Brellum Throws Their Hat into the GMT Ring with the Pilot LE.1 GMT Chronometer

Brellum is an up and coming independent brand that prides itself on its rich familial history in watchmaking. Founder Sebastian Muller can trace his family lineage of watchmakers all the way back to his great grandfather who set up his very own shop in 1910. The rest, as they say, is history. Brellum exists today with the intention of continuing the Mueller legacy by producing highly-crafted timepieces that, not only present with a thoughtful design for the modern day wearer, but to pay homage to their family’s passion for traditional Swiss watchmaking. Their surname is an anagram in the brand’s namesake afterall. Recently, the brand announced a very limited run of a handsome pilot’s chronograph equipped with a GMT function with the Brellum Pilot LE.1 GMT Chronometer.

The dial is where the Brellum Pilot LE.1 GMT Chronometer shows a whole lot of flash without straying too far away from the traditional pilot’s watch aesthetic. And by flash, I mean that opalin silver-now dial. From the images, it seems that this dial has its own character all on its own, displaying a luster against radiant lighting, and then a more toned down matted white in neutral lighting. All of the dial markings use black as the main color for unmistakable legibility including the minute track, 24 hour display bordering the outer portion of the dial, and applied numeral hour markers. The subdials take up dial real-estate at six, twelve and nine with a date window sneaking into the six o’clock subdial that offsets the dial with its black datewheel and white numeral display.

The case has a more conservative approach, using a balance of brushed finishing complemented by polished surfaces defining the mid case and lugs. A set of polished pump-pushers, along with a signed crown at three o’clock take up home along the right side of the case. The case is sandwiched between a large box-shaped sapphire crystal above the dial and a similar sapphire display screw-caseback secured by six screws on the underside of the case. All of this comes together so that the case measures 15.9mm in thickness despite the fact that the case only measures 11.7mm. Normally Brellum’s chronographs are built with 50 meters of water resistance, but the Pilot LE.1 GMT Chronometer gets an upgrade in that department to 100 meters.

The Brellum Pilot LE.1 GMT Chronometer is powered by the 7754 Valjoux based Caliber BR-754-GMT movement. Staying true to high-end Swiss movement design, the movement visible through the open caseback is decorated with perlage, Geneva stripes and blued screws. The 4N gold coated winding rotor is designed after an aircraft’s turn coordinator instrument and bears the model’s limited edition number. And just as much as the movement is easy on the eyes, it also boasts some mechanical prowess via a chronograph function, quick set GMT hand, and like with any model within the Brellum range, a COSC certification promising an accuracy rating within -4/+6 seconds per day.

The Brellum Pilot LE.1 GMT Chronometer delivers on a couple of different shoe options including a black leather strap with white stitching and a matching Brellum signed steel deployant buckle, as well as a 5-link stainless steel bracelet matching the case finish with alternating brushed and polished accoutrements. The Pilot LE.1 GMT Chronometer is a nice little offering if you’re in the market for a white dial pilot’s chronograph. I’m still coming around on chronographs as a whole, but throw in a GMT complication in there, and you have my attention. The dial is an interesting feature. I like the matte effect in how it presents in some of these photos, and especially the splashes of red from the GMT arrow, seconds hand, and GMT inscription in the twelve o’clock subdial. That said, there is a lot going on in the dial. I haven’t been one for numerals being slightly cut off by a subdial, and the numerals in close proximity near the cardinal positions within the 24 hour display throws me off a bit. The 41.8mm x 15.9mm case proportions are also outside of where my tastes lie in terms of how a watch sits on my 6.25” wrist. But hey, that’s just me.

The Brellum Pilot LE.1 GMT Chronometer is limited to just 23 pieces worldwide and at the time of this writing, is still available directly through Brellum’s online platform. The GMT equipped, chronometer certified, Brellum Pilot LE.1 retails at $3,450 after the conversion. Brellum is most certainly flying in a crowded airspace at that price point, but if you factor in the attention to detail within this travel-ready chronograph and promised high-quality craftsmanship from a small family owned independent brand, the Pilot LE.1 GMT Chronometer might be worth your consideration. Brellum