Review: Limited Edition Breitling for Bentley Midnight Carbon GMT Watch
Today we are reviewing a very special watch that is a product of a highly successful automobile brand partnership of the watch industry – Breitling for Bentley. This particular Breitling for Bentley watch is a limited edition Midnight Carbon GMT. There were only 1,000 ever made.
BREITLING BENTLEY GMT MIDNIGHT CARBON LIMITED EDITION BLACK STEEL WATCH
The Breitling for Bentley Midnight Carbon GMT is a very distinct and cool watch. If you owned this watch, you would be hard pressed to find someone else wearing it. It was produced in a limited special edition of only 1,000 pieces of which each watch is individually numbered.
You can see that this is an original Midnight Carbon GMT because it has the black dial with the red GMT hands and red subdial hands. Furthermore, the caseback is stamped limited edition and it is numbered individually out of 1,000 pieces. So, don’t confuse this Midnight Carbon with other Breitling for Bentley GMTs that have aftermarket black coatings.
With its black PVD case and diamond lugs, the knurl bezel, and the highly visible red GMT hand and red chrono counters on an otherwise busy white and black dial, this watch really stands out in a unique way. It’s a magnificent timepiece with so many intricate details.
On that note, let’s talk about each component of this watch to better understand this rare Breitling timepiece.
49MM BLACK PVD CASE:
One of the most distinctive features of this watch is the PVD coated stainless steel case, hence the name, Midnight Carbon.
PVD stands for physical vapor deposition. It is a thin, ultra hard coating of black carbon-rich material that is nearly impossible to scratch, protecting both the finish of the case and the steel underneath. PVD will never wear off on its own.
Besides the durability and protectiveness, the black PVD coating gives the watch that non-reflective, very sporty black finish.
Note: This is a factory finish, not an aftermarket finish. We say this because most PVD coated watches from high-end luxury watch brands are, in fact, aftermarket finishes.
As for size, the case is massive at 49mm. It is the epitome of the word “oversized” in the sports watch category. It will sit on your wrist with a formidable presence. As such, it is going to look great on a man with a 7.5-8”+ wrist. So, for those who have a problem with watches wearing too small, this is definitely the watch for you.
Another aspect of the case that we love is the beautiful curvature it has. For a watch that is so big, the features are very sensuous.
You also can’t miss the diamond-set lugs of the case. The watch features 52 round brilliant diamonds sized according to their position in the lugs. The diamonds contrast stunningly with black PVD case and complement the inner bezel and white aspects of the dial.
On the right side of the case you have the crown guard and screw-down crown, which guarantees 330 feet of water resistance. To the top and bottom of the crown guard rests the chronopushers. And on the other side of the case at its 10 o’clock, there is a large pusher that controls the red GMT hand
All in all, the case is robust, durable and highly detailed. It stands out far more than your average case. Like the bezel and dial, the case of the Breitling for Bentley Midnight Carbon GMT is full of character.
KNURL 24 CITY BEZEL:
The watch is characterized by the very special Breitling for Bentley rich, hobnail knurl bezel. The knurling on the bezel offers the same feeling and aesthetic as a Breitling Bentley car. Their cars have the same kind of knurling on the vents, controls, shifting knob, and turn signal knob. It is very rugged and sporty, yet also it feels and looks high-end and sophisticated.
The bezel is rotatable and the inner part of the bezel that slopes down towards the dial features 24 cities representing 24 time zones around the world. It rotates bidirectionally, which allows you to synchronize your GMT to the city. And thanks to the prominent red hand, you can read the time in the second time zone with a quick glance.
BREITLING FOR BENTLY GMT CHRONO DIAL:
Underneath the cambered sapphire crystal, which has double anti-reflective treatment, you will see one of the most striking dials in the Breitling catalog. As busy as the dial is, it is very well laid out and thought out, so it doesn’t overwhelm or distract from legibility or functionality in any way.
The first thing you will notice is how the red hands really jump out at you. The red contrasts with the pitch black dial and white accents magnificently. This is an important factor since the red hands have functionality separate from the main clock.
The dial’s red rimmed counters are very evocative of sports cars’ racing panels. The large red hand is the GMT hand. The small red hands are for the chrono subdials (note: the 3 o’clock subdial is the running seconds). And the red accent on the large seconds hand that reaches to the 30 second outboard lets you know that it is the 30 seconds chronograph.
You will also notice a date window within the 6 o’clock subdial. Just another useful complicated for this complex sports watch.
Below the 12 o’clock, you have the Bentley logo, immediately letting you know this is a Breitling for Bentley.
Moving to the outboard, you have the minute track and then the 24 hour GMT track. It’s all organized beautifully and the hands reach to the outboard they are meant to indicate, so it looks great and it reads easily.
As for the hour markers, you can see they are blacked out but the 3 and 9 o’clock are white. This is because there is luminescence in those markers, as there is in the hour and minutes hands.
Now, let’s talk functionality…
FUNCTIONS:
The watch has three very useful complications. It has the GMT, dual timezone complication, it is a chronograph, and it has a date complication which can be seen in the small window in the subdial above the 6 o’clock.
GMT Complication
As this is a GMT watch, the red hand represents the second GMT timezone. It uses the 24 hour clock that circles along the periphery of the dial.
