A Boutique-Exclusive Limited-Edition watch is round the corner, and belongs to the fastest-growing collections of Zenith – The Zenith Defy El Primero 21 Boutique Exclusive Limited Edition watch. Now that we have established this, let’s look at what’s bedazzling with this timepiece. It’s exciting that Zenith brings together its most popular movement with the avant-garde case and gives us a watch that’s clever and drool-worthy.
Sometimes it’s the small nuances that capture your attention, like mine has been hooked onto the fact, that this new watch features bright “Zenith blue” on the dial and the various strap options that you can team the watch with. This blue color is the distinguishing factor that makes this limited edition timepiece stand apart from the core collection of watches.
We all understand how legendary the El Primero movement is; as the first automatic chronograph movement, boasting of 36,000 vibrations per hour (5 Hz). Rolex used this movement from 1988 to 2000 for the Rolex Daytona chronograph. The El Primero movement measures 30 mm in diameter and only 6.5 mm, making it very flat. Thanks to its high oscillation rate, it is also the only chronograph movement that can track a short-term measurement of 1/10 seconds.
Like we see in Zenith Defy El Primero 21, the chronograph has a second escapement and comes with an operating frequency of 360,000vph. Being ten times that of the base movement, the math says that events can be timed to one-hundredth of a second, which is commendable. To record such nano units of time, the chronograph hand (which is mounted on the center) completes one full dial rotation per second as it passes through the 100 split-second markers.
I’m totally mesmerized by the blue on the movement and the openwork only supports the effort. The central chronograph complemented with a regular 60-second counter on the 6 o’clock sub-dial and a 30-minute register at 3 o’clock, go on to showcase the design talents of Zenith. Packing in a lot of details and yet keeping it simple for the owner to operate and manage the timepiece.
Another good thing about this watch, is its 50-hour power reserve – and the indicator for this is located at the 12 o’clock spot. Crafted from midnight black ceramic, the case is a handsome 44mm in diameter. You can team the watch with three options: black alligator strap with rubber backing and blue stitching, a black rubber strap with a “Cordura” effect and blue stitching, and a textured blue rubber strap.
As I mentioned earlier, this is a Limited Edition – only 250 watches up for grabs. Pick them up from Zenith boutiques for $12,700.
