Cal. B20 is an automatic movement from Breitling, introduced in 2017. It is based on a Tudor design and is produced by Kenissi.
Cal. B20 was introduced in 2017 and, although called “in-house” by Breitling, is based on the existing Tudor Cal. MT5612. Breitling has been very clear in this lineage, even specifically listing the Tudor movement number on which it is based in press releases. But the company persists in referring to the movement as “in-house” to differentiate it from other movements it uses from ETA or Sellita.
It is a mainstream automatic movement, including common features like central seconds and a conventional date wheel. Being a modern movement, it also has updated technology, including bi-directional winding, hacking seconds, instantaneous date change with crown-based quickset, and a variable-inertia balance with micro-adjustment by screw. Unlike the Tudor movement, it does not use a silicon balance spring.
Tudor MT56 Family Overview
Tudor traditionally used movements from major manufacturers, chiefly ETA in modern times, as a differentiator from parent company Rolex. Beginning in 2015, the company began producing a line of “Manufacture Tudor” movements for certain models, beginning with Cal. MT5621. These are based on Rolex technology, and include that company’s silicon hairspring technology, full balance bridge and free-sprung Microstella balance wheel.
In 2016, Tudor founded a new movement producer in Geneva known as Kenissi managed by Eric Yvon Pirson (head of Tudor), Jean-Paul Girardin (formerly of Breitling), and Philippe Jacques Dalloz. Two years later, the company constructed a new factory in Le Locle on land owned by Rolex. Chanel invested in Kenissi in 2019, taking a 20% stake in the company. As of 2020, Kenissi produces movements for Tudor, Chanel, Breitling, and Norqain.
| 31.8 mm | 33.8 mm | |
|---|---|---|
| No Date | MT5602 | MT5601 |
| Date | MT5612 Breitling B20 | |
| Power Reserve, Date | MT5621 | |
| Big Date | MT5641 | |
| GMT Hand | MT5652 Norqain NN20/2 |
Note that Tudor also produces a smaller movement, Cal. MT5402. Although it shares many characteristics with this family of movements, it is different in many details and is considered unrelated.
