Review: A Versatile Tool Watch With Vintage Charm | The IWC Pilot's Watch Chronograph Spitfire
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- Опубліковано 20 сер 2024
- For the full review go to: www.hodinkee.c...
Tough but not overstated and certainly toolish but with a vintage flair, the Spitfire collection was recently overhauled and I'd wager that this new chronograph, which is available in steel or bronze, manages to offer IWC's well-established Flieger aesthetic while being distinctive enough to stand apart as an expression of their form that attempts to capture a certain old-world charm.
This watch is 10 times better looking and better feeling in person!
I always stayed away from IWC because of the larges case sizes but man the 41mm is incredibly comfortable for someone with a medium/smaller wrist.
I think I watched this video a dozen times and today I ordered my IWC Spitfire Chronograph 🥳
You won’t regret it! Traded my Breguet type XX for this IWC spitfire Chrono and couldn’t be happier:)
@@roochmartinez102 Nope, I haven’t regret it! It’s still in my collection and it runs like on day one 😄 it’s an amazing watch and paired with various straps, you can wear it with pretty much every outfit. IWC has done a great job and I couldn’t be happier as well. Congrats to your Spitfire!
It’s a really nice watch when you actually wear it and live with it. It’s chunky but well proportioned, with a strong wrist presence as mentioned in the review. If you only had one watch this should not be it. But as an alternative to a 40mm rolex, which is slimmer and hugging, this is a refreshing watch that’s distinctive, different and refreshing. The color combination works well. And it blows the Rolex (indeed any Rolex) away on legibility. I like it.
I bought this watch over a month ago and I could not stop wearing it. It's a beautiful everyday watch that I can wear with anything. I own a Rolex Explorer ii (40mm) black dial, Speedmaster (FOIS), and Halios Seaforth. This watch opened my eyes to different world of watches that I wasn't accustomed to. On paper, everyone wants to own a Rolex or an Omega which seems like the right answer for everybody. But spending time with watch and wearing it everyday is a whole another thing. For some reason, I feel like I have a deeper connection wit this watch that my Explorer ii which I couldn't have discovered if I didn't buy this watch. My point is this: just bc it’s a Rolex or Omega it doesn't mean it's for you. I just think it's a little boring that everyone has the same watches now a days. Why not differentiate a little bit, you know?
I don’t think Ben Clymer or any other individual made Rolex or Omega, both have been selling boat loads of watches before they came on the scene.
IWC makes so many great watches, and at least here in NYC I see loads of them on people’s wrists, usually the dress models, but their sports lines are compelling. Gotta buy what you like, although, there are good reasons so many people like the watches in your collection, good design is pretty universal.
@@SpydieFan I agree that a good design being universal. I don't have a problem with anyone liking Rolex and Omegas. It's the dismissive comments about certain watches that doesn't necessarily fit the "typical watch nerd" that bother me. People commenting on something w/o even trying them in person. I think there's a big difference between seeing a watch online and liking it and actually wearing the watch every single day. I guess, Im a strong believer of having a sense of spiritual type connection with your watches. I agree with you though!!!
Well said, Koske. Ever tried the bronze version?
I think James is the best on camera talent, love his videos; also more that featured his photography such as the Tudor GMT one would be amazing!
Cool Watch, and nice write up, appreciate all the alternatives, so many choices with this style of watch, but IWC has that military aesthetic that speaks to me.
Thanks for the review.
it is insane to see people saying too many negative things about this watch. I have this watch and it is amazing. you can understand the quality difference from a 7750 as soon as you press the Chrono pushers and hand wind. İt is accurate like a cosc watch. I also used Speedmaster professional, zenith el primero, omega 9900 Chrono, hamilton 7750 Chrono and can easily understand a low-quality watch from a premium one. it is a very balanced watch on the wrist. With this dial styling, a thin Chrono looks bad., sure if you remove the day date disc and magnetic resistance or the automatic winding module it can get thinner but you will lose these extras that some people find useful on a daily watch. there are two competitors of this watch 1 - el primero chronomaster if you want a thinner dressy piece go this way, 2- new speedmaster with master chronometer certification if you want a tool look in a thinner case with magnetic resistance but without day date and automatic winding.
