Details

Brand

Zenith

Model

El Primero

Reference

65.A386.400

Movement

Automatic calibre 400

Case

38mm ex crown

Metal

White Gold

Circa

2019

Dial

White

Bezel

Polished gold

Condition

Excellent

Box/Papers

Box and papers

About this watch

Band: Black alligator strap Clasp: White gold tang buckle Glass: Sapphire crystal Water Resistant: 50 meters The El Primero calibre was unveiled on 10 January 1969. It was the first high-frequency automatic chronograph movement, running at 5 Hz (36,000 vibrations per hour) rather than the usual 4 Hz. This allows the watch measure time elapsed to a tenth of a second. Zenith wasn't alone in racing an automatic chronograph to market that year. Seiko and the Heuer-Breitling-Hamilton-Büren consortium both released their own within months. But El Primero's high-beat frequency was, and remains, a genuine first. In 2019, Zenith marked the calibre's 50th anniversary with the A386 Revival, a faithful reproduction of the original 1969 reference. It was released in three 18-carat gold variants: yellow, rose, and white. Just 50 examples of each were made. This is the white gold version, ref. 65.A386.400. The 38 mm case reproduces the original's proportions and flush-lug design closely, down to its 12.6 mm thickness and 46 mm lug-to-lug. The domed sapphire crystal has anti-reflective coating on both sides, a differentiation between the original's acrylic. The caseback is sapphire acting as a window to the calibre unlike the original that was hidden behind a steel caseback as it was in 1969. It's pressure-resistant to 10 bar (100 metres), though it isn't intended for aquatic use. The white lacquered dial carries Zenith's signature tricolour tri-compax layout: an anthracite 30-minute counter, a blue 12-hour counter, and a light grey running-seconds counter, at 3, 6, and 9 o'clock. There's a date aperture at 4:30, and a tachymeter scale around the edge. Powering the watch is the El Primero 400, an integrated column-wheel chronograph movement measuring 30 mm…