BY HARLAN CHAPMAN-GREEN
Bovet is a relatively small watchmaker based in the watchmaking town of Fleurier in Switzerland, rubbing shoulders with names like L.U.Chopard and Parmigiani Fleurier. The brand is well renowned for its complicated watches with often, erm, unusual design choices. I think some of them look a bit weird, okay? With that said, the new Récital 30 looks to be an interesting one, let’s take a peek.
The mechanism inside the new Récital 30 builds on the award-winning Récital 28 Prowess 1 watch, which won the Mechanical Exception prize at the 2024 GPHG awards. Bovet identified that world time watches were not always telling the right time due to the inconsistent use of daylight saving time (DST) across the globe (only 70 or so countries use it). As some countries use DST, where the hours advance by one extra in the summer and then set back by one hour in the winter (usually), the timezones would never be aligned on world time watches. Not to mention that different countries enter DST at different times of the year, for example, the USA enters DST three weeks before Europe does. Bovet says that this means traditional world timers will never be truly accurate when DST is in use.
The Récital 30 uses rollers to display the timezones, these rollers are controlled by the pushers on the case sides which cycle them through four settings: Universal Time Coordinated (UTC), American Summer Time (AST), European and American Summer Time (EAST) and European Winter Time (EWT). Whether you’re in Europe or the USA – Bovet’s biggest markets – you can set the timezone function so it accounts for the differences in DST between the two areas so long as you know when those areas enter and exit DST. The rollers indicate the timezones, alongside two extra rollers, of which one shows the function the watch is currently displaying, and the other is connected to the 24-hour world time disk. When pressing the pusher, some of the rollers change the city they display depending on when that timezone entered whichever setting you’re using. For the timezones that don’t use DST, they remain constant no matter what you press.
This is all controlled by the selfwinding calibre R30-70-001, which has a 4Hz beat rate and 62-hour power reserve. The caseback is made of sapphire crystal, but a plate with engravings on covers the entire movement. It’s pretty, though, and they can probably engrave whatever you like on it.
The watch is presented in a 42.0mm x 12.9mm Dimier case made of either 18k red gold or grade 5 titanium, the case and crystal gave a pleasing flying saucer shape to them. Water resistance is 30m.
Bovet say they’re very open to customisation requests from customers, and this has never been easier for them as they are now mostly vertically integrated, meaning they make their own components. Bovet also announced that they make their own watch cases in Tramelan now, which is quite rare in the watch industry but will benefit their customers. This means you can have the dial in any configuration you like, and the watch on nearly any strap you like. These watches are not limited edition pieces, but Bovet won’t make them in a hurry, and they cost CHF73,500.
