Panerai Radiomir 3 Days Acciaio Brevettato

Quick specs Panerai Radiomir 3 Days Acciaio Brevettato
Price: $ 9,800 | approx. € 9.000 | approx. £ 7,600
Size: 47 mm
Reference: PAM00685 (black dial) | PAM00687 (brown dial)

A lot of watch makers are going vintage these days and the Panerai Radiomir 3 Days Acciaio Brevettato is one of the ultimate examples of that. It takes you right to Italy in the 1930s.

During that period Panerai was already supplying their time pieces to the Italian navy. So the watches must be robust, easy to read and perform under several difficult circumstances. That’s why we still have the Radiomir. And that’s why we have this special edition.

The first thing you notice is the 12-sided bezel. It is engraved with “Officine Panerai Brevettato” just like the 1930 model. Which means “patented by the Panerai workshop”. It probably refers to the patented luminous substance they used on the dial (which is called Radiomir). And it is likely they wanted to claim their position and their models when presenting them to the hotshots of the navy at that time. Hoping that they would order thousands of them. So, we assume they used these engraved models as a showcase.

The Panerai Radiomir 3 Days Acciaio Brevettato is only water-resistant to 30 meters, which is vintage too

This new version has the same 12-sided bezel and the same engravings. The case has three main parts: the screwed bezel, the cushion-shaped case itself and a screwed back case. It measures 47 millimeters. The dial is simple and clear. In black or brown with luminous cutouts and both with luminova-coated hands. Inside is Panerai’s P.3000 caliber, a hand-wounded mechanical movement providing 3 days of power-reserve.

This model clearly has all of the modern Panerai signature, mixed with the old model. So it has plexiglass, a big onion-shaped crown (easy to wind with gloves) and it’s only water-resistant to 30 meters, enough in the 1930s. And therefor it is more vintage that just an easy redesign of the case and dial. It’s almost like they produce the old model again.

Good to know: Panerai includes a spare plexiglass crystal in the package (wooden box) as plexiglass scratches considerably more easily than sapphire. Which also makes it easy for you to make your new Panerai look even more vintage in very short time.

The Paneria Radiomir 3 Days Acciaio Brevettato with black or brown dial and the 1930s model (ref. 3646 Type A)