My absolute favorite watches are pretty-looking sport models. There is a significant volume of these watches around, but really attractive ones are hard to find. Probably the biggest challenge in making a beautiful-looking sports watch is to first make sure it is a great utility watch, and only then ensuring it is visually attractive. Doing both is no simple task, but success can yield the reward of a watch being a true classic. That’s probably a good way of introducing this hands-on look at the Blancpain Watch Movements Replica Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph Ocean Commitment II timepieces that just look so darn good.
In the time when Blancpain Military Watches Replica was busy developing the first true dip watch — the Fifty Fathoms came before the Submariner, and do not let anyone tell you differently — calendars using moonphases were the rage. From the 1950s, it seemed liked every firm had one in their portfolio, such as Rolex. Today, you could say the opposite is true. Dive watches are everywhere, while Blancpain is among a smaller group of manufactures with a complete calendar and moonphase nonetheless in its lineup. It’s been a topsy-turvy 60 years plus a whole lot has happened.Mostly though, the Quartz Crisis struck hard, murdering the development and production of mechanical motions, including all sorts of calendars and more complex mechanics. It wiped out several manufactures completely. This was the destiny of Blancpain — known then as Rayville-Blancpain — though it was to get a whole new opportunity at success from an improbable source.In 1983, the Blancpain title was bought by a certain Jean-Claude Biver — the man now at the helm of this LVMH watch branch — and Jacques Piguet, son of Fréderic Piguet and then director of his father’s movement fabrication. Collectively, they would mastermind the organization’s survival, placing their faith in the eternal appeal of high-end complications, to which Jaques had access.The first Blancpain Complete Calendar was released in 1983, with caliber 6395. According to an F. Piguet 950, Caliber 6395 quantified just 4.98mm thick, and only 9 lignes/20.30mm in diameter (including the additional plate Blancpain adjusted onto it). In 1991, Blancpain introduced six watches known as the Masterpieces, all extra-thin wristwatches, in 34mm cases, such as one powered with a self-winding movement to indicating moonphase, day, month, and date. This week, I wore the direct descendant of that first Total Calendar, along with the Masterpiece, the brand new Blancpain Villeret Ultra-Slim Complete Calendar.
I am not shy about sharing my feeling that Blancpain produces some of the most beautiful high-end diving watches available these days with their Fifty Fathoms family. The collection is populated with a few distinct models which generally fall into the “classic” Blancpain Fifty Fathoms 5015 watch family (review here), and the Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe. The latter subfamily has two lines right now which are the three-hand Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe, and the Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Chronograph Flyback, which this limited-edition watch is a version of.
I first went hands-on with the Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Chronograph Flyback here back in 2014 when it was released. The first limited edition model was the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph Ocean Commitment, and earlier in 2016 Blancpain introduced a followup limited edition with this Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph Ocean Commitment II (debuted on aBlogtoWatch here). In a sense, it is probably a bit irritating to people who purchased the first limited-edition Ocean Commitment model that there is now a second one. On the other hand, this followup is just as beautiful as the first, but also distinct in its appeal. So, if anything, the fact that there is a sequel to the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph Ocean Commitment is a sign of the collection’s popularity.
There are a lot of hidden elements inside of the Blancpain Watches Dubai Replica Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph which make it a truly compelling timepiece, but it does take some time to learn about them all. This is important to do in order to understand the value proposition because these watches are anything but cheap in price. With that said, you do get a fair amount for your money if you are interested in tool watch looks with a modern movement and excellent fit and finishing.
I also want to say right now that I prefer the chronograph version of the Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe over the three-hand model. Of course, not everyone agrees with me, but that is my personal preference as I find the three-hand model’s dial a bit visually bare. On the other hand, I certainly prefer the three-hand model of the original Fifty Fathoms models over their chronograph models.
