![]() ![]() The smooth sweep of the seconds hand is much beloved by watch wearers. That Zenith chose to utilize a column wheel chronograph shows the level of end-to-end watchmaking that went into the El Primero development. ![]() There are benefits and drawbacks of using both types of chronographs, but column wheel production is more complex and labor-intensive. Most chronographs at the time (and many today) utilized a cam-actuated chronograph. For one, the watch featured a column wheel chronograph with a tri-compax layout. The El Primero was a watchmaking marvel of its time - and not just for one reason. This movement was so well build that even Rolex used it for its Daytona series from late 80s to early 2000. So that this was not forgotten, the movement was given the name “El Primero” What’s important is this: the Zenith movement that resulted seven years after the journey began in 1962 is arguably still the best automatic chronograph in its price range 44 years later. Whether or not the so-called Chrono-matic group - Hamilton-Buren, Breitling, Heuer, and Dubois-Dupraz - or Seiko actually beat the El Primero to market is not important. And then there was the dark horse from Le Locle: Zenith. In the Far East, Seiko was working on its own version. The main players were a consortium of companies with mutual interests: Heuer, Buren-Hamilton, Breitling and Dubois-Depraz. During the 1960s there were three parties competing to build the first automatic chronograph. It was the first automatic chronograph introduced to the market and one of the first automatic chronographs produced in series. The Zenith El Primero is one of the most iconic watches in the history of watch making. Get yourself the chance to buy a new old stock, box and papers Zenith El Primero de Luca first series panda dial! In this case, the result's been a watch which it's very likely Zenith would never have produced on its own, but which also, seen against the backdrop of the El Primero's history, seems a very good fit to the basic EP identity.Zenith El Primero De Luca first series panda dial NOS At the moment, of course, it's still very much a niche activity from a commercial perspective, but it's also a good look for any brand that's willing to make it a real collaboration, and for any organization which has a clear vision of what it expects from its design objectives, and which also understands the need to respect certain core aspects of the brand's identity as well. The center seconds hand is now rhodium plated, and the chronograph pushers have a brushed finish, the better to bring them into visual harmony with the rest of the watch.Īs fine watchmaking continues to find an even broader audience worldwide, and on the internet, the creation of custom-designed timepieces for such communities – which is very much distinct from creating limited editions as a part of larger commercial relationships, such as sports teams sponsorships – may more and more represent a commercially important market for fine watch brands to explore. The date display at 4:00 is also gone, in pursuit of greater simplicity and visual clarity, and dial numerals are executed in an easy-on-the-eyes, but still highly legible, light grey. The colorful treatment of the overlapping subdials, as well as the signature red center chronograph seconds hand, are gone instead, a palette of matte whites and greys takes its place, playing off the metal facets of the dial markers. For its first outing, Collective, whose membership is primarily folks working in tech, wanted a watch that represented the simplicity in design and clarity of purpose characteristic of an elegant and well designed user-interface. It will be immediately obvious to anyone familiar with the standard 38mm EP, that the aesthetics are pretty dramatically different. In terms of basic physical design and dimensions, the Chronomaster C.01 is identical to the 38mm El Primero Chronomaster, but the aesthetics are very different. ![]()
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