Not every watch is made to go off the grid or ascend a summit: The truly special watches crafted to carry you through journeys far afield are hard to find, unless you know where to look. You might say Bell & Ross has always had a knack for timepieces with rugged appeal, and the new Bell & Ross BR-03 GMT Compass fits the bill handsomely indeed.
Newly released in a limited run of 500 units, the Bell & Ross BR-03 GMT Compass takes an “everything but the kitchen sink” approach to horology in matters of form and function. Built out with a 42mm case in a square design that’s become a Bell & Ross signature, the eye-popping watch plays off classic explorer compass designs fused with modern watchmaking know-how.
To hear the company tell it, “Bell & Ross stays on track with the new BR-03 GMT Compass, a tribute to the compass of modern-day explorers.” It’s a fitting homage with real-world application, unlike some watches that tend to look better merely resting in a collector’s box. To say Bell & Ross timepieces are the opposite of that would be an understatement.
As of late, Bell & Ross watches have delivered an homage to fighter jet team inspiration as well as military stealth aircraft with a skeleton ceramic BR-05 watch. Other timepieces within the Bell & Ross BR-03 lineup tend to take their cues from the skies and from aviation-inspired cockpit dials, so it was only a matter of time before the famed tool watch brand leaned heavily into travel with both a compass-like design and a GMT complication within.
As to the Bell & Ross BR-03 GMT Compass, it boasts all the specs a globetrotting wearer might want, with a graduated dial and a two-tone bezel. The watch joins the horology company’s Flight Instruments roster, which “embodies the essence of instrument watches inspired by aviation.” The two-tone bezel displays both your destination time and the time reading back home, while the durable yet stylish timepiece is built out with a 54-hour power reserve via its BR-CAL.303 automatic calibre movement.
As Bell & Ross sagely notes, the construction of the bezel is such that it turns into a solar compass in addition to a 24-hour timezone tracker. And with its arrow-shaped GMT hand popping nicely against a black dial with crisp white numerals, this hard-wearing watch should prove legible across the globe, from point A to point B.
With its durable, reliable design, versatile black rubber strap and a water-resistant build down to 100 meters, the Bell & Ross BR-03 GMT Compass defines a new take on the modern-day tool watch in a way few horology companies can muster. Complete with a striking and utterly unique compass-meets-watch design, the company says “this robust and precise timepiece epitomizes the functional aesthetic of Bell & Ross,” Find your new favorite adventure timepiece online now in limited quantities for $5,000 at Bell & Ross.