Bell & Ross BR-X5 Racing Review

Before I get into this review, you just need to go out and purchase this Bell & Ross BR-X5 Racing… I'll explain more later in this review, but this watch has really been my watch of the year even before seeing it in person. Once I had the watch in my hands for a few weeks, my mind has not changed at all and if anything I feel stronger about the watch.

Bell & Ross has been on my watch collecting radar for twenty years since they first released their instrument inspired BR-01 in 2005. With the BR-01 Bell & Ross created a watch design that you could see from across the room and instantly know what the watch was. Besides watches like IWC's Big Pilot and Audemars Piguet's Royal Oak, designs that achieve that feat don't come along often.



For being "founded" in 1994 for Bell & Ross to reach this level of design so fast is mind blowing. Bell & Ross was actually a university project between two friends Bruno Belamich "Bell" and Carlos A. Rosillo "Ross". Both were French collectors of military watches and Carlos had just finished his masters of business administration and Bruno was finishing design school. The goal of the project was to create watches that were both functional and pleasing on the eyes. Much of the pair's initial inspiration came from the aircraft industry as well as the military. At the time it was hard to find military inspired professional watches, a void Carlos and Bruno looked to fill.

Much of the early success of Bell & Ross can be credited to who the picked to produce their watches. Since one of the most important aspects of Bell & Ross watches were how durable they needed to be, the pair picked renowned German tool watch manufacture Sinn to produce their early timepieces. Sinn is a no-nonsense brand and is known for the toughness of their watches. I have personally owned a Sinn U1 and U2 made from nearly unscratchable German submarine steel. Early models such as 1997's Hydromax which could withstand depths of 11,000 meters showed how serious Bell & Ross were about making tough watches.



Bell & Ross targeted such industries as racing, diving, aviation and the military to supply watches to. The stress the watches endured at the hands of divers, racecar drivers, pilots and service personal went a long way in cementing Bell & Ross as makers of tough yet beautiful timepieces. With the tremendous growth of Bell & Ross, the company decided to part ways with Sinn in 2002 and establish their own manufacturing facility in La Chaux-de-Found Switzerland.

For Bell & Ross having their own production facility allowed them to have more freedom with their designs. One such design was the brand defying BR-01 that was launched in 2005. I remember when the BR-01 first came out how much interest there was for that watch. Sure IWC had released their Big Pilot a few years prior and pilot's watches were riding a huge wave, but the BR-01 was the most authentic watch when it came to replicating what a pilot would see in the cockpit. If you took a BR-01 off of its strap, the watch would like identical to the instruments critical for piloting an aircraft.



In the years since the release of the BR-01, Bell & Ross have continued to evolve their watches and have even released haute horology pieces including such complications as a tourbillon. 2019 saw the introduction of the BR-05 series which retained the brand's signature squared case design but smoothed it out into a more organic case which was integrated with its bracelet. Three years later the BR-05 evolved to the BR-X5. The BR-X5 saw the first time Bell & Ross used a manufacture movement in their timepieces, in this case developed by Swiss movement powerhouse Kenissi.

Today we will be taking a closer look at one of the BR-X5 models released earlier in the year. When I first saw the press release about the Bell & Ross BR-X5 Racing I was just blown away. This is a pretty rare occurrence for me since I tend to prefer the design era of 2005 to 2015 and most of my personal timepieces are of that time. Those ten years saw larger watches that were crafted out of such high tech materials as titanium and carbon fiber. My all time favorite watch is the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Montoya in titanium, which like the BR-X5 Racing is motorsports inspired featuring a carbon fiber bezel and titanium case. I even asked that watch's designer, Octavio Garcia, what he thought about the BR-X5 Racing and he told me he was a fan.



When looking over the press images not only did the Montoya come to mind but also some of the pieces from Richard Mille also popped into my head. The power reserve "gauge", ventilation slots in the rubber strap and hollowed out mid case are things you might see in an RM. While reminding me of the Montoya and some Richard Mille pieces, the BR-X5 Racing is still true Bell & Ross in its DNA. I love how the softer case of the BR-05 and BR-X5 keep the design of the BR-01 alive but tone it down to a near perfect execution.

