Ball Watches has been manufacturing overbuilt tool watches since 1891, when they began making pocket watches specifically for American railroad workers. Their latest offering, the Engineer Hydrocarbon Submarine Warfare (the “EHSW” from here on out), certainly continues in this vein.
The EHSW is a dive watch available in two sizes (40mm and 42mm), two dial colors (black and blue) and multiple strap/bracelet types that was clearly built for the serious diver in mind. All iterations of the watch feature tritium gas tubes on the dial and hands for constant illumination (no charging from a light source is required), and the option of a blue PVD bezel with Super LumiNova for added illumination (the plain steel bezel-version features a tritium pip at 12 o’clock). The case itself is crafted from a block of titanium, while the optional bracelet is steel and titanium with a buckle that can evidently withstand 1,400 newtons of force, which, quite frankly, sounds like a shit-ton of newtons (a black rubber strap with pin buckle is also available).
The COSC-certified automatic caliber BALL RR1102-C (yep — it’s a chronometer) features central seconds, day and date functionality and is anti-magentic to 80,000 A/m and water-resistant to 300m. It also features a Ball Amortiser® patented anti-shock system for further accuracy. A sapphire crystal and patented crown protection system rounds out the feature set.
As usual with Ball, advanced pre-order pricing is in effect, ranging from $1,700 to $1,800, depending on the configuration (and representing a savings of between $800-$900 off the eventual list prices). Delivery of the watches should be between January 2019 and February 2019 (subject to the Swiss production schedule and shipment).
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