What do people in this forum think about Bell & Ross?
I was originally drawn into it couple of years ago when it launched the square (airplane gauge) series. I think they did a good job of marketing it in highlighting its uniqueness and style. As there aren't too many square watches on the market, it was one of the obvious choices for a sporty square pilot type watch! However, I've never pulled a trigger on it as I couldn't justify its price. For that price range, it seems there are many better choices out there....
Now fast forward to 2012... one of my co-works has one of its 126 vintage models. I've to say that the watch looks really nice and well balanced in flesh. Don't know how to describe this but when you see a nice well built watch (like a Rolex for example), you just know it :!: And this is what I'm experiencing with my co-work Bell & Ross. It seems to ooze quality. It took me by surprise as I thought Bell & Ross is another marketing house trying to hang with the big boyz.
Upon a little of research, it seems that B&R commands a premium price in today's market: both new and used. It still seems expensive for brand with short history and roots. It offers no technological advancement nor innovation. Perhaps it focuses its energy in building quality watches rather than BS-ing about technology or harping on the past....
What do you think? Is this a brand destine to be great and respectable for what it's trying to do or another marketing genius that will fade overtime with no real competency?
As you said, I believe that the brand made a great move in its communication.
With no background, no tech innovation, they created themselvs some kind of pilot / army credibility.
However, if they do not make a move in terms of tech / design, I can't see them evolving to an higher level any time soon.
Personally I'm not a fan of the square watches, but I do like them as a company. Their early work with Mr. Sinn should give them credibility if nothing else and subsequently I put them on a similar footing to Sinn even though they are no longer working together.
I voted with my wallet :wink:
Andy
Wanted - Damasko DC57
really like the square watches, there certainly different, the 46mm airborne is one of my fav B&R
Too square for me. Give me something more classic! :(
Same here. I've bought 11 of them over the past 3 years.Originally Posted by andy tims
Great watches, Good looks, different from the norm ( omega, breitling, rolex ).
Some real gems include the officer series 123 which has a lot of value for money.
Design wise they lead, others follow - Also great with different materials ( ceramic ) my current br01 has a case made entirely of carbon fiber - what other watch can boast this?
not for everyone and of course, no in-house means they'll not attract wis folk.
You could try something that looks just a good but without the advertising and pr premium.
I think the OP sums it up quite nicely - they do have short history, they don't use in-house movements, they do command a premium and there are 'better' watches out there for the price.
But to all but the true-WIS, none of this matters one bit. B&R are a watch brand you buy because you like, nothing more. The movements might not be in-house, but that matters little when timekeeping, servicing requirements and robustness (is that a word?) are so good. History means little unless you're buying vintage. Price is relative to your budget, in regards to being expensive 'for what they are'.
I'm sure there are exceptions, I'm sure this forum hosts many of them, but I dare say most folk buy a watch because they like it and want to wear it. So there are only two questions - do you like them and can you afford one?
Affordability is a bit of an enigma: if I see a watch that grabs me, I'll buy it without blinking but if I notice that the onions at the supermarket are 10p a kilo more than they are at another supermarket, I'll think "what a rip-off". Happy to spend £1500 on a watch yet balk at spending 10p more than I have to on onions :lol: . What a strange lot we are.
Eddie
Whole chunks of my life come under the heading "it seemed like a good idea at the time".
excellent quality at a good price is where brands like Precista, Steinhart etc win out though. i can't help thinking Bell and Ross generally have a look which will date quite quickly.
ktmog6uk
marchingontogether!
... and thus will Steinharts, because a number of their designs are 'homages' based on what Bell&Ross has made popular.excellent quality at a good price is where brands like Precista, Steinhart etc win out though. i can't help thinking Bell and Ross generally have a look which will date quite quickly.
