The brown fumé treatment is beautiful and so different from that of most sports watches, while the unique El Primero handset only serves to further differentiate it from its contemporaries. Other than this detail - which, admittedly, may very well only matter to me! - I just love the dial on this watch. However, I do have to say that the subs are the one thing that bothers me with the dial - with their flat-white color, they almost look like they were hastily printed from an inkjet, and I wish they had more dimension. If the original watch had white rather than silver subdials, than this is a spot-on recreation. The subs on the new A385 are most certainly white. Moving onto the dial, the A835 Revival's is truly a showstopper and is difficult to tell apart from that of the original save for one detail whose relevance is questionable even to me: It's been a while since I've held a vintage example, but it seems from comparing images that the subdials on old A385s were more of a silver color, possibly with a concentric, brushed surface. 400 movement and would've preferred an option for a solid case back, but that's just me.
Personally, I don't need to see the relatively unadorned El Primero cal. Beginning with the steel case, it's sized like its vintage counterpart at 37mm (a wonderful size), and features a thick, radially brushed bezel with a handsome polished bevel, horizontally brushed sides that angle down sharply to accept the bracelet (or strap), and pump chronograph pushers and a signed Zenith push-pull crown. The A385's resemblance to its namesake is frankly uncanny from almost any angle (with the exception of a view of its case back, which is transparent, to show the movement ticking away inside).
#CHRONOMASTER REVIVAL EL PRIMERO A385 PROFESSIONAL#
And though it's hand-wound, Omega's newest 3861-powered Speedmaster Professional (another watch first launched decades ago) is a solid alternative, especially at it's new pricing of $6,300-$7,150 on a redesigned bracelet. (Originally powered by the Caliber 11, the Monaco was another of the world's first automatic chronographs). If you're looking for another automatic alternative closer to the A385's price, the 39mm TAG Heuer Monaco ($6,350-$6,750) comes to mind. If you want to stay with a Zenith product but prefer a newer design, you could do worse than the new Chronomaster Sport ($9,500-$10,000), though you're going to pay quite a premium for a watch meant to compete with the Rolex Daytona. At $7,900 on leather or $8,400 on a strap, it's certainly not inexpensive, but given today's luxury market and the truly special timekeeping technology powering the watch, such numbers are to be expected.
Whether you're a Zenith devotee or you simply love the watch's funky tonneau case or interesting dial, the new A835 remains an attractive proposition. (There are some differences, which we'll get to in a moment.) Who It's For Given its dimensions (37mm, just like its namesake), brown fumé dial and ladder bracelet, it would be tough to tell the watch apart from the original at more than a foot or two away.
#CHRONOMASTER REVIVAL EL PRIMERO A385 FULL#
The A835 is absolutely a vintage throwback to the original, hence the full name: the Zenith Chronomaster Revival El Primero A385. The A385 was unique, however, for its brown fumé dial, which fades in intensity from the rim to the center of the watch. When El Primero-based watches were first released, customers could choose from several case shapes and dial designs, among which was the tonneau-cased A384 and A385, and the more conventionally round A386. Zenith was one of the companies at the fore of this race, hence the name of their now 52-year-old automatic caliber, the El Primero. (I also wasn't alive in 1969, but that's neither here nor there.) If, however, you're a weirdo watch nut like I am, you probably also think of the race to develop the first automatic chronograph movement. If you were alive in 1969, the year probably recalls significant cultural and sociopolitical events, such as Woodstock and the Vietnam War. Zenith Chronomaster Revival El Primero A385, $7,900-$8,400
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