Of course, the stepped date aperture at 4:30 also plays into that, love it or hate it, it’s part of the El Primero package at this point. They aren’t overly colorful, ranging from navy to shades of grey, but they stand out as unique identifiers to the watch’s identity. This is pure Zenith El Primero with the oversized tri-color registers dominating the landscape. This case size and shape provide a level of inconspicuousness to this watch, but the dial itself is anything but. That’s not to say it felt too big, but it does wear larger than the 38mm implies.
I’ll pause to mention that I’ve been wearing a 36mm 124270 a lot lately, so my on-wrist approximate size calibration has been out of whack, and while the Zenith doesn’t feel big by any stretch, I’d have guessed it was a solid 40mm. There are a number of traits carried over from the original A386 that you’ll notice and appreciate in the Chronomaster Original, chief among them being the 38mm case size. The lugs gently slope toward the wrist, but from an angle, you’ll notice a bulge on the underside that prevents a flush meeting point between case and wrist. There is a whisper of a chamfer on the lugs, but the transition from surface to surface is razor sharp. It frames the dial beautifully, allowing the fine details and texture to pull the eye toward the bright dial. Lines are sharp and crisp, with a high and tight radial brush finish atop the lugs. Not that it can’t be done, of course, but would the round case of the A386 be a bit more flexible day to day? Probably. It is however, a little trickier to pull off as a daily wear given it’s unusual shape. The retro case packs a ton of charm into its diminutive 38mm footprint. It’s no secret that we’re fond of the A384 Chronomaster Revival series, which has a seemingly limitless ability to adapt to any material or color Zenith can throw at it. In use and on wrist this watch is quite compelling, which forgives a lot in the naming department. Upon introducing this watch it was easy to poke a bit of fun at the ‘Ecommerce’ label applied to the name, and while it still feels an odd choice, there’s nothing on the watch itself that denotes it as such, so no harm, no foul, as far as I’m concerned.
We’ve talked a lot about Zenith El Primero Chronograph watches this year, from the bright spots to the, well, other, but the Chronomaster Original A386 seen here might be the most approachable we’ve seen yet.
It builds on the well established frame set forth with the regular production Chronomaster Original watches, and it translates the original design language first established in 1969 to something perfectly relevant and wearable in 2021. Zenith has shifted focus to their Chronomaster Original collection in recent months with the first watches introduced over the summer, and an online exclusive in the Ecommerce edition revealed just last month.
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