Private: Le Jour Le Mans Chronograph Vintage Review: A Sporty Vintage

Collecting vintage watches has always been an interesting yet challenging thing to do in the watch community. It has a distinctive exciting feeling to have, for example, a beautiful chronograph of the late ’60s in the collection. Among many vintage watch realms, the vintage Le Jour watches also come as a popular and most-hunted collection.

Le Jour itself started the journey as a French distributor and retailer of chronographs manufactured by Heuer during the 70s. Throughout that time, the brand revived with an entire range of vintage-inspired sports models chronograph equipped with premium materials and reliable Swiss-made mechanical movements.

Most of their current models are the reinterpretation of vintage collections. During that time, the racing chronograph was in trend and that’s when Le Jour released its 7203 chronographs in the European market in the ‘80s. It became an iconic timepiece and was an incredibly sought-after model by chronograph collectors as an affordable Heuer chronograph alternative.

Reminiscing that popular model, Le Jour unveils the latest vintage-inspired racing chronograph that resembles the classic models in the past. The Le Mans Chronograph Vintage White Ref. LJ-LM-001 is the model that we’re going to talk about in this watch review. So, read the following article to dig deeper into the watch.

Le Jour Le Mans Chronograph Vintage White Review

It’s hard to really describe the performance and appearance of the watch unless you have it directly on your wrist. However, reading the review would better help you to get a better image before actually purchasing the item. Let’s take a look at the Le Mans Chronograph Vintage White review below.

Watch Case

As a sports watch that flaunts a vintage design, the Le Mans Chronograph Vintage is housed in a well-constructed 316L stainless steel case. The result is a robust sports watch with a satin brush finish all around the case. As for the dimensions, the case comes in a 42mm diameter with a 51mm lug-to-lug size.

For that, this Le Mans Chronograph radiates a bold presence once it sits on the wrist. Not to mention that it still maintains excellent wearability on the wearer’s wrist. The comfort is further enhanced with the downward point on the lugs and the flexible first link of the bracelet. The result is comfortable wearing on a more average wrist size.

Completing the case is a watch bezel that holds the case in place. It features a tachymeter scale made of steel which is a common feature in a chronograph, especially for a sports watch. It functions as a measurement tool of speed over a fixed distance. The bezel comes in black, resulting in a good contrast against the dial.

Protruding at the side of the case are the watch crown and chronograph pushers. They can be screwed down to give extra protection underwater along with the 200m of water resistance. The watch also comes with an impressive caseback in which you can see an engraved Le Mans race car with a chequered flag motif.

Watch Dial

As you can expect from a chronograph, the dial features sub-dials to display additional information. The Le Mans Chronograph Vintage White exhibits three chronograph registers at the 12, 6, and 9 o’clock positions. Featuring a white dial background, the black sub-dials create an excellent contrast, allowing for maximal legibility.

If you take a closer look at the sub-dials, you’ll notice that it has a circular pattern, resulting in exotic sub-dial counters. Topping it off, a day-date window is neatly placed at the 3 o’clock position that further elevates the watch function. Overall, despite those elements, the dial still managed to present an appealing design with a good layout.

Protecting the dial is a highly domed scratch-resistant sapphire crystal. Not only that it makes excellent protection and legibility to the watch but also has a vintage appeal and a resemblance to acrylic crystals used in the past.

Movement

Now that you know some of the complications in Le Mans Chronograph Vintage, you might wonder about the engine that drives the watch. It is driven by the dependable Swiss ETA caliber 7750 automatic chronograph movement. It becomes one of many reasons why this watch is sought-after by chronograph lovers.

The Swiss ETA caliber 7750 is a tried-and-tested movement with 25 jewels beating at 28,800 beats per hour. Kept inside a robust caseback, the watch offers great resistance to water for up to 200m – it is an appealing number for a chronograph. As for the power reserve, the watch provides approximately 48 hours.

Bracelet

Completing the overall look, the Le Mans Chronograph Vintage is paired with a stainless steel bracelet with Oyster-style. The fact is that most Le Mans models come with that bracelet style.

It is a well-made bracelet equipped with thick solid links and a firm clasp with 6 holes for micro-adjustment. As for the look, the bracelet is entirely brushed, allowing for a bolder look while maintaining comfort on the wrist.

Conclusion

In the end, Le Jour Le Mans Chronograph Vintage is a splendid option for a vintage-inspired sports watch. The compelling design isn’t the only thing you can admire from this timepiece but also has a robustly built and reliable performance to accompany your sporty activities as well as a dependable chronograph. Above all, it features a classic look that will assuredly stay timeless for many years to come.

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