French brand Baltic is celebrating their third year of involvement in the historic Tour Auto as the official timekeeper, and this year we’re getting a new evolution of their hand-wound chronograph called the Scalegraph. The watch retains much of the sporting identity that Baltic have crafted with these watches since the first Tricompax released in 2022, which is a good thing, but they’ve changed up some important details in the process. The first change you’ll notice is the new screw down pushers for the chronograph, which allow for a handy 100 meter depth rating, double that of the Tricompax collection.
The move to screw down pushers from pump pushers will be controversial to some who find the very idea rather counterintuitive, but there’s no denying the more muscular presence they bring to the design as a whole, and the added depth rating will be a worthy trade off for the inconvenience. Their inclusion here also fits in with the overall design of the Scalegraph, which takes some liberties with the previously established old-school design language, though it does retain that core DNA, and it all comes down to the dial design.
As we’ve seen from Baltic in the past, they are using a ‘big-eye’ design that places the minute totalizer within an oversized sub-dail at three o’clock. This sub-dial also welcomes a tri-color index marking five minute segments in transition. The running seconds hand is placed in a smaller sub-dial at nine o’clock, while the hour totalizer floats freely at the six o’clock position. The applied hour markers are set perpendicular to what you’d normally expect, which is an unusual but welcome design decision that adds to the overall character of what’s going on here.
All of this is set within a light blue base dial with a darker blue chapter ring. The inner portions of the sub-dials are a creamy off-white with a blue tint, and the combination of everything is decidedly mid-century modern in nature. Baltic’s inspiration here was the original color scheme of the Tour de France Automobile. The dial is framed by a dark blue bezel insert with a tachymeter scale etched into the aluminum. It’s a handsome watch, all told, and Baltic is planning to 400 units in celebration of their involvement in Tour Auto 2025.
Baltic is using a hand-wound Sellita based movement within the 39.5mm case which measures 14.1mm in thickness (including a double domed sapphire crystal). THe closed caseback will be individually numbered. The watch will be offered on your choice of a flat link style bracelet, or a beads of rice style, each evoking a vintage vibe. Both come with an alcantara strap option. Pricing is set at € 1,750, and you can keep an eye out for the watch on Baltic’s Instagram as they participate in the Tour Auto from April 6th to April 15 as they make their way from Paris to Nice. Baltic
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