At SIHH in Geneva, Baume & Mercier presented its redesigned Classima collection. Targeted at entry-level consumers, the Classima line includes men’s steel and two-tone automatic models.
The Classima collection’s new watches are 3-hand models with date display. They are built off of a Sellita SW200 base caliber, similar to the ETA 2824. It beats at 28,800 vph and how a power reserve of 38 hours. It runs in 26 jewels.
The men’s Classima is 40 mm in diameter and 8.95 mm thick. It has blued steel hands for the hour, minutes and seconds. Applied hour indexes include Roman numerals at 12, 3, 6 and 9 o’clock. A date window is at 3 o’clock.
One of the defining aesthetic features of the watch is its inner dial, where the silver-colored opaline is engraved with a straight-line guilloché design. This guilloché technique has been used on the dials of past Classima watches, but the new models broaden the ridges for a more reserved look.
Through the sapphire-crystal caseback you can see the rotor, a modification made to the Sellita movement by Baume & Mercier. It has côtes de Genève and is engraved with the Baume & Mercier logo, the Greek letter Phi. This emblem can also be found on the crown.
The case is made of polished stainless steel. So too for the bracelet, which alternates thin and thick links. The bracelet fits seamlessly into the lugs. For a more refined look, there is the dark brown alligator strap, with square scales. Both versions have a triple-folding clasp with push-pieces.
There are also two-tone models. These are also cased in steel, but with a bezel plated in rose gold. On the dial, the indexes and hands are also rose-gold plated. It comes with a black alligator strap or a steel bracelet that maintains the two-tone design.
All four models are water resistant to 50 meters. On a bracelet, the two-tone version costs $4,450; on a strap it’s $3,350. The all-steel watches are $2,600 on a strap and $2,700 on a bracelet.
