THE ESSENTIALS

MAKE: IWC
MODEL: IW3704
YEAR: 1993
BOX/PAPERS: NO/NO
CASE DIAMETER: 42MM
CASE MATERIAL: TITANIUM
BRACELET MATERIAL: TITANIUM
MOVEMENT: AUTOMATIC

In 1978, IWC collaborated with Porsche Design Studio, headed by the infamous Ferdinand Porsche, and came out with the 3510 Kompassuhr, a black or green PVD aluminium watch with a compass integrated into the case. This started a long and fruitful partnership which led to a unique catalogue of watches that collectors love and treasure these days. 

In 1980, IWC and Porsche Design released the "Titan" chronograph - a 42mm integrated bracelet chronograph, powered by the IWC modified Valjoux 7750 and housed in an avant-garde full titanium case. The model remained in production for nearly 20 years until 1997, and went through several tweaks in bracelet and dial design. In particular, the earlier bracelet design, although equally gorgeous and comfortable, was prone to faults and hard to adjust. This example dates back to 1993 and features their final bracelet design. 

The watch has been kept in remarkable condition, with barely any signs of wear. The matte black dial is perfect, and the tritium hands and markers have aged to a warm, creamy hue. The white hour and minute hands and the red chrono hand are super legible in contrast with the black background. It came to us in great health, running at +3 s/d, 250 amps, with a 0.2 ms beat error. As we've said many time before, vintage and neo-vintage IWCs are some of the most underappreciated watches out there - it's hard to find a watch "cooler" than this at any price point.