Home » Breitling Watches » Breitling Superocean Héritage Chronoworks – Caliber B 01 Reinvented
Breitling Superocean Héritage Chronoworks is the limited series of watches that shows off the next generation of its Caliber B 01. Breitling’s department Chronoworks has modernized and improved the movement so it would be far more efficient. This way, with the addition of new materials and technical solutions, Caliber B 01 has its power reserve extended by 45 percent. The newcomer is placed inside a round housing made of ceramic. It is launched in a restricted series of 100 pieces and comes at the price of around $39,250.
The novel watch by Brietling is displaying the expertise of its newly added Chronoworks department which the brand compares to the sections of automotive industry’s giants which are responsible of fine-tuning the engine so it would be as efficient as it is possible. The major adjustments envisioned by Chronoworks gave obvious results, since they extended power reserve of the caliber to 100 hours, as opposed to common 70 hours of B 01 Caliber.
There are five major changes which the caliber underwent. The fist one of these is the use of ceramic as the material of choice for the basis of the movement. The main-plate and gear-train bridge were both crafted of hexagonal boron nitride. This choice means that there is no need for additional lubricants and it enables the omission of 11 out of 47 standard jewels that are usually used in the caliber (the caliber in its new version features 36 jewels).
The second tweak that was performed by Chronoworks is the use of silicon wheels. Three wheels used in the caliber are made in this material which due to its lightness massively reduces the loss of energy. Another important change is the geometry of said wheels which were made in a much rigid structure to eliminate distortion of the wheel’s spokes.
Silicon was once again used for escapement which is the component of the movement where most of the unwanted loss of energy takes place. By changing the material in which it is made, as well as geometry of the profile of the teeth and pallets, Chronoworks division managed to make a remarkable gain of 42 percent of energy which would otherwise be lost.
Another step in the improvement of the caliber by adding a variable-inertia balance which uses four minute gold weights that are placed around the rim made of nickel that is combined with a spoke made of brass. This setup utilizes the expansion and contraction of brass which occurs when it is exposed to different temperatures to modify the inertia of the balance.
The final step in the changes that were made to make caliber B 01 more efficient is the introduction of elastic toothing for the vertical coupling clutch of its chronograph mechanism.
The end result of this clever tweaks is a much more efficient caliber whose power reserve is enlarged by 30 hours. This is relevant since it allows the wearer to wind his or her watch every four days, but this is not the only improvement. Extended power storage also means improved regularity of the movement rate in the first day after the power reserve is full.
This watch with enhanced efficiency is launched in the restricted series of 100 pieces which could have been expected due to the multitude of changes on the caliber. The specific model that was chosen to showcase the changes is from one of the brand’s most sought-after series, Superocean Héritage which is based on an iconic brand’s model from 1957. The novelty has the same painted hour markers on its Volcano black dial as its archetype model. The dark face also includes three chrono sub-dials, oversized hour and minute hands with white luminescent tips and a date display.
Just like the case, the ratcheted uni-directional rotating bezel is likewise made of ceramic. As for the other segments of the construction, one should point out the sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating and the use of the same material for the transparent case which shows off the new and improved caliber with its black oscillating weight. The watch is water resistant to 100 meters.
For the attachment, the watchmaker opted for a strap that will once again replicate the looks of the famed Superocean model form the mid-20th century. The only difference that this one has the woven rubber attachment, while the original had a similarly-styled mash steel bracelet. The exact name of the chosen strap is Rubber Aero Classic.
