Classic-inspired sports activities watches have grown to embody an enormous phase of the present luxurious watch market, with no indicators of slowing down within the close to future. Though the the idea is ubiquitous at this time, one of many first manufacturers to discover the chances of classic reissues past limited-run specialty fashions was Longines. In 2007, the Swiss marque first launched the Legend Diver line, a trustworthy reimagining of the sought-after 1959 Longines Tremendous-Compressor dive watch, and the road has been a cornerstone of the model’s catalogue ever since. Within the 15 years since that preliminary debut, the Legend Diver has developed and grown past strict revivals of the ‘50s unique to embody a variety of colourful fumé dial choices and a pair of case sizes. For 2022, Longines returns to the Legend Diver sequence, delivering a quartet of dramatic new dial coloration choices throughout the sequence’ 36mm and 42mm case choices. These new Longines Legend Diver fashions give this acquainted sequence a dynamic new set of personalities starting from gentle to richly saturated, with out sacrificing the enduring spirit of this twin-crown design.
Every of the brand new Longines Legend Diver fashions makes use of a stainless-steel case in both 36mm-wide or 42mm-wide diameters. By now, the 42mm Legend Diver’s case is a fixture in fanatic circles, with its daring crosshatched crowns at 2 o’clock and 4 o’clock, its slim polished outer bezel, and its famously lengthy, tapering lugs. Just like the 1959 unique, nevertheless, that is supposed to be a extra refined, gentlemanly various to the basic dive watch type, and the totally polished end helps to bolster this dressier notion in photos. Whereas the 36mm case possibility retains the general form of its bigger sibling intact, this extra compact design ought to make the Legend Diver’s infamous lug size extra manageable on the wrist and ship a extra classic sporting expertise (in concept not less than, as the unique Longines Tremendous-Compressor measured in at a massive-for-1959 42mm). Each variations hold the super-compressor case sturdiness of the unique intact, and supply a hefty 300 meters of water resistance. As with earlier iterations within the line, Longines tops each case variants off with an engraved caseback that includes a scuba diver motif.
All new fashions within the Longines Legend Diver sequence comply with the basic Legend Diver dial format, with the road’s signature polished spear and baton handset, a daring mixture of printed line indices and rugged stencil-style Arabic numerals, creamy fauxtina lume fills, and a broad sloping inside rotating dive bezel in black. Proportions differ barely between the 36mm and 42mm fashions, with the extra compact variants that includes a 3 o’clock date window mounted nicely inboard of the minutes scale, whereas on 42mm fashions the date window rests inside the minutes scale in a cutout to extra intently counterbalance the 9 o’clock numeral in photos. The place these new fashions set up new identities is with their use of coloration. The boldest and most placing colorway of the group is the 36mm mannequin in deep, closely saturated oxblood pink, fading step by step into black across the dial edge. This heat, nuanced hue performs exceptionally nicely with the sandy khaki tones of the dial textual content in preliminary photos, and may make for an eye-catchingly offbeat design on the wrist. The 36mm mannequin will also be optioned with a fumé dial in darkish navy blue, which each enhances the dial textual content in photos and reinforces the Legend Diver’s nautical roots. Lastly, the 36mm Legend Diver can be obtainable with a wheat-colored tan fumé dial. Given how pale this tan hue is, this dial supplies by far the starkest gradient of the group in photos, and this sharp transition to black on the dial edge saves the equally tan-hued indices and numerals from changing into tough to learn in photos. Due to this pale base coloration, this dial additionally avoids the faux-tropical look of some earlier Legend Diver dials in photos, showing extra like a deliberate stylistic alternative than an try at synthetic getting old. The 42mm Legend Diver will also be outfitted with this tan dial colorway, however provides a novel dial variant of its personal to the gathering as nicely. This last dial colorway is probably the most versatile and reserved of the group, with a good-looking ash grey shade that fades gracefully into black.
Each the 36mm and 42mm variations of the Longines Legend Diver sequence use ETA-based automated actions. For the 36mm fashions, the model turns to the ETA A20.L11-based L592 motion, which presents a silicon stability spring together with a good 45 hour energy reserve and a 28,800 bph beat price. The ETA A31.L11-based L888.5 motion contained in the 42mm Legend Diver fashions is a fixture within the model’s lineup, with a silicon stability spring and a hefty 72-hour energy reserve courtesy of a barely decreased 25,200 bph beat price. Every new mannequin within the Longines Legend Diver line is paired with a colourful dial-matching canvas-style cloth strap excluding the ash grey 42mm mannequin, which is supplied with a medium grey cloth NATO strap as a substitute.
By bringing wealthy new colours into the sequence’ secure, these new Longines Legend Diver fashions add contemporary new persona to one of many foundational designs within the classic sports activities watch reissue phase. All new fashions within the Longines Legend Diver sequence can be found now by way of licensed sellers. MSRP for every of those new fashions stands at $2,400 as of press time. For extra data, please go to the model’s web site.
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