Zenith?s open heart chronographs are watches that aren?t often talked about in enthusiast circles, but they are nonetheless a core component of the brand?s lineup, and have been for years. Watch hobbyists, I think, tend to be less interested in the novelty of seeing part of the movement through the dial side for a number of reasons. Unless it?s showing you something legitimately special (like a tourbillon), most collectors would rather have an unobstructed view of a great dial than have that dial broken up to see movement components that might be industrially finished, or not particularly dramatic from the front. But there?s no denying that for consumers who are new to mechanical watches, there?s a novelty and romance to seeing the movement in action whenever you glance at the time, and Zenith reminds us that there?s a difference in how these open heart displays are executed from brands at the entry level to those who sit higher up on the luxury spectrum.
Zenith introduced the Chronomaster Open in 2003 as a means of putting their high frequency El Primero caliber on display, and according to Zenith it was the first time in watchmaking history that a chronograph had been produced with a partially open dial to reveal the escapement. Nearly 20 years later, Zenith has updated the Chronomaster Open to highlight their latest El Primero 3600 caliber, which features timing to the tenth of a second thanks to a chronograph seconds hand that?s coupled directly to the escapem...