Bell & Ross BR-X1 RS16
The Bell & Ross BR-X1 RS16 is a chronograph which embraces state of the art materials including Carbonne Forgé®, grade 5 titanium and ceramic.
This detailed review of the Bell & Ross BR-X1 RS16 includes live images, specification details and pricing.
In 1971, my father took delivery of a silver-grey Renault 6. This car ran faultlessly for five years requiring only a replacement exhaust during our family’s tenure of the vehicle.
Looking back it was hardly the last word in luxury. The windows, typical of the period, required hand-winding when opening or closing. The doors necessitated using a key to unlock them. The manual gearbox was operated with a central dashboard mounted lever which needed a push and pull action to change gear. And lastly, who could ever forget the utilitarian black vinyl seats which had a habit of clinging to bare short-clad, schoolboy legs on warm summer days.
Times have most definitely changed. Today’s cars invariably feature electric windows, remote central locking, automatic gearboxes and cosseting leather seats. Moreover, they are lighter, faster, more economical, require less servicing and feature a host of computers to operate everything from interior lights to satellite navigation systems.
Looking at the latest offerings from Bell & Ross, it would appear that watches have also markedly changed in recent times. The brand with the ampersand prominently shown in its logo has been crafting some fascinating square watches for a while, but since it became the Official Watch Partner of Renault Sport Formula One™, Bell & Ross has embraced a whole new level of modernity.
The watch brand has taken inspiration from the yellow and black hued 2016 season R.S.16 race car for its BR-X1 RS16 and BR-X1 RS16 Tourbillon watches. Both timepieces sport yellow and greyish-black toned cases and embrace space age materials such as Carbonne Forgé®, grade 5 titanium and ceramic. Recently, I got to sample a taste of this neoteric world by placing the BR-X1 RS16 upon my wrist.
The dial
The dial is a black landscape, populated with geometric beam-like structures and open-worked numerals resting above silver toned dials, presented on a subterranean plane.
The hour and minute hands are partially skeletonised and lined with luminescent fill. The hours are indicated with cantilevered applied batons, again adorned with luminescent fill. The date is presented on a white background, via a silver-hued aperture, and proves eminently legible. The sapphire crystal is tinted but does not inhibit ease of read off. Indeed, despite the modernity and complexity of the dial epidermis it remains notably articulate.
Located at 3 o’clock, the small running seconds eschews a conventional subdial, employing four lines which grace the underside of the sapphire crystal and resemble crosshairs in appearance. Positioned opposite is a 30-minute chronograph register. It employs a circlet marked with a suitable scale and a highly unusual wheel marked with a yellow hand on one of its spokes, replacing the typical subdial hand. This latter detail confers a supremely eloquent means of communication whilst being imbued with a high quotient of style. Framing the main dial, presented on the flange, is a tachymeter scale proving highly useful for determining the speed of a vehicle over a given distance.
The case
Similar to a modern-day Formula 1 car, the case is a tech fest par excellence. The 45mm case is formed of several materials, including Carbonne Forgé®, grade 5 titanium and ceramic. The parallels with today’s world of motorsport are obvious. Contemporary race cars are formed of several high-tech materials which proffer both strength and lightness. Likewise, the mixture of materials employed by Bell & Ross with the BR-X1 RS16 also bestows lightweight and robust characteristics.
Beyond the technical merits of the materials used is the aesthetic strength conferred with the design language. The marriage of yellow and grey tones is very striking. Encircling the grey bezel is a vivid yellow circlet, subscribing to the Renault corporate colours. The strap also employs Renault yellow with black carbon fibre weave to eye-catching effect.
The chronograph push pieces are yellow and, on their vertical flank, they have symbols which resemble ‘fast forward’ and ‘rewind’ symbols typically found on a period tape recorder of the 1970s. Positioned adjacent 9 ‘clock, a yellow case band insert accords a degree of visual balance with the aforementioned pushpieces.
Gracing the rear of the case, a small circlet of tinted sapphire crystal accords sight of the balance wheel. I must confess that I would have preferred to have seen more of the engine powering the watch, but concede not everyone will share my opinion.
The mastery of this case is that it blends a myriad of details and a plethora of different materials and yet the design remains harmonious and attractive.
The movement
The automatic Calibre BR-CAL.313 consists of an ETA 2892 with a Dubois Dépraz DD2162 module exclusive to Bell & Ross.
Dubois Dépraz are renown for making excellent chronograph modules and this is obvious when pressing the pushpieces of the BR-X1 RS16 which operate with a delightfully smooth motion.
The small aperture on the case back does not allow much sight of the movement, hence it is impossible to provide any meaningful critique of the finishing. The view granted does allow sight of the balance which has a frequency of 28,800 vph (4Hz).
Closing remarks
The Bell & Ross BR-X1 RS16 is an ultra-modern timepiece, brimming with state of the art know, housed in a vividly-hued neoteric case. I accept such boldness may not be to everyone’s taste. However, for those openminded individuals who are accepting of change and progress this may well be a watch for you.
My father’s Renault 6 was a brilliant car in its day, but I would no longer wish to use it on a daily basis. Progress and modernity has led to cars which are markedly more advanced than vehicles of the 1970s. Likewise, the Bell & Ross BR-X1 RS16 delivers advancement and progress and showcases how cutting-edge materials, often used in Formula 1, can be embraced in the world of horology.
Times are changing and Bell & Ross, with its ultra-modern watches, are very much at the vanguard of those changes.
Further information
Technical specification
- Model: Bell & Ross BR-X1 RS16
- Case: Carbonne Forgé®, grade 5 titanium and ceramic with rubber inserts; diameter 45mm; sapphire crystal to front and solid caseback with small sapphire crystal aperture.
- Functions: Hours; minutes; small sweep seconds; date; chronograph; tachymeter scale
- Movement: Calibre BR-CAL.313 (ETA 2892 with a Dubois Dépraz DD2162 module exclusive to Bell & Ross); self-winding movement; frequency 28,800 vph (4 Hz); 56 jewels; power reserve 40 hours
- Strap: Woven rubber and bi-materials: rubber and carbon fibre. Presented on a on a black PVD steel finish pin buckle with rubber insert
- Price: £17,600 (RRP as at 18.12.2016)
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