Zenith El Primero gold A3817

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Dear OF members!

I would like to present to you the Zenith El Primero reference A3817 from the early 1970s. The Zenith A3817 is like an A386 on steroids. The same but different and 2.5 times rarer. This is a very hard to get reference. So don’t wait or it will be gone!

The first El Primero from the 1969 until the early 1970s are considered really icons which are much appreciated among collectors. It is a design classic with its tri-colour dial, and its ground breaking movement. This watch combines great looks while being the smartest kid in town. Zenith is brand with a really big heritage they won the most prices for their chronometers. Since the introduction of the El Primero in 1969 they became famous for their distinctive high-beat chronograph timepieces – technically advanced wristwatches are very much in Zenith’s DNA. And - carrying the Calibre 3019 PHC - this piece belongs to the prestigious line of the first-ever automatic chronographs.

Specifications:
  • Brand: Zenith
  • Model: El Primero Ref. A3817
  • Movement: mechanical automatic in-house self-winding Calibre 3019 PHC
  • Functions: date, hours, minutes, center seconds, chronograph
  • Features: unrestored dial, original lumes
  • Case Diameter: 37 mm, 47mm from lug to lug
  • Lug Width: 20mm
  • Case Material: 18k yellow gold
  • Crystal: plexiglass
  • Bracelet: original Zenith leather bracelet around 20cm with stainless steel buckle signed "Zenith"
Condition
This stunning example of the Zenith El Primero Ref. A3817 is from 1971 (With serial number 232 XXXX). According to the work of leading Zenith authority, Manfred Rössler, who stated in his book on page 240 only 1,000 tri-colour A3817s were made in 1971, compared to 2,500 of its slightly more common cousin, the ever-popular A386. Uniquely, the A3817 has blue sub-seconds hand on the 9 o'clock sub-dial, which is also painted with blue indices. In comparison, the A386 has all its sub-dials painted with white indices and uniformly white hands.

Case
This Zenith El Primero A 3817 is in excellent condition. The case has certainly been worn, with superficial scratches throughout. I believe the case is unpolished. A tell-tale sign for this is via the top and bottom line of the case. These cases are notoriously difficult to polish, with the aforementioned lines being the hardest. You can tell it has either been polished or refinished in the past if those lines are wobbly. This example, has perfect lines going through. This A3817 still retains its original finish with its sunburst finish on the top, brushed sides and thick bevels throughout.

When you examine the case you will see that the brush marks are still visible on the top side of the case (also some scratches), the straight-line lugs are sharp and thick, and the side profile is as it should be, grained on the front and the sides. It has a slight shine/polish look to it from what I think is many years of wearing. The bevels on the lugs are polished, as is the deep Zenith hallmark star on the screw-down case-back, further accentuated by the use of graining at the center. The unique reference number is also visible on the caseback and the case comes with the original Zenith-signed crown. Overall, the exceptional finishing of the Zenith El Primero A3817 is noteworthy, both for its design and execution. It is an really honest and exceptionally original example of an A3817.

Dial and hands
Similarly to the case, the tritone dial is in excellent condition, the base of the dial has a really nice warm patina with a kind of creamy colour. The dial has triangular hash markers on it, indicating the minutes and (1/5) seconds, and applied, faceted silver index markers for the hours. The tritium lume on the matchstick handset and index hour markers have aged to a nice colored patina, complementing the patina on the sub-registers perfectly. Further to this, the watch also features a red paddle chronograph hand, displayed on many Zenith El Primero examples of the era, whilst the white portion of the dial is surrounded by a grey tachymeter and a Base 15 pulsations scale.

Movement
The watch carries the above-mentioned self-winding 3019 PHC calibre, considered by many as one of the most famous column-wheel operated chronographs of all time. The movement features 31 jewels and a bi-directional central rotor, beating at 36,000 A/h, with a power reserve of 50-hours. The movement is clean, and during the time of testing the watch was fully functional.

Bracelet
Together with its Zenith-stamped, original Gay Fréres ladder bracelet in steel, and matching ZKM end-links, this piece makes a showcase of what a classic vintage sports watch should be like.

Overall, the exceptional finishing of the Zenith El Primero A3817 is noteworthy, both for its design and execution. This steel Zenith El Primero (ref. A3817) is remarkably well preserved.


Payment
Price: €9.500
net. EU shipping is €70.00 ROW: €145.00 Payment by wire or PayPal (Buyer covers fees).

DLT222 has verified my business credentials.

I am a watch dealer located in Amsterdam and I am not affiliated with any brand. All my watches I guarantee authenticity. F2F deals are always welcome.

References available by request or in the feedback section. I have feedback from @donkii @wristpirate @vujen Will ask for it from @WatchWalker and @@bernarddevos
I am on https://www.chrono24.nl/search/index.htm?customerId=22074&dosearch=true#grefhttps://omegaforums.net/threads/wouter-van-wijk-good-buyer.91773/https://omegaforums.net/threads/wouter-van-wijk-great-buyer.89588/

As with all of our pre-owned watches this watch comes with a full 12 month WRIST ICONS warranty that will be invoked from the day of purchase.

On request of potential buyer I can send high res images via wetransfer

I will offer a 48 hour inspection/approval on the watch.

Full refund only if really mis-described or not 100% authentic Rolex. If returned, watch must be in 100% exact same condition received. No returns for buyers remorse.

Please give me a DM if you have any kind of questions, I will be at your service.
Many thanks OF for the space!


WRIST ICONS
Amsterdam


Iconic watches make us tick.We love to curate vintage and pre-owned watches with proven character and like to tell their unique stories. We don’t look for average watches, we look for the quintessential watches of time.

We call these WRIST ICONS.