I initially contacted Bell & Ross about sending us a BR-X5 to review soon after the release of the BR-X5 Racing and was told that they could send one, but it would be a month or two later. I was very anxious to see the BR-X5 Racing in person and after a month or so I was told that a BR-X5 Racing was ready to be sent.



When the Bell & Ross BR-X5 arrived, the first thing I noticed about the watch was the hue of the grade 2 titanium case. A lot can be said about grade 2 versus grade 5 versus grade 23 titanium, but with grade 2 being the most pure form of titanium the coloration is the best in my opinion. The case has a matte finish to it and the coloration could be best described as the purest form of grey you could imagine.

The next thing I noticed about the BR-X5 Racing was just how complete of a package the watch was. The watch just feels solid in hand even with how lightweight it is. The BR-X5 Racing just feels like a watch where no corners were cut in its design and production. Honestly the BR-X5 looks and feels like a watch costing a few multiples more than its retail price. The watch is also exceptionally comfortable with the rubber strap on the BR-X5 Racing being one of the most comfortable rubber straps I've ever worn. I liken it to the rubber strap on my wife's Hublot Big Bang All Black 41 after years of wear, just extremely supple and feels perfect on wrist.



The final thing I noticed about the Bell & Ross BR-X5 Racing was the dial. Legibility was obviously key to the design of the watch, which it accomplishes while still having a partial skeleton dial. You too often see skeleton dials that go way too far and make the watch near impossible to use. The dial of the BR-X5 Racing is just transparent enough to see some of the movement and the date wheel, but its smoked appearance also provides great contrast to the white dial markings. The power reserve indicator is also super nice in person, I like how Bell & Ross used a nontraditional color like turquoise to represent the full area of the power reserve and also how the gauge is shaped unlike any other power reserve indicator I can think of.

Now that we've gone over my initial impressions of the Bell & Ross BR-X5 Racing, let's go ahead and talk about the technical specifications of the watch. The BR-X5 Racing is crafted out of grade 2 titanium and has a case diameter of 41 mm and a lug to lug length of 49.6 mm. Since the watch isn't round if you measure the case from left to right you do get 41 mm but diagonally you get 47.4 mm. On our calipers we measured the thickest part of the case to be 13.3 mm. The BR-X5 Racing weighed in at 109 grams on our scale, which for its size is pretty lightweight.



The BR-X5 Racing has a flat slightly raise sapphire crystal with an anti-reflective coating applied to it. Beneath the sapphire crystal is another crystal that is smoked and serves as the watch's dial. This crystal is slightly transparent and lets you see the top of the manufacture movement as well as the date wheel. Printed on this crystal are the large Arabic numeral hour markers as well as the Bell & Ross logo. The hour markers along with the hour and minute hands are coated with white Super-Luminova which glows a brilliant green under low light conditions.

The white center seconds hand has a bright red tip and of importance to motorsport is accurate to marked quarter seconds increments. Showing the motorsports influence, the power reserve gauge which is slightly elevated on the dial is marked as E for empty and F for full. The empty section of the gauge is done in red while the full portion of the gauge is done in turquoise. The inner portion of the power reserve gauge also has the markings for 0, 1, 2 and 3 days of power reserve.



The cutout for the date window in enlarged like it is on my personal IWC Pilot's Watch Flyback Chronograph Top Gun where three days can be seen at once. The current date is found in the center of the three displayed dates with a white arrow pointing to it. The reasoning for this type of date cutout is that no matter where the minutes hand is, you'll always be able to see either the current date or the day before and after it, letting you always know the date. Under the smoked dial crystal you can also see a large portion of the date wheel, with only small sections of the wheel being obscured.

Completing the dial there is a minute track around the outside with quarter second markers as well as each five minute increment being marked with an Arabic numeral. Finally "Automatic", "Chronometer" and "100M" text can be found at 6 o'clock along with "Swiss Made" at the bottom of the dial.



As mentioned earlier, the round dial cutout is surrounded by a more squared off carbon fiber bezel. It's refreshing to see that the carbon fiber used is the traditional weave pattern and not the more common forged carbon. Personally carbon fiber weave evokes more thoughts of motorsports to me than forged carbon does. The multi-part case is also held together with four exposed case screws that can be seen through this carbon fiber bezel.

