The sunrise-sunset complication is a surprisingly straightforward one to implement mechanically, and yet it remains relatively rare in a wristwatch. While the complication has existed in clocks for centuries and in pocket watches for many decades (including, perhaps most famously, the Patek Philippe Star Caliber pocket watch, and the Caliber 89, as well as the earlier Graves Supercomplication), it was not introduced in wristwatches until the Jules Audemars Equation Of Time in 2000, which was followed a few months later by the Martin Braun EOS watch (two of the least deservedly forgotten watches of the last two decades, if you ask me).

The basic problem with a sunrise/sunset watch is that it necessarily can show the times of sunrise and sunset for only a single location. This is due to the fact that the time of both is affected by both latitude and longitude, as well as the time of year and civil time. Any watch with the complication must, therefore luxury replica watches, be made for each client individually, as the two cams that control the sunrise and sunset cams are specific to a particular point on the Earth’s surface. You can have the cams made for New York, for instance, but if you happen to travel to any other city, the complication will no longer be accurate.

If you are a confirmed homebody, or if the watch in question is one that you do not particularly travel with a great deal, the problem is academic. However, those affluent enough and with eccentric enough tastes to want such a watch in the first place, would undoubtedly want to be able to enjoy traveling with the watch without having to explain to every Tom, Dick, and Harry (or Harriet) who asks, first, what it is, and secondly, replica rolex uk why it is not working properly in Mallorca when it works just fine in Cincinnati (to pick two locations at random). Additionally, the problem is not just one of owner’s ego; while there is something intrinsically deeply satisfying about the sunrise-sunset complication, there is something deeply unsatisfying about its being inextricably functionally bound to a single point on the Earth’s surface.

Now, the problem of making a sunrise-sunset complication which can be used anywhere on Earth was finally solved quite recently, by a constructor named Rémi Maillat who is the founder of Krayon. The first Krayon watch was the Everywhere watch, which was a kind of descendant of the medieval universal astrolabe (and with which we went hands-on in 2018). The astrolabe is an astronomical device used to observe, among other things, the altitude of celestial objects, and also to indicate which stars are above or below the horizon at any given time. But, like the sunrise-sunset complication, these were, as a rule, restricted to use in a single location. Eventually, however, universal astrolabes were developed that could account for differences in latitude. The Krayon Everywhere watch did the universal astrolabe one better, however. The Everywhere is essentially a wrist-mounted astronomical computer. You input the necessary data – UTC, latitude and longitude at the desired location – and the watch (also taking into account the equation of time) will show you the correct sunrise/sunset times anywhere in the world.

In addition to its many technical innovations, the Everywhere watch is also quite wearable – just 42mm x 11.70mm which, for a timepiece of this complexity, is a phenomenal accomplishment. The dial layout is also logical, very legible, and aesthetically harmonious. The only disadvantages to the watch are its extreme complexity (over 600 components) and high cost: The Everywhere is quite expensive, with a starting price around CHF 600,000 and going up rather sharply from there depending on desired modifications. With a view to making a watch perhaps more suitable to being worn on a regular basis, while still retaining many of the advantages of the Everywhere watch, Krayon has now introduced the Anywhere watch, priced at CHF 96,000 and CHF 116,000. It is a timepiece which can still show the time of sunrise and sunset anywhere on earth without the troublesome and expensive process of making new cams for every desired location and having them switched out by a watchmaker, although the owner can no longer directly control the necessary inputs.

A comparison between the two watches shows some immediate and obvious differences. The Everywhere watch wears its complexity lightly, relatively speaking but there is still no doubt that the dial delivers a considerable amount of information, albeit in about as economical and concise a fashion as I can imagine. After all, the Everywhere watch is not merely an instrument which passively displays information. It is rather a mechanical computer, which must show information input as well as the information output by the complex mechanism; in this sense, it is as much an astronomical calculator as it is a watch. The Anywhere watch offers a much clearer dial, which still displays the signature data of both the Anywhere and Everywhere watches – that is to say, the time of sunrise and sunset – but which omits the program input indicator, as well as the latitude indicator (the original Everywhere watch could be set to any latitude from 60º north to 60º south, which are the highest and lowest latitudes where “white nights” can be observed and which therefore mark the practical limits of a sunrise-sunset complication).

