A Zenith Respirator ... and another one

Nov 20, 2012,05:54 AM
 

A friend collector stayed a little bit more on our GTG place some weeks back and ...

A seller, that arrived late, had a Zenith Respirator NOS to sell and he, of course, grabbed.

To mitigate my regrets he let me to take some pics of his new catch.

It's a Zenith Respirator Luxe AF/P (High frequency / Precision) with the weekdays in German.

About this name, Respirator, it comes from the French "respirateur" and is based on the way this case is built.

There is a large gasket between the glass and the case that "breathes", meaning that as much water pressure increases the case is compressed, increasing the water resistance. It's a 70's design and this gasket, made with 70's rubber, has a strong trend to melt. I already saw some of those Respirators with a major inside damage caused by the melting of the rubber.

There are Respirators, marked with a "X" on the dial, that do not "breathes", meaning that they are Respirators only by the name.

Let's see some pictures:

1) The square/rectangular case is around 37-38 mm. Nice size.




2) The dial is metallic




3) Notice the geometry of the dial that reflects light on four directions




4) I like the simple hour markers.




5) The case is not thick. Dresses very well.




The seller returned on the following week with another one. It's smaller than my friend's one and is "X", meaning that is not a true respirator.








No deal on this one. The seller wants way too much on this one.

I choose to stay with my trusty New Vintage.




Thanks for seeing.

Cheers,

Nilo

  login to reply

Comments: view entire thread

 

"Square" Zeniths

 
 By: Ares501 - Mr Green : November 20th, 2012-12:28
are among my favourite classical pieces Thank you for pictures Damjan

I'm also hunting for a Respirator ...

 
 By: nilomis : November 20th, 2012-14:27
They are not that rare but I love the 70's look. The only problem is that I want one NOS or mint with box and papers. This makes the hunt more complex. Cheers, Nilo

Your friend snagged a gorgeous example, Nilo. I've seen . . .

 
 By: Dr No : November 27th, 2012-10:58
. . . images of his model, but the resolution of your photos depict the almost domed construction of the dial that went unnoticed before. I can't recall a similar square dial with canted surfaces - very, very striking. Cordially, Art

My friends ...

 
 By: nilomis : December 3rd, 2012-09:56
Always get the best part of the pie. There is one, like yesterday, that is a true magician (Sort of "now you see, now you don't). I saw one very nice watch, I blinked and then ... where is the watch? Gone. Despite of having friends with fast fingers, I en...