zenith chronomaster sport el primero 3600

#ZENITH CHRONOMASTER SPORT EL PRIMERO 3600 UPGRADE#

permanent minutes counter for up to 60min.modified subdial layout: chrono-sec (3 o’clock), chrono-min (6 o’clock), permanent-sec (9 o’clock) vs chrono-min (3 o’clock), chrono-hours (6 o’clock), permanent-sec (9 o’clock).capable of recording 1/10th of a second.Perhaps the view is a bit clearer when the rotor is removed: And at least of surface it is, since Zenith decided to do what true watchmakers at heart do: improve on the substance!

On first view, everything seems to be the same again.

3600 the future of the legendary movement unfolds: The El Primero remains the cornerstone of Zenith to this day, as has seen numerous complications built upon it, such as tourbillons or even minute repeaters.īesides complications added to different aesthetic versions realised, Zenith themselves never really touched the fundamentals – that is until now: With today’s presentation of the new El Primero Cal. Rolex used it for the first version of the Daytona chronograph (they had a dedicated workshop within Zenith for the requested modifications) as did many other brands, including – ironically, TAG Heuer. The rest is legend, El Primero was one of the pacemakers in the revitalisation of classical watchmaking and the Swiss watch industry. When the management was about to decline the request, convinced that everything was destroyed, Charles Vermot raised his voice and said: ‘there is something I want to show you…’ Years later, in the early 1980s, Pierre-Alain Blum of Ebel inquired at Zenith on the possibility of obtaining some El Primero movements. (The attic where Charles Vermot saved the El Primero. Zenith watchmaker Charles Vermot, convinced that this would be a fatal mistake, secretly tucked away everything that reminded on the El Primero in an attic of the manufacture. Nevertheless, it was the El Primero which made the longest lasting impression – until today.īut this was not entirely foreseen at launch nor was it guaranteed in its history: just two years after its launch, Zenith was sold to an eponymous US consortium which eventually decided to abandon mechanical timepieces, and ordered machines, parts and technical files to be destroyed. 11, announced in March, was the first to be delivered worldwide (August 1969), while Seiko also presented in March but delivered already two months later, but only in Japan. Who finally was ‘the first’ is hotly debated until today, and depends on how one defines ‘fulfilment’: Zenith was the first to announce (in January 1969) but the last to deliver, the Cal. 11 a modular cam/lever operated one with micro-rotor, and the Seiko finally integrated and with column wheel as well, but also with a vertical clutch and Seiko’s efficient ‘Magic Lever’ winding. 6139)Īll of them were decidedly different in approach, the Zenith a classically integrated column wheel movement with a high beat escapement, the Cal. (from left: Zenith El Primero, Heuer/Breitling/Buren/Dubois-Depraz Cal.

11, developed by a joint venture of Heuer, Breitling, Buren and Dubois-Depraz, and Seiko’s Cal. 3019PHC (its name back then) was one of the three movements that raced for the crown of the ‘first automatic chronograph movement’ ever, a race it fought together with the Chronomatic, better known as Cal. Side note: In the late 1960 years, the El Primero Cal. While we normally would cover the watch first and the movement second, we take the freedom to reverse sequence owing to the prominent position the El Primero movement enjoys in the history of the chronograph. 3600, with some significant improvements, and celebrates this with an equally carefully revised Chronomaster Sport collection: That was until today, and now the brand presents a carefully upgraded version, called Cal. The movement was so iconic and proved future-proof that Zenith largely refrained from chaining ‘the winning team’. Without it, however, the entire watch industry would look different even. The El Primero movement is something like the ‘raison d’être’ for the Zenith: without it, the manufacture would very likely not exist anymore. 3600) in 5 decades: 1/10 of a second, more autonomy, conventional crown positions, and revised chrono mechanics, clothed in a new old dress – ´Chronomaster Sport`

#ZENITH CHRONOMASTER SPORT EL PRIMERO 3600 UPGRADE#

The venerable El Primero gets a first substantial upgrade (Cal. Zenith ´Chronomaster Sport` – a new dress and the El Primero Cal.

Zenith chronomaster sport el primero 3600