This Serious Tool Watch Brand Drops a Mid-Century Modern Masterpiece

At first glance, the new BR-X3 appears to be another skeletonized watch from Bell & Ross, a brand that has made quite a few of those in recent years.

But take a closer look, and you’ll see that there is a lot more going on with this mid-century modern tangent from the French watchmaker’s typical tool-oriented design.

Bell & Ross

Bell & Ross’s BR-X collection contains experimental designs, as indicated by the “X,” often with movements visible through skeletonized dials. The brand took transparency a step further in 2025 with the BR-X3 Tourbillon Micro-Rotor, custom-building a frame-like case around an automatic movement reconfigured to sit on a single plane.

It was fascinating to look at, but it appeared more mechanical than artistic. This follow-up ditches the torubillon to create a simplified two-hand, time-only watch that accommodates a more aesthetically pleasing integrated case.

Bell & Ross

Just as its predecessor, the new BR-X3 Micro-Rotor features an automatic movement spread out to fill the square confines of the brand’s signature case.

This time around, the Swiss watch design firm and movement manufacturer Concepto, best known for working with Bulgari on the record-breaking, ultra-thin Octo Finissimo line, helped design an integrated case and movement with mid-century style.

What’s the case?

First of all, the BR-X3 Ultra-Thin case looks just as good from the back as it does from the front. It utilizes a similar framework as its predecessor, with vertical and horizontal bars holding the key mechanical elements in place.

But there are fewer bars, creating less congestion, and the open space is now filled with steel blocks cut to fit like puzzle pieces. The blocks are flat with a fine micro-blasted texture and feature exposed screws on the back, like miniature versions of the brand’s signature screws.

Bell & Ross

On both sides of the open-worked movement, the bars are finished with vertical satin brushing. Both the bars and the panels have chamfered edges.

In the rotation

It’s easy to lose track of where the movement ends and the case begins because the former fits, piece by piece, into the framework of the latter. Every cog, jewel, screw and spring is visible, including the barrel at 12:00, the escapement at 5:00 and the micro-rotor at 7:00.

Bell & Ross

Speaking of the micro-rotor, it’s the element that makes this entire design possible. The shrunken proportions allow it to fit within the same plane as the rest of the mechanical clockworks.

It is given a finish worthy of its top billing, with rhodium plating and sunburst brushing, making it the shiniest element on the entire watch.

Sapphire sandwich

“Sapphire sandwich” is one of my all-time favorite watch jargon terms. It refers to a watch with a sapphire crystal over the dial and on the caseback, but the term has never been more accurate than with the BR-X3 Micro-Rotor.

The integrated case and movement sit like the meat between two sapphire-crystal bread slices. Each sapphire plate runs edge-to-edge vertically and horizontally on both the front and back, and each side is secured by four corner screws.

Thanks to the micro-rotor and single-plane movement, even with the two layers of sapphire crystal included, the case height is just 9mm.

Bell & Ross

Technically speaking, this watch has no dial. The only indication of the time comes from the steel baton hour and minute hands, each fitted with green-emitting Super-LumiNova inlays.

It sounds dumb on paper, but with every detail laid out so aesthetically pleasing, and the fine finishing on all of the metal, it looks great.

The monochromatic motif extends to the charcoal-gray calfskin strap, which features an embossed alligator texture and a stainless steel deployant buckle.

Availability and pricing

The Bell & Ross BR-X3 Micro-Rotor is available now from Bell & Ross for $22,500. Only 99 pieces of this limited-edition release are available, with each watch number laser-etched into the sapphire caseback.

This is admittedly a pretty steep price for the Parisian independent watchmaker, considering there are no precious metals or complications involved, but the intricacy of the design and custom-built movement account for the expense.

Bell & Ross

Bell & Ross BR-X3 Micro-Rotor

Specs

Case Size	40mm
Movement	B&R Caliber BR-CAL.390 automatic
Water Resistance	50m

• $22,500 at Bell & Ross

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