Pre-SIHH 2019 – Panerai Submersible Chrono Guillaume Néry Edition PAM00982
As part of the pre-SIHH 2019 introductions, Panerai is presenting a new version of its Submersible Chrono, which lays the foundations for a new collaboration with French free-diving champion Guillaume Néry. Knowing what job the man is doing, a professional dive watch sounds like something rather relevant. This new piece is aptly named the Panerai Submersible Chrono Guillaume Néry edition or, in more technical words, the PAM00982. Bold and sporty, it features striking blue accents and an attractive shark grey textured dial. Read on for all the details, including expected pricing.
It would be easy to dismiss the Luminor Due — Panerai’s latest fully fledged line — as a collection oriented towards women. After all, it’s the collection that houses 38 and 42mm watches. But the fact that I am on record as being more than a little partial to the 42mm model aside, there are the larger members of the Due family, PAMs 943 and 944 respectively. Both are 45mm steel cases, which sees them aimed firmly at the fellas. If the larger size wasn’t enough of a giveaway, the more subdued colour palette should cinch it. Gone are the playful blues and fashion-forward strap options, in favour of stunning, shimmering anthracite. And really, this is a watch where the dial shines over the details. Don’t get me wrong, the details are good — classic Panerai design codes rendered in rich ecru lume, with a smidgen of text and a date window thrown in for good measure — but they don’t compete with the richness of the dial texture. This is one of the dressiest Panerais I’ve had the pleasure of wearing, and that’s absolutely OK. This is a Luminor Due, after all. And while the dive watch heritage is there,…
The story in a second: Classic on the outside, contemporary on the inside. Baume & Mercier are onto a winner here. I’ve always thought Baume & Mercier were at their best when they were playing with the classics. The Clifton, with its classical proportions, vintage inspiration and strong value offering, is a proposition that was hard to beat. But beat it they did, with the deceptively simple Clifton Baumatic, and its powerful movement. The case An elegantly proportioned case is a hallmark of the Clifton family, and this Baumatic version delivers, with neat and tidy dimensions of 40mm across by 10.3mm tall. But even though it’s a Clifton, it’s not quite the same Clifton as before. The regular — non-Baumatic — Clifton is shade wider at 41mm. It’s not just the overall width here that’s slimmer, the lug shoulders are more slender too, giving a greater air of timelessness overall. As you’d expect, the crystals are sapphire on the front and the rear, and it’s rated to 50 metres of water resistance. The dial The classic aesthetic that’s evident on the case continues onto the dial, which could perhaps be best described as simple but stylish. Crisp black printing on…
Let me level with you. There’s an official tie-in between this watch and the oh-so-English Goodwood Festival of Speed, one of the world’s leading events for motor enthusiasts. I could spend the next few hundred words talking about the synergy between the automotive and the horological (don’t get me wrong, there are real and entirely meaningful links), but for someone who hasn’t been to Goodwood and isn’t a “car guy” per se (I leave that to Andy), the backstory is kind of beside the point. The point being that this is an absolutely awesome-looking watch. First unveiled last year, the TimeWalker Manufacture Chronograph was already a pretty big step up for Montblanc’s core sports collection, as it graduated to the big boy leagues with a solid in-house column wheel chrono. The first generation, with its panda face, was a pretty good-looking offering, but this vintage-tuned model is even better. The base dial is a rich creamy colour, which looks like it was inspired by faded tropical dials or the rich, ivory paper stock (both work for a Montblanc watch). The subdials are a contrasting deep brown, while the rally-style strap is a glorious golden tan. It’s not all old school,…
One of Girard-Perregaux’s leitmotifs is the golden bridge. Typically deployed in a trio, the golden bridges — with their broad, arrow-headed shoulders and pleasing, perfectly aligned symmetry — have been holding the brand’s wheels and balances in place since 1860. The golden bridges first showed up in a wristwatch in 1981, and these days it serves as a de facto logo. Girard-Perregaux has also been playing with tradition, with their modernist neo-bridges watches and this new, more accessible model, the Classic Bridges, which sees two bridges take pride of place on the dial; the smaller of the two looking after a balance wheel instead of the loftier tourbillon. That’s not to say that the Classic Bridges isn’t an impressive piece — this 40mm version (there’s also a suitably more epic 45mm option) is pure flex, with a large, no-nonsense pink gold case, and exceptionally finished, partially openworked dial. The satin polished steel components provide a nice contrast to those bridges and the broad, brushed hour and minute hands (there’s no seconds hand). The combination of contrast and power is compelling enough, but for me it’s the balance of the in-house movement that takes the Classic Bridges to the next level. The bridges are…