The new Breitling for Bentley Light Body Midnight Carbon Chronograph follows in the footsteps of the grim Barnato 42 Midnight Carbon Chronograph that was revealed in September 2012. However, compared to the first version, this variety comes in a larger body and features more elaborate (also, slightly busier) dial with Breitling’s signature 30-seconds chronograph display.
Limited to just 1000 pieces, the watch was revealed in all of its carbonized titanium and black rubber glory during the Baselworld 2013 trade show.
To somehow compensate for the increased size, its massive body is this time crafted from lightweight titanium that was then hardened using some carbonization technique that dramatically increases scratch resistance qualities of the soft metal.
The technique not only makes the massive titanium body less prone to scratches, but also ensures that they are not clearly visible if you happen to dent your watch while opening that safe deposit box filled with gold and jewelry: the layer of carbonized material is deep enough for the surface to stay black even if the worse happens.
Since the new model uses the same Caliber 25B movement, which is based on a COSC-certified version of the mass-produced ETA 2892-A2 blank movement with the same chronograph module, it had to sacrifice exactly half of its time-measuring capacities to have that famous 30-second chronograph, which is capable of measuring any event with precision of 1/8th of a second. Respectively, the original minute and hours indicators are now able to count to 15 minutes and 6 hours respectively.
Well, if you don’t plan to measure the total time of your non-stop flight from Los Angeles to Singapore, you are perfect.
As usual, the dial of the Breitling for Bentley Light Body Midnight Carbon Chronograph is overloaded with indicators. Besides the three aforementioned chronograph totalizers, there is also a small seconds sub-dial at 9 o’clock, as well as the traditional slide rule and a rather small date aperture between 4 and 5 o’clock.
Well, like most of Breitling timekeeper, this one definitely belongs to the “love it or hate it” category. Some may find it too bulky, some — too pretentious. As for me, I somehow like this model: it would look great with khakis, a pair of hiking boots and a water-resistant GPS device, although I can’t imagine a situation where I wouldn’t feel extremely reluctant to take this watch to a place where this set of goods would be necessary. Okay, perhaps, an old school post-WWIII zombie apocalypse would do.
See also: Breitling for Bentley Supersports ISR Limited Edition Chronograph
Photos: Breitling
Breitling for Bentley Light Body Midnight Carbon Chronograph specification
Price: $11,700
Movement: Automatic, Breitling caliber 25B (base ETA 2892-A2), Swiss Made
Number of jewels: 38 jewels
Movement frequency: 28,800 vph
Power reserve: 42 hours
Functions: Hours, minutes, small seconds, 30-seconds chronograph, date
Case: Black carbonized titanium
Shape: Round
Size: 49.00 mm
Dial: Black
Numerals: Arabic
Hour markers: Luminous
Hands: Luminous
Water resistance: 100 meters
Strap: Black rubber strap
Crystal: Sapphire, antireflective on both sides, cambered
Back: Solid