Longines Conquest Classic Chronograph

·March 11, 2013·4 Comments

Set to be presented at the upcoming trade show in Basel together with the refreshed Longines Conquest Classic three-hander, the new Longines Conquest Classic Chronograph watch sports the same styling, but somehow manages to look even more elegant than its dressy sibling.

As the aforementioned three-hander, the watch will be available in not only in affordably stainless steel and pricey 18-carat rose gold, but will also feature a rose gold / stainless steel mixt that combines the best of two worlds being not very expensive and relatively easy to keep in good shape, but still looking quite expensive and even refined.

As you can see on the pictures, there will be two variations of the dial -one in matte black and one in silver- both of them featuring sexy vertical stripes (although clearly influenced by Omega, the design looks like a breath of fresh air after the sounds of variations of different types of burst and guilloche motifs that tend to dominate the niche).

There is, to my regret, nothing new in the, um, engine compartment.

The Longines Conquest Classic Chronograph is still animated by the sameLongines caliber L688.2 column-wheel chronograph movement, which is based on the ETA Valgranges A08.L01 ebauche and is modified by ETA to Longines specs.

We have seen this mechanism last year when the Swiss manufacturer introduced its vintage-styled Longines Tachymeter Automatic Chronograph (Ref. L2.781.4.13) and many other watches from the same watchmaker.

Although the caliber offers nothing revolutionary in terms of design or decoration, this is a nice work-horse movement, which is both reliable and accurate for the price. Compared to older competitors, the mechanism also features a more impressive power reserve of 54 hours, which is still not enough to keep the watch running over the course of a weekend, but greatly contributes to the timekeepers isochronism.

Fortunately, this is not a limited edition model, so each of us has a chance to get a version of the piece that better suits his needs without breaking the bank.