Some are pretty classy, especially the bicompax 126. I know there is better value and technology elsewhere, but I can't help liking the instruments. A Sinn 856 has a similar dial to a BR03-92, but with Tegiment, Faraday cage, and probably a higher grade 2892 to boot, at less than half the ££; having said that, there is something unique and compelling about the design. At that money Omega is a more logical use of your money, but it's hard to apply logic when you like something, and with BR03 / BR02 I do!
David
Erm, not classy IMHO. Not even a little bit :lol:
In the same way that tattoos above a girl's arse and orange fake tan are not classy. IMHO.
I think they are here to stay. I like their designs & the way they're heading. I agree they don't have much history, but everybody starts from somewhere...
As to commanding a premium, don't they all?
Here's my B&R; wouldn't say no to another in the future.
I did initially really like some of their pieces but (rightly or wrongly) don't feel they've really earned the right to charge the prices they do.. if that makes sense? They're too new, not enough history, and there are I feel less well known and glorified brands who I'd prefer to give my money to first (e.g. Sinn). I think for me they will remain in the realm of fashion watches.. and therefore of no real interest.
Case and dial made entirely from carbon fiber... what's not to like? :)
I really like the BR123 Vintage, but the square ones do nothing for me...
Pricey for me but I do like the classic chronos and more recent non square ("round") pieces.
If you like it and can afford it - buy it!
love the 123 but the square ones are a bit borderline chav. Too big and too brash
I quite like a few of them, and from what I've read about them they seem to be fairly well put-together. But they're not classy, unless there's a new definition of the word I'm not aware of.
They alright for me, nothing there that really takes my fancy.
I did own an 01 for a while but it didnt last long.
I like this one, but I like the watches it was copied from too :D
I like the vintage style ones, but the fact theybjust use Eta-calibers puts me off.
To much money for a simple caliber
I like some of them but not all, i had a vintage 120 for a good few years and i loved it, it was a great watch with good looks but to be honest i only payed £350 for it with box and papers from cash converters :D i was only walking past the shop and seen it out the corner of my eye so i had to take it and give it a good home :bounce: 8) i dont think they new wot it was 8) but if it was full price i would of walked on 8) one of my mates was as sick as a dog as he had not long payed full price for his :lol:
I was just thinking this the other day when I was horrified at a £1000 hand bag (not for me you understand :wink: ) - then it clicked :lol:
Bell & Ross have a nice mix of stuff for different tastes, and all of it is good quality. Price seems a little high, but then I've lost track of what watches costs these days with all the price rises! I really like this Vintage 126:
Wannabe......
Bubble of air........
Pilots my arse...........
Silly men with funny glasses in shitty advertisements.
Daddel.
Got a new watch, divers watch it is, had to drown the bastard to get it!
I'm not a fan of the ones that look like they've been removed from an aircraft and had a strap fitted. Some of their other stuff's quite nice but I can't see me owning one I don't think. Besides, I have small wrists and they'd look a little silly on them!
Sat on the fence with this one, huh? :lol:
Carbon fibre in a watch + those misaligned screw heads.
Andy
Wanted - Damasko DC57
I had a BR02 for a short time. Classy it was not but nor was it wanna be either. It was certainly well put together and it really did feel like a quality piece. It was also like nothing I have had before style wise, hence not a wanna be. I would probably describe this watch, the BR02, more of a marmite watch, if you see what I mean?. This probably applies for the whole brand too, partly because the first thing you think about when you hear B&R is that awful square thing :lol:
I read in a thread here before it is one of the favorite watches of car designers, which I can confirm.
In my view it is not for a real WIS. Their strong points are design (which is more fashion than function orientated) and great marketing.
On some forum I saw people thought Bell & Ross was owning Sinn at some point or Sinn got some know how from B&R :laughing6:
For me their best is probably the BR02 diver. They are probably good watches, but I hate how they do not communicate what movements they use (at least in their official catalog) and their price policy is a bad joke.
B&R used to sell rebranded Sinn watches under licence I believe.
