As we get closer to a new year, we continue our series of reviews on calendar watches, excerpted from a feature in WatchTime’s December 2010 issue. This week, we offer a look at the Girard-Perregaux 1966 Full Calendar, with original photos by Nik Schölzel.
For its 1966 Full Calendar watch, Girard-Perregaux has managed to create a dial that is simple, beautiful and clearly arranged despite its variety of displays. The two rectangular displays for the day and month play a large role in this. The red lettering in the displays, though, doesn’t: it is harder to read than anything else on the dial and is somewhat at odds with the watch’s otherwise classic design. A limited-edition model of this watch (199 pieces), with a palladium case, has blue lettering for the day and month. Red or blue, the day indication takes about an hour and a half to advance completely each night. Its other displays move more quickly.
The watch’s diameter (40 mm) and thickness (11 mm) make for a flat, elegant silhouette. The nicely finished, seamless alligator strap and narrow, pronged buckle suit the case well. Unfortunately, the crown presses uncomfortably into the back of the wearer’s hand — a problem that often occurs in calendar watches because of the modular construction.
The crown is easy to pull out to set the time. A hack mechanism enables you to synchronize the watch with a reference time source. The calendar displays are set using four recessed corrector buttons. However, in every month with fewer than 31 days, you must press the recessed date corrector and risk scratching the beautiful gold case. Simply turning the hands 24 hours ahead doesn’t work because it will put the day and moon-phase out of sync.
Through the pressure-fit caseback with sapphire window you can see the manufacture movement, GP 033 MO, which is derived from the GP 3300. It is decorated with beveled and polished edges, côtes de Genève, a gold rotor and blued screws. For what the watch costs ($19,800) you’d expect to see a free-sprung fine regulator rather than the Triovis fine regulator, which would have allowed the hairspring to “breathe” freely. Otherwise, the price is appropriate, given the in-house movement, gold case and full calendar.
SPECS:
Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds; date; day; month; moon-phase
Movement: Cal. GP033MO, automatic; 28,800 vph; Triovis fine regulating system; power reserve = 46 hours
Case: Rose gold, nonreflective sapphire crystal, pressure-fit caseback with sapphire window; water-resistant to 30 meters
Price: $25,600
I showed this article to one of my good friends. He wrote back…
Thanks for sending this my way. Interesting read, however I have a few comments. I own the watch and wear it quite a bit unlike the person who wore it for a bit and then wrote the review. I find that the red is not a issue in terms of visibility and actually offers a nice detail to the already beautiful face. It’s actually quite subtle and still very visible.
I also have never had an issue with the crown sticking into my hand. The watch is small and very comfortable. I work with my hands and it does not bother me at all, in fact I never even thought about it being there.
Lastly setting the date by pushing the corrector buttons does not scratch the watch.
Feel free to pass my (positive) opinion on a very beautiful watch that I truly love.