Vulcain has dipped into its heritage before for modern pieces, and today, the latest ‘new heritage’ piece is a revival of a 1970s Chronographs. The new Chronograph 1970s Hand-Wound is not their first historically oriented chronograph, with the 50s Presidents Chronograph Heritage being a prime example.

The 1970s chronographs from Vulcain came in a variety of models and case shapes, including cushion cases. This new model is based on a watch that had a blue dial and gray counters, but the 2023 model, in a 38mm sized steel case with four dial variants – black, blue, ‘panda’ black and silver, silver (limited edition of 100 pieces) and salmon (limited edition of 50 pieces). The dials all have sun-ray finishing.

Layout-wise, the dial is pretty standard bi-compax format, with hours, minutes, seconds, and the chronograph sub dials at 3 o’clock and 9 o’clock.

The new Chronograph 1970s’ 12.40 mm thick polished ‘step-case’ is identical to the original, with a smooth bezel and domed sapphire crystal, the shape of the latter chosen as a nod to the historical use of plexiglass. They are water resistant to 50m.

The use of a manually-wound movement, the reliable SW510 M BH which beats at 28,00 VPH with a power reserve of 63 hours, is a historical nod that is worth mentioning, given that most heritage revivals tend to just go down the route of an automatic movement as an ‘update’, whereas those into vintage pieces appreciate it when there is something to wind. In the world of heritage-inspired modern watches, especially at this price point, these are a solid addition.

Coming on brown, grey of black calf straps (including ‘alligator print’ style) options for all dial colour variants, the RRP of the new Vulcain Chronograph 1970s is CHF 2,500/ EUR 2,500.

[Photo credit: Vulcain]

Categories: chronograph, Vulcain, Watch Profile, watches, Women's watches