Personally I have more than a soft spot for them. I like the fact they are different and now that there are some look a likes is a testament to their success. They are nicely made from interesting materials, they are expensive but then most of the the so called premium brands are.
The hydromax is a very interesting watch and some of the new pieces are very much aimed at a larger markets than the 01's and 03's which have enabled them to grow to be a strong brand. Very good marketing, has helped them grow.
I have a space 3 which I think is class.
Loved my BR02 as i don't like to follow the crowd.
It was solid and had real wrist presence and like PAMs, plenty of aftermarket strap choices.
I moved it on though as I needed to raise funds for another forum favourite, a Hublot BB :lol: :mrgreen:
High price though, for a standard version Selita................
Daddel.
Got a new watch, divers watch it is, had to drown the bastard to get it!
If i like the look (& feel) of something, it's surprising how easy it is to justify the price tag - I don't do rational with watches :mrgreen:
That is a thick strap! I fancy a steak now for some reason :wink:Loved my BR02 as i don't like to follow the crowd.
It was solid and had real wrist presence and like PAMs, plenty of aftermarket strap choices.
I moved it on though as I needed to raise funds for another forum favourite, a Hublot BB :lol: :mrgreen:
I didn't like them at first, then I did and then I didn't and now I do. I don't feel the urge to own one though. They seem to suit some people more than me.
How right is that quote.
I really fancied a B&R a couple of years back so got the BR01 and really fell for it. Really comfy and a little bit different. The wife then bought me the Radar for a Christmas present which I'm still not 100% on, it takes some time wearing it to get used to telling the time which is quite an issue for a watch!! Having said that, its got one of the comfiest straps I've got.
The Compass followed soon after and I prefer that to the Radar as its much easier to read.
Malc
Given the continued interest in the brand, I think they're going to fade away happily to the bank to deposit some large takings at the end of each week in perpetuity.
I don't think you can accuse the big square watches of having "class", unless "class" to you is a Cadillac Escalade :D. Character, presence, form and fashion, why not, and I think they did set the trend. I used to have this one, which back in the day, was essentially a quite expensive but very well-made Sinn that you could buy in the shops:
At exactly the same size as a Submariner, being 39.5mm across and about 12mm deep, it would today be categorised as watch for "girls".
...but what do I know; I don't even like watches!
That is absolutely lovely! But as you say, it's just a rebadged Sinn.. and I'd much rather just have a Sinn AND pay less for the privilege!
Oldie but goldie,
i like B&R, particularly the 123 line.
im not anti ETA movements either, as far as im concerned theyre an easily servicable and reliable workhorse.
saw B&R a few years back, really caught my eye... very chefy I have noticed, few of the celeb chefs have them....
BR01 in the above pics is perfect on that strap :wink:
Well, if Ainsly wears one, it must be good :D
Daddel.
Got a new watch, divers watch it is, had to drown the bastard to get it!
+1
Yes, they're labeled as designer's watch and even more as car designer's watch (who said so I would like to know? :shock: ), you can find them on the pages of Wallpaper magazine and similar design oriented paper waste. If you want to be seen as a person keen on design this is what is prescribed for you by the fashion gurus :D But well, same applies to all herds with a unified taste & mentality.
B&R spent good amount of money to fabricate their "history" so charging premium for made up stories, "heritage" and standard movements is not something I'll pay the money for - they have no substance.
When it comes to being different... I do actually like different designs and shapes, so having them on the market is a good thing actually. I like seing people wearing different watch designs and trying to separate themeselves from the rest. It is just super cheeky to pretend so much if you have nothing to back it up (B&R i mean). Being a bit more modest and taking it slowly but steady will earn them more respect i think.
Speaking of shitty advertisments for pilots watches: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORv30Mfb ... re=related
B&R make a few great watches and like said before, its good to have a variety of styles avaidable, well made aswell. BR02 series, great watches :)
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