Both new Bell & Ross BR 03-92 watches come in 42mm-wide bead-blasted steel cases that are water-resistant to 100m. The movement inside is the BR-CAL.302 that is a base Sellita SW200-1 with 38hrs of power reserve operating at 4Hz. The date window at 4:30 (with date wheel in a color matching the dial) is also a common feature across BR 03-92 watches. The difference is in the dials (ok, the straps too), and thankfully, there is more to them than just some color combos.
The Bell & Ross BR 03-92 Horograph is, as I mentioned, Bell & Ross’ Bauhaus. This makes it pretty different-looking from anything else they offer, but certainly retaining enough Bell-&-Rossiness to give you the brand experience, due to the aviation instrument-inspired square case with screws in the corners. I dare say that the Bauhaus function-first focus is a good match for the pilot watch genre. The matte finishes from the case through to the dial with lumed hands and indices further reinforce the legibility and tool theme.
Bell & Ross has regularly looked to the world of aviation and motorsports for its design inspiration of their watches — for instance, a great deal of the dial layouts and design elements of Bell & Ross watches are all predicated on flight tool panels. The Bell & Ross Vintage Bellytanker series goes for a more relaxing and classic style and colour scheme than some more aggressive Bell & Ross designs.The title Bellytanker and the associated racecar actually have origins in the world of aviation. The theory behind these would be to enable the flights to possess an extended selection, but after empty, might be dropped mid-flight and help save weight and enhance remaining fuel market. As a section of an aircraft, the Bellytankers were, by necessity, quite aerodynamic and this also made their layout applicable for racecars, especially, for the type of automobile designed to go very fast in a straight line in a place such as the Bonneville salt flats. As a additional tribute to these automobiles and that era, Bell & Ross also designed a concept car — a contemporary interpretation of this Bellytanker.
The Bell & Ross BR 03-92 Horolum is bead-blasted from the case all the way through to the hands and brass-rhodium dial for an even, uniform, matte silver texture. The same color and texture of hands and dial does not sound like the standard recipe for contrast and high-legibility, nor does the green C3 Super-LumiNova against a light-colored dial. In fact, I would say this is thematically in some ways almost like the BR-03 92 Phantom watch that is, of course, all black on black.
What the Bell & Ross BR 03-92 Horolum may lack in daytime legibility it attempts to make up for at night. The “-lum” in Horolum does indeed refer to… yes, lume – and Bell & Ross says that airstrip runway lighting was the inspiration. The dial is of what is sometimes called the “sandwich” variety, meaning that it has cutouts to a lower layer that can accommodate large amounts of lume. Panerai is most famous for this dial style, but more close to home, we also saw it on the Bell & Ross BR-03 Desert Type watches here.
There are actually more ceramic models in the Bell & Ross BR 03-92 lineup than steel, so these new watches add some relatively affordable options, priced right alongside the basic steel version with black dial. Both the Bell & Ross BR 03-92 Horograph and the Bell & Ross BR 03-92 Horolum watches will have the same price of $3,400. bellross.com