The red hand can be adjusted independently of the clock simply by pushing the clicking oversized push button on the side of case near the 10 o’clock. When you push it down, you will see the red GMT hand advancing along the dial without interfering with the main time’s minute or hour hand.
So, the way this watch works is you set the watch for your local time zone. Then, you use the push button to forward the red GMT hand along the 24 hour black GMT track, stopping at the second timezone that you want to reference.
Chronograph Complication
It is a three register chrono. It has the constant seconds at the 3 o’clock. The second is the hours register at the 6 o’clock, which tracks up to a 6 hour duration. And very peculiarly, the register at the 9 o’clock is part of the 30 second chronograph complication, so every complication represents a 30 second revolution, tracking up to 15 minutes increments. As such, the increments are 15 minutes for the 9 o’clock subdial and 6 hours for the 6 o’clock subdial. The large second hand that goes around the dial measures 30 seconds (with accuracy to an 1/8th of a second).
This chrono system is taken from a patent that Breitling came up with back in 1924. Not all of the Breitling chronographs have this 30 second chronograph.
Additionally, the watch features a screw-down winding crown, which gives it its water resistance. This particular model is water-resistant down to 330 feet.
On the sides of the crown guards, you have your chronopushers at your 2 o’clock and 4 o’clock. What’s really nice about this watch is that the chronopushers are easy to use. You can push them down with relative ease, but they also won’t easily push down when you don’t intend to use them.
The chronopusher at the 2 o’clock starts the main 30 second chronograph, which is the long seconds hand on the main dial. Simply pushing the pusher starts and stops it. By pushing the button at 4, you reset the chronograph to the 12 o’clock position. It really doesn’t get any easier than this. It allows for very precise measurements of time and quick restarts.
BLACK TROPICAL RUBBER STRAP:
The Breitling for Bentley Midnight Carbon has a very sporty and perfectly fitting black rubber sports strap. It’s our favorite version of Breitling’s rubber sports straps (they have a few different types) because it is smooth and made from tropical rubber. It wears superbly and it ages just as well. It won’t fall victim to chemical aging, which can happen from just about anything, such as tap water, chlorine in the pool, salt in the ocean, exposure to sun rays. Non-tropical straps will deteriorate with time, but not Breitling for Bentley’s tropical black rubber strap.
The clasp is also very nice too. It is a PVD coated ocean folding deployant buckle to match the black PVD coated case. Moreover, it has some additional functionality besides keeping the watch secure to your wrist. It has a diver’s extension built into the clasp. By pushing the button on its side when the clasp is open, you can move the bracelet in or out to resize it. It gives you around 3/4th of an inch in adjustment length, which is a lot. The mechanisms uses a spring loaded release so it is very quick and easy to adjust.
CALIBER 47B MOVEMENT:
The engine of this Breitling for Bentley Midnight Carbon GMT Special Edition watch is a mechanical self-winding Breitling Caliber 47B (base movement ETA 2892-A2) with 38 jewels, 48 hours power reserve and a frequency of 28,800 vph.
The automatic movement features a 30-second chronograph function, which means the large second hand circles the entire dial of the watch in half a minute. You can see the time by looking at the track that the tip of the second hand rests on. The 30 second system allows for more precise time measurements (accuracy up the 1/8th of a second).
BREITLING FOR BENTLEY MIDNIGHT CARBON GMT SPECIAL EDITION PRICE
The Bentley Midnight Carbon GMT Special Edition watch can only be found on the secondhand market so prices will vary depending on the seller and condition of the watch.
At Diamonds By Raymonds Lee in Boca Raton, we have recently acquired this watch and it is for sale. The pictures in this post were taken by us. The limited edition watch comes with all of its original papers and its original box. Moreover, the watch is in pristine condition. We are selling the Bentley Midnight Carbon GMT Special Limited Edition watch for $15,995.
FINAL THOUGHTS
This particular Breitling for Bentley model is one that you definitely won’t see often, considering there are only 1,000 of them. The watch has a great feel and a strong heritage that is associated with the iconic Bentley name. If you get into a Bentley, you can really see how this watch was made for it. If you don’t own a Bentley, go to a dealership so you can see what we mean. You will immediately feel one with the car when wearing this watch. Moreover, it will further your appreciation for this watch’s design aesthetics. The appearance, the feeling of the weightiness, the mass of the metal, the volume of the piece, it’s all so very cohesive.
All in all, the Special Edition Breitling for Bentley Midnight Carbon GMT offers a refreshed look that pays homage to Bentley’s competitive feats through the use of advanced materials that you will find in high-end sports cars. The watch is rugged, durable, sporty, and full of eye-catching design details. If you are a racing enthusiast, we are sure you’ll love this watch. Try it on at Diamonds By Raymond Lee in Boca Raton and see for yourself.
So, that’s it, this is the Breitling for Bentley GMT Midnight Carbon Special Limited Edition watch reference number M47362. If you have any questions about this watch, feel free to contact us.
If you want to purchase this Breitling for Bentley GMT Midnight Carbon Special Edition watch, you can see the full sales listing here (available to order online or in-person at our showroom in Boca Raton).
Diamonds By Raymonds Lee Address: 2801 N Federal Hwy, Boca Raton, FL 33431
Phone number: 561-750-6744
