KMII revisits the Chopard L.U.C Sport 2000, reflecting on its enduring appeal as a versatile and elegant sports watch. His personal experience with changing the strap from rubber to calfskin highlights how a simple modification can transform a watch's character, making it suitable for a wider range of occasions while retaining its robust, 100m water-resistant capabilities.
The LUC Sport 2000 has been my second LUC watch, and while it is a very different proposition to the LUC Chrono One, it is a very appealing, (almost) universally usable watch. I changed the strap from the original rubber to a blue patterned calfskin one early on, which transformed the watch from a primarily tool focused on into a much more universal piece IMHO.
There is one thing the watch no longer offers in this spec - namely it would be a shame ruining the leather strap swimming but then again I practically never swim with a watch, so not a big issue for me personally. The screw down crown still ensures a 100m WR, so being caught in a rain shower, or getting a splash of water onto it during 'intense' hand washing is unlikely to faze it. The watch is also robust in other ways and definitely justifies its Sport name.
At the same time the dial, the chiselled hour indices, and the classical case shape also add a touch of elegance to the watch rarely found in the more usual tool watches. And the LUC branded seconds hand counterweight was a brilliant design choice back in the day IMHO (even if the owner is not named so
).
As for elegance, even if I do not primarily wear it with a suit, the watch will pull it off easily enough. Here the strap really makes all the difference. Or your general sartorial attitude - a certain Mr. Agnelli wore his Omega Seamaster PloProf with pinstripes unflinchingly (something I would probably not attempt)
The robustness allows one to wear the watch around small children, too, and to engage in regular play. And it even manages to complement the odd toy colour wise - in spite of mine being a girl (the child - not the watch
).
Most of the time it gets worn in casual occassions, though, which are neither too tasking of its robustness, nor stretching it in terms of formality. All in all I find it an excellent horological companion. It offers a wonderful in-house microrotor movement, which makes it appealing front side and back. It has the most elegant tool watch dial in my - admittedly biased - opinion. It takes pretty much everything in its stride. In fact I would compare it to the first generation Range Rover in terms of versatility
I am still waiting for Chopard to launch a refreshed version at some point - I am sure it would sell really well. The LUC GMT One and LUC Time Traveller One are great new additions to the line but a 100m WR single crown variety could well be the logical next step.
Thanks for viewing!
