Zenith El Primero Retrotimer flyback chronograph

Exactly! I didn’t even want this Zenith! Do not get me wrong, I always respected Zenith as a great manufacturer and as a great brand, even though the owner of the brand has made some strange timepieces, some strange moves on the market and the old star of the Zenith started falling lately. 

By the way, the flagships of the brand, the bronze pilots and the El Primeros are still “flying high”, well respected and amazing looking watches. I always wanted one of them, but not this…

When I first saw this Retrotimer on a picture, I haven’t really liked it. It looked small, too simple for me, like a watch for my grandfather. I see myself as a modern, sporty guy, who does not follow every fashion wave but who likes to be up to date; this watch – as I thought – is definitly not my style. 

After I saw the watch face to face, and I got a good price for it, I decided to get it, because I am collecting and I always wanted a Zenith. This piece got the famous El Primero movement, which is a dream with the high bitrate, its accuracy and durability, so I pulled the trigger without much emotions, just like you know – “get this watch, why not, I could resell or something” attitude. 

Then, I totally CHANGED MY MIND! I put it on a handmade secondhand market leather strap and I started to feel the love and I’m still feeling it till this very moment. On this strap – made by my friend @679_Straps – the watch started to speak to me, finally, and it has been telling amazing stories. It looks amazing, it feels amazing to wear, it keeps perfect time every day, all day, and look at that strap! Cannot resist anymore. 

Zenith El Primero Retrotimer flyback chronograph on @679_straps

This is when I realized that a relatively simple thing can change the whole look and feel of a timepiece. It turned my beloved piece into a badass modern crazy cool watch – or at least this is my opinion, and I have started to love and wear it every day. I have contacted the Zenith brand itself asking about this model because I have started to realize that this is a really rare piece and look what they wrote to me! 

This watch was manufactured only in 2010 and there were made less than 500 pieces of it!

This is rare, or nothing is! 

So this is the story of my amazingly rare flyback Zenith El Primero Retrotimer on a crazy cool @679_straps strap. The moral is: do not judge at first sight, go deeper and a little change — even if you never thought of it before — could make the whole thing unique and turn it into a watch that you will love forever. 

RetekG
RetekG is a Hungarian watch lover, watch collector and crazy amateur watch photographer. Born to be a watch nerd, his grandmother bought him a Casio in 1986, and the rest is history. He’s a big fan of Panerai, Rolex, Audemars Piguet, Jaeger-LeCoultre and he also loves trying new microbrands as well as affordable brands with a cool quality, remaining faithful to his roots and his grandmother’s choice. Since 2016, he shares his watch photos on Instagram. His goal is to share his passion for watches and photography with anyone who likes this kind of madness and have fun with all the watch fans. This is why he founded the @ReWatchTeam on Instagram.