@CoolHandLuke no it has colunm wheel
It has a colum wheel, but a the clutch is a lateral one, just like the el primero.
IWC is the Volvo of luxury watches. They make watches that are finished well, but there is little substance. When this watch came out, I fell in love with it. However, the more I consider it, the worse it gets. I tried one on at the AD and it was ridiculously thick. They reduced the diameter, but the thickness remained the same as the old 43mm. In other words, the proportions got worse. The "in-house" movement is nothing more than an ETA recipe that they now make at IWC. They threw a couple of spare parts into the movement to say they modified it and viola! There is no forward thinking here. They just did the bare minimum so they could tag the watch with "in-house movement". Why not develop an anti-magnetic hairspring to resist magnetism? Nope, slap an iron cage around an already thick movement. That's cheaper. Until IWC gets real about making competitive products we'll keep getting the bare minimum from them. And the value proposition of buying their watches new will continue to be non-existent. It's too bad, because they make good looking time pieces.
Im so happy you wrote this!!!!!!! You are 100000% on point. Check my comment above. I sold this piece of junk along with the Mark spitfire. Both are crap clones of ETA and they brand them in house. They share same movement across their brands now. Its pure shit!!! I got the ETA le petite prince chrono instead. At least that one runs fine and im not pretending to have a fake in house movement!!!
Todd Campbell they destroyed panerai as well. Push pins, reduced water resistance, snap case backs... and they removed their in house P9010 from the submersible 42mm and replaced it with the junk that was in the IWC mark spitfire! JLC they discontinued the master compressors and went with the Polaris line that uses movements from their master control line! Alange is the best though nothing bad with them yet!!
@@ripperx444 I'm sorry about your experience. I have a JLC and the movement is good. I hope they don't screw JLC up! (sorry deleted my last comment by mistake)
ripperx444 the reduced water resistance was primarily for the DUE, a dress watch... or because they made new models thinner.. but yes, I prefer screws over push pins.. and why they stopped using the p.9010 movement on the 42mm submersible is beyond me.. are the new variants at least thinner? Panerai need to also improve their servicing ETAs
I like my Hamilton flieger chrono better. H64666735 Caliber H31 60hpr. For about $1,200.
The removal of the red Spitfire lettering was a mistake.
110% agree!
Most Tudor Black Bays have had almost the exact same proportions for years now, and everyone acts like it's fine. IWC releases a Chronograph and everyone loses their mind!
A chrono and dive watches were very differently
@@vascosaldanha602 But does it matter what type of watch it is, if the dimensions are similar/the same?
@@ToolwatchBoutique no doubt, dive watches appear smaller because of the bezel, a watch like a flieger is all dial and traditional has pretty lengthy lug 2 lug
Glad to hear James's honest opinions and not just verbose praise of a watch. Always appreciate his perspective.
boutchmanz all I heard was praise. Not saying he's shilling out, but it wasn't like he provided any instances of examples of criticism.
I test drove this yesterday, it is absolutely incredible
0:43 The jump of the elapsed minutes hand is so crisp
Love it. Great review and cant wait to get one.
Check out this one. H64666735
An IWC is either the next or one-after purchase for me: stunningly simple and versatile
Wish it didn’t have the faux patina, and was thinner..!
Oof, day/date wheel printing is shotty for this level. 2:17
I was thinking the same thing. It looks quite cheap.
Check out this alternative. H64666735
@@NikonFM2n yeah that's hot.
The bottom of the 8 is missing.lol
It's wayyy too noticeable. The quality of the print on Grand Seiko's just blows it out of the water.
You can use it as a weapon like nunchaku, thats why they made it 15mm thick.
