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For instance, the chronograph seconds hand traverses the dial once every ten seconds or six times per minute.Īlso, rather than drive the chronograph via the movement's fourth wheel, as the original calibre 400 did, the El Primero 3600 runs the chronograph directly off its high-tech silicon escape wheel.ĭo you fancy picking up the Zenith Chronomaster Original Limited Edition For Hodinkee? You'll have to act fast -Zenith is only making 300-pieces. The Caliber 3600 shares the same high-beat rate and column-wheel design that has defined the El Primero since its inception, but with modern technical enhancements that ensure smooth running and reliability. Housed inside the 38mm case, and entirely visible through the sapphire case back, sits the Zenith El Primero Automatic Caliber 3600 movement. The case is met by a tapered bracelet with polished centre links, outer links with polished edges, and a folding clasp to ensure the look - and feel - of a modern high-performance sports watch. 42 mm El Primero 36,000 VPH next to a 38 mm Zenith El Primero 36,000 VPH Original 1969. As far as which chronograph was available commercially first, that is a different story as the Caliber 11 did, in fact, go on sale before the El Primero. The dial is flanked by familiar pump-style pushers and brushed lugs. And they are true to their name El Primero which means The First, in that regard. The signature 4:30 date window is almost hidden thanks to a matching salmon date wheel that blends in with the colour of the dial.īeyond the new colourway, the watch’s case and dial are enclosed with a raised sapphire crystal, calling to mind the acrylic lenses found on vintage Zenith chronographs.
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With the strong salmon base tone, the chronograph reinterprets Zenith’s emblematic tricolour registers in three shades of grey. On the wrist, the dial can move quite seamlessly between bright and sunny and formal and moody. This is anything but simple - the colour has depth and a bit of flash that holds up against the muted silver and grey hues elsewhere. The timepiece is outfitted with a matte salmon opaline dial, providing a dynamic and warm backdrop uncommon for this dial configuration.Ĭhosen by the Hodinkee team, the salmon leans more towards an orange colourway as opposed to red, and the matte opaline finish allows that colour to shine without any unnecessary finishing. The colours are where Hodinkee pushed the boundaries while connecting the timepiece to the world of complex watchmaking. It was the base within the Ebel Chronographs, and the Rolex Cosmograph Daytona, among others.The Zenith Chronomaster Original Limited Edition For Hodinkee uses the perfectly sized 38mm x 12.6mm case of the Chronomaster Original came in. Seeing a manufacture movement being used in another brand’s timepiece more often than not implies the value of the movement, be it in reliability or reputability. The El Primero was also a donor chronograph in the days when having an in-house chronograph was not the norm. But our favourite part of the watch is something quite unexpected. It bears the DNA of vintage chronographs, with thin lugs, and no date, broad pushers and thin line stripe markers. Moving away from a tri-compax to a bi-compax, the Classic is reminiscent of a ’40s chronograph. Notably, the Classic, removes all the subtitles and also takes away an hour subdial. The simple watch is the answer to the consistent debate over the unnecessary cluttering of the dial. On the other hand, there is the minimalism themed Zenith El Primero Classic Chronograph. The Zenith El Primero Classic, in 18K rose gold. Dufour went on to be CEO of Rolex in 2014, and the direction set is continued on by current CEO Aldo Magada. Thankfully, the brand was more rationally managed when Jean-Frédéric Dufour took helm of Zenith in 2009. But it almost went bust from the notoriety it earned under the years when Thierry Nataf was CEO of Zenith (2001 to 2009). The CHRONOMASTER El Primero watch in a 38mm steel case with a brown alligator leather strap, featuring a silver dial with the iconic different-coloured chronograph counters. Zenith’s El Primero has seen its good days during the 70’s and 80’s and even withstood the Quartz crisis. And an extremely rocky one to be precise. First introduced in 1969, the one of a kind chronograph, has stood the test of time. More recently, its increasing staple of well-priced and attractive watches with reliable in house movements makes Zenith one of our favourite watch brands. Zenith is the first manufacture to create an automatic integrated column wheel movement, and promptly christened it the El Primero. The reason for its name is an obvious one why Zenith chose to name their chronograph movement that. El Primero, translated from Spanish, means ‘the first’.