A good reason for this aside from aesthetics is the movement inside of the Blancpain Watches New York Replica Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph which is the in-house-made Blancpain caliber F385 automatic chronograph. You can view the movement through the rear of the case, and it isn’t difficult to tell that it is lovely in both design and decoration. Modern lines and shapes decorate this modern mechanical movement which also happens to boast a 5Hz (36,000bph) operating frequency. That is the same as the celebrated Zenith El Primero, and 1Hz faster than most standard 4Hz chronograph watches.
Given the faster operating speed of the movement you get two areas of benefits. First is a bit less useful to most people, and that is the ability to be a bit more precise when using the chronograph. Second is the fact that a higher operating frequency of the balance wheel means that rate result errors are averaged out more. That translates into more accuracy over time – a good thing. It is true that 5Hz movements of any kind are rare, and in dedicated dive watches this is pretty much the only one that I can think of.
The caliber F385 has a power reserve of 50 hours, and the chronograph has a flyback complication as well. It is produced from 322 parts, and apparently is specially secured to the case of the Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph for shock protection purposes. Last, the movement features a silicon hair spring, which adds the benefits of more durability and accuracy over time.
That all sounds great but, unfortunately, I couldn’t have the pleasure of testing the watch out first-hand as the model I got to play with was a “blocked” (the movement is stopped from working in order to maintain the position of the hands) prototype. Thus, I still yearn to wear a functioning one of these and fully experience the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph Ocean Commitment II out and about.
The first Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph Ocean Commitment watch has a gray ceramic case with a blue bezel and dial. The Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph Ocean Commitment II sort of reverses that color palette with a blue ceramic case and bezel, and then a metallic gray dial. Both the first and second Ocean Commitment models are pretty awesome, but ceramic watch lovers will clearly flock to this sequel limited edition model.
This is the first blue ceramic watch case I’ve worn (from a luxury brand), and it looks fantastic – especially next to the glossy gray tones. In some lights, the blue ceramic just looks like a black that has something going on with it, but in full light the rich blue tone of the case material comes out. Blancpain couldn’t really go any lighter with the blue as it would have made the color too unstable when it comes to production purposes.
However, this mid-century Blancpain Watch Case Replica Mil-Spec 1 with the watertightness indicator predates examples and is the oldest combat-issued diver from Blancpain as it was introduced in 1957. As a pioneer in pressure-sealing and dive timing during the acrylic unidirectional bezel, the Blancpain Mil-Spec watches could later serve as a reference point for dive watch development, ultimately paving the way for several other vital innovations throughout the new connection with the United States Navy.One such innovation on the original Blancpain Mil-Spec (a signature which would later come to be a normal feature for most military-issued watches) which has been re-created on the Blancpain Tribute to Fifty Fathoms Mil-Spec is the fully-functional humidity index at 6:00. Just like the vintage version, in the event of moisture ingress, the top half-circle of the indicator varies from white to orange, thus matching the lower half and letting the wearer understand the watch had been compromised. Granted, dive watches used to be more susceptible to fogging or flooding — although the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms was regarded as a pioneer in watertightness at the time, the indicator was still a useful barometer for displaying the overall wellness of the watch’s seals. Now, the likelihood of the indicator watching activity on a fully modern, 300-meter resistant dip watch seems pretty unlikely, but it’s still good to see Blancpain staying true to a key attribute on the first.
Blancpain and Omega (both part of the Swatch Group and who share technologies) have some of the best ceramic cases around. The Omega Speedmaster Dark Side Of The Moon (review here) and the ceramic versions of the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph have something in common. That is having some of the very best-looking ceramic cases on the market. What makes them so good is the sharpness of the angles on the case, as well as the quality of the contrast polishing. The Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph case is among the finest available in a modern high-end dive watch, and that goes for the ceramic version as well. Angles are just wonderfully sharp, and detailing throughout is fantastic. It is hard to experience quality like this and go back to lesser watches.
