Radiomir 1940

In Context

At 47 mm this is exceptionally large for something worn on a wrist, closer to a pocket watch given lugs. The case back is open, so the movement is visible without taking the watch apart, and the plexiglass crystal scratches easily but polishes back out at home, which sapphire does not. Rated to 30 m, it is protected against rain and splashes and nothing beyond that.

The movement is hand-wound, so winding it becomes part of the day rather than something the watch does for you. 55 hours of reserve is enough to set it down on Friday evening and find it still running on Monday. At 18,000 vph the seconds hand advances 5 times a second, the slower and more audible rate of an older design.

PAM00399 stands on its own in this catalogue — no other reference here shares its base number. It pairs a brown dial with a stainless steel case. It was a limited edition.

Unusually for Panerai, not an ETA base. The OP XXVII is built on the Minerva 16-17, a 16-and-three-quarter-ligne hand-wound calibre, and was introduced in 2008 for a run of 47 mm Radiomir special editions. It keeps the marks of that tradition — a swan's-neck regulator, Glucydur balance and KIF shock protection — and is chronometer-certified, which Panerai's ETA-based calibres of the period generally were not.

6 other watches in the library run the Panerai OP XXVII.

Panerai

Radiomir Oro Rosso

PAM00522 · 47 mm

Panerai

Radiomir 1940 Oro Rosso

PAM00398 · 47 mm

Panerai

Radiomir Titanio

PAM00349 · 47 mm

Panerai

Radiomir Titanium

PAM00309 · 47 mm