On Jaguar and watches: BREMONT JAGUAR MKIII chronograph. British weak?

With some notable exceptions (humming, Rolex Explorer, Omega AT), my favorite watches tend to be the underdogs-moderately priced Hamilton watches, obscure German brands like Guinand and vintage military-issued watches. I like vintage watches for many reasons, including original design, brand heritage, attractive wrist look, romantic concept of sea or air life, but my age is limited, my patience with service is limited items, counterfeit and Fran Kens’s worries, and stupid old-fashioned prices. Today, I would rather buy a new or second-hand modern watch, but also seriously consider it. The important thing is that the watch will speak to you, regardless of its cost or attractiveness to other people.

It was these clumsy ideas that brought Bremont to my attention about ten years ago. But I was not sure about this brand at the time. Is it legal? Or are they just selling the British style to freaks like me who already love British cars, British clothing and James Bond? Today, about ten years later, I can answer these questions with certainty. The answer is yes, it is actually the case, no, no, Bremont did not lie to you by marketing Anglo.

Of course, my friend Jason Heaton was a factor that influenced my thinking. We have a lot in common, such as the ancient Land Rover, watches, and travel and adventure in the Great Lakes, and since he was founded, he has been a passionate supporter of Bremen. Even so, it took several years for Jason’s steady drip to gradually erode my natural skepticism. At that time, the second-hand Jaguar XK joined the family fleet, so I naturally had to look at the collaboration between Bremont and Jaguar. When I saw Ian Callum participating in the design of Bremont’s Jaguar series of watches, I noticed the concern and respect of the British brothers for Jaguar. I just started The Bremont resistance of melted real estate is completely melted. .

“Continuation” E-type racer.
If you are not familiar with the history of Jaguar, it may help. The original E-type road bike came out in 1961 and caused a sensation overnight because of its beauty and performance. In 1963, Jaguar announced plans to manufacture 18 “special GT E cars” for competition. 18 serial numbers were retained, but for various reasons, Jaguar only completed 12 of the 18 cars. My guess is that they only have a dozen orders from private customers of racing enthusiasts, but in any case, these cars have gained a reputation for their performance and rarity over the years.

Fast forward fifty years, and it was not until Jaguar’s design director Ian Callum and the company’s special projects director David Fairbairn planned a plan (the story is a bit more telling) that the last six 1964 GT E racers were built. . But the unexpected reward the buyer received with his brand new 1964 E-Type racer was a very special Bremont watch, specially designed and assembled for these cars, with matching series numbers.

The original Jaguar E-Type (sold at the price of XK-E in the US) used a meter designed and manufactured by Smiths Instruments, and the original tachometer was inspired by the copy watches Bremont provided to Jaguar’s Continuation E-Type car. . It is the success of these six original Bremont lightweight E-type chronographs that gave birth to Bremont’s four conventional Jaguar E-Type style retro watches. MkI is a serialized stainless steel version of the first six watches. These watches are all refined in platinum and use Bremont’s internal movement. With its small seconds chronograph function at 9 o’clock, it can be described as a necromantic gorgeous, instantly recognizable, and the most expensive in the series. MkII is a dual-register chronograph, available in black and white models. There is no doubt that its eye-catching appearance and dual-combination layout are easily reminiscent of the 1960s.

Jaguar MkIII and Smith instrumentation.
Then came the subject of this review, MkIII. Although it lacks the sexy dynamics of MkI and the candy-colored dial details of the MkII chronograph, in my opinion, this is the purest expression of the Smiths Instruments E-Type design language, which inspired the series. I guess it is also the most affordable one, becoming “Everyman’s Edition”, but on the wrist I can tell you that the watch is indeed very special.

Let’s start with what immediately appeals to you, the beautifully crafted dial, which is a carefully considered rendering of the original Smiths tachometer. The original dial is indexed at 100 revolutions per minute, while the Bremont dial is indexed in hours between 8 o’clock and 4 o’clock, which is the same as the speed scale of the tachometer, occupying the highest 240 of the circle. degree. Moreover, it is very pleasing that the Smith meter has 5 divisions between its main enumeration of 500 RPM, so that the engine speed of each division reaches 100 RPM, and the minute scale is strongly recommended on the dial. It is tempting to think that the original designer of this dial would have thought of the dial, and may be inspired by the minute markers between the hour markers of its British-made Smiths Deluxe swiss watches.

On Bremont’s dial, the red line area is indicated by the swept parts corresponding to 3 o’clock and 4 o’clock. I like this subtle detail, by the way, you can now buy an authentic electronic replacement tachometer from Smiths Instruments for your original E-Type. Their site also has some interesting history on these cars.

The center area of ​​the dial is higher than the outside, perfectly echoing the same details of tach, and this part of tach shows the name of its manufacturer Smiths, and we see the Bremont propeller logo on the dial. The icing on the cake is the old-fashioned Jaguar logo, which is copied above the date window of the watch at 6 o’clock, and not to be missed is the small hub cap that holds the pointer on the pinion of the movement, which is the movement’s Miniature replicas. The same piece on the Smith chart.

What makes me happy is that fake Bremont truly respects Smiths gauges as they do, but the price we pay for design fidelity is the lack of numbers or scales at the bottom of the dial at 120 degrees. However, this is not your best guess between 4 o’clock and 8 o’clock, because the designer of Bremont thoughtfully provided two small dots, usually at the 5 and 7 positions of the dial. They are small, yes, but once you know where they are and train your eyes a little, they will let you tell the time easily between these two hours. Solved the problem through sophisticated design.