Eberhard & Co. Chrono 4 (fantasy)

[dlgates]

(These are old photo reviews rescued from the original RWG site; I didn't want them to get lost forever! Old hands will already have seen them; some newbies might be interested.-- Dave)

Eberhard & Co. Chrono 4 (Fantasy) from Joshua

Received 19 March 2005

SS; Diameter: just under 43mm mm; day, month, and 24-hour time; Asian automatic movement

This is a watch obviously in the general spirit of Eberhard & Co. but definitely not a replica in the true sense of the word. Indeed, the true "Chrono 4" obviously gets its name from the arrangement of four subdials in a single row across the face of the watch, an arrangement copied by certain other makers and offered in other fantasy versions. Here is a picture of the original, true Chrono 4:

You can explore the Eberhard Collection on your own...

This particular watch from Joshua (Jos Nana), however, has lugs close to the original, pushers close in appearance, and a knurled rather than smooth crown although the shape is otherwise correct and it bears the "E" logo. The hour markers are the same, and even the leather strap appears to be of similar weight and thickness and closely copied from the original as pictured above (although a rich brown would be preferable to the reddish colour so favored by replica makers). The labeling on the face seems very accurate, also.

Other than the subdials, obvious departures are the lack of a date window and the lack of pointed ends on the see-through hands. The central sweep second hand is close in appearance to the original. At this point I must confess that I like the appearance of this fantasy watch better than the authentic Chrono 4: I have always found the four subdials in a row unattractive in that they crowd an otherwise nicely balanced face.

Twenty-four hour time is redundant but is one of the things that makes this particular watch both interesting and attractive. While the subdial at 6 o'clock tracks the 24-hour clock as common on many fake chronographs, this Eberhard fantasy has an inner bezel that rotates as the watch runs and displays at the 12 o'clock position the hour on the 24-hour clock. It seems slightly odd that the daylight hours are against a black background and the nighttime hours against a white background--one would expect just the opposite. This bezel arrangement appears to be directly copied from the Girard-Perregaux Worldwide Time Control. Regardless, it is the feature that makes the watch aesthetically very pleasing in comparison with other watches with the typical three subdials.

This is a handsome watch that I have enjoyed wearing throughout today, noting that all aspects of the watch appear to be functioning correctly and well. The Asian movement is smoother than many: the hand-winding is clean, and the rotor is quieter than is often the case (though not as quiet as Swiss). As is now expected of Joshua, pre-service, sale, and delivery were all handled with utmost courtesy and consistent follow-up. This is but one of many interesting watches he has made available to us so far--some fantasy watches, like this one, and others quite accurate replications of some rare and unusual watches from the great makers. Regardless of its fantasy status, this particular watch is well-designed, handsome, and nicely executed in every regard.

THE END

Thanks for looking!