Officine Panerai

AnthonyTsai
[PuristS]
22366

• Show profile
• Show other posts

Pictures and videos of the Panerai SIHH 2011 collection

Here are more pictures and videos of the SIHH 2011 collection from my Press Preview report earlier in the year in March.

Cheers,
Anthony

The first watch I looked at was the Panerai PAM380 45mm Radiomir Black Seal. This entry level Black Seal is different from the prior Black Seal models such as the PAM183 because this version has the Pre-V OP logo on the dial. The PAM380 is a regular production stainless steel watch with black dial from the Historic Collection. I really like how the Pre-V logo looks on a Radiomir. Prior Panerai's with this Pre-V logo have only been on the Luminors, so if my memory serves me correct, this is the 1st Radiomir with the Pre-V logo.

Below is a picture of the PAM380 Black Seal (left) and the original PAM183 Black Seal. Notice the different fonts used for "Radiomir Black Seal". I guess Panerai made "Black Seal" smaller to balance out the dial since there's now the Pre-V logo at 6 o'clock.

Which version do you like better? I personally like the PAM380 on the left. The Pre-V logo gives this Radiomir a slightly more sporty look.

Also, this PAM380 has a solid caseback instead of a sapphire back found on the PAM183.

Any of the Black Seals makes a perfect entry level Panerai for those looking to buy their first Panerai or Radiomir.

Next watch is the Panerai PAM373 which is the 47mm Radiomir 3 Days Platinum. It's a unique edition of 199 pieces from the SIHH 2011 Special Editionn and houses the P.3000 hand wound in-house movement. Panerai introduced a lot of models this year with a domed Plexiglass crystal instead of the usual domed 1950 sapphire crystal, and this Plexiglass crystal gives the watches an extra touch of uniqueness.

I've never understood the desirability of this dial which is used on a vintage Panerai model, but after having seen the PAM373 in the flesh, now I understand why. I must say the PAM373 is much better in person than in pictures. The added heft of the platinum case makes this watch even more impressive. With a retail price of ~$40k, it definitely will be out of reach for many, but for those who anticipate on getting one, you won't be disappointed!

Another great feature with this PAM373 is the awesome display back. You get the see the new manual wind P.3000 in-house movement in all its glory. It's a LARGE movement which fits extremely well in this 47mm case. The balance wheel is fairly large as well which is a huge plus in my book. I never liked the small balance wheel on the P.2002 movement.

Look at how well the movement fills the space, and the caseback bezel is very thin which makes the movement looks even larger IMO. And a note to all the other brands who offer large watches and are reading my report, learn from Panerai and make a large sized movement. Beautiful beautiful beautiful!!!!

Notice the small Pre-V logo next to the 950 platinum stamp on the caseback bezel? Awesome touch by Panerai isn't it?

Maybe someday in the future Panerai can make a more skeletonized version of the P.3000. I would love to see more of the movement if possible.

Also, the P.3000 movement is so large that it doesn't look like it can fit in a regular 44mm Historic Luminor. So my hopes of a 44mm Historic Luminor using the P.3000 movement just went down the drain. I guess Panerai can use the smaller P.999 movement in the 44mm Historic Luminors should it decide to stop using the Unitas movements.

Next up is the Panerai PAM376 47mm White Gold Radiomir 3 Days w/ California dial. It's a unique edition of 299 pieces from the SIHH 2011 Special Editions. It's another 47mm Radiomir housing the new P.3000 in-house manual wind movement and also uses the Plexiglass crystal just like in the PAM373. This PAM376 is just another mix and match combo by Panerai using the California dial, but at least this is the first variant using the new P.3000 movement.

If I had to choose between the PAM373 or the PAM376, I'd definitely pick the PAM373 but that's just my preference. I'm sure there are many others who would prefer the California dial though.

And once again, the large P.3000 movement is a stunner and huge winner in my book. I am definitely adding a P.3000 movement watch to my Panerai collection in the future but if I do, I fear I may not wear my other Panerai's anymore because they won't have this awesome display back view.

Next is the Panerai PAM384 45mm Radiomir 8 Days Ceramic . It's a black dialed ceramic Radiomir which uses the manual wind P.2002/3 movement and is part of the SIHH 2011 Historic collection. And for you strap fanatics, the black strap is very soft and conforms to your wrist extremely well. Normally this watch would garner more attention because it's a black ceramic watch. But looks like the new brown composite watches seem to be the more "in" thing now with Panerai fans, myself included.

Nevertheless, if you're looking for a more complicated ceramic PAM292, you may want to take a look at the PAM384.

And below is a shot by Ming of the awesome black strap on the PAM384. I believe it's buffalo?

