BALL Engineer II Skindiver Heritage Watch Review
Tuesday - 13 July 2021
Lovers of vintage diver’s watches will in no doubt rejoice at the luxury timepiece we’re reviewing today. Named the Engineer II Skindiver Heritage, the new release from the BALL Watch Company takes inspiration from their first divers watch released back in the 1960’s with some clever retro contributions alongside several contemporary upgrades suited to the modern-day wearer. Let’s take a look at the new BALL Engineer II Skindiver Heritage watch…
CASE
Two prerequisites of a divers watch is durability and legibility. The latter is guaranteed by the BALL Engineer II Skindiver Heritage watch’s dial which we will get to shortly, while its toughness is assured by its case. Engineered from stainless steel, the case of the diver’s watch is characterised entirely by its unique black coating made of titanium carbide otherwise known as TiC. Titanium carbide is one of the world’s hardest materials, coming in around 9-9.5 on the Moh’s Scale of Hardness and promising excellent scratch resistance, durability and of course, a handsome appearance.
The 42 millimetre case continues to impress with its unidirectional bezel, a statement piece of equipment for divers for accurately monitoring immersion time and decompression stops. For easy use underwater, the sapphire crystal bezel and crown have been carefully knurled for effortless grip even when wearing thick divers gloves and the bezel features several luminous micro gas tubes for instant legibility under the waves. The BALL Engineer II Skindiver Heritage watch also delivers an anti-magnetic rating to 4,800 A/m, a shock resistant rating of 5,000Gs and a healthy water resistant rating of 200 metres.
DIAL
BALL are certainly no strangers to engineering highly legible dials and the face of the BALL Engineer II Skindiver Heritage watch is no different. As expected, the jet black backdrop is home to the brand’s patented micro gas tube technology. What is that we hear you ask? The intense luminosity found on every BALL watch is thanks to the micro gas tubes decorated on the dial and bezel. The tubes encapsulate H₃ gas molecules which strike the internal-coloured surface of the tubes and emit light. Unlike other common luminous material in the luxury watchmaking industry, like Superluminova for example, BALL’s micro gas tubes don’t require any form of external light or energy source to keep them glowing. Instead, they simply glow brighter than any other luminous material for 25 years or longer. On the BALL Engineer II Skindiver Heritage watch, the bezel is adorned with green micro gas tubes while the dial impresses with a combination of rainbow-like colours. There are 31 micro gas tubes in total.
MOVEMENT
Durability? Check. Legibility? Check. So, what about accuracy? As expected, the BALL Engineer II Skindiver Heritage watch has that covered too with the automatic winding BALL RR1102 calibre housed within its core. The movement is based on the framework of the trusty ETA 2836-2 calibre and delivers central hands for hours, minutes and seconds and a day and date window at 3 o’clock. Through the sapphire crystal case back you can enjoy many of the intricate components of the automatic winding calibre working hard with including some of the 25 jewels and the Cotes de Geneve decorated oscillating rotor. The BALL RR1102 calibre also runs at a frequency of 28,800 vibrations per hour and promises a power reserve of 38 hours.
STRAP
The BALL Engineer II Skindiver Heritage watch is currently available on two strap options. The first is a sporty black rubber strap with a black TiC coated pin buckle. The second is a complete TiC coated stainless steel bracelet with folding buckle.
PRICE & AVAILABILITY
The BALL Engineer II Skindiver Heritage is a limited edition model with only 390 pieces being made available on its release. The TiC bracelet model retails at £1,850 and the rubber strap variant comes in at £1,750. If you’d like to learn more about this new BALL watch and order your own, head over to the Jura Watches website here or get in touch with the team. You can contact us by calling 01335 45345 or by sending us a message at help@jurawatches.co.uk.