Turning the case on its side was a highlight for me as well. From the side profile you can tell the bezel and dial portion of the case are nicely raised off of the case while there is some really interesting dead space between the upper and lower case. This recessed area gives the case a very unique and eye-catching design. Bell & Ross using black DLC coated titanium for this mid-case just adds to the look of void and adds a ton of dimension to the watch. You also see how sharply downward facing the lugs are from this view, which explains why the BR-X5 can work on smaller wrists. The lugs can actually face inwards which isn't common for an integrated watch which normally have outward flaring lugs.



On the right hand side of the watch you have the black DLC coated titanium crown guards and screw-down crown. The crown guards are hollow matching the mid-case design. The crown is four pronged and has the Bell & Ross logo on its top. Now the only gripe I have on this watch is the size of the crown, to me personally the crown feels small in hand. When looking at the design of the watch, it does seem like a larger crown would have looked out of place though. I'm also used to using oversized crowns like those found on my Big Pilot or Fifty Fathoms 500 Fathoms, so this could just be what I'm used to making me think it feels small.

The crown is extremely grippy with the four deep cutouts and I never found any issues while using the crown. Once you have unscrewed the crown you can manually wind the watch in its initial position. Pulling the crown out to position one allows you to set the day and pulling the crown all the way out to position two lets you set the time and stops the seconds hand. While adjusting the time and date you can also see various gears turning under the dial as well as the date window moving. Clicking the crown back in to place causes no jump in the minutes and hand and screwing the crown back in requires no extra care to get it to catch.



Flipping the watch over shows you the display back as well as the screw down titanium case back. The case is screwed down using the same four screws that were visible through the carbon fiber bezel. With the screw-down crown and case back, the BR-X5 Racing offers 100 meters of water resistance, which is more than enough for swimming and very light diving. There is a large Bell & Ross logo printed on smoked sapphire case back that has the "Limited Edition" text along with the individual number of the watch out of the 500 piece run.

Visible through the case back is the manufacture caliber BR-CAL.323 automatic movement produced for Bell & Ross by Kenissi. Kenissi was established by Tudor in 2016 and not only produces in-house watches for Tudor, but also works with third party brands like Bell & Ross, Breitling and Chanel to create manufacture movements meeting specific needs. These movements which are entirely produced in Switzerland are highly customizable and robust.



For the BR-X5 Racing the BR-CAL.323 beats away at 28,800 vph (4Hz) and features around 70 hours of power reserve. The movement is a certified chronometer meaning that it has an accuracy of between -4 to +6 seconds per day. On our timegrapher the BR-CAL.323 showed an averaged accuracy of +1 second per day over various positions. This is well within chronometer specs and among the most accurate watches that we have tested.

Topping off the movement is a partially skeletonized Bell & Ross branded rotor. With how smoked the sapphire is, it is hard to see the finishing of the BR-CAL.323. It does look like there isn't a ton of finishing applied to movement, which makes sense since the BR-X5 Racing a pure tool watch.



The Bell & Ross BR-X5 Racing has a lug width of 28 mm and due to the nature of being an integrated sports watch requires you to use straps and bracelets from Bell & Ross. The rubber strap is attached to the watch via a titanium middle link. The strap does taper down to 17.5 mm at the titanium Bell & Ross branded deployant clasp. The BR-X5 Racing does not feature a quick change strap system and is also offered on a full titanium bracelet. Not being a fan of bracelets, I asked for the BR-X5 Racing to be sent on the rubber strap.

As mentioned earlier, the rubber strap is one of the most comfortable rubber straps that I have ever had the pleasure of wearing. The rubber even has a nice textured feel to it and is super flexible. Even with how supple the rubber is, it still feels substantial and keeps the watch centered on your wrist. I also love the three large vents cut into the strap near the lugs of the watch. The deployant clasp is very sturdy and reassuring and requires both buttons to be depressed to release the clasp.

