Hamilton Pan Europ Automatic Chronograph Watch

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed)
Feb 3rd 2011 at 12:00PM

This retro-kick is getting sort of monotonous. It is like designers are literally flipping through old catalogs trying to figure out what they want to build (again). They then design it with modern dimensions in mind using modern materials, and then plop in a modern Swiss ETA automatic movement. Nostalgia and modern fashion sells it, and everyone celebrates a job well done, with money that would have otherwise went to R&D.

There is nothing wrong or unwholesome looking about this new "Pan Europ" watch that Hamilton will release this year. It looks neat, just as neat as a legion of other watches with the same look did when they came out about 40 years ago. There is literally no new design twist on the genre that I can find Hamilton adding - and that might be considered a good thing. Looking like 70s dive/sport/race watches, the Pan Europe is in a longer tonneau style steel case with a round dial and rotating bezel. The steel case is 45mm wide, with a metallic blue bezel and dial. The bi-compax chronograph looks nice, and the watch has 100 meters of water resistance and a sapphire crystal.

According to Hamilton the watch uses an "AutoChrono Calibre H31" movement. Though I am pretty sure this is just a modified Valjoux 77550 or newer Valgranges movement. The strap is porthole punched brown leather with a crocodile pattern on it. If you really wanted a watch of this style, for a decent price with today's manufacuting in mind, the Hamilton Pan Europ might be just what you are looking for. It will be commercially available in September of 2011, with a price of $1,900.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: 2011, chronograph, Hamilton, Pan Europ, retro, watch