LHOOQ 0 Posted July 23, 2012 Last month I bid on, and won, this watch: A 1969 Longines Ultra-Chron Super Compressor. Winning that auction wasn't the culmination of a long and difficult search. This was no "Grail"; to the contrary, I was only vaguely aware that it even existed prior to finding that auction's listing. However, this Ultra-Chron represented an intersection of interests that, in the middle of June, meant that I had to have it. In the past, I've sought out specific watches to add to the collection. Pieces like my Longines Legend Diver or my Heuer Carrera would grab a hold of my imagination and drive me to find them. This is the first time I've acquired a watch on the basis of broad themes—of boxes that I wanted to mentally check-off. And I find that a bit weird. Don't get me wrong: This is a remarkable watch that I like a lot, but the path that led me to owning it was new and surprising. So what were those themes that led to this Longines? Let's examine my meandering thought processes: 1. High-Beat Since around February of this year, I've been on a high-beat kick, and wanted a watch with a 36,000 bph movement. A 1969 Zenith El Primero is one of my dream watches, but I don't have that sort of cash lying around. I started looking into Seikos—specifically, vintage Grand Seikos, King Seikos, and Lord Marvels of the 1960s and 1970s. I learned a lot about Seiko's history during that time, but was unable to find a specific GS or KS that called to me. From there, I moved onto the Longines Ultra-Chron. Not this dive watch, but the more common dress watches from the mid-1960s. These Ultra-Chrons popularized high-frequency movements, and I hoped to snag a good one for a few hundred bucks. But my auction luck was poor. After several losses, I finally found –and won!– a mid-70s Ultra-Chron with a handsome blue dial. As soon as I got the watch, I gave the crown a few turns, set the time… and saw the familiar strobing of a 28,800 bph sweep hand. The most celebrated Ultra-Chron movement was the 36,000 bph Cal.431, but many other Ultra-Chrons came with the slower-beating Cal.6651. Nuts! By May, I had lost interest in the Ultra-Chrons, and was set on winning an El Primero. No, I still didn't have the funds for a Zenith. I was after the more modest prize of a 3019 PHC-powered Movado Datron HS360. And here's where my eBay luck turned ugly: First, I forgot to bid on an early-70s Datron that ended up going for just over a thousand bucks. From that point on, it was one loss after another, until the only vintage Datrons left were in gold, or were massively overpriced. That state of affairs is unchanged as of today, so Movado remains off the table. 2. Longines I've been a fan of Longines ever since it released the Legend Diver, a model that encouraged me to study the brand's history in greater depth. After my first discouraging experience with Ultra-Chrons, I nevertheless started to become more interested in other old Longines pieces—high-beat or not. Yet more losses, as I failed to win a Conquest, an Admiral, and two separate "Munich Olympics" monopusher chronographs. 3. Super Compressors I love Super Compressor dive watches. So much, in fact, that I search for them on a regular basis. After not winning all those Movados, I checked to see what Super Compressors were available. The usual Hamiltons and Fortises showed up, but so did this Longines Ultra-Chron diver. And there was that confluence of ideas I talked about at the top of the page. It felt as if the stars had aligned, and that all of my eBay losses had been for the greater purpose of winning this Longines. Apparently, that's what losing a bunch of auctions does to my mind! Onto the actual watch, then? The 44mm case is big for its time, but this Ultra-Chron actually wears smaller than the 42mm Legend Diver, due to the latter's long lugs. Twin crowns? Check. Internal bezel? Check. But lots of non-Compressor watches had these features. How do we know that this is really an EPSA Super Compressor case? Oh, it says "SUPER COMPRESSOR" right there on the caseback. Also note the "4-69" engraving at the bottom. I'm not sure if the "4" refers to April or to the fourth quarter of 1969. For a mass-produced movement, the Cal.431 is a very pretty one. The strap is a 22mm Swiss Tropic in silver, from my big collection of old rubber. There's a peculiar symmetry between the shape of the caseback and the shape of the bezel. Fourteen sides make a tetradecagon, incidentally. (I had to look that up.) Longines buckles old and new and NOS. My Longines trio. Not quite a Symphonette. Ten ticks per second and a smooth sweep. That's what high beat is all about. Don’t worry: I haven’t turned into a gen-only snob, and will resume writing about reps and franken builds shortly. Stay tuned! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mazz 62 Posted July 23, 2012 amazing review and pictures as always mate Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Member X 91 Posted July 23, 2012 Awesome I need a 36600 movement in my life! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
onionbag 1 Posted July 23, 2012 That was just fantastic, and a few bob tied up in those vintage Swiss Tropic straps. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SB56667 155 Posted July 23, 2012 Nice one! I had my eye on a similar one on the Bay recently...very unusual case shape, but there's something about it I like a lot. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dalboy 2 Posted July 23, 2012 An oldie and most definitely a goldie... Yet another great review..nice one mate.. Dal.............. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LHOOQ 0 Posted July 24, 2012 Thanks all! mazz68: I'm sorry I didn't get that Lord Marvel! Seiko soon... I promise! That was just fantastic, and a few bob tied up in those vintage Swiss Tropic straps. I've been collecting them for the past three years, and I've got more old rubber than I can grasp in one hand! However, I bought most of them for $30 or less, and (with a couple of exceptions) didn't pay exorbitant sums to the likes of Squinky and Times of Plenty. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Datlore001 0 Posted July 24, 2012 Slick watch! Congrats! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stiltzkin 0 Posted July 24, 2012 Great story! A small window into the mind of a 'houroloholic'. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
offshore 0 Posted July 24, 2012 Mmmmm very tasty indeed. Do you know whether they came originally with the non offset date wheel? Or has that one been changed? Those are Longines in house movements, aren't they? Maybe they only did one date wheel, and date @ 3 was most models. Offshore Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LHOOQ 0 Posted July 24, 2012 Mmmmm very tasty indeed. Do you know whether they came originally with the non offset date wheel? Or has that one been changed? Those are Longines in house movements, aren't they? Maybe they only did one date wheel, and date @ 3 was most models. Not sure, O/S, but everything on it looks original, and the datewheel background has the off-white color of an old book. This is an in-house movement and, to the best of my knowledge, Longines was the first company to place the date window at 4:30. I reckon they started doing so not long after the first batch of Ultra-Chrons with date@3, but years ahead of Zenith. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
offshore 0 Posted July 24, 2012 Yeh, you gotta think that no one had thought about offsetting the date figures for a 4:30 date window at that time. That sort of stuff comes from feedback from marketing people, watchmakers wouldn't be fussed one way or another, and certainly wouldn't want to have to tool up for 2 lots of date wheels. O/S Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
