Oris Carl Brashear Limited Edition

​Ref. No. 733 7720 3185 LS

Something special this time from Oris, their first bronze watch. Bronze was the material of choice for the case because the helmet worn by Brashear while he was diving was, well, bronze. The new Carl Brashear Limited Edition is based vaguely on the Oris Diver's Sixty Five. From what I can see, the only parts of the design carried over are the case and hand designs. This watch, however, is far more appealing to me than many other Oris watches I have seen. A conservative 42mm in diameter, the watch fits right into my "sweet spot" in terms of size. The bronze case will, of course, develop it's own unique patina meaning that in the end, none of the 2,000 pieces will look exactly the same. The watch is accompanied by a brown leather strap (with bronze buckle) that I think fits the watch perfectly. The watch carries a retail price of 2,600 CHF (~$2,600 USD at the time of this post). There is more information on both the watch and the man below.

Copy and pasted from Oris' press release, "The Oris Carl Brashear Limited Edition is based on Oris’s hugely successful Divers Sixty-Five and celebrates a man who conquered not only challenges of race, but also of disability. Brashear joined the Navy in 1948 as a 17-year-old, and despite facing discrimination on account of his race he graduated from the Navy’s diving programme in 1954. In 1966, he lost the lower part of his left leg in an accident during a mission to salvage a hydrogen bomb. After an exhausting period of rehabilitation, he became the U.S. Navy’s first amputee diver in 1968, and then qualified as a Master Diver in 1970, the first African American to do so. After a distinguished career in the U.S. Navy that lasted more than 30 years, Brashear retired in 1979. He died in 2006 aged 75. His extraordinary story was the inspiration for the 2000 film Men of Honour, in which Brashear was portrayed by Oscarwinning actor Cuba Gooding Jr."

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