Longines Chrono*** Ref. 8226-1*** 1968 - Roy & Sacha Davidoff SA

Longines Chronograph*** Ref. 8226-1*** 1968

OUR ARCHIVE » Longines Chronograph*** Ref. 8226-1*** 1968

LONGINES ‘Vernier Scale’ Chronograph Cal 330, Ref 8226-1, 1969
Serial: 14575625
Circa: 1968
Reference: 8226-1

DIAL: Black dial three registers, subsidiary seconds (9 o’clock) and minutes register (3 o’clock) in silver color with black ‘Paul Newman’ style printed numerals. Hours register at 6 o’clock in black matching the dial. Inner bezel with tachymeter indication. Orange chronograph hand.

CASE: 44mm, Stainless Steel teauneau shaped, screw-down case-back, mineral crystal. Inner Case back marked with reference 8226-1, patent numbers as well as the date stamp 11-68.

MOVEMENT: Caliber 330 (base Valjoux 72), Manual-wound column wheel chronograph movement, 17 jewels

BRACELET: Longines Stainless steel bracelet

CONDITION REPORT: The Dial and hands are in mint condition and the original tritium lume is in excellent condition as well and still intact. The case is unpolished and nice with its correct signed crown.

NOTES: According to the Longines Museum, the present watch serial corresponds to a Caliber 330 sent to Longines-Wittnauer in USA in May of 1968, but no extract was possible as watches were assembled in USA.
Longines was known throughout the 1940’s, 50’s and early 60’s for manufacturing some of the finest in-house chronograph movements in Switzerland. In the opinion of many collectors, 13ZN and the subsequent 30CH, are the best in terms of technology and quality. The 13ZN caliber gave way to the 30CH chronograph, which was a slightly upgraded (though somewhat less desirable now) in-house chronograph, before Longines ceased the production of in-house chronographs in the late 1960s.
They began to source Valjoux 72 column wheel chronograph movements as an alternative to their in house movement and marked the V72 as caliber 330 internally.
Interestingly, the patent numbers for this chronograph are inscribed inside its case back along with its year of production.

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