This one is officially going on to my “maybe” list. An impressive effort by IWC.
At -30% off on the 2nd hand market it's a knock off of a bargain !!
NEVER buy IWC new from AD
All watches don't hold theirs value other than Rolex mate.
True. I have a hard time selling one
Never buy retail in general. A lesson some people (myself included) need to learn more than once.... 😔
Lavishlyfat well expect Rolex professional models
@@dingmingzou9866 Right. Assuming you're able to actually get one without be laughed out the store by asking if they have one, haha
While I like this watch, and can wear it on my 7.5” wrist, it’s a throwback to a late 90’s transitional 3706 with half tritium dial, half super luminova, which is a weird time period to pay homage to. I can’t get over the pricing these days either, and can’t imagine this staying in the catalog much longer. It’s too bad, because pre owned pricing for the 3706 is creeping up to pre owned (mint condition) pricing of this spitfire reference, but only one of these will surpass in long term value (if you care about that), and it won’t be this spitfire re-release.
I see a lot of these IWC Pilot Chronographs on wrists here in Austria and in the flesh they always catch my eye more than any photo has done. They feel really classy to me in an understated way and really purposeful. I like this new version though have to agree, I would have preferred to see all the hands in the same colour and Spitfire in the same colour as the IWC on the dial would have been nice but I would not miss it either and 41mm, a perfect size. As an auto Chronograph owner there is not a lot that can be done with thickness and it does not bother me as I know it’s there for a real reason rather than fashion!
iwc and especially the pilots watches are still very popular in austria, because emperor franz Josef was a big fan of IWC and equipped his army generals with these watches.
So interesting, in New York I see allot of their dress models, not many IWC sports watches outside of the Aquatimer and Big Pilot. I guess every brand speaks to different markets. I hear Rado is a super hot brand in Pakistan, who knew?
maxolson oh that’s fascinating, thank you. I only moved here three years ago and am still learning much about this lovely country, that makes so much sense to me now. I wonder if Sisi was like Josephine and had a Breguet?
Bill Hartsfield Rado is pretty big here also Bill, they have a boutique on the main shopping street in the 1st district of Vienna. Actually, Austria is a watch lovers paradise and Vienna has some incredible watch stores both new and vintage. I used to live in Vancouver and though it is great for new watches it’s no where near as good as it is here for vintage or for old fashioned watchmakers.
My IWC chrono le petite on leather strap is my go-to watch when I wear khaki pants for some reason.
and its a much better watch then this fake in house bs they put out
Looks good from some distance
Check out this one. H64666735
Truly lovely, but so is the Longines “Big Eye” . . . Considering the price differential, is the IWC really worth it?
I find these 'week on the wrist' videos charming, informative and far too dangerous for my liking but I keep coming back for more. A couple of years ago I fell in love with the Rolex Explorer 214270 after your video and er bought one... Now I am feeling things towards this watch or to be precise the standard Spitfire version. Well done and keep them coming. Cheers from a Brit in France.
Get yourself an iwc if you can, got a mark 18 and it's ended my watch journey, amazing watches.
it's a handsome piece but how about getting a 3706 with true patina and steel bracelet at 1/2 of the price.
It's a beautiful watch. One observation though. It would be a little better if all the time related hands were in a different colour from the chronograph hands. will make it easier to read. In this case, the running seconds hand is the same colour as the chronograph hands, while the hour and minutes hands have the same colour
IWC just doesn't do it for me anymore. They need to go back to the styling of a few decades ago and then they'd really have something in their pilot's and spitfire lines.
I find it humorous how many viewers are hating on both Hodinkee and IWC. If you don't like Hodinkee - don't watch the video. If you don't like IWC - don't buy the watch. Problems solved, you're welcome.
Amen
Man that thing is thick!
That's what she said!
