Ebel 1911 BTR Automatic Chronograph Swiss Watches Review

Ebel 1911 BTR upgrades 1911 Discovery in several technological directions, be it materials, calibers, or complications. In terms of design 1911 BTR departs even further from the principles set by Beluga, Brasilia and Classic collections; the integrated bezel and the screws, however, are still there. The collection offers four lines: Caliber 137, Caliber 139, GMT, and Perpetual Calendar Chronograph. All 1911 BTR watches are both chronographs and chronometers.

1911 BTR watches veer between traditional and futuristic aesthetic. This trend may seem confusing at first, but in it only responds to latest fashion in watch design and architecture. The majority of high-end luxury Swiss watchmakers seek to explore new ground in designing their products; what might have appeared as bizarre or outlandish a decade ago now seems surprisingly mainstream. Ebel keep up, and even carve out their own niche in dial designs, offering ultra busy dials in the Caliber 139, or skeleton Perpetual Calendar – both lines visually reminiscent of Vacheron Constantin Quai de L'ile.

1911 BTR watches include a chronograph (Caliber 137 and Caliber 139), a GMT indicator, and a perpetual calendar. The latter two, being chronographs as well, present highly complicated timepieces that also allude to Patek Philippe Complication collections. Ebel clearly boast their technological accomplishments in the 1911: all movements are made in-house, a considerable feat for a brand that started making automatic mechanical watches only recently.

Materials

When in comes to materials, Ebel 1911 BTR emulates the best of what such Swiss watchmakers as Vacheron Constantin and Blancpain have to offer. 1911 BTR watches introduce titanium, black rubber carbon fiber, and technofiber, sometimes incorporating one within the other. More conventional materials include stainless steel, gold, and alligator skin straps. One of the most fascinating qualities in high-end sports watches is the way they combine new materials with old, always leaving enough room for one type to inform and enrich the other.