Patek Philippe

 This is a wearers review and I will not dwell too much on the technical specifications 

 Most pictures especially of the movement are stock pictures from PP .

Maybe I am biased, maybe if it never said Patek Philippe on the dial, maybe if I never paid a kings ransom for this watch, maybe, maybe, maybe… 

 Putting all these feelings aside , this watch is a winner in my eyes. 

 I will try and discuss this watch dispassionately (if I can) on a number of levels.

1. Appearance and dial 

2, Function 

3. Overall opinion 

 Appearance 

 This watch has a presence on the wrist. It is 40mm in size (one of the biggest watches I own). I generally wear small vintage pieces, so this is a big change for me. However it not wear big on my small wrists. 

 The case has lovely bold features including the deco style stepped lugs. They seem to soften the size and the vintage appearance seems to lessen the large case size. Interestingly (although it is difficult to see), the lugs are detachable from the case, come service time! 

 Also the square brushed pushers which add to the vintage look make it look like an old style chronograph from the 40’s 

The pushers feel al little stiff compared to other vintage chronographs I own . I am not sure if this is because it is a vertical clutch mechanism or new or both.

 I have the rose gold model and I love the fact that this reduces the bling factor. Others have written that the yellow gold is the one to get (other than the WG or plat- which was the model I applied for BTW) but in 99% of cases there is no choice and we take what we can get. However I really love the soft pink gold of the case. It reduces the stark nature of a gold watch but I suspect each model has its pluses and minuses ( although they are relatively small in nature) 

 The lovely brown strap fits the watch well . It gives it a rich and possibly old world feel.

The deployment buckle is a lovely touch although I feel the design a bit garish, it does have the anniversary dates, it is a little special. I have never had or worn a deployment (having vintage pieces ) It is a great and useful addition for any watch –price aside! 

 Case back- initially one would have expected a clear case back to view the movement but Patek have chosen a solid back engraved with a commemorative 175 anniversaire inscription. Possibly a let down for some but only a small negative in my opinion 

 Function and Legibility 

 The dial- ( see pic above)At first glance, the dial looks very busy. Lots of numbers and curves. in a dense black, What the hell, how could one possibly tell the time easily? But somehow the gold dauphine hands stand out well against the lighter silver opalescent dial. One is not really distracted by all the numbers unless one looks carefully. A glance is enough to get the time ( presbyopia helps a lot by blurring out a lot of the details.)

 However the chronometer is very easy to use and measuring a pulse rate or the speed of a car is not very difficult. The dial and hands work well. I also love the blackened second hand which I leave running ( more on this later) 

It gives the watch a feeling of being alive all the time and is not distracting at all. As mentioned I tend to leave the second hand running all the time but I have also been wearing he watch with the second hand stopped. Works just as well for me, and appears like a regular chronograph. 

 The movement is the “new” 28-520 with vertical clutch and column wheel chronograph movement. The fact that it has the vertical clutch (rather than a horizontal clutch like the more classic 5070 or5170) means the chronograph can be left to run continuously with a loss of power reserve. Did I mention that this is an automatic movement- heresy for most purists – as a chronograph but again this works well as a user. The watch is only just over 10mm thick , actually quite thin fin for an automatic chronograph movement. The accuracy is pretty good at just over 3 sec/day. Not bad ! 

 Summary- I have to admit I am a die hard Patek fan so I am biased somewhat but I just love this piece. It works on every level. It is a stunner, it has a chronograph complication, It harks back to the vintage era ,I so desire and it has a quirky differentness about it, No subdials but with a busy dial, An automatic – quell horrore

 Another positive in my mind is that my wife – who often does not like what I buy loved it. She said it was the best looking piece in my collection and that is good enough for me. 

 A few wrist shots for completeness 

 PS The whole presentation of the watch is on another level. The watch is presented in a lovely dark mahogany box with the Patek calatrava cross as a handle. There is a special anniversary medal as well. All little touches, which add to this very special piece.

Thanks JFP