Isaac Lara That’s what she didn’t say
@@eyeheartsushi2212 sorry to hear that buddy
Isaac Lara LOL
It may be a 41mm, but with that slim bezel, it probably wears like a 43mm. Also the 15mm thickness is just too much, won't go under a cuff. I like IWC but in this case, I'd buy a Sinn Flieger 356 instead!
Sinn 356 is THICKER than this watch... worse proportions as well due to a smaller diameter overall.
Why does everyone assume this is faux patina? Its just a color less harsh than white. Its warmer. Its just a color folks... no need to cry, it'll be okay I promise.
Fake patina is the reason I put at least 10-15 watches off my wish list.
I love the design of these, but when I finally tried one on I could not get past their thickness. I guess that is par for the course for an automatic chronograph, but still.
There's like 5 modern automatic chronographs that aren't above 14mm.
I got a Sinn 356. It has a similar design.
15 mm thick? Nah.
A nice looking watch but basically a Valjoux 7750 movement and at almost $6000 it's more than twice the price it should be . . . .
I'm thinking 15x as much as it should cost. You can get a new old stock Movado Kingmatic Chronograph with a 7750 for $400.
I want this watch!
Reminds me of how magnificent the 1185 F Piguet automatic chronograph really is. So thin! And yes it beats at 3hz w no hacking seconds and only 40hr of power reserve but still a work horse.
is it too hard to make day-date display black? it is not a bad watch but i will prefer sinn356 for quarter (maybe 1/5) of the price.
Beautiful watch but only 6 atm...no diving with it
Lovely, but think I’ll wait till Swatch’s patent on silicon hair springs expires, when this baby gets a display caseback, &, due to no need for the soft iron inner case, loses 1mm of thickness!
Huge lug-to-lug and way too thick. A watch better served for 2007.
Meh - some guys need large watches (me). I'm glad not everything is 38mm.
Needs a bracelet option!!
If it only came 22mm bigger... such a great watch!
why doesn't Hodinkee show subscriber numbers? Here we have a German (now Swiss owned by an investment house) watch maker tributing a watch to a British aeroplane and we have a British company Bremont (with French name) making a German tribute watch... Interesting I suppose...
IWC still has an authentic history, which Bremont will never have. IWC has become a parody of its former glory.
Another great video from James👊 I prefer the Spitfire Automatic due to the cleaner look and better proportions
Looks like it wears huge
Better to get Zenith el primero.
Would rather get a Sinn 356/358 or Longines Big Eye aviation or a pre-owned Breguet Type xx instead of this
Check out this one. H64666735
The Sinn 356 is a work of art
@@NikonFM2n why are you recommending that reference to every single person that comments?
YES
@@DMBVR4 Sorry, I think maybe I was a little high when I did that. I own that reference and think its a great alternative.
I have one just like it. Mine is also a Swiss Automatic Type B Flieger Chrono with Date and 42mm with an in house movement. The H64666735 sells for about $1,500. I got mine for 900.
I would definitely go to Zenith.
How would this one compare with the previous 39mm version?
The hands are are miss for me. Blued hands would have been a nice touch.
Guys, this model or IWC Pilot's watch chronograph 41?
0:58 Nice Leica Q.
Awesome review! What’s your wrist size if I may ask?
Love the BGM
I love James Stacey! GOAT 🐐!
It's a 'show watch' not a 'tool watch'. It's for show. Wear a Casio G Shock while flying. Mechanical watches are not good for high G force applications.
Beautiful movement, wish it had a display caseback 😢
Dear Hodinkee, what is this guys wrist size? Could anyone please tell me? :)
Very beautiful 😍
James Stacey is the best at what he does
Whats his wrist size?? I’d like to know
Faux patina lume is so 2012
This is the one
Check out this one. H64666735
@@NikonFM2n Also, this one
15mm thick???
Looking very nice.Thank you so much..
All you guys crying about the size of this watch must have 6" wrists. Go buy womens watches.
Agree, they want the perfect size for their wrist size and do not understand why the watch design is asking for that particular size.
15mm looks way healthier than this..
