy plunge into iceberg laden waters for their newest adventure under the ice floes.
Shortly after it was founded in 1994, the watchmaker took the ultimate plunge with the creation of the round-cased, HYDROMAX® -
the brand’s debut diver’s model that was waterproof to an astonishing depth of 11’100m— a new record at that time (1997) and impressive feat, even for an oil-filled watch.
Then in 2007 they experimented with a new barrel-shaped design for the BR 02, a model that never really managed to garner the same amount of appeal that the brand’s instrument panel-style watches did.
A full decade later in 2017, the original Diver with its squared case was launched and ever since then the family has grown welcoming several new variants each year.
Now for 2022, the BR 03-92 Diver White with its bright steel case and snow white dial evokes the icy seas, polar oceans and frozen lakes of the planet.
Inspired by frozen watery worlds, the BR 03-92 Diver White’s dial is adorned with white, a rare shade from Bell & Ross. This immaculate colorway B&R say, emulates the purity of ice.
The exact color is opalescent silver in subtle tones; meanwhile the dial’s matte surface has been metallized, creating iridescent reflections across the piece.
The BR 03-92 Diver White was born from a collaboration of watchmakers and professional divers each bringing their own particular expertise to the table.
Waterproof and robust, the BR 03-92 Diver White meets the demanding specifications of the Swiss diving watch, complying with the ISO 6425 standard.
Among its assets: the case is waterproof to depths of 300m and the unidirectional rotational diver’s bezel is graduated over 60 minutes, with a luminescent dot at 12 o’clock.
This notched element is used to calculate decompression stops while a crown protector mitigates any accidental manipulations of the crown.
The metal hands and indices have been coated with a photo-luminescent SuperLumiNova coating which emits a bright green hue in the dark.
Readability remains optimal, including deep underwater, where you otherwise might not be able to see your hand in front of your face.
The BR 03-92 Diver White shares the iconic BR 01’s rounded square case, but in a waterproof diver’s format. This design feature echoes the B&R’s iconic interpretation of an airplane dashboard.
The BR 03-92 Diver White’s waterproof case has been reinforced to withstand the underwater world to a depth of 300m.
It houses the BR-CAL 302 self-winding caliber, which powers the hour, minute and seconds functions, as well as the date.
The BR 03-92 Diver White’s crown is screwed down to withstand the pressure of deep seas, and comes with rubber insert for enhanced sealing.
The anti-reflective coated Sapphire crystal on the BR 03-92 is said to be very thick, and while the case-back has been reinforced.
The watch comes with a black rubber strap, which is suitable for underwater use and is delivered in the brand’s famous indestructible waterproof Pelican dry case.
Thoughts? The squared case remains a rarity in a diver’s watch. This unique shape gives the BR 03-92 Diver White a personality of its own allowing it stand out from a crowd of round and barrel-shaped divers.
For me the BR 03-92 Diver has it all; great LOOKS, good, spec. even a top mark on its dial – except one thing and that is the inclusion of either a sapphire or ceramic bezel inlay because aluminum doesn’t cut it on a modern tool-diver. I wonder when B&R will finally realize this.
If B&R ever decide to keep up with such ubiquitous bezel technologies, their diver would be perfect but as it is, it isn’t quite up to scratch – if you know what I mean.
But what do you think?
No comments:
Post a Comment