Fellows and Sons | Established 1876

Ebel BTR Chronograph- The Last Of The Breed?

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With the announcement earlier this year of the sale by Ebel of their Calibre 137 to Ulysse Nardin and what seems to be a lack of interest in mechanical chronographs for the future, this could be one of the last examples of Ebel’s work in this field…

The 1911 range has featured some fine chronographs, initially using the Zenith El Primero movement. In 1995, after 5 years of development, Ebel launched their own ‘in-house’ automatic chronograph movement; the Calibre 137. This was designed by Ebel but built by Lemania as this was the time when Ebel was owned by Investcorp along with Lemania, Breguet and Chaumet. It was based on the Lemania calibre1340 from over 20 years earlier. After Breguet and Lemania were acquired by Swatchgroup, Ebel continued production of the calibre 137 themselves under the ownership of LVMH.

Not being allowed to compete with LVMH’s other sports brands (Zenith and TAG Heuer) Ebel’s development options were rather stifled, but this was to change when they were bought by Movado in 2004.

The new owners instigated a ‘back to roots’ approach to the sports line (hence the BTR) but with a contemporary size and feel to the case design. This new model, launched in 2006 with a larger sized case, dramatic contrasting hands, strap stitching, and rubber tipped and heavily knurled crown and pushers was a marked departure from the sleek, soft creations of previous years.

It was not to last. Less than 6 years later the Calibre 137 had been sold off and now the mechanical chronograph is no longer seen as part of Ebel’s future. Instead, Movado seems to be positioning them as a women’s watch brand, which seems a shame when you see the BTR Chronograph. All the more reason then to snap one up while you still can…

Click here for auction details.