Despite being a chronograph and having a ceramic case, the Blancpain Authentic Watches Replica Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph Ocean Commitment II is still water resistant to 300 meters. The case feels perfectly sized at 43.60mm wide. It is also 15.25mm thick and has a lightly domed AR-coated sapphire crystal.
Around the dial is a smoothly operating 120-click, uni-directional rotating diver-style bezel. The outer bezel is titanium, with Liquidmetal (another technology shared with Omega) and blue ceramic as the rest of the bezel. The crown and pushers are also in blue ceramic – rendered equally nicely.
Given that this is a sport watch, the most important element other than durability is legibility. Here, the Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe certainly does not disappoint, with large blocky hands totally covered in luminant, and easy-to-read, highly contrasting hour markers. I also like that the subdials on the face are visually minimized. In fact, the most prominent elements on the dial are the various hands as well as the major markers. This allows the eyes to focus on the most important elements, while other things (like the chronograph subdials) are easy to read, but also not “in your face” when you don’t want to look at them.
Perhaps the only controversial element of the dial is the date window. It does help sales of watches to have a date complication. It is also good that Blancpain didn’t design the dial with the date window cutting off anything else. However, the date window is tilted so it is a bit odd to read with its position between 4 and 5 o’clock. Also, the date disc itself is black, which is a bit darker than the “meteor grey” dial color of the watch itself. It’s really not a big deal, but it will be the one thing people might complain about in the otherwise beautiful dial design. There are other splendid details that you’ll notice in the dial by just looking at it. Start by examining the clever design of the subdials, as well as the mostly polished metal-framed hour markers.
The brand offers two versions of the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph Ocean Commitment II on either a gray textile/canvas strap, or this high-end NATO-style strap with gray titanium hardware. It’s a darn nice NATO-style strap, but it does come in a 23mm wide size, and it also feels a bit odd on such a high-end watch (even if it looks cool).
The best way to think about the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph is as an extremely well-detailed tool watch. It looks nice, performs well, and has a very handsome classic look to it. Most important, of course, is that it is comfortable to wear and easy to read. Those elements together actually put it in a league with not that many other watches, and help solidify Blancpain as one of the premier producers of high-end “luxury” sport watches. The reference 5200-0310-G52 A (canvas strap) or reference 5200-0310-NAG A (NATO-style strap) Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph Ocean Commitment II watch is priced at $20,100. blancpain.com
Otherwise, it is mostly the same, with day, month, and moonphase apertures back into their standard positions, along with a dedicated date hand pointing towards the calendar toward the perimeter of the dial. This is how many mid-century calendars were created and it permits the apertures to enjoy more space on the dial. The date track is not in the edge of the dial, however; rather it is inside the implemented hour markers, that can be Blancpain’s highly stylized Villeret Roman numerals.While the principles haven’t changed much in 30 years, this watch looks considerably younger and fresher due to the sunburst finish on the dial. The effect it generates is pretty wonderful to look at, but using this particular white gold configuration with white gold hands it does not assist the legibility of the watch in all — this was not a problem in Blancpain’s previous versions and isn’t a problem with a number of the other colour configurations. But studying the white gold palms against the sunburst dial was hard and did not really get easier the more I had the opinion on my wrist.What is quite new though are the calendar’s most correctors, which can be now elegantly hidden below each drag. The idea was introduced in 2003 with the introduction of Calibre 6763, which Blancpain Watch Straps Replica made to get a limited edition to celebrate the model’s 20th anniversary. As this is a whole calendar, not an annual or perpetual, it is a watch which requires correcting five times a year, at the conclusion of weeks minus 31 days. This normally entails operating a run of sensitive push pieces on the instance flanks with a trap of some type. It is a small inconvenience, but a true one. Blancpain’s solution ensures a faster and friendly way of simplifying the calendar, with four small correctors for the day, date, month, and moonphase indicators. They’re easy to access, and much easier to operate because you do not need an adjustment tool. They also clean up the situation design somewhat, since you do not want the divots for those correctors in the caseband.