Round-UpThe Many Reasons Why The Zenith El Primero 21 Is Among The Finest Chronographs Ever
The Zenith Defy El Primero 21 features the upgraded version of the world's most celebrated movement. Take a closer look to discover what makes this watch truly spectacular
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Ask any collector: which is the world’s most celebrated movement? A good majority of them are likely to say that it’s the Zenith El Primero. The newest avatar of the famed calibre—the El Primero 21—is ground-breaking, in that it is a certified chronometer featuring an integrated chronograph capable of measuring time intervals accurately down to 1/100th of a second. It is housed in a titanium case of 44mm, with a skeleton dial that retains the iconic contrasting sub-dials. It uniquely sets a new milestone in horology while paying homage to the novel milestone—the original El Primero, which was the first integrated automatic chronograph ever produced.
A Look Back At ‘The First’ El Primero—The World’s Most Famous Watch Movement
Even though automatic movements started becoming popular in the 1940s and 50s, automatic chronograph movements were unheard of. In 1962, Zenith began developing the idea of creating the first automatic chronograph in watchmaking history. They were competing with several other brands such as Heuer, Breitling, Seiko, Hamilton, and others.
Instead of considering the easier option, to add a chronograph module to a base movement, Zenith had a more ambitious plan—to have the chronograph function integrated fully within the mechanism, and actuated by a column wheel rather than by a cam, which would be easier to implement. And to make things even more challenging, the beating frequency of the chronograph had to be high enough to make it the most accurate chronograph wristwatch in the world, capable of measuring 1/10th of a second. A relatively small size, along with a date indication, were additional details they were going after. With all these requirements, the bar was raised so high that the project could not be completed in time for the brand’s centenary in 1965. It would take four more years.
In 1969, at a press conference, Zenith announced the imminent launch of the first fully integrated, high-frequency, automatic chronograph movement. Initially code-named ‘3019 PHC’, this movement was later renamed ‘El Primero’, which means ‘the first’ in Spanish.
‘The first’ El Primero was so reliable that in the decades that followed, it was even used by other watch manufactures such as Rolex, Panerai, TAG Heuer, and Bulgari, most notably in iconic watches such as the Rolex Cosmograph Daytona.
This video released by the brand last year to mark 50 years of the El Primero family of calibres gives us 50 reasons to love the El Primero and why it’s among the most trusted movements ever created:
Extreme Testing
On the landing gear of a flight, and on the wrist of a man falling from space
Such an exceptional calibre deserved to be exceptionally tested. In 1970, El Primero took the Air France flight from Paris to New York—but not comfortably installed on a traveller’s wrist. Instead, the El Primero crossed the Atlantic fastened to the landing gear of the Boeing 707 aircraft. The temperature stood at 4°C on the tarmac in Paris, whereas 20 minutes later, at an altitude of 10,000m, it dropped to -62°C, while atmospheric pressure had gone four times lower. After the flight that subjected the watch to terrible jolting, upon landing in New York, the watch showed that it had remained accurate to the nearest second apart from the inevitable time zone difference. The El Primero kept running at 36,000vph and required no adjustment.
Another testament to the durability of the El Primero calibres was the result of the ‘Red Bull Stratos mission’. In 2012, skydiver and daredevil Felix Baumgartner wore a Zenith El Primero Stratos Flyback Striking 10th on his wrist and plunged into the stratosphere from a space capsule that had been lifted by a helium balloon. Baumgartner reached a record speed of 1,342km/h as he fell, setting three new records—‘the first jump in history to break the speed of sound in free-fall, the highest occupied flight in a balloon, and the highest free-fall’.
Effectively, the El Primero broke the sound barrier on Felix Baumgartner’s wrist.
The El Primero he wore was working perfectly when he landed even after it was subjected to the enormous differences in pressure, temperature, altitude and acceleration. And it wasn’t even a watch made especially for this feat; it was a standard production piece!
Coming back to the contemporary El Primero 21, here are just 10 of the many reasons why this watch is among the finest chronographs ever created:
1. It is a certified chronometer movement.
2. It can measure intervals with the accuracy of up to 1/100th of a second, upgraded from 1/10th of a second, which its predecessor offered.
3. The 21 has two escapements—one for the main timekeeping and one for the chronograph.
4. The main escapement operates at 36,000vph, while the escapement for the chronograph works at a mind-boggling 3,60,000vph or 50Hz.
5. It has a power reserve indicator exclusively for the chronograph function, seen at 12 o’clock on the dial.
6. The two balance wheels are made from carbon-matrix carbon nanotube. This is a carbon-based composite that is lightweight, strong, and antimagnetic, thereby making the movement even more resilient.
7. Each of the regulation systems has its own mainspring, and thus have an independent power reserve. This has been labelled by Zenith as a ‘double-chain structure’.
8. The movement is made of 293 components, including 53 jewels.
9. The El Primero is an integrated chronograph—featuring a column wheel and a horizontal clutch. An integrated chronograph is considered superior to the regular modular chronograph, due to greater stability, higher accuracy and ease of servicing. The column wheel gives a precise frictionless feeling and the horizontal clutch ensures maximum visibility.
10. The oscillating mass that winds the watch is modelled after Zenith’s five-point star emblem, and it can be seen through the caseback.
The Signature Contrasting Sub-Dials Of The El Primero 21
One of the reasons that the original El Primero was a big hit was that there were contrasting colour sub-dials for the running seconds and the chronograph counters. This became a signature of the collection—seen even in the 21. The El Primero 21 has been fashioned into several glorious avatars, each more eye-catching than the next—all with a signature skeletonised coloured accents, which makes them distinctive. The central chronograph hand, which makes one rotation every second when the chronograph is activated, features a red tip that is mirrored in the chronograph hands of the 30-minute and 60-second chronograph counters at three and six o’clock respectively. While these counters are in blue and black, the running seconds at nine o’clock keeps things bare and, hence, distinguished from the chronograph functionality. At 12 o’clock is a power reserve indication of the chronograph.
The entire display echoes the technical prowess of this timepiece and its mechanism. Despite the dial being somewhat busy, the contrasting finishes—with hints of blue, black and red thrown in—make it easy on the eye. Moreover, the colours on the sub-dials take forward the distinctive look of some of the best known El Primero chronographs ever made. The stunning brilliance of the dial is further enhanced by the large luminescent baton-type hands and rhodium-plated hour markers.
The Lightweight And Resilient Titanium Case
Each Defy El Primero 21 watch is superbly crafted in a 44mm case with angular lugs, giving it a chunky, masculine appearance. Crafted in lightweight titanium, the case of this watch reflects an evolution from the first El Primero timepiece, with a tonneau– or barrel-shaped silhouette, and a chiselled appearance, with neat bevelling on the edges.
While the crown features contours for excellent grip, the oversized chronograph pushers make it easier to activate without having to contort your wrist. The case promises a water resistance of 100m.
It is truly an amazing visual spectacle to see the chronograph working as it counts each 1/100th part of a second.
Zenith’s CEO, Julien Tornare spoke to us about this watch that has brought the renowned El Primero into the 21st century. “The El Primero 21 is a watch that people like a lot. You know that people don’t really use chronographs to measure things now. But in the Defy 21, when you press the button, it goes so fast that it almost feels like a toy. People press it to show it to others. And that’s important.” He expresses, “There’s animation that makes the product fun to look at and enjoy. These are beautiful watches. People like it when they have watches that can surprise people around them.”
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Zenith Defy
95.9000.9004/78.R582
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