There have always been two sides to Bell & Ross. On one side of the business are their dedicated tool and instrument watches that pay tribute to the history of aviation watches and industrial design, such as the standard BR-03. Then there’s more experimental, almost whimsical side with watches like the Astro. However, the new Bell & Ross BR-X3 Micro-Rotor limited edition is almost the perfect intersection of the two, pairing an industrial style with a highly unusual case construction.
Let’s start with that case. It has a 3-layer construction where a steel case middle is sandwiched by two layers of sapphire that serve as the watch’s glass and exhibition caseback – all held together by the visible screws in the four corners of the square, 40mm design. In itself that structure is not unusual, there are plenty of 3-piece cases out there, but what makes this one special is that the steel case middle is the movement itself.
It’s not a situation where the case houses the movement, they are one and the same. The case middle serves as the support structure for the calibre’s bridges, which in turn support elements such as the micro-rotor, open-worked power barrel and gear train. The bridges themselves are arranged strictly in a horizontal and vertical grid, which is designed to give the watch an industrial, architectural quality – informed by the works of Piet Mondrian and Charlotte Perriand.
The movement is the BR-CAL.390 with 48-hour power reserve. The use of a micro-rotor lets the rotor sit on the same level as the rest of the movement, giving the calibre slimmer dimensions that lets the BR-X3 Micro-Rotor have a total thickness of just 9mm. It’s protected by a 50m water resistance rating, which is solid enough given the unusual construction of the case/movement.
It’s priced at £19,000 in a limited edition of 99 pieces. That puts it at a quarter of the price of the £79,000 BR-X3 Tourbillon Micro-Rotor from 2025 that this piece is designed to be a more accessible alternative to – sharing a similar grid-like architecture. In that endeavour it’s successful. I also think it gets the balance between those more industrial and whimsical aspects of the Bell & Ross identity right.
Price and Specs:
More details at Bell & Ross.