Next is a model that many seem to like a lot - the Panerai PAM382 Bronzo 47mm Luminor Submersible 1950 3 Days Automatic. This 47mm monster tuna can houses the automatic P.9000 in-house movement. The case and bezel are bronze while the caseback bezel is in titanium. The caseback bezel is in titanium because you don't want bronze in contant contact with your skin for health reasons. Unique edition of 1000 pieces.

In the Bronzo prototype above, you can already see the bronze develop patina which will give this Submersible a much desired rugged look which we all Panerai fanatics crave. Imagine a Bronze Panerai w/ tritium dial. Now that would be awesome but it won't be happening anytime soon since Panerai no longer uses tritium on its dials.

The dial on the Bronzo has a very slight green tinge to it. The green is not really noticeable since far away, you would just think the dial is the usual Panerai slate color.

Below are some more pictures by Ming of the Bronzo along with another video.

The racheting of the bezel on the Bronzo feels very solid like that of the PAM305 Submersible I reviewed earlier.

The Panerai PAM375 47mm Luminor Composite 1950 3 Days is another watch that Panerai released this year that houses the manual wind P.3000/1 movement. This watch differs from the other P.3000 watches in that it uses a sapphire crystal instead of Plexiglass. For those waiting for a 47mm brown composite Luminor, this PAM375 should be high up on your list. It's a unique edition of 2000 pieces and is from the SIHH 2011 Special Editions collection.

The overall thickness of the PAM375 seems to be thinner than other 47mm 1950 Luminors. The reason for this is because of the flat caseback bezel shown in Ming's picture below. It seems as if all the P.3000 watches have flat caseback bezels instead of the usual slanted caseback bezel found on the non-P.3000 watches. I really like this flat caseback bezel design because it makes these watches easier to wear on the wrist, giving more wearability to the wrist challenged.

The view through the smoked caseback makes the movement looks PVD'ed at certain angles. But in most viewing angles, the smoked display back just obscures the view of this lovely P.3000.

Next up on the chopping block is the Panerai PAM386 Brown Composite 44mm Luminor Marina 1950 3 Days Automatic. This is another brown composite Luminor but is a regular production piece. The PAM386 houses the automatic P.9000 in-house movement and is part of the SIHH 2011 Contemporary Collection. This piece normally would get more attention on any year, but the above PAM375 unfortunately stole PAM386's thunder.

The caseback crystal is also smoked like that of the above PAM375.

The PAM386 would make a great addition to my list of great 1st Panerai's to get for any Panerai newbie. It joins the ranks of the Radiomir Black Seals and the PAM000 and PAM005 in my book.  

Now let's take at the hottest watch of the entire Panerai SIHH 2011 collection which is the long awaited 47mm 1950 Luminor Base - the Panerai PAM372 Luminor 1950 3 Days 47mm Base. We've been waiting for a 47mm base for years, and we finally have it - thank you Mr. Bonati!

What's great about this PAM372 is this case is a brand new case for Panerai. There are slight differences with this 1950 case as compared to the normal 1950 cases, and I'll point out the differences below.

The PAM372 houses the manual wind P.3000 movement and also has the Plexiglass crystal. It's a regular production piece with 3000 pieces schedule to be made this year.

In the below picture, notice the thinner lugs on the PAM372 on the left as compared to the lugs on my PAM29 on the right. The lugs on this new case are thinner and more flat. And the reason why Panerai made this change is because the cases on the vintage Panerai models were like this.

I really love this new 1950 vintage case!!!!!

Another new thing about this PAM372 case is there is now a visible ridge on the sides of the case. You'll see the difference in the below comparison picture.

And below is a better shot showing both the thinner lugs and ridge on the sides.

Below is the usual P.3000 view through the display back. One cool thing to notice is this is Panerai's first time ever to engrave the BB # and water resistance rating on the underside of the lugs. I guess do they do this because there's no room to engrave anything else on the narrow caseback bezel. Just an observation I haven't seen anyone else point out, so might as well point out this minor characteristic.

The PAM373 also has the flat caseback bezel just like the other P.3000 watches.

Above is a great picture showing the shape of the PAM372 plexiglass crystal. Notice how it protrudes above the bezel. I feel this look further compliments the PAM372's vintage look.

And for the strap fanatics, here's a comparison shot of the PAM372 brown strap with my OEM brown calf strap on my PAM29. You'll notice the PAM372 strap has a slight shiny coating on it and has slightly roughed up edges. Great job on the strap design Panerai.

There were other new Panerai models that debutted at SIHH 2011, but these are the main ones. I'll be sure to take photos and videos of the missing watches next time hopefully in a few months.

Thanks for taking the time to read my report, and hope you found this year's collection as impressive as I have. And another big round of applause for the Panerai staff again. Their service is top notch as always, and great seeing you again Chad and Michelle. Looking forward to chatting again in the very near future! 

Additional Photos by Dr. Ming Woo: