BY HARLAN CHAPMAN-GREEN
Just over two months ago, we got informed that the fabled Swiss watch brand Favre Leuba was, once again, being revived. Of course, at this point, it was all under wraps, so I couldn’t mention anything about it, but it did get me wondering what they’d do. What they did was more than I was expecting the brand has returned with five brand-new watch models, but first, a little history lesson.
Favre Leuba is one of the oldest names in watchmaking with a recognisable business today. According to this article, records from the State Archives in Neuchâtel, Switzerland, state that Abraham Favre was running his own watchmaking workshop in 1737, however, the Favre Leuba name would come around later in 1815 when Abraham Favre’s grandson Henry-Augustus Favre would collaborate with Auguste Leuba, who also had a family history of watchmaking. The company would produce highly regarded precision mechanical watches and innovate a lot, all the way until the mid-1980s when the quartz crisis forced it to disappear. Interestingly, the company was family-run up to that point.
The name would reappear in the world of watchmaking in 2007 when lots of brands were enjoying a renaissance as people had money to burn before the 2008 Global Financial Crisis hit. I’m not sure if the company disappeared entirely then, but they came back into focus once more with the Raider Bivouac 9000 in 2017 which featured a mechanical altimeter, one of the only watches in the world to do that and a follow-up to the Bivouac from 1962 which also had this feature. We featured that watch in our first Top 5 Winter Watches to Warm Your Cockles article as the best watch for rough camping on Mount Everest.
During Geneva Watch Week, Favre Leuba returned once more with a plethora of historically inspired models to sink your teeth into. I know what some readers will be thinking, “Oh joy, another vintage re-issue”. I feel you, but on the other hand, they’ve also tried making newer watches in the last decade, and people didn’t seem to buy those either. When you’re one of the world’s oldest watch brands, you’ve got plenty of material to rebuild with.
Chief Date & Chief Chronograph
The first two models are a part of the Chief line of watches. They draw inspiration from 1970s designs, as indicated by their cases, which seem to sit somewhere between a cushion and a barrel in their form. The Chief Date models measure 40mm x 10.81mm and come with a stamped textured dial in either black, blue or green. Both models are 100m water resistant and can be had on either a rubber strap or multi-link bracelet. Inside both is a La Joux-Perret G100 self-winding calibre, La Joux-Perret is owned by Citizen for your reference. The G100 has a 4Hz beat rate and 68-hour power reserve. The price is CHF2,300 for the strap and CHF2,375 for the bracelet.
The Chief Chronograph is, in my opinion, the better-looking of these two models, especially with the ice-blue dial. Of course, there is also black and a darker and more traditional blue, should you wish. The cases of these models are larger at 41mm x 14mm but are still 100m water resistant. These models come equipped with the self-winding calibre L113 made by La Joux-Perret. It’s quite similar to the L110 movement, but it has the date removed. The L110 is based on an ETA 7750 calibre, so it’s safe to bet this one is as well. The power reserve is 60 hours, and it has a 4Hz beat rate. The price is CHF4,300 for the strap and CHF4,375 for a bracelet model.
Deep Blue Revival & Deep Blue Renaissance
Probably the most historically inspired model in this new collection is the Deep Blue Revival piece, a tribute to the Deep Blue diving watch from 1964. It comes with a 39mm x 12.75mm stainless steel case, whose diameter is the same as the original, although this one’s been upgraded to have 300m of water resistance. Some tweaks to the design include the black diving bezel which is a sapphire crystal one instead of an aluminium or ceramic insert. The Super-LumiNova colour can be described as ‘fauxtina’, in that it’s meant to look patinated without being old at all. Inside this watch is also the La Joux-Perret G100 calibre, which we saw in the Chief Date. The price of this one is CHF2,250 and it only comes with a multilink stainless steel bracelet.
The other Deep Blue model is called the Deep Blue Renaissance watch. This is Favre-Leuba’s modern take on the old Deep Blue watch. While the previous one we looked at was meant to recreate the vibe of the original, this one takes it to the next level by giving us a contemporary design with subtle nods, such as the long quarter-hour markers, to the original. This model comes in blue, green or grey and it might well be my favourite of this new set of watches. It doesn’t try particularly hard to recreate anything. It just looks good. The stainless steel case measures 40mm x 12.69mm with 300m of water resistance. On the rubber strap, the price is CHF2,200 and on the bracelet, it’s CHF2,300.
Sea Sky Chronograph
The last model we’re looking at is another vintage-inspired effort with a stainless steel case measuring 40mm x 15.23mm, water resistance is 100m. The dial is quite obviously vintage-inspired, but it looks good; it features a tachymeter and telemeter scale for the chronograph and doesn’t upset the dial’s balance with a date window. If you don’t fancy the black version which is the most authentic in my view, there are also green and blue ones available, all of which have a matching leather strap. Inside this model is the La Joux-Perret L112; it’s quite similar to the L113 used in the Chief Chronograph model, except this one has three chronograph subdials. This movement has a 60-hour power reserve and a 4Hz beat rate and, like all the watches here, is visible through a sapphire caseback. Pricing for the Sea Sky Chronograph is CHF3,950.
So, there we have it, that’s all of the new models from Favre Leuba. It’d be wrong of me to say that they should leave this one to the history books, given how much I love watches, but I am wondering if this next crack at it will be successful. Only time will tell, but if you like the look of these you should definitely check them out.