Idk, the Val Fleurier "in house" Chronograph movement is basically a clone of the ETA 7750 right?
One day…. One day.
Love it.
Is this an ad? It's hardly a review. Also, if you review a tool watch, you shouldn't wear leggings. (If you make an ad, that might be acceptable, idk.)
Jonathan Corbett A really awesome comment dude! Shit made me laugh
$5700 for a 7750? I don’t think so.
Yup, you can get a tissot with a 7750 for a few hundred bucks!
@@BuddhaRice Then wear Tissot
Fine then, I WILL!
15 mm thick.
Easy pass.
Thanks for the review but my decision was made to pass on hearing thickness .
Haters gonna hate in 3..2..1..
Nah, i would take a Sinn 356 or 358 over this
I hate the white numerals with patina hands
I'm just grateful it's a 41mm. LOL
Magersüchtig. The guy, obviously not the watch. Oh, and this being an in-house mvt? Yeah, right.
Sure looks very large and fat to me. I really wish the trend was back to smaller sizes. When I locate a nice 36mm Rolex Explorer 114270 with box/papers, that will be my forever watch. I’m not a collector, but truly appreciate the mechanical aspect of automatic watches..........just like the Porsche I drive. Currently, I wear a 34mm OP with blue dial. Prior to this watch, I wore a 36mm OP DateJust every day for almost 30 years. PS: I love the Hodinkee reviews.
My first Rolex was a 114270 which I purchased new in September of 2008. I get a thrill every time I take it out for its turn in the rotation. It's a beautiful little watch that dresses up, as well as down.
does your husband like watches also?
Does it have a flyback function?
No, it has fly forward function
All watches are tools
It should be dress or sport...but both are still tools.
I don't get this company. Most buy watches on the looks and this thing looks like any generic 7750 based watch. That day date window is so ubiquitous and tired that I wish they just removed that and have longer power reserve. The chronograph complication itself is 75% useless. At least ad module to chrono to make it track second time-zone on H-M subdials. And turn that S. subdial into power-reserve indicator. Remove auto function and rotor and exhibition back and make this watch 10mm thick. Anyway the only real innovative watch in that collection is a TIMEZONER.
Way too large!
I am wondering when fashion to normal size will turn!
This is not large, it's 41mm. Maybe your wrist size is small, large for one may not be large for another, it just depends
You should really think about removing that tat from your arm. It looks like a jail tat.lol
Never buy this new, actually while you are at it, save your money and buy an explorer instead.
The Rolex Explorer is boring and way overrated
@@algorithm007ify you obviously have no idea what you are talking about.
suckgames I do..I used to own one (current 39mm version). It was the most boring watch I ever owned. It looked like a $500 seiko
@@algorithm007ify Hahahaha ok.
Nope, buy a mark 18 or 16 instead of an explorer
as-THE-tic, not as-TE-tic
Inaccurate Watch Company just cant make smaller and reliable movement.
They just cant. Period.
this watch is for men, not girls wrists...mine gains under 4 seconds per day with chrono running full time. if that’s not accurate enough for you you might wanna consider a casio
41mm = 👌🏻
No thanks
:)
So big on wrist it looks ridiculous. If they spent time making an in-house movement, they should have worked on making it a bit thinner.
It's made for the men's wrists not for the girl's wrists.
Zoran Tobdzic sorry this is late asf but i love this reply so much
why would anyone buy a watch with faux patina?!??
It's not faux patina. It's tan.
@@trevbarlow9719 it's hideous
@@richardn.5854 nope, it's not. And we both know this because you called it faux patina. Patina isn't hideous.
Too big & too expensive 👎
Even lums are missing for a pilote watch! 🤣👎
Check out this one. H64666735
Size is not only diameter but Also ans mainly lug to lug distance ans lugs design
and you're too predictable and too cheap
Watch is thicc
Then shrink it
not as thick as you
Looks like a silly brick on the wrist.