From New Zealand, the new Beaufort Pulsatimer Jet Black DLC

While we’re getting used to seeing watch brands pop up all over the world, it’s rare to come across a New Zealand brand. Founded by Auckland native Robert Kwok, Beaufort is on a mission to deliver interesting vintage designs at affordable prices. Earlier this year, the brand released the Beaufort Pulsatimer, an old-school doctor’s watch with a pulsometer scale and a case and dial inspired by brutalist architecture.

While studying for a degree in technology, Robert Kwok couldn’t find a watch that fit his budget and decided to put his university studies on hold in 2018 to find a solution. His brand, Beaufort, launched in 2019 on Kickstarter and is named after the Bristol Beaufort torpedo bomber used by the New Zealand Air Force in the early 1940s.

At just 20 years old, Kwok’s first watch, the 1940s-inspired 40mm Aerotimer Automatic, embodied Kwok’s desire to produce vintage designs reimagined for modern needs with robust specifications. The watch, which retailed for $539 NZD, went viral, as they say.

Following a rebranding in late 2023, Beaufort has adopted a more industrial and brutalist architectural direction. Inspired by the concrete Faculty of Fine Arts at the University of La Laguna in Spain and the UTEC University Campus in Lima, Peru, the latest Pulsatimer sports an industrial-looking case and dial.

The case measures 39mm in diameter and is 13.8mm thick, including the double-domed sapphire crystal. The model we photographed is the black PVD steel version. Piston-style chronograph pushers emphasize a vintage aesthetic, while dynamic brushed and layered sandblasted finishes evoke the bold lines and raw concrete finishes of Brutalist architecture. Polished surfaces are used sparingly, and the fine polished bevels and stepped inner bezel catch the light and highlight the more industrial brushed finishes of the case. The caseback is sealed and the case is water-resistant to 50 meters.

The brutalist spirit is truly revealed on the dial. True to the brutalist movement’s fascination with monolithic forms and the play of light and shadow, the applied indexes are interconnected. Shaped as open rectangles or tuning forks with a double rectangular index at 12 o’clock, the indexes are attached to a polished metal ring.

It may not be the most practical element today, but the dial rim is adorned with a black pulsometer scale with white markings. Used by doctors in the pre-digital age, the pulsometer scale determines the heart rate per minute based on 15 or 30 beats. By activating the chronograph, the wearer counts the beats corresponding to the calibrated beats – in this case, 30 – and consults the position of the chronograph’s central seconds hand on the outer scale to determine the heart rate per minute. Here, the chronograph’s central seconds hand is shaped like indexes with a rectangular, luminous tip. The recessed counter on the dial at 9 o’clock is for the small seconds, and the one at 3 o’clock is for the 30-minute counter. The hour and minute hands are also treated with Super-LumiNova.

Under the sealed caseback is a Sellita SW510M hand-wound, integrated cam chronograph movement with a frequency of 28,800 vph, hacking seconds and a 63-hour power reserve.

The Pulsatimer is available in three further iterations, in stainless steel cases with salmon, silver or black dials.

Availability and prices

The Beaufort Pulsatimer Jet Black DLC comes with an Italian leather strap, although other strap options are available on the website for a moderate price of EUR 33.95. Pre-orders can be placed directly on the brand’s website and shipping will begin in September 2024. The price is 1,214.95 EUR (taxes included), but please check the price in your area to calculate shipping costs if applicable. For more details, please see www.beaufort-watches.com.

Sponsored article: This article is sponsored by Beaufort Watches. However, it reflects the opinion of the author and has been written in accordance with MONOCHROME’s editorial policy.