Ball Watch Features

The new Engineer Hydrocarbon Space master Airborne from Ball Watch pays tribute to the United States Air Force Pararescue unit, whose logo and motto (“That Others May Live”) is engraved on the watch’s caseback. This special air- borne team is responsible for rescuing and providing medical assistance to soldiers engaged in military operations on the ground.

Ball designed the watch to withstand the extreme conditions under which the paratroopers operate. It features Ball’s new patented SpringLock anti-shock system designed to protect the watch’s COSC-certified automatic movement (ETA 2836-2).

The balance spring is protected by a cage that absorbs the energy created by external impacts. Such pounding can hurt the accuracy of a standard mechanical watch by 60 seconds a day, Ball says. The SpringLock system reduces the deleterious effects by 60 percent.

Other features of the watch are Ball’s patented crown protection system and protection against magnetic fields of up to 4,800 A/m and shocks of up to 5,000 Gs. Its 42-mm stainless-steel case is water resistant to 390 feet. The luminous unidirectional bezel is made of ceramic so it is highly resistant to corrosion, scratching, and UV rays.

The watch’s hour, minutes, and seconds hands and dial markers have a total of 31 micro gas tubes for night reading capability. The gas tubes are up to 100 times more effective than conventional luminescent paints, Ball says. The tubes are set on raised metal appliqués to ensure that the light is diffused effectively.