Premier
Bell & Ross re-enlists with NATO
straps and a bronze case.
BY MICHAEL THOMPSON
BELL & ROSS EARLIER THIS YEAR UNVEILED THREE AUTOMATIC WATCHES
within its vintage-military BR-V2 collection. Two of the 41mm debuts are
steel-cased models (one is a GMT and the other is a three-hand model
with date) while the third is bronze-cased bi-compax chronograph. All are
equipped with NATO fabric straps.
Bell & Ross is offering each new model with its own blue or green color,
emphasized with matching dials, bezels and straps. Two of the new watches
are also available with a steel bracelet, while the bronze-cased chronograph,
a limited edition of 999, is only sold with its blue NATO strap.
BR V2-93 GMT BLUE
With a nod to the BR V2-93 GMT 24H launched in 2018, this latest GMT
edition offers a 41mm steel case with a metallic blue sunray pattern dial. And
in case you’re not aware of the aviation-linked GMT functionality, Bell & Ross
has placed an aircraft-styled counterweight on the seconds hand.
Around the dial you’ll see a bi-directional rotating bezel in two-tone
anodized aluminum (grey for daytime and blue for night-time), which means
the time in a second time zone (shown on a 24-hour scale) can be read using
the arrow-tipped GMT hand. All four hands and all the indexes are coated
with white SuperLuminova.
BR V2-92 MILITARY GREEN
The BR V2-92 Military Green model is the most basic of these three debuts,
with its three-hand timekeeping, date and anti-reflective matte khaki dial.
Here, Bell & Ross has treated the dial to echo those in the existing Bell &
Ross “LUM” collection, which means it is treated with green SuperLuminova.
And as we’ve seen in the Bell & Ross Vintage collection, this BR V2-92 is also
equipped with domed sapphire crystal and a black bi-directional rotating
bezel in anodized aluminum. Note that the date, in a nice military detail, is at
4.30 and is colored the same khaki green color as the dial.
BR V2-94 AÉRONAVALE BRONZE
To maintain the vintage décor found on the entire Bell & Ross Vintage
BR Aéronavale collection, here the brand extends the look with a bronze-
cased edition, limited edition to 999 pieces. Bell & Ross’s bronze formula,
comprised of 91% copper, 7% aluminum and 2% silicon, noticeably tilts on the
yellow side of traditional bronze tints.
Like other watches in the Bell & Ross Vintage series, this new BR
V2-94 Aéronavale Bronze features a fixed bezel, here in navy blue anod-
ized aluminum. The watch’s blue dial, nicely set with gilt metal indexes and
numerals, is a luxurious example of historic bi-compax chronograph subdials.
This chronograph also features screw-down pushers and skeletonized hands
coated with white SuperLuminova.
The new Bell & Ross
BR V2-93 GMT
SPECIFICATIONS:
Bell & Ross BR V2-93 GMT Blue
Movement: BR-CAL.303. Automatic mechanical.
Functions: hours, minutes and central seconds.
Second time hand rapid-setting, independent
from the hour hand, date.
Case: 41mm satin-polished steel. Bi-directional
bezel with 24-hour scale. Blue and grey
two-color anodized aluminum disc, screw-down
crown, sapphire case-back. Water resistant to
100 meters, ultra-curved sapphire crystal with
anti-reflective coating.
Dial: Blue sunray. Numerals and indices coated
in white SuperLuminova. Metal skeletonized
SuperLuminova-filled hour and minute hands.
Strap: grey and blue elastic canvas strap or
satin-polished steel with folding buckle.
The Bell & Ross BR V2 -93 GMT, on a steel bracelet.
50 | INTERNATIONAL WATCH | SPRING 2020