Breitling and Tudor made the decision to bundle their expertise in the design and production of mechanical watches even before changes came to the Breitling company. This became clear, not only in interviews with CEO Georges Kern, but as it is expressed by the timepieces themselves. A modified Breitling movement B01 powers Tudor chronographs as its MT5813, and Breitling is now using the in-house Tudor movement MT5612. Replica Watches UK

The Breitling Superocean Héritage II is powered by the automatic B20 caliber that came from a collaboration with Tudor. It’s found in the 42-mm stainless-steel and rose-gold three-hand version we tested here. Rolex Replica

The Superocean Héritage II is the first watch to use the three-hand movement since 2017, and bears the name B20 in its modified version. Breitling first issued the 42- and 46- mm models in 2017, followed by the launch of a third size at Baselworld 2018 that measures 44 mm, as well as our test watch – the unusual two-tone 42-mm version in stainless steel and rose gold. Black elements on the watch, like the bezel, dial and the Aero Classics rubber strap with its Milanese-style mesh pattern, lend both presence and elegance.

The unidirectional rotating dive bezel is one of the most striking changes Breitling made to the Superocean Héritage II, while taking care to preserve the character of the watch that made its debut in 1957. The rotating bezel contains an ultra-hard high-tech ceramic inlay that resists both scratches and impacts. The gold rim has a finer look than that of its predecessor, though it is still easy to grasp and turn with half-minute ratchets. It seems a bit loose for use as a professional dive watch.

The bezel lacks a precise minutes track despite the one printed directly next to it on the dial. This would allow for exact setting of the dive time, to the minute. But this shouldn’t be a problem at all for fans of recreational diving, who just happen to be the main target audience of the Superocean Héritage II. And although the gold seconds hand cannot be seen in the dark for a function check (due to a lack of luminous material), the hour and minutes hands are both clearly visible.

A design featuring unusual shapes – a triangle on the hour hand, a diamond-shaped minutes hand, and slightly conical hour markers – relies heavily on the original Héritage from 1957. The all-important minute hand for diving extends precisely out to touch the dedicated track around the dial circumference. Unfortunately, only eight points are visible under limited lighting conditions – insufficient for professional divers, in any case. The luminous dot on the ceramic bezel stands out alongside the slightly brighter hands, but this alone cannot help determine a precise, to-the-minute calculation of dive time. In daylight conditions the combination of black, white and rose gold creates an easily legible ensemble.

The old Breitling logo – a curvy “B” – in place of the winged letter and stylized anchor, has returned to the dial. (The earlier logo was introduced in 1979 to show equal kinship to flying and diving.) Proof of its status as an officially certified chronometer stands below the brand name.

The lower portion of the dial features the Superocean name in its characteristic font and references its water resistance and “Automatic” watch movement – which, unfortunately, cannot be seen beneath Breitling’s solid threaded caseback.

And it would be a sight to see. In contrast to the original Tudor design, the Breitling B20 is more finely decorated – with Geneva stripes and satin finishes, and two additional jewels. Otherwise, both versions have the same design and features. The balance wheel is stable and supported beneath a bridge, vibrating at a rate of 4 Hz with variable inertia and a silicon hairspring. Fine regulation is adjusted via screws, to a chronometer-certified level, just like the Tudor.

In actual practice, the Superocean Héritage II can do what the COSC certificate promises. It runs smoothly with a gain of about 3 seconds per day with minimal positional differences. At the end of the 70-hour power reserve, the amplitude falls to slightly below 200°, but the rate remains stable at +2 seconds.

The watch is not difficult to rewind if it winds down completely. The large, deeply fluted crown is easy to grasp and release from its screw-down position. Hand winding is smooth. Clear stops indicate the positions for quick-date adjustment and setting the time. The hands can be adjusted without play, and the date advances at midnight. Only slight pressure is needed to screw down the crown into its locked position.
OK Photography
The folding clasp opens with two deployment buttons. The upper part contains a strap extension.

It’s no simple thing to fit the Aero Classic rubber strap to the wrist. It must be cut to measure and then can no longer be altered. Only the single-sided folding clasp provides an additional 9 mm of variability; a sliding element offers seven different positions for adjusting the strap length, and is simple to use. The polished clasp has two deployant buttons on the side for opening, with a winged “B” making reference to an earlier Breitling era.

Once the rubber strap has been tailor-fit, the Superocean Héritage II sits snugly on the wrist where, despite its case thickness, it doesn’t seem overly heavy, thanks to its contrasting design features – a truly stunning piece for Breitling fans who go diving for fun.
Specs:

Functions: Hours, minutes, central sweep seconds, date, unidirectional rotating dive bezel with ratchet feature, screw-down crown

Movement: Breitling B20, automatic, 28,800 vph, 28 jewels, balance ring with variable inertia, silicon hairspring, screw-type fine adjustment, Incabloc shock absorption, 70-hour power reserve, diameter = 30.8 mm, height = 6.50 mm

Case: Stainless steel and 18k rose gold, domed sapphire crystal with anti-reflective treatment on both sides, water resistant to 200 m