Thinking more about this, while the Torpilleur is certainly a strong candidate, the watch I'd most like to see hommaged is this one - the Heuer Bundeswehr. No date and full 43mm size - it just wouldn't work smaller than that.
Sinn did their own issued version of the Bundeswehr spec back in the day, and have reissued versions of it 'right' a couple of times (as in the Dark Star special edition from a few years ago), though mostly they've got it wrong with too many subdials in the wrong orientation, or coloured hands, or a date that unbalances everything. The simplicity of the original design wins out.
A cheapo version was made using a Chinese handwound movement a few years ago (the watch looks the part but isn't terribly well made or reliable) but I'd love to see this properly done with the two subdial Sellita movement (auto by preference, for convenience, though handwound is of course more original).
A close relative in design concept is the Zenith Chronometro Tipo CP2 (a generally faithful reissue of Zenith's Cairelli 1960s watch for the Italian airforce), which is more svelte and somehow smaller on the wrist than the Heuer/Sinn watches (despite its similar measured 43mm diameter) ... in may ways it's absolutely the perfect watch.
The smaller bezel gives a lovely sense of openness to the dial, and it's very slim thanks to the El Primero movement which adds to the sense of delicacy - Zenith's re-make is far less tool-watch than Heuer or Sinn's take, more dress-watch-with-toolwatch-design-cues, with its thin, polished case as opposed to brushed/blasted on the Heuer or Sinn. Wouldn't look right at all on a bund strap.
A quality homage based on either would work for me ...
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Originally Posted by kk
