Longines Heritage Lindbergh Hour Angle Watch Review

Longines Heritage Lindbergh Hour Angle Watch Review

Longines Heritage Lindbergh Hour Angle 

Of all of the brands we've reviewed through our “Vintage Eye” 

Longines Heritage Lindbergh Hour Angle 

There has been very couple of with complete collections, not to mention entire series, focused on reviving the historic watches from the brands’ pasts. Obviously, there's the Tudor Heritage Collection and also the various homage pieces inside the IWC Pilot’s Watch Collection, but there's possibly no watch brand, to my understanding, that provides as vast a range of historic recreations because the Longines Heritage Collection.

In this particular broad designation, Longines is promoting from trench watch re-interpretations, to vintage-inspired supercompressor divers, to quite interesting monopusher chronographs. However this week we'll focus our vision on probably the most peculiar references inside the series, the Lindbergh Hour Position Watch - or even the Hour Position, for brief.

Initially glance, this timepiece is, if little else, visually striking. Having a 47.5-mm steel situation large, round vintage crown and incredibly unusual bezel and dial, this watch will, first, fit relatively couple of wrists easily, and 2nd, draw a substantial amount of attention. But, there's grounds for that watch’s incredibly distinctive look.

In 1927, legendary aviator Charles Lindbergh 

Grew to become the very first man to accomplish a effective Trans-Atlantic flight from New You are able to to Paris. This task, traveled in Lindbergh’s famous plane, the “Spirit of St. Louis,” would be a watershed moment for airline travel and exploration it set the courageous research required for the intercontinental travel we love so casually today, and solidified Lindbergh’s devote history. Conscious of this, Longines contacted Lindbergh to create a wrist watch that may help pilots better navigate during lengthy periods of airline travel, and taking advantage of his specifications created the initial Hour Position watch (above) in 1931.

Longines Heritage Lindbergh Hour Angle 

That original piece, such as the modern re-issue currently available (above), seemed to be 47.5 mm across but used a converted pocketwatch movement as opposed to the contemporary watch’s Longines automatic Caliber L699 (wristwatches weren’t completely in fashion at that time). The crown, while today aesthetically a fascinating accessory for the look, was plainly another vestige during the time of the pocketwatch era, coupled with the advantage of assisting pilots frequently to regulate time prior to the invention of the hacking seconds mechanism. The dial and bezel were specified to determine the different angles from the sun’s light (therefore, the somewhat overwhelming quantity of figures on), that was then when compared with other navigational data to assist determine location. We've got the technology at that time was revolutionary, and even though may possibly not have remained popular, it helped light the road for future pilots’ watches and navigational equipment.

Now, I'd be laying basically stated I really understood how you can even approach operating this watch, but that doesn't allow it to be less commendable for Longines (and Lindbergh) to possess created it. The current piece is really as close to a whole replica as you can get, which alone (although the technologies are somewhat confusing) provides the watch a serious “cool factor.” Truly, the only real modern liberties drawn in producing this piece were using a computerized movement, as opposed to a hands-wound one, and the option of a transparent caseback having a pocketwatch-like clasp cover- another mention of watch’s history like a converted pocketwatch.

But the rest of the elements 

Even though the finishing in it is most likely more expertly performed of computer could have been within the ‘30s - are directly obtained from the initial model. Using the white-colored lacquered dial with by hand rotated silvered subdial the different blue, red, and black numerals indicating levels of angles the blued steel hands and also the black Roman numerals for hour markers, it's apparent that Longines attempted to re-produce the famous watch as faithfully as you possibly can, and also at it has been successful admirably.

The Longines Hour Position- certain to impress your watch-loving buddies and draw many questions using their company acquaintances you could possibly think it is for a little less in a dealer.