Over the last few months, I have reviewed watches up to 20 times the price of this and – while from a professional point of view this may be negligible, it is worth mentioning, nonetheless – for those who only judge a watch by the way it looks on the wrist, the Zenith El Primero Original 1969 fooled many into believing it to be much more expensive than its actual price.ĭon’t get me wrong, the Zenith El Primero Original 1969 is not cheap by any stretch of imagination.

There is no way around it: the Zenith El Primero Original 1969 looks as though it is much, much more expensive than it actually is. It truly is rare for a watch to look good (Good? Stunning!) with any outfit, in any lighting, under any circumstance I paired it with – and this one is among those few. Okay, thus far, we have established that the movement has its novel features and pairs impressive aesthetics with solid reliability – so what about the rest of the package? The Zenith El Primero Original 1969 comes in a 38mm-wide stainless steel case (100M water resistant), with proportions that, over the couple of weeks I have spent with this watch on the wrist, never failed to disappoint. Pair that with a price point that is actually not out of this world, and what you should end up with is a visually appealing, reliable, refined movement – like the Zenith El Primero 400. You press on the pusher, and you expect to hear a reassuring click and see the seconds hand start every single time, with the same precision and reliability. It is no joke that the chronograph belongs with the royalty among mechanical complications – the key difference, though, is that while tourbillons, chiming watches, and most others are widely (and deservedly) considered to be rather fragile and delicate, a mechanical stopwatch remains a tool.

The El Primero deserves respect as the reliable, high-performance engine does in a 911, and not as a screamer from a low-mileage, scarcely used, fragile hypercar. In its defense, that is probably how it should be. The result from the previous image I posted: Zenith El Primero Original 1969's El Primero 400 movement ticking away ? post shared by David on at 2:42am PDT

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