Accurate to a tenth of a second: New Zenith Chronomaster Sport with 3600 Caliber

In 2019, Zenith’s legendary El Primero chronograph celebrated its 50th birthday. Zenith took this as an opportunity to introduce the limited edition “50 Years of El Primero Anniversary Set” consisting of three watches. Included for the first time in the Zenith Chronomaster 2: the caliber 3600.

With the new Zenith Chronomaster Sport, this high-frequency chronograph caliber is now also available in a non-limited watch – and an attractive one at that.

Zenith Chronomaster Sport

At first glance, it’s clear that this new introduction has everything that makes the heart of a Zenith (El Primero) fan beat faster. First and foremost is certainly the iconic dial layout with the three subdials arranged in a triangle, which slightly overlap. This was already the case on the 1969 original A386, as well as the slightly protruding pushers (“pump pushers”).

Also, the black bezel is already known from the A277 model, while the polished and satin-finished bracelet was already used on the Zenith De Luca. Another technical highlight is the tenths of a second display (more on that in a moment), which was implemented in the Zenith Striking 1/10th introduced in 2011. Nevertheless, the new Zenith Chronomaster Sport is more than just the sum of its parts.

El Primero Caliber 3600

The built-in column wheel chronograph caliber represents the new generation of the legendary El Primero automatic high-beat caliber, which was introduced in 1969. The three-color dial displays the 60-second counter at 3 o’clock and the 60-minute counter at 6 o’clock. The totalizer at 9 o’clock represents the running seconds of the watch, while the chronograph seconds hand is centrally located.

When activated, this completes one revolution in 10 seconds. This is rather unusual since a conventional chronograph seconds hand only circles the dial every 60 seconds. The idea behind this is that it allows the wearer to measure a tenth of a second.

Simply put, the second hand now moves across the dial at 6 times the speed of a “normal” chronograph hand. Thanks to the clear markings on the ceramic bezel, stopping as well as accurately reading the 1/10th of a second hand is now super easy.

Zenith & Daytona = Zaytona?

Of course, voices were quick to claim that the new Chronomaster Sport was modeled after the Rolex Daytona. If we are completely honest, this is also somewhat understandable, as elements such as the hands are almost identical. Above all, however, the new Zenith ceramic bezel looks suspiciously similar to that of a modern Daytona, albeit only at first glance. A closer look reveals that the Daytona uses a tachymeter scale, while Zenith uses graduations for reading tenths of a second. Nevertheless, a certain similarity cannot be denied.

What is important to note here, however, is that it was the Zenith brand that equipped Rolex’s first 165xx series automatic chronographs with movements in 1988. So, it could be argued that it was Zenith that was instrumental in helping the Daytona collection achieve its legendary status. Honor to whom honor is due.

At a glance:

• Reference: 03.3100.3600/69.M3100 (white, bracelet), 03.3100.3600/69.C823 (white, strap), 03.3100.3600/21.M3100 (black, bracelet), 03.3100.3600/21.C822 (black, strap)
• Case diameter: 41mm
• Case material: Stainless Steel
• Winding: Automatic
• Caliber: El Primero 3600 (5 Hz)
• Power reserve: 60h
• Water resistance: 100m
• MSRP: 9,200€ (rubber), 9.700€ (steel)

We expect to receive the watch shortly. If you already have any questions regarding availability and price, please contact our customer service team.