WT 2003 04: TEST: CHOPARD L.U.C PRO ONE

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Lovingly executed details adorn the wellcrafted rubber strap. Advantages +Interesting manufacture caliber +This watch has obviously been crafted with a great deal of love for details +Very beautiful and highly lebigle dial Disadvantages - The rotating bezel shifts position too easily - No stop-seconds function tates in one direction and clicks neatly into each successive minute increment; a screwdown crown with lateral protection; a readily legible dial; and a visually appealing rubber strap. Connoisseurs will instantly recognize that this watch is a Chopard. Even the screw-in back has been lovingly engraved and attractively designed. But the beauty of the Pro One is by no means skin deep: Unscrew its sturdy back, and you’ll find a technically discriminating, fully automatic caliber 4.96. Produced in Chopard’s ateliers, the 4.96’s twin barrels store enough power to keep it ticking for up to 70 hours. Sturdiness, of course, plays a crucial role in any diver’s watch. By necessity the toughest and best protected of all sports watches, a diver’s watch is designed to cope with tough conditions above and below (sometimes well below) the surface of the briny deep. This steel watch is very solidly built, a fact which is immediately evident the moment you heft its masculine bulk: including its strap and clasp, the Pro One weighs in at 134 grams. It definitely makes its presence felt on the wrist, but it manages not to feel too cumbersome. It takes six full rotations to unscrew the well-protected crown and arrive at the setting mode. Three rotations would have sufficed if the threads had been cut more steeply, but this fine threading is greatly reassuring to anyone hoping to take the Pro One in water conditions more hazardous than the shower stall. To facilitate orientation, the unidirectional bezel has been given a luminous triangle filled with Superluminova C1. The bezel rotates easily in a counterclockwise direction only, which ensures that the preset interval is always shorter and never longer than intended. This detail © <strong>2003</strong> Caterpillar CATERPILLAR and CAT are Registered Trademarks of Caterpillar Inc.
DATA PAGE L.U.C Pro One Manufacturer: Chopard SA, 8, rue de Veyrot, CH-1217 Genève-Meyrin Reference number: 16/8912 Functions: Displays the hours, minutes, seconds, and date. Movement: Chopard manufacture caliber L.U.C 4.96; diameter = 27 mm (12 lignes); height = 3.3 mm; 31 jewels (plus 3 nonfunctional jewels); 28,800 beats per hour; Swiss lever escapement; Anachron flat balance-spring; annular balance with three spokes and smooth rim; find adjustment via Spirofin mechanism for the index; automatically wound by a heavy metal micro-rotor; two barrels (mainsprings made of Nivaflex 1); 65 to 70 hour power reserve; Kif shock absorption; no stop-seconds function; C.O.S.C. chronometer certificate. Wristband and clasp: Rubber strap with steel folding clasp. Running test when fully wound (deviations in seconds per 24 hours): Dial up: +2 Dial down: +3 Crown left: +5 Crown up: -5 Crown down: -3 Greatest deviation of rate: 10 Average deviation of rate: +/- 0 Average amplitude: 280° Dimensions: Diameter = 42 mm; height = 12 mm; weight = 114 grams (including strap and clasp). Special features: Comes standard with both a rubber strap and a leather wristband Price: $6,230 A tiny fly in the ointment is the unidirectional bezel. It shifts positions a little too easily. The Chopard Caliber 4.96 may not be the workhorse that you’ll find inside a Rolex Submariner, but it’s tough enough and is certainly much better looking. is particularly crucial if the watch is worn while diving, since it means you won’t risk running out of air. But we must report that the Pro One’s bezel turns perhaps too easily, with the corresponding danger that it’s apt to rotate further than intended. We’d like to recommend that Chopard rework the bezel so that it clicks a bit more stiffly, or at least install a mechanism to lock it into place. On a happier note, there’s absolutely nothing to criticize about the dial and the legibility of its time display. Superluminova C1, a new luminous material which glows as green as a cat’s eyes, has been used on the hands and indices, where it contrasts unbeatably well against the black background of the dial. Chopard has wisely dispensed with unnecessary complications or other dial clutter that could potentially interfere with the simple task of telling the time. Even the aforementioned writing on the dial is in unobtrusively small type and located towards the dial’s center. Further improvements in the legibility include the antireflective coating that’s been applied to both sides of the domed sapphire crystal. This coating assures a limpid/crystalline readout in even the brightest lighting. Like they used to say in 17th-century verse, ‘A pretty face has its place, nor does she lack a pretty back.“ The Pro One’s back is embellished with elaborate engravings and tasteful decorations that list the name of the manufacturer, the name of the watch, the maximum dive depth, the reference number and serial number, and there’s also an attractive eight-pointed star like the one that’s typically found on a compass. This star serves no function but is cool nonetheless. Similar adjectives characterize the impressively thick rubber strap. Lovely little decorative waves decorate its out- 58 WatchTime August <strong>2003</strong>
Page 1 and 2: TEST: CHOPARD L.U.C PRO ONE The Pro
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WT 2003 04: TEST: CHOPARD L.U.C PRO ONE

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