Zenith Pilot Type 20 blueprint

Despite its impressive feats in history and technology, in recent years, Zenith replica has re-established its identity next to its rival brothers and sisters within the LVMH group (ie TAG Heuer, Hublot and Bulgari) Encountered difficulties. Zenith Pilot Type 20 Blueprint is a refreshing but historically proven product provided by the manufacturer, so it deserves attention. So, what kind of wearing experience does the exterior inspired by the early 1900s, the rare dial structure and internal movement bring?

What exactly is Zenith?
This is a question that the world has never really answered before seeing the brand, at least since the beginning of the infamous Nataf era. In the time of Thierry Nataf, Zenith produced buzzing “classic” watches and absolutely insanity monsters (insanity idiots like me seem to have a strange kind of strangeness to it. Feelings). The arrival of Jean-Frédéric Dufour (Jean-Frédéric Dufour) overthrew the era of Nataf. He took Zenith’s hand and brought it back to the basement where all the archives were located (it’s more like Zenith’s attic because of the The brand claims to have found hidden blueprints and machines designed by El Primero and other archives there). This behavior led to the brand’s renaissance, as it restarted to produce more tasteful retro-style casual products-just like this excellent El Primero 1969 that I have always loved to this day.

When the retro craze began to fade, Mr. Dufour left Rolex at the right time-the CEO who was once proficient in the media began to strictly isolate himself from the public in typical Rolex fashion. Since then, Zenith has increased the volatility of its roller coaster journey between retro and modern, high-tech and simple. The darkest moment is not technical but stylistic. I think that with the launch of the Defy in the center you see above, it is designed in the most possible Biverian way: round face, integrated bracelet, angled downturned lugs , Of course, turn on dialing. This movement seems to come from the skunk factory of TAG Heuer. Zenith is synonymous with El Primero and features its unique design, borrowing the interior and exterior of its popular new models from its “internal” LVMH brand siblings.

So, what exactly is Zenith? This is a 155-year-old manufacturer and it was cool before becoming a manufacturer. This is a brand of an active participant in the early aviation industry, a brand that has mastered high-frequency integrated chronographs, a brand that literally deceives itself, first order it to destroy El Primero, and then save it literally. This brand endures For the influence of Thierryflippin’ Nataf as CEO-it is commendable that Nataf has created some impressive crazy watches, and today’s large group fake watch brand CEOs dare not do this Do. In essence, Zenith is a beautiful, quirky and historically significant manufacturer, the kind of manufacturer that shouldn’t be forced to copy the work of others.

Dawn from aviation
This is what brought us to the Zenith Pilot Type 20 blueprint. As I said, Zenith has the legal ownership of the pilot’s watch, so much so that Jean-Frederic Dufour said that Zenith eventually owns the term “pilot” for the watch. Fun game for watch nerds: name another pilot’s watch and spell Pilot on the dial. One must be early in the game to retain this ubiquitous term. Zenith claims to have created the first aircraft altimeter. More importantly, he equipped Louis Blériot with a Zenith pilot watch to wear during his flight, including the first successful aerial crossing of the English Channel in 1909. Louis Blériot’s can be seen above. One of the personal Zenith pilot watches. You see, his dial only has the words “Special”-what is this compared to the words “Extra Special” on Montre D’Aeronef?

Montre D’Aeronef actually refers to the clock produced by Zenith as a dashboard instrument, and the index style of the Zenith Pilot Type 20 Blueprint is designed based on these dashboard clocks, rather than seen on Blériot watches. Either way, it is a legal Zenith font about a century ago. Another, despite the more common pilot watch trademark, is the giant onion crown, which is added to the mixture to make it easier to set and wind when wearing gloves. For a while I thought it was a little dazzling, I mean, when some scaffolding and linen are flying in the air, who will wind their watch? (Because yes, linen is not usually used in the construction of early aircraft.) Then I realized that most of the pre-flight tasks, inspections, preparations, and maintenance work. In any case, the maintenance work is done with gloves. Yes-so even if they are still on the ground, the pilot may be able to adjust and wind up with gloves on. So, onion crown, they got my pass.

The bottom cover is an exquisite retro to this era, with a relief of a trolley, and some wings attached to it. Sorry, I mean, the Blériot XI monoplane designed by Raymond Saulnier. This may require the psychological age of an 8-year-old child, but I would say that wearing a watch that looks and feels like a timepiece flying through the sky is cool, or at least fun. Because the early watches did it, wrapped in the thick leather jackets of the early aviation pioneers. Zenith Pilot Type 20 Blueprint is a beautifully made Swiss luxury watch, we will see this aspect later, but this will not affect its charming pilot atmosphere. Well, at least that’s not the case for those who were fascinated by aviation connections in the early 1900s.

