Bremont Launches Broadsword Recon Watch
Tuesday - 14 March 2023
Jura Watches is offering a first glimpse of the new Bremont Broadsword Recon watch. The model features a more complex sandwich dial, is limited to just 200 pieces worldwide and offers a transformable strap, hallmarked with the heraldic badges and symbols of all three of His Majesty’s Armed Forces.
A design inspired by the Dirty Dozen watches
It’s common knowledge that pocket watches proved very impractical for frontline military personnel during the Second World War. Soldiers needed a watch that would respond to the demands of warfare and this involved wearing a robust and legible watch strapped to the wrist. The first to prove effective were trench watches that featured straps soldered to the case of a watch. Then it was thought that a British commander and advisor to Winston Churchill devised the guidelines for a set of specifications that defined a proper soldier’s watch. These timepieces for the British Royal Air Force and Royal Navy were considered part of the Dirty Dozen. They featured black dials, railroad minute tracks, Arabic numeral hour markers, luminous hands and a precise movement that performed within chronometer standards. The watches also needed to be shock-resistant, water resistant and shatterproof with an easy-to-grip crown. To create these watches, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) reached out to twelve watch brands, all of whom were Swiss, except Vertex (despite making its watches in Switzerland). The Dirty Dozen watches were produced during a very short space of time, between 1944 and 1945. After this, the war ended, thus so did the demand for these watches. That said, these iconic wristwatches live on in modern-day designs through leading watch brands like Henley-on-Thames brand, Bremont.
Following the success of Bremont’s original stainless steel Broadsword watch, the British watchmaker unveiled a trio of bronze-crafted watches in 2020 with slate grey, teal green and tobacco brown-coloured dials. Inspired by the famous “Dirty Dozen” watches, the models symbolised the partnership between Bremont and the Ministry of Defence. As a result, Bremont became the sole luxury watchmaker in the world to have been granted permission to display the symbols and Heraldic badges of all three services on its watches; the Royal Navy, Royal Air Force and the British Army. The new Broadsword Recon, released for 2023, continues in the same footsteps as the previous Broadsword watches and has been designed as a contemporary take on the original three-handed Dirty Dozen watch. For the first time in Bremont’s Armed Forces collection, this Broadsword watch is limited to just 200 pieces and features a more complex sandwich dial construction.
A transformable strap…
The Bremont Broadsword Recon watch builds on the brand’s foundations of its longstanding partnership with the Ministry of Defence. Its design is based on the popular 40mm steel version of the Broadsword watch belonging to the British watchmaker’s Armed Forces Collection, inspired by a series of timepieces commissioned by the British Army during the Second World War. Some of its key features include a complex sandwich dial behind which a reliable chronometer-rated movement sits. To complement the model’s polished and satin-brushed stainless steel case is a striped NATO strap with an additional leather or rubber strap for transforming the look of the watch when desired.
Other features of the Bremont Broadsword Recon watch
The satin and polished case of the new Bremont Broadsword Recon watch measures a diameter of 40mm and sits at a depth of 12.5mm. The two-piece case construction is crafted from MoD hardened stainless steel and features a screw-down crown at 3 o’clock that helps to uphold the watch’s 100-meter water-resistant capability. The top of the case is crafted from a domed scratch-resistant sapphire crystal glass that has been treated with several layers of Bremont’s special anti-reflective technology, assisting with a clear view into the dial whenever needed. Underneath this strong sapphire glass front is the dial, designed in a way that nods to the watches of the Dirty Dozen series.
The matte black metal dial of the new Bremont Broadsword Recon watch is equipped with elements that have been treated with Super-LumiNova material that glow in a rich green emission. The hour track is represented in stencil-type Arabic numerals, whilst the black central hour and minute hands taper to a point. The edge of the dial also features a legible minute track, framing a date window at 3 o’clock and a small seconds sub-dial at 6 o’clock with the same beige-coloured markings seen throughout the rest of the dial.
Inside the strong, MoD hardened stainless steel case of the new Bremont Broadsword Recon Limited Edition watch is a powerful automatic movement. The modified Calibre BE-95-2AV comprises 31 jewels and performs at a rate of 28,800 beats per hour. It also produces a power reserve of 38 hours once fully wound and features a Glucydor balance wheel, a Nivaflex mainspring and an Anachron balance spring.
The military-ready, Dirty Dozen-inspired Bremont Broadsword Recon watch for 2023 is engraved with all three of the MoD’s heraldic badges and symbols upon its caseback and is completed on a brown calfskin strap with white contrast stitching and a stainless steel pin buckle. If you’d like more information on the watch, you can visit the product page here at Jura Watches by clicking here, or call and speak to a member of our sales team today on 01335 453453 to secure yourself one of these special 200 limited edition pieces.
