By TLex Lighter than ceramic, harder than steel, the Luminor Composite Marina 1950 3 Days Automatic was unveiled by PANERAI at SIHH 2011 . . .
From PANERAI With its automatic Panerai P.9000 movement, its Luminor 1950 case in Panerai Composite and its strict adherence to the functional and aesthetic codes which make every Panerai watch unique, the Luminor Composite Marina 1950 3 Days Automatic - 44mm is a classic example of Panerai’s tradition for innovation and quality.
The Luminor 1950 case and the bridge protecting the winding crown are executed in Panerai Composite, the synthetic ceramic, used in haute horlogerie for the first time by Officine Panerai, which is created by an electro-chemical process involving the transformation of aluminium. Panerai Composite is much lighter than ceramic but at the same time it is much harder and more resistant than steel, furthermore it is matt and extremely distinctive in appearance.
The large, unadorned brown dial is of a sandwich construction consisting of two superimposed layers containing the Super-LumiNova® which forms the fluorescent figures and hour markers. It is in the classic Panerai style, reflected by its thickness and high legibility even in the dark. The dial is protected by a sapphire crystal with anti-reflective treatment.
The P.9000 automatic movement, which can be observed through the smoked sapphire crystal case back, is 13 ¾ lignes in diameter and 7.9 mm thick and it has been entirely designed and constructed within the Officine Panerai manufacture at Neuchâtel. This calibre has a date function, small seconds at 9 o’clock and a power reserve of three days, achieved by two spring barrels connected in series, with an oscillating rotor which winds the springs in both directions.
The Luminor Composite Marina 1950 3 Days Automatic - 44mm is water-resistant
to 30 atmospheres (about 300 metres) and it is supplied with a strap of antiqued brown leather, with a Panerai Composite buckle of the same colour. Identified by the reference PAM00386, it is part of the Contemporary collection.