Shining a Light on Ball’s New Roadmaster Marine GMT Watches

The new highly luminous Marine GMT watch from Ball Watch Company’s Roadmaster range promises quick and easy time zone settings thanks to a new innovative push button design. Get the details here.

What many do not realise is that aside from Switzerland’s rich legacy in manufacturing highly precise luxury watches, America boasts a heritage in Haute Horlogerie too. Ball Watch Company, founded in Ohio in 1891, has left an indelible mark in the history of watchmaking with the role it played in maintaining railroad accuracy in America throughout the late 1800s. Ball watches are respected for their superior quality and their innovative luminous technology. While many Ball watches can withstand extreme shock impact and magnetic fields, the company’s patented dial illumination technology, which uses florescent light tubes to aid legibility, is one of a kind and has come to be a key hallmark of Ball’s work across the entire luxury watch industry. Rolling all these qualities into one is the new version of the Roadmaster watch, which now boasts a new and innovative way to adjust the GMT hand.

About Ball’s Light Tube Technology

Ball Watch Company equips its watches with the ingenious use of micro gas tubes. It is these that enable each of the brand’s robust and highly functional tool watches to shine instantly, rather than absorbing light and emitting it back into the dial. Instead, the H3 gas, which fills the middle of each tube, releases energy, hitting the surface of the coloured tubes without requiring recharging from any external light source.

The result is unmatched time-reading, day and night with no risk of the glow dying out when it is needed the most. Pure tritium gas is held inside lightweight mineral gas tubes, whose internal layer is coated with phosphor powder in various colours. The tubes are closed once filled, enabling the tritium to emit electrons. This causes the coating inside the tube to give off a cold, crisp light. Unlike any standard luminous material, Ball’s Micro Gas Tube technology guarantees up to ten years of constant luminosity and is used in such small quantities, that it’s completely safe.

Incorporating the brand’s gas tube technology into its design is the Roadmaster Marine GMT, which now comes with an even easier way to track time. Conventionally, to change the positioning of the GMT hand, one would have to unscrew the crown, jeopardising the water-resistant capabilities of the case, and rotate the crown to move the GMT hand while hopping from one country to the other. Instead, the two push-pieces on the left-hand side of the Ball Roadmaster Marine GMT watch can be used to jump the GMT hand back and forth for quicker, hassle-free time adjustments.

The Bezel Options

Of course, the GMT gained global popularity back in the 1950s. Part of this was down to the colours of the emblematic 24-hour bezel, namely the iconic red and blue “Pepsi” bezel. Ball Watch Company’s range of Roadmaster Marine GMT watches are delivered in a broad range of colour combinations that make choosing any one design a tough task. For example, the green and black two-tone bezel of the new Roadmaster collection is modest and sophisticated. It could pair well with formal attire thanks to its muted deep tones that look incredibly attractive and sporty.

Then, there is the blue and red bezel, differentiating the daytime hours from the nighttime hours, paired with the same black dial. Other variations include the red and black combination associated with the “Coke” bezel, along with a blue and green version. These models come with blue, black or white displays for even more variety. There’s also a solid blue or black GMT bezel that marries well with a white dial. Lastly, a deep green hue, either on its own or paired with a dark blue colour is also available. They look particularly tool-like, while the “Batman” bezel colours offer blue and black tones paired with a blue or black dial.

The New Ball Roadmaster Marine GMT Design

The new Ball Roadmaster Marine GMT watch, regardless of the colour combination you choose, is engineered for easier and faster time settings. The revolutionary push-buttons, located at 8 and 10 o’clock, move the GMT hand backwards and forward respectively with a simple push of the finger. It’s a smooth and effortless alternative to activating the crown. While the main hands can be used to track the current time in any one country, the 24-hour bezel can be used to track time back at home. With the addition of the 24-hour bezel and the GMT hand, a total of three time zones can be tracked at any one time with the new Ball Roadmaster watch.

As already mentioned, the Roadmaster Marine GMT watch benefits from the brand’s industry-leading gas-filled luminous tube technology. The H3-filled tubes are not only positioned on each hour marker but also on the central hour and minute hand too. What’s more, they are used in the GMT hand, which features a red triangular tip for enhanced legibility, and in the Arabic numerals placed at 6, 9 and 12 o’clock. To enhance readability on the bezel itself, the 24-hour markers are treated with Super-LumiNova so that they can be read in total darkness. The dial of the new Ball Roadmaster Marine GMT watches also feature a day-date function at 3 o’clock, placed against a white wheel for maximum contrast against the watch’s rich black dial.

In terms of robustness, the new Ball Roadmaster Marine GMT watches all offer a water-resistant rating of 200 meters and measure a diameter of 40mm. This universal size is great for slender wrists too, plus, the watches are crafted from lightweight titanium to promise an even more manageable experience on the wrist. These models all promise shock resistance up to 5,000Gs and magnetic resistance up to 4,800A/m, together with a sapphire crystal glass front and caseback. The latter affords a clear view of the automatic movement operating from within the case – the Calibre BALL RR1203-C. With an impressive COSC certification, this movement performs at a rate of 28,800 vibrations per hour and delivers a power reserve of 38 hours once fully wound.

To finish, the new Ball Roadmaster Marine GMT watches, in their many different colour combinations, are fitted on a matching lightweight titanium bracelet with a Ball-engraved folding clasp. The modes are each limited to 1000 pieces worldwide, making them solid investments and valuable collector items.

Want to experience the look and feel of the new Roadmaster watch, complete with a quickset GMT time function and a total of 28 gas light tubes? Call and speak to a member of our Jura Watches sales team today on 01335 453453 or email us a question at help@jurawatches.co.uk