On the wrist: Zenith Pilot Type 20 blueprint
It is big, but not savage. It’s always there, but it’s never uncomfortable (on my wrist). It’s funny… and, yes, sometimes a bit silly. This is a watch that can be humorous to a certain degree-the wearer preferably also has this personality. The way you wear and how you wear it will play a greater role in determining the appearance of the Pilot Type 20. Daytona is what you can wear, and whether you wear swimming trunks or a tuxedo, it will always be Daytona, and Pilot Type 20 looks when paired with any type of long-sleeved item optimal. It won’t look particularly good if it doesn’t have anything next to it—such as a sweatshirt, leather jacket, or white shirt.

Flick your wrist, and the 45 mm wide steel watch will deform and become an expensive-looking object that looks more like a $8,200 watch. As mentioned above, the most prominent component in terms of craftsmanship is the bezel. It has such a noticeably uniform surface and such a dazzling light, it belongs to this price range, not lower than this price range. Nevertheless, can Zenith use a low-rent watch case and call it a “tool watch” at the same price? Yes, but I am glad that the brand insisted on its dignity and did not allocate a low-rent watch case for the Pilot Type 20. Its price, watch, and brand are unsuitable. The water resistance is 10ATM (equivalent to 100 meters), which is another impressive feat that reflects the attention to detail. Of course, this is an aviation-themed watch-but it should be constructed well enough to withstand (un)intentionally splashed into the swimming pool at a price of $8,200. For this, you need a 10ATM rating.

Although the design of the bezel impressed me, the dial may receive more attention and praise. Although very difficult to capture in photography, the dial is very eye-catching when you see it in person. It has a blue matte grained dial with some blueprint legends and white measurements. At the top is a piece of sapphire crystal glass with large hour markers and minute tracks, as well as some additional text, such as “Pilot Extra Special”, Zenith name and Zenith stars. This creates a wonderful three-dimensionality, which is characterized by the shadow cast by the print on this sapphire dial. The way these shadows interact with the white text below, with some additional white prints on top, is absolutely spectacular.

This may be intentional or purely coincidental, but it has to be said that combining this technology with the aesthetics of the pilot watch is an inspirational decision. This is because even in the case of interlacing light and shadow, the huge time scales and the same large cathedral hands are still clear and easy to read. Doing this on another, more complex watch—such as a chronograph—is almost certain that legibility will drop sharply. It is worth noting that under certain light conditions, this kind of shadow game is almost imperceptible, which also helps prevent this feature from becoming annoying or outdated quickly.

The strange features and movements of the Zenith Pilot Type 20 blueprint watch
One of the really strange features of the Zenith Pilot Type 20 Blueprint is the strap, which snaps on for any inexplicable reason… As I said, this is indeed a watch that doesn’t take itself so seriously. Therefore, this small feature should be humorous, not overly critical. In addition to some appropriate reinforced spring bars, Zenith even includes a tool-free quick release system in the shoulder strap: just press the button and pull the shoulder strap away from the spring bars. In my opinion, this should be a standard function of every watch, such as three yuan. But this is not the case, far from it, so it is commendable. I actually like the weird snap strap more and more, because after two days of storage with the strap tightly wound, it turns out to be a suitable and comfortable strap.

Another cool feature is the huge plaque on the side of the case with the personal serial number on it. Sometimes, on an expensive watch, you will encounter a terrible picture, that is, the font of an individual number is different from the surrounding text (or worse, using a different etching technique application). The plaques here look beautifully crafted, and the fonts are used consistently. Even the brushed surface decoration is exactly the same as the rest of the case. An ordinary watch can be said to be a strange addition, but this small detail does work very well with bolts to the pilot’s watch. Too bad, when the watch is worn on the wrist, you can’t see it at all.

Behind the sturdy caseback is the Zenith Elite 679 movement, an internal movement that runs at a modern 4 Hz frequency and combines it with a slightly extended 50-hour power reserve. Launched in 2008, Zenith 679 is not a new-generation movement with a fancy 3-day (or longer) operating reserve, but its specifications are sufficient to outperform or at least rival most of its competitors. A similar watch from the enthusiast Jaeger-LeCoultre provides a power reserve of 38-40 hours in Polaris, which contains 195 to 219 parts (depending on the version). Zenith Elite 679 consists of only 127 parts, which makes its design more elegant and should be more durable. You shouldn’t need about 200 parts in a three-handed movement. It runs silently, including an automatic winding mechanism, and the large crown winds smoothly.

Zenith Pilot Type 20 Blueprint has finally become the real Zenith. It has all the history you might want, with a quirky and flattering style and proper execution quality inside and out. It is not as boring as other watches in this segment, so you do need a bit of personality and courage to choose this watch over other watches. But once you do, I don’t think you will be disappointed. on the contrary. I really like to wear this watch for a few weeks, because on the one hand, it turns out to be a very flattering watch, and… you know? I will not repeat myself. It is not perfect, but it is full of personality. All of this alone is enough to make it the top 5% of currently available watches in this safe and boring market segment. well done. buy fake watches