Greubel Forsey‘s latest GMT Balancier Convexe – reference GF05bv – takes the brand’s rotating titanium globe and lets its blue spill across the amphitheatre of the movement, the hand-sewn rubber strap, and even the crown inserts. It is the only GMT in the current collection, and it arrives in a limited series of 22 pieces.
Here, universal time is read from the globe itself – an indication, not a decoration. The dial is tiered like a small arena: hours, minutes, small seconds, a second time zone, day-night, and a 72-hour power reserve each occupy their own level. It reads intuitively once you accept that the world is the hand.
The calibre has been re-engineered around the now dial-side power reserve, growing by 73 components to 496, with chronometric performance improved. The inclined escapement remains suspended beneath a flat black polished and barrel polished steel bridge, itself resting on polished steel pillars. This is architecture with poise rather than noise.
Turn it over and a sapphire disc engraved with 24 reference cities provides universal time for every zone, with a second scale for summer and winter time. La Chaux-de-Fonds replaces Paris – a polite assertion that a GMT built here should keep its own meridian.
The Convexe titanium case measures 42.9 mm and curves front and back, so it sits lower on the wrist than figures suggest. Titanium keeps mass in check, the rubber strap anchors it, and the blue crown inserts tie the touchpoint to the whole.
What matters is intention: legibility through depth, a globe that turns once every 24 hours in step with the planet, and finishing that earns a closer look. It is a travel watch for those who prefer instruments to ornaments – with just enough theater to remind you where you are on Earth.
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