The Tissot PR516 hand-wound chronograph, between vintage accents and modernity, retraces the golden age of motor racing in the 1970s.
PR: 'Precision and Endurance an acronym that in 1965 summarised a watch designed to be used "On the track, in the air, in the water - everywhere!", as an advertisement of the time by Tissot. Originally part of the Seastar line, The PR516 was marketed as a water-resistant watch. Designed by Swiss designer Lucien Gurtner, it also became famous for its distinctive bracelet with large holes that resembled a racing wheel.
Three years after its initial launch, a chronograph version with a tachymeter scale was produced, giving it a new, typically and more avowedly racing design and made it even sportier. It became very popular in the 1970s, the golden age of motor racing. Success was immediate, so much so that Peruvian rally driver Henry Bradley in 1968 had the watch's name engraved - apparently out of pure passion - on his Ferrari.
At a time when re-editions of historical models are very popular, vintage-style watchmaking is enjoying great popularity, Tissot re-proposes the PR516 chronograph in a modern take on the style of those years.
PR516: a chronograph with tachymeter and pulse meter scales
Tissot updates the dimensions of the new PR516.
The flagship of the revamped collection, the hand-wound chronograph is faithful to the historical 1970s models but still a child of today. The tapered 41 mm steel case (the original PR516 had a diameter of 36 mm) has a thickness of 13.7 mm cwhich are in line with the dimensions of the new generation of sports chronographs. Water resistance is 100 metres.
The bezel features both a tachymeter and pulsometer scale and the sapphire crystal is of the glassbox type. On the black three-counter dial, framed by silver-plated rings, are the 30-minute chronograph at 3 o'clock, the 12-hour at 6 o'clock and the continuous seconds at 9 o'clock. In the minute counter, the first 5 are highlighted in blue, a reference to the PR516 design of the 1970s which indicated the five minutes before the start of the car races.
A manual calibre for the PR516 chronograph
A modified Valjoux 7753 for Tissot.
The back reveals the hand-wound movement, the Valjoux A05.291 calibre specially made for T's PR516issot. It is derived from the Valjoux 7753from which the self-winding mechanism was removed and replaced with a decorated and customised bridge to obtain a manual variant.
Equipped with a cam follower for the chronograph functions, it features a new barrel architecture guaranteeing a 68-hour power reserve. Thanks to the use of the Nivachron spiral, it is resistant to magnetic fields. The PR516 is equipped with an interchangeable steel bracelet with a quick-release system.
Price1,975 euro.
