Most commonly known for their square watches, Bell & Ross fake watches have been making their classic round “vintage” collection of watches like the BR-126 and BR Sport Watch for years now. It’s been a while since aBlogtoWatch took a look at this collection and fortunately for us, 2017 sees the release of three new Bell & Ross vintage watches: the BR V1-92 Black Steel three hand and date watch; the slightly larger and more aggressive BR V2-92 Black Steel; and the chronograph BR V2-94. Let’s see what the three new Bell & Ross Vintage pilot’s watches have to offer, though I have to say I think all three knock it out of the park.
The Bell & Ross BR V1-92 replica watches are the smallest and least expensive of the bunch, but it’s likely to get the most attention. It’s got classic vintage pilot’s watch style and as you can see in the image above, the BR V1-92 (furthest watch to the right) has a simple steel bezel surrounding the “ultra-curved” anti-reflective sapphire. The dial keeps it simple and sticks to the basics. It’s highly legible and the use of only black and white on the dial along with the minimal text (other than the B&R insignia, the word “automatic” above 6 o’clock is it for text) leads to a refreshingly restrained and unfussy dial.
The large, long hands on the matte black dial are done in skeletonized metal filled with Super-LumiNova. The small circular date window between 4 and 5 o’clock is one of the most attractive and least distracting I’ve seen in some time and is bound to be least offensive to even the most ardent hater of the admittedly useful complication. Powering the BR V1-92 is the automatic BR-Cal. 302, their modified Sellita SW300-1. Operating at 28,800 vph, the movement gets a 38 hour power reserve. The watch, along with all the pieces in this collection, is water resistant to 100m.
In addition to the demure steel bezel Bell & Ross copy watches and design, watch enthusiasts who tend to lean towards smaller pieces will be happy with the 38.5mm wide case, slim profile, and simple black calfskin strap. I am not the biggest fan of watches smaller than 40mm (even less so when they’re on a strap) but even I see the appeal of this unpretentious and self-confident classic pilot’s watch, especially when you consider that the price is under $2,000.
