Posts Tagged ‘El Primero’
1 of 200 Blue Dial Zenith De Luca
The El Primero is a model range with as much breadth and depth as the best of them. However, Zenith can be a bit daunting for the recent entrant. Allow me to simplify. Modern Zenith is like a Tag’s cooler older brother. They’re generally a bit better at everything they try (don’t give the Inventor…
Read MoreStratos Flyback Rainbow Zenith El Primero
Reissues frequently run the risk of being trite or overly reductive and damaging the reputation of the original article. However, if there is one manufacture I trust to always nail a design update, it’s Zenith. They don’t replicate and they don’t get too flamboyant in their reissue efforts. More than almost any other modern watchmaker,…
Read MoreZenith El Primero A384 with an Original Gay Frères Ladder
1969 was quite the year. Aside from Omega’s all-time greatest product placement, the Swiss were manufacturing some seriously attractive metal. There was the iconic Speedmaster, the 6263 Daytona, and the El Primero. Zenith’s chronograph did not receive attention in proportion to the impressiveness of its engineering in period. The El Primero has really only been…
Read MoreCappuccino-Dial Zenith El Primero A385
The Zenith El Primero, in almost any guise, is an attractive proposition. There’s something intangibly alluring about owning an automatic chronograph that was made by the inventor of the complication. The El Primero is to automatic chronographs what Mercedes Benz are to the automobile: first. Over its 50 year history, there have been highs and…
Read MoreRare and Attractive: Zenith A384
Phillip’s Auctions (and Aurel Bacs) are notorious for overusing the phrase ‘rare & attractive’ in listing descriptions. However, if they wrote ad copy for this A384, I would make an allowance. To address the former, it is actually rare. Rössler’s book Zenith: Swiss Watch Manufacture Since 1865 estimates just 2600 examples were produced. And to address…
Read MoreTruly Beastly: Zenith El Primero Sub Sea
A true wild child of the 1970s, Zenith’s El Primero diver was a one-off design. There wasn’t anything like it before and I suspect there won’t be anything like it again. In an attempt to capture some of the burgeoning market, the brand took the 3019 high-beat movement and cased it in this wild beast.…
Read MoreZenith G381 Yellow Gold El Primero
Some intangible thing about the early El Primero references is ultra-desirable. The movement is remarkable, the case is perfectly proportioned, the dial perennially interesting. They came from a time when Zenith was innovating hard with the first automatic chronograph and leaving the rest of the pack to catch up. The pride they clearly had at…
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