BaselWorld 2008: IWC Vintage Aquatimer Automatic

PRESS RELEASE -- The IWC Aquatimer Automatic of 1967: When IWC first took the plunge with its diver's watches, only a few pioneers such as Jacques-Yves Cousteau or Hans Hass had discovered the beauty but also the vulnerability of the underwater world. But they helped to arouse people's enthusiasm for these lost paradises. For case makers in particular, manufacturing reliable watches for use under such extreme pressure conditions represented a challenge because when diving, the health or even the life of a diver depends on correct time management.

IWC's answer was the first Aquatimer in 1967. This too was the first member in a successful family lineage. And some of its technical features, such as the rotating inner bezel which is operated using a second crown, are today a typical characteristic of all of the current range of diver's watches from Schaffhausen. The Aquatimer Automatic in its 44-millimetre case is of course a diver's watch designed for underwater use, equipped with the pressure barriers and sealing systems of the modern Aquatimer watches - with a screw-in main crown and the self-sealing crown developed at IWC to adjust the rotating bezel, which improves handling owing to the fact that it is not screwed in. The clear dial design corresponds to that of the first generation of Aquatimer watches right down to the details, yet is more readable thanks to its new size. The pressure resistance is tested to 12bar. With the 80111-calibre movement, the Aquatimer from the new Vintage Collection is superbly powered - it is the same movement that drives the Ingenieur. And this was ultimately also the case in 1967. The 8541- calibre automatic movement, the toughest of its kind at that time, powered both of these heavy duty watches, namely the Ingenieur and the Aquatimer. However, unlike the historical model, the current Vintage Aquatimer has a see-through back cover.


TECHNICAL DATA

Features
Homage to the first IWC diver's watch, the Aquatimer from 1967, with an inner rotating bezel and the current 80111-calibre automatic movement with Pellaton winding system, platinum model limited to 500 watches

Movement
Calibre 80111
Vibrations 28,800/h / 4 Hz
Jewels 28
Power reserve 44 h
Winding automatic

Case
Materials platinum, stainless steel
Glass sapphire, convex, antireflective
Back sapphire glass
Dial silver-plated, black
Water-resistant 12 bar
Diameter 44mm
Height 14.5mm

Weight
Watch in platinum
with black crocodile leather strap 193 g
Watch in stainless steel
with black rubber strap 122 g