If you happen to be a black belt in some form of martial art of which no one has ever heard, you could be eligible to buy a watch from the Swiss based Black Belt Watch company.
The man behind the Black Belt Watch brand is none other than Yvan Arpa, who above all else is responsible for creating some of the wackiest and straight out of left-field watches of recent years.
They say it’s a fine line between genius and insanity and there’s little doubt that Yvan Arpa is a hugely skilled watch maker, despite some of his designs being absolutely bonkers! Eccentric doesn’t really come close – just take a look at the Halloween inspired Werewolf Blood and Bullets watch that we featured on Click Tempus last year as an example.
That said, let’s not take anything away from Arpa, who has worked with some of the finest names in Swiss watchmaking – Baume et Mercier and Hublot to name a few. He also worked extensively with Romain Jerome up until a few years ago and is credited in many watch making circles with saving, what at the time, was a watch brand plummeting rapidly towards obscurity. However, the working relationship between Romain Jerome and Arpa turned somewhat sour back in 2009, which resulted in both parties meeting via a Swiss employment tribunal that would eventually rule in favour of Arpa.
In fact, we covered the Romain Jerome Titanic DNA Dual Tourbillon Night and Day Spiral watch in December 2012, which Yvan Arpa designed.
Anyway, back to Black Belt Watches – Yvan Arpa is himself a black belt in the martial art of Bushido and in his younger days actually competed professionally in Thailand and Papua New Guinea. Black Belt has enabled Arpa to combine his passion for Bushido with his love of watch making.
Whilst the idea for making a watch that only black belt martial artists can buy (yep, they even check for official certification) might be considered a little gimmicky, a percentage of each sale of a Black Belt Watch is donated to a good cause that helps to give people with disabilities an introduction in to martial arts.
Black Belt Watch
Launched in 2009 , the Swiss made Black Belt Watch features a self winding mechanical movement that has a frequency of 28,800 vph. The movement is housed inside a 316 steel case with a PVD and satin finish. The dial on the Black Belt is superimposed on 5 levels with various shades of black. The hands are said to replicate a traditional bamboo sword, known as a Shinai, which is used in the martial art of Kendo. The background pattern of the dial, in addition to the strap, emulates the material resembles the material used for kimonos. The caseback is engraved in 5N rose gold with “For Black Belts Only”.
Incidentally, the Black Belt Watch is actually pretty understated for an Yvan Arpa timepiece. Even people without the slightest interest in martial arts would have to agree that the watch has a definite appeal to it.
You can buy the Black Belt direct from the brand’s website. – provided of course you are a genuine black belt.
Black Belt Winter Camp Watch
Don’t worry if you are not a black belt holder, all is not lost as Black Belt also produce a selection of watches for the rest of us mere mortals. One of its more recent models, the Black Belt Winter Camp is one such watch.
Featuring a quartz chronograph movement, the watch measures 42mm in diameter and is crafted from black steel with a textured silicone strap.
The watch displays an hour and minute counter at 3 and 9 o’clock respectively, with a small seconds counter found at 6 o’clock.
The case back is engraved with the essential codes of the Bushido martial art.
Limited to 100 pieces, the Black Belt Winter Camp watch is available to buy for 300CHF (approx £210) direct from the Black Belt website.
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