BY HARLAN CHAPMAN-GREEN
Bremont is all about historical links with their watches. Usually, those links are in the form of taking bits and pieces from old things and fashioning them into a watch somehow, but other links appear elsewhere. Bremont’s diving range is called the Supermarine, most likely named after Supermarine Aviation Works Ltd, the British aircraft manufacturer formerly based in Hampshire, which is responsible for planes such as the Swift and, most notably, the Spitfire.
The new Supermarine S302 watches play on the design of a GMT diving watch but keep their 40mm case diameter from the older models along with the 300m water resistance. The watches use Bremont’s TripTick case construction as well, which is their way of saying the case is made of three parts (case bezel, case middle and case back, usually the middle and bezel are one piece). This is why it the lugs on their watches seem to melt over the rest of the case, it’s quite unique. Bremont is offering their cases in stainless steel or black DLC-coated steel. The new re-designed ones look a little like Tudor watches, no? Maybe it’s just me.
The new Supermarine S302 watches all have a two-tone red and blue bezel, if this were a Rolex we would be calling it a ‘Pepsi’ but I guess the name doesn’t apply here. The bezel is a GMT one, which I don’t personally like on a diving watch. I feel the bezel should be a diving bezel with the GMT one inside the edge of the dial. With that said, Omega does it too on the Planet Ocean, and it works for them. The dial is definitely legible with big clear markers painted with SuperLumiNova, and the dial is otherwise clean and simple save for the Bremont logo.
Depending on the choice you make Bremont is offering a blue dial or a black one.
Inside each case is an ETA-based movement, which Bremont has modified and called the BE-931AV calibre, which has a 50-hour power reserve a, 4Hz beat rate and chronometer certification. It’s obscured behind a closed caseback, though. It would’ve been nice to see the movement in the open, but there’s a seaplane (hopefully a Supermarine one) on the back, which looks cool.
These watches are a part of Bremont’s permanent collection and can come on a stainless steel bracelet, integrated rubber strap or black leather strap for the blue version. Meanwhile, the black one just gets the rubber or leather strap choices. Prices start at €3900 for the rubber or leather ones and rise to €4350.
