In a move that ensures that all their watches now run in-house calibers, Panerai has introduced the Luminor Base Logo and Marina Logo with a new hand-wound movement with a three-day power reserve.
Both these collections – the Base Logo and the Marina Logo with the distinct small-seconds counter at 9 o’clock - have been extremely lucrative models for the brand and the former provided a good entry into the world of the Italian watch brand.
Last year, CEO Angelo Bonati had mentioned to us that he would keep the ETA movements in because they provided a more affordable option for those seeking their first Panerai. The good news is that Panerai will not up the price of these models despite the fact that the P.6000 manufacture movement is technically more sound that the ETA movements that it is replacing.
All six watches in the Luminor Base Logo and the Marina Logo collection are cased in 44 mm polished steel. All sport the historic Oficine Panerai logo that consists of the interlinked letters O and P with two arrows pointing up and down.
This logo refers to Officine Panerai’s two historic vocations – in the early 20th century, in the early years of the 20th century, the Florence-based Panerai made optical and other precision instruments for the Royal Italian Navy, not only for underwater operations but also for searching the sky. All six models have a stainless steel caseback that’s etched with the OP logo, the watch is water-resistant to 100 meters.
While the two black dial models (PAM 00773 and 774) of the Base Logo sport that distinct Panerai design – green luminous Arabic numerals and hour markers – a third model (PAM 00775) has a white dial with black luminous Arabic numerals and beige dot markers. While the 773 uses a black leather strap with beige stitching, 774 uses a grey fabric strap with blue stitching and 775 comes with a brown leather strap.
The Luminor Logo has a distinct seconds subdial at 9. It is also presented in three versions – PAM 00776 and 777 has identical black dials and are only differentiated by their choice of strap. While the former uses a black leather strap with beige stitching, 777 has a blue fabric number. The third variant (PAM 00778) is presented with a white dial with black luminous Arabic numerals and beige dot makers and a brown leather strap.
As mentioned earlier, he hand-wound P.6000 calibre has a power reserve of 72 hours. Developed in-house at the Panerai Manufacture in Neuchâtel, the calibre is 15 1⁄2 lignes in diameter. The 3 Hz movement’s balance is securely fixed in position by a bridge with twin supports. The balance can be stopped by pulling out the crown while adjusting the time for greater precision. Prices start at €4,600 for these new models.
