Continuing our rundown of notable watches in several categories from the Baselworld 2017 watch fair, we turn our attention to five new chronographs ? several of them representing firsts for their respective brands ? that stood out from the pack. Read on for details, and remember ? Father’s Day is only a few days away.
Breitling built on its long history of aviation-inspired chronograph watches this year with the launch of the Breitling Navitimer Rattrapante, which features the brand?s first in-house-made, split-seconds chronograph movement. That movement, Caliber B03, has a modular architecture is built upon the base Caliber B01, Breitling?s first manufacture movement, which is equipped with automatic winding, date indication, an integrated 1/4-second chronograph function, and a 70-hour power reserve. The split-seconds module added to this high-performance horological engine is comprised of only 28 parts, and fitted between the mainplate and calendar mechanism ? a construction that not only simplifies assembly but also maintenance: a watchmaker can remove the module as a single block for servicing and repairs. The two central hands of the split-seconds mechanism are a clever departure from the usual design of Breitling chronograph hands, which feature a counterweight shaped like the brand’s “anchor B” logo: the ?B? is on the main red chronograph hand and the anchor is on the split-seconds hand, meaning that the logo elements are separated when...