During my time with the Bell & Ross BR-X5 Racing I tried to wear the watch as often as possible. Normally I try to do this since it's the only real way that I'm going know how a watch is to live with day to day. With the BR-X5 Racing however, I just really wanted to wear the watch frequently since I liked it so much. Square shaped watches typically wear bigger and the BR-X5 Racing does wear on the larger side even given its near average 41 mm case diameter. To me this is a huge plus since I prefer watches with a lug to lug length of over 50 mm. The BR-X5 Racing came in just under 50 mm, but I felt the watch looked perfect on wrist.



The lightweight materials of the watch also made the BR-X5 Racing pretty much disappear on wrist. I do like larger watches, but I really prefer them being made out of lightweight materials like ceramic, carbon and titanium. I don't like constantly thinking about a watch while I'm wearing it, so it's a big compliment to say with how light the watch is and how comfortable the rubber strap is, the BR-X5 Racing was never a burden on wrist. I never had any wrist fatigue from the watch and it never favored one side of my wrist over the other. The BR-X5 Racing is also rather slim, so now with cooler weather here in Austin, the BR-X5 Racing slides under hoodie cuffs just fine.

My typical dress of t-shirts, shorts and sneakers was perfectly complimented by the BR-X5 Racing. On cooler days I'd be wearing a hoodie, sweats and sneakers. The BR-X5 Racing is not a dress watch and my more casual dress is perfect for it. I'm not sure much would clash with the watch since it has a mostly black and grey aesthetic to it as well.

The Bell & Ross BR-X5 Racing did get a decent amount of attention when I wore it out. The combination of the weaved carbon fiber bezel, matte grey titanium case and bright white dial markings really make an impression. With how mainstream Richard Mille has become, even the vented rubber strap and non-round shape probably caught some people's eyes. As I said earlier in this review, the overall package of the BR-X5 Racing is just so cohesive that the watch really stands out in a good way. The few strangers and friends I showed the watch to were shocked the watch wasn't more expensive than it actually is. Most also commented on liking the carbon bezel, case hue and partially skeleton dial the most.



Speaking about price, the Bell & Ross BR-X5 Racing retails for $10,800 on the rubber strap and $11,800 on the full titanium bracelet. That is expensive for a time and date watch, but let's go over what you're getting for the price. The BR-X5 is crafted out of full titanium and features a carbon fiber bezel. The movement comes from one of the best movement manufactures in Switzerland and was custom made for the BR-X5 series. Also the movement is deadly accurate with an average accuracy of +1 second per day. The BR-X5 Racing also takes the classic Bell & Ross design DNA and updates it twenty years later with interesting nods to the world of motorsports. With that being said, now would be a good time to look at some other watches with similar features to the BR-X5 Racing to see how it compares.

First let's take a look at the IWC Ingenieur Automatic 40 in titanium. This watch has a 40 mm case diameter and is also an integrated bracelet design like the BR-X5 Racing. The Ingeniuer is powered by the in-house IWC 32111 automatic caliber and offers 120 hours of power reserve. The Ingeniuer is a more traditional barrel shaped watch and has a higher retail price of $14,600.

Next up we have the Chopard Alpine Eagle 41 XP TT. The Alpine Eagle is crafted out of grade 5 titanium and has a case diameter of 41 mm. The watch like the BR-X5 Racing also has a skeletonized dial but no power reserve indicator. Powering the Alpine Eagle is the in-house L.U.C. 96.17-S1 which is an automatic movement with 65 hours of power reserve. The Alpine Eagle also retails for a lot more than the BR-X5 Racing at $26,500.



Next up is the Tudor Pelagos FXD which is crafted out of grade 2 titanium and has a case diameter of 42 mm. The Pelagos FXD is a time only watch without a date or power reserve indicator. The Pelagos FXD is a much more traditional dive watch and is powered by the manufacture caliber MT5602 which is also produced by Kenissi and offers a matching power reserve of 70 hours. The Pelagos FXD does come in much lower than the BR-X5 Racing at $4,150. It should be mentioned that you can get a more straight-forward BR-X5 than the Racing variant with the same movement and design language for $6,900 though.

