Look Who it Was Random video

Ulysse Nardin Big Unit Chronograph Limited Edition Luxury Watch Review

1,617 views · Published 30 December 2014 · 7:21 · Indexed 12 November 2026

Channel: The 1916 Company · 2014 · Howto & Style

Watch on YouTube

http://thewatchbox.com

Ok, this one came out of left field, but the result is compelling. Randy Johnson, 300 game-winner and baseball all-time great, and Ulysse Nardin of Le Locle, Switzerland, issued this Big Unit Chronograph in 2012. With a design guided by Randy Johnson's personal tastes in luxury watches, the result is shockingly good.

Granted, baseball and chronographs don't seem as natural a match as chronographs and motor sports or Olympic track events, but Big Unit Chronograph succeeds because of how subtly the MLB references are rendered. 

At the dial's center, a baseball forms the counterweight to the chronograph seconds hand; the sundial at 6 o'clock features a compact reference to Randy's famous nickname, and the unidirectional dive bezel features Johnson's signature #51 in place of the usual 50 minute calibration. And that's it.

The remainder of the design focuses on high-impact visuals without resorting to the kind of blinding brightwork that blights many athlete-inspired limited editions. Rich rose gold is used on the dial and bezel as an accent: it's effective jewelry and a case study in the right way to employ gold on a sports watch

The entire case, bezel shoulders, pushers, crown, and bezel inserts are coated in a durable layer of textured matte black rubber. Its effect on the skin is to remove the shock of donning a cold watch, and the visuals really deliver.  Ulysse Nardin's Big Unit Chronograph features ceramic links that articulate the straps beyond the lugs, and a titanium double-deployant clasp with trigger release completes the package.

Randy Johnson's 100mph fastball and bulldog approach to pitching were anything but subtle. Perhaps he's making up for lost time. A noted amateur photographer in private life, Johnson's eye for detail seems to have borne fruit in his collaboration with Ulysse Nardin.

This Randy Johnson-inspired Big Unit Chronograph limited edition comes with all boxes, papers, and accessories. And you will want these accessories. The entertaining boxed set is baseball-themed, and each of the 100 units of this limited edition is provided with a genuine Major League Baseball game ball signed by the Big Unit himself. Video and content by Tim Mosso.

More from this channel