Ophion speak your language with the new 786
By James Gurney

Ophion?s new 786 deserves a close look. The market for watch cognoscenti that love, but can?t afford, the likes of Laurent Ferrier or Vacheron Constantin is turning into the watch industry?s most intriguing battleground just now. With the likes of Baume & Mercier, Nomos Glashütte, Oris and Tudor offering serious watchmaking quality at prices below £3,000, not to mention TAG Heuer and an increasingly competitive offering from IWC, there?s not been so much choice at this level for decades. There are, however, niches that remain.
Most of the ?action? in this sector is, naturally enough, focussed on a design /tech offer ? in-house movements, new materials and utilitarian style. Baume et Mercier?s Clifton offers something a little more classical, but those wanting the feel of haute horlogerie don?t have too many other options, which is where Ophion come in.
The brand?s premise is simple enough ? create guilloché dialled watches inspired by pocket watches from the late 18th Century. Ophion use CNC rather than stamping for the dial ? real Breguet-style guilloché being far too expensive for this part of the market ? matched to good ébauches that they can complete to their own specification. Keep everything else simple and you have a watch that?s a smart affordable take on a watchmaking language that is otherwise out of sight until you double or even triple the price.

Ophion?s 786 is the brand?s second model and...