Bell & Ross Military Type 123

[JGJG]

It's no secret that I'm a fan of Bell & Ross in general, and those watches using the first-gen 123 case shape in particular. This is my fourth B&R, and the third in this case shape.



The Military Type 123 was one of the very first special edition Bell & Ross watches and was produced in a limited and numbered series of 999 pieces. Steel cased, it features an olive drab dial with a beautifully textured finish under close inspection. And, of course, that little red ampersand....

Thought I would share a couple of pictures of this little trooper. Keen to hear your thoughts :)









PS you can see more of its stablemate, the Bell & Ross 123 Geneva, here: https://forum.tz-uk.com/showthread.p...ll+ross+geneva. As I said in that thread, “When looking from [the 123] to the brand’s current overwhelming focus on its instrument (i.e. square) watches, it’s hard not to feel that they have perhaps turned their back on something really quite magical.”

[mark.wilo13]

I like a lot of their latest designs but I feel quite a few are ruined by date windows that look very out of place.


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[RS404]

Never seen this version before, I like it a lot more than the standard 123. Great choice of strap too.

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[helidoc]

I’m also a great fan both of the 1st generation vintage, and the square instruments. I love the first generation 123, such a great size, and with excellent fit and finish. I much prefer this version to the standard 123, although both are a different beast to the Geneva. That’s just a great no nonsense watch. I’m a bit envious.


Dave


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[adrianwong]

Generally I'm not a fan of B&R watches, but this one looks well considered. Lovely case shape and effort to add balance to the dial.

[redmonaco]

I do like their iconic square watches and hopefully will get one in the not too distant future. Not a fan of their round case pieces though.

[JGJG]

Thanks for the comments all.

I like a lot of their latest designs but I feel quite a few are ruined by date windows that look very out of place.

^That’s interesting; one certainly has plenty of scope for subjective pros and cons with the design of any Bell & Ross piece, but their date windows always struck me as particularly well resolved in any of their watches, including those watches I don’t otherwise care for. I particularly like the 4:30 position on the current crop.

I have noticed quite a bit of “connoisseur” moaning about date windows across all brands in general of late - largely coming from Hodinkee writers and their imitators. To my mind, any carping about a date has a ring of trying-too-hard jaundiced boastfulness about it (”I have far too many watches in rotation ever to set a date”); that or extreme indolence. Generally, I find a date to be a more useful complication than a running seconds.

I’m also a great fan both of the 1st generation vintage, and the square instruments.

^ I certainly didn’t mean to imply that I don’t like the square instruments Dave. I could see a Horograph or Bi-compass in my collection in the future 😁