JEANS AS A SECOND SKIN

Celebrating its 15th anniversary this year, the Chronofighter model has adopted a youthful and original design. A look at a furiously trendy teenage watch.

The particularity of teenagers is not to do anything like the others. On the contrary, they tend to choose anti-conformity or even provocation and rebellion, in spirit and appearance. This is somewhat the case of the Chronofighter model, first created in 2001, and whose creators, the Graham brand, are celebrating its 15th anniversary in 2016. This is a watch that impresses with its size, accentuated by its famous trigger, its face that leaves the workings visible without revealing them completely, and a thick, natural canvas strap that perfectly matches the spirit of the age.

A trio of colours are on offer in this special collection of Chronofighter Denim chronographs with matching strap materials: dark grey, military khaki and jean blue, a little like in a jeans shop. Originally, denim was an ecru-coloured and sturdy cotton material with closely woven fibre, which was dyed indigo blue. After being worn by miners, workers and farmers, mainly in the 19th century, it is now mainly used to make jeans. This cross-generation garment, a symbol of rebellious youth in the 1950s, and of the Hippie movement in the 1970s, jeans are, above all, a watchword for comfort and freedom, particularly for the young, when they have yet to succumb to the traditional and dull suit/shirt/tie. Whether stone washed or double-dyed, slim or bootcut, this is a vital item of clothing in any wardrobe. And there is just one step from the closet to clothing for the wrist, a step that Graham has taken with this series of three models.

The steel case measures 47mm in diameter and is waterproof down to 100m. It is topped with a black ceramic bezel and, most notably of all, features a structure called a carbon trigger at 9 o’clock on the case and a pusher covered in grip rubber pattern at 10 o’clock. The trigger is used to set, stop and reset the Chronofighter Denim chronograph function. With the time and date functions, the watch is powered by the manual wind G1747 calibre, with a power reserve of 48 hours.

The dial features a sapphire-coloured, slightly opaque glass on the watch face. The hour rim is made up of large, white luminous Arabic figures encircled by a telemeter scale. Hours and minutes are shown by two wide hands of the “pilot” type, while the seconds are set apart in a counter at 3 o’clock. The date is discrete, appearing in a recessed window at 8.30. As for the chronograph function, the seconds run at the centre and the minutes run in a counter at 6 o’clock. All the indicators are white, except in the grey version of the Chronofighter Denim, where electric yellow is added.

Price: 5,900 CHF

By Sharmila Bertin