The Oris Big Crown Pointer Date Is Back in Full, Full Bronze Attire

The Big Crown Pointer Date collection has been part of the history of Oris since its introduction in 1938. It has even pulled Oris through the quartz crisis and as such is one of the pinnacles of the brand. Reinstating the Big Crown Pointer Date as a full collection in 2018 meant we’ve seen multiple variants of this interesting, very retro-styled watch. In recent years Oris has also been experimenting with the use of bronze, first seen on a Carl Brashear limited edition in 2016 but since then expanding to other collections as well. The Big Crown Pointer Date followed suit and is now updated with a quartet of full bronze models (including the bracelet), simply known as the Oris Big Crown Pointer Date Bronze.

The Big Crown Pointer Date is a classic in the industry, even though it is a relatively simple watch at that. It just strikes a chord with its oversized crown, fluted bezel and red-tipped, crescent-shaped hand to indicate the date. The design is distinctly vintage, and even today the style hasn’t lost its appeal. No wonder then, it has stuck around for well over 80 years now.

The new Oris Big Crown Pointer Date Bronze is built upon a familiar platform, yet with new materials. While it’s not the first time it has been decked out in bronze, it is the first time there’s a full bronze Big Crown Pointer Date. Before this, we’ve seen it on the 80th Anniversary Limited Edition, and also in a smaller 36mm size, but always on a leather strap. The case can vary in size, but here it measures 40mm across and about 12mm in height. The bronze case retains the signature elements like the oversized crown and fluted bezel.

The dial comes in four colours; green, brown, Bordeaux-red and blue. Each colour takes the Big Crown Pointer Date into a different direction really, but fit the vintage, steampunk-like vibe very well. The Arabic numerals are done in Super-LumiNova, as are the cathedral-shaped hour and minute hands. On the outer periphery of the dial, you see the numbers for the date, 1 through 31. It can be easily read thanks to the trademark red-tipped crescent date hand.

From a technical perspective, nothing has changed. These new Oris Big Crown Pointer Date Bronze models still use the Oris Calibre 754, a Sellita SW 200-1 based automatic movement. As such, we get 26 jewels, a frequency of 28,800vph and 38 hours of power reserve. The movement indicates central time and of course the central date with the red-tipped hand. It can be seen through the sapphire crystal caseback and has the brand’s signature red-lacquered rotor (outsourced movements only).

Although Oris offers the new Big Crown Pointer Date Bronze on a dark brown leather strap, we feel you should really opt for the full bronze bracelet instead. The multi-link bracelet fits the watch perfectly, ramping up the steampunk feel even further. It will be part of the permanent collection, available from January onwards, and retails for CHF 2,000 on leather strap, or CHF 2,400 on the bronze multi-link bracelet. We’re only hoping the specific bronze alloy used by Oris doesn’t leave a nasty stain on the wrist.

For more information, please visit Oris.ch.