Zenith

I'm a newbie with Zenith. Always tempted by the El Primero, but never found the 'housing' for... Till last year's collection was revealed! It was a tough decision and finally, I decided to go for the Retrotimer in the Black Beauty version. The combination of having some kind of a 3 hand watch with hacking seconds (as one cannot really time anything) but still having the Primero and Retour en Vole and the retro case in black with the rubber strap made an irresistible package for me. I'm very happy with my watch but still found a hair in the soup...
Can anyone shed some light on the dial please? What does 'transferred carbon' mean? To me, it looks like a printed dial... Good look to match the overall appearance of the watch but at such a quality level, wouldn't it be more appropriate to actually use the material you want to have the look of?!
Appreciate any thoughts and comments, thanks.

Ambos

. . . for details, Ambos. In the meantime, please post a photo or two of your Retrotimer, if at all possible.

Cordially, Art

Many thanks Dr. No! As a matter of fact, this version would surely qualify as SPECTRE's standard equipment watch...

As requested some (lousy) pics of my Retrotimer. Hope you can nonetheless see the overall look as well as the nice details such as the 'darkened' movement...

Regards

Ambos

...and I see what you mean about the ominous black look.

Scott Evil: I was thinking I like chronographs. Maybe I'd get a Primero.
Dr. Evil: An evil Primero?

One of the coolest Zeniths in their range, quite a stealth look to it but will catch the light well to give that 'glint'.

Nothing wrong with those photos, they show they watch in its natural state as it would be seen every day. The flat hands with cutouts remind me of the hands on my Montblanc Timewalker Chronograph.

El Primeor Retrotimer has been on my hit list for quite a while, and this only strengthens my desire to get one!

All the best and enjoy your Zenith.

 

I'm very happy with my Retrotimer... Be quick as they were only in production for a bit more than a year! So might be quite a challenge and I wish you good luck should you pursue this watch!

Is it really carbon or something patterned to look like a like a carbon weave?

But to me it definitely looks like a 'print'... Especially since carbon fibre is a tricky material to work with.

seem to you like it actual carbon fiber? I've seen this watch once and to me it definitely looked like carbon fiber. It has a certain effect of depth that you I can't imagine would be easy to reproduce otherwise.

. . . that confirms your impression. The dial is not carbon fiber, but a carbon fiber style decoration created by a technique referred to as "décalque".

I'm not familiar with carbon fiber from a technical standpoint, but if there are quality control or stability issues with the material, then it's for the best. The last thing you need is a speck of carbon fiber floating about in your El Primero.

True carbon fiber is definitely tricky to make dials from. The window cutouts for the date, and the holes for the hands have to be made with very sharp tools, to prevent the woven fibers from showing irregular edges, or individual fibers sticking out into the hole. Due to the material's strength, even steel tools wear off very quickly.

Finally, the lacquer or resin used to bind the carbon material to the base is setting into the weave pattern of the fibers. Between the fibers, there is always a little air left, but the lacquer fills this space only incompletely, before it dries. This results in a slightly uneven surface, sometimes even with tiny air bubbles that were released by the fabric and compromised the lacquer surface. If you examine the PuristSPro ARB watch dial very closely (it is made from real carbon fibre), you see what I mean.

Regards,
Marcus

And thank you for sharing your insights Marcus! I have a number of accessories with carbon fibre but none of them is as thin as dial, most of them have a more or less thick resin/ lacquer layer...

Regards
Ambos

For following up and clarifying! The optical quality and finish are beyond any doubt and in combination with the anti-glare coating of the glass, the hour markers and hands really stand out.

All in all, a fantastic watch at a very down to earth price!

Before the 2011 collection was presented, the RetroTimer was the watch I liked best: I need luminous hands for nighttime legibility, which the Captain series is lacking. The 36,000 series has luminous elements, but that neutered 30 minutes counter. The RetroTimer only has 30 minutes to measure, but on the other hand, I like permanently running chrono second, that can be restarted with one press on the pusher.

Regards,
Marcus

hi are the hands on this watch a silver (ie rhodium plates) colour or do they present as more of a gold colour? There are a number of photos on the net with the hands and markers appearing to be a gold colour, but many other photos showing them to be more silver in colour. Just wanting to know from someone who actually owns one.

 

thanks

Polished steel on the sides, centre of the hands are black lacquer and super luminova. Thanks to the strong AR coating, the hands and hour markers 'shine' out nicely from certain angles, harder to read from straight top, evening and night visibility excellent.

Ambos,

After this time, how is the case (PVD)?

Thanks in advance,

Nilo

Hi Nilo

I always had concerns about black watches but your experience mitigate those.

Cheers,

Nilo

Your Retrotimer CF dial is very cool, wear it in the best of health!

-MW

A great weekend watch, never seen anyone else wearing it! And if i feel very casual, I even wear it with suit to the office ;o) a perfect match for both the case and the caliber are the pvd coated movement cufflinks from Milus...

I have a set of Milus cufflinks but not in pvd.  Have a great weekend!

-MW

I actually bought one, am wearing as I type this. Great watch! Quality is outstanding, very cool without being attention-seeking. Zenith not that well known in my country, so pretty happy about that too.