Finally we have the Richard Mille RM 30-01. The RM 30-01 is crafted out of grade 5 titanium and is cushion shaped with a 42 x 50 mm case size. The dial is fully skeletonized and features a power reserve indicator resembling the one found on the BR-X5 Racing. The RM 30-01 also has a big date complication where the date discs are visible through the dial. The RM 30-01 is powered by the in-house RMAR2 automatic movement that features a declutchable rotor and has a power reserve of around 55 hours. The RM 30-01 has a retail price many times more expensive than the BR-X5 Racing at $208,000.

Looking at the above four watches, you can see that BR-X5 Racing fits in well price and feature wise. While the Tudor Pelagos FXD is less expensive than the BR-X5 Racing, it is a much more mass produced timepiece. The Ingeniuer and Alpine Eagle are probably better comparisons given their more niche appeal and lower build numbers, both which are decently more expensive than the BR-X5 Racing. The RM 30-01 probably resembles the BR-X5 Racing the most. The RM 30-01 is twenty times more expensive at retail but is impossible to get and goes for even more secondhand. While they aren't one to one comparable, you get a lot of what the RM 30-01 offers for fractions of a fraction of the price.



So now for the big questions… is the Bell & Ross BR-X5 Racing for me? If we just go through the checklist of what I look for in a watch, let's see what gets checked off. Larger size lug to lug? While not over 50 mm at 49.6 mm, the BR-X5 Racing does wear larger due to its square shape, so check. Crafted out of high tech and lightweight materials? The BR-X5 Racing uses both titanium and carbon fiber in its build, so check. No bracelet and deployant clasp? Once again checks here. Something extra or an "it factor"? I love the look of the carbon fiber bezel and it reminds me of the Offshore Montoya, also the smoked skeleton dial and novel power reserve really do it for me, so check again.

So yeah the BR-X5 Racing pretty much checks all of the boxes for me. The one little issue I had was with the size of the crown, but like I said earlier I'm not sure if a larger crown would have worked with the design. After seeing the press release for the BR-X5 Racing I was an instant fan. Once I got the watch in hand and lived with it for a few weeks I really fell in love with the watch. From a design and comfort standpoint, I don't think Bell & Ross could have done much more with this watch. I'm still sticking with my feelings that this is the best designed watch of the year.

Would I recommend the BR-X5 Racing to somebody looking for a luxury sports watch that can do pretty much anything? 1000% I'd recommend this watch in a heartbeat. Even though having an in-house or manufacture movement isn't the most important thing in the world to me, it is a nice added bonus. The Kenissi movement found in the BR-X5 Racing is also deadly accurate, making the package even more appealing. With only being limited to 500 pieces, the watch will also be in short supply with the chances of seeing another while out next to zero. The lightweight carbon fiber and titanium construction means you can wear the watch all day and never get any fatigue. The watch is offered either on a titanium bracelet or rubber strap, so regardless of your preference you're covered. With 100 meters of water resistance the BR-X5 Racing can do pretty much anything you ask of it as well. Finally while $10,800 is a lot of a watch, Bell & Ross is truly giving you a lot for the price of admission.



In the end I'd really like to thank Bell & Ross for sending us the BR-X5 Racing to review. I will truly miss the watch since I've grown quite fond of it while reviewing it. If you are interested in the watch I'd highly suggest you try to take a look at it in person since with it being limited to 500 pieces it won't be around forever. The BR-X5 Racing has provided a great introduction to the modern Bell & Ross for me and if it's any indication of where the brand is going… I'm very excited for their future!

For more information about the BR-X5 Racing please visit : Bell & Ross

Technical Specifications

Reference Number: BR-X5 Racing

Retail Price: $10,800

Case Size: 41 mm

Lug to Lug: 49.6 mm

Thickness: 13.3 mm

Weight: 109 Grams

Case Material: Grade 2 Titanium

Bezel: Weaved Carbon Fiber

Strap: Vented Black Rubber Strap with Titanium Deployant Clasp

Movement: Calibre BR-CAL.323 (Produced by Kenissi)

Functions: Hours, Minutes, Seconds, Date

Power Reserve: 70 Hours

Water Resistance: 100 Meters