If you're looking to buy a beautiful diving watch, but don't want to buy the usual Tag Heuer, Rolex, or Seconda, maybe you should consider a Panerai watch. What follows is a review of Panerai watches - especially the men's Panerai Contemporary watch that my wife owns.
Panerai has long been known for the manufacture of diving watches of exceptional quality. The company was founded in Florence in 1860 and became an official supplier to the Italian Navy in 1900. In 1938 Panerai started supplying the Italian Navy with Radiomir watches for diving. Panerai's family tree in the manufacture of hourglasses is as good as any other watchmaker.
Despite its name, the Panerai Historic Collection has a contemporary style. This collection includes the Panerai Luminor Base, Panerai Luminor Marina, and Panerai Radiomir. The watches are mechanical, hand-wound with Panerai OP XI caliber with gooseneck. The power reserve of all watches in the collection is 56 hours, ideal for a hand-wound watch. The case and the bezel are made of stainless steel or titanium and the glass of sapphire, corundum, 3.5 mm thick, and with an anti-reflective coating. The watches are water-resistant to 300 meters. The nice thing about Panerai Historic watches is that the back is also made of transparent sapphire glass. Both the Marina and the Radiomir are equipped with chronograph mechanisms. After all, all watches in the Panerai Historic Collection come with leather or crocodile wristbands - reminiscent of the time when diving watches were supplied with oiled leather wristbands. My favorite watch in this collection is the Panerai Marina. I like the little second hand at nine o'clock.
The Panerai Contemporary Collection is fantastic, and in my opinion, the Luminor submersible pump is the crown jewel. My wife has one at the moment. The Luminor Marina Automatic is supplied with steel, titanium, or steel housing. The watch is automatic, so no fuss, but you lose the power reserve - 42 hours. The back is not transparent like the Panerai Historic. Like the contemporary and historical Marina watch, the Marina collection is delivered at nine o'clock with a second hand. There is also a date display at three o'clock. A small point: but the date window is more round than the usual rectangle, a really nice feature. The Marina watch is supplied with leather, alligator, or steel straps. The Luminor GMT is very similar to the Marina, except that you get an additional time zone hand at the nine o'clock position - the second hand is the more conventional type.
But my favorite Panerai watch is the Luminor Submersible from the contemporary collection. The Panerai Luminor Submersible is a real diving watch. By default, it is waterproof up to 300 meters, a special version is waterproof up to 100 meters and is equipped with a helium valve for decompression on the left side of the housing. My wife's watch is the Luminor Submersible PAM 00025. The case is made of brushed titanium; the dial is black with Parisian hobnails decoration - very striking, and the bracelet is made of black rubber with a personalized PANERAI steel buckle. The watch comes with a steel screwdriver and a second interchangeable strap that is suitable for diving. If you are looking for the ultimate diving watch, the Panerai Luminor Submersible is the one for you.
One final note: Regardless of which Panerai watch you buy, each watch comes with a lockable crown arm, a Panerai brand, and makes a Panerai watch a distinctive product. Panerai is high quality watches that look and feel modern and industrial - watches that can take anything you can find. In my opinion, a Panerai watch offers better value for money than an expensive Rolex. It is a watch for the connoisseur and not for those who follow the crowd.
