A Look at IWC Watches Made from Stealthy Ceratanium

A modern double chronograph and world time watch benefit from IWC Schaffhausen’s patented Ceratanium material.

As an official UK stockist of IWC here at Jura Watches, we’ve welcomed many innovative ceramic models into our collections over the years. The manufacturer has been a specialist in the field of ceramic case design for several decades. If you’re interested in IWC Schaffhausen’s coloured ceramic watches, inspired by naval aviator flight suits and the desert surrounding the base of the US Navy’s Top Gun flight school, you might like to check out this article. It features the brand’s “Mojave Desert”, “Lake Tahoe” and “Woodland” iterations. In this article, we’re going to look at the IWC Pilot’s Watch Timezoner Top Gun Ceratanium IW395505 and the IWC Pilot’s Watch Double Chronograph Top Gun Ceratanium IW371815.

Both of the all-black IWC Pilot’s Watch designs we’re going to look at today offer sophisticated complications. The Timezoner model displays the time and the date of any time zone you wish to track with the simple turn of the bezel, while the Double Chronograph model is a ratrappante. This means it features an additional hand AKA the split-second hand, making it possible to record intermediate times. The function is particularly handy when wanting to record two moving objects at once like two race cars competing on the same track, for example. As well as looking at IWC’s innovative patented material, Ceratanium, we’re going to explore these two all-black watches in a little more detail.

The Colour of Supersonic Jets  

Ceratanium is IWC’s proprietary material developed for super hardness and super scratch resistance. It’s also incredibly lightweight thanks to the implementation of titanium. Because of the unique process that engineers this special material, its colour is also very unique. The Ceratanium seen in the Timezoner watch, for example, is black but not completely black. Both IWC and Pantone joined forces to create this special shade – one that is inspired by the technical components of modern jets, such as those seen in the US Navy’s Top Gun flight school. Ceratanium has a scratch resistance and hardness likened to ceramic itself but has been combined with the lightness and robustness of titanium.

IWC Pilot’s Watch Timezoner Top Gun Ceratanium IW395505

The IWC Pilot’s Watch Timezoner Top Gun Ceratanium reference IW395505 is a design that benefits from the brand’s innovative Ceratanium case material. Its Timezoner function can switch between different timezones effortlessly and quickly. Tailored to the needs of an avid traveller or those businessmen who spend a lot of their time meeting deadlines in other countries – the watch can be utilised by pressing down on the bezel and rotating it. Doing this allows you to set the different time zones. Setting the time zones like this also advances the date feature as well as the hour hand and the integrated 24-hour display, presented in an arc at the top of the dial. These features move forward and backwards in one-hour steps.

The matte black finish of the Ceratanium case in this design gives the watch a stunning tactical pilot watch look. The city ring on the bezel has been forged from black ceramic and features the different time zones legibly in grey. Matching this colour are the Arabic numerals at 12, 3, 6, and 9 o’clock on the main dial. The entire dial is protected by a sapphire crystal glass front that has been tinted to enhance the watch’s tool-like aesthetic. The case is broad, measuring 46mm, and this is plenty enough room for the in-house Calibre 82760, which sits inside. The movement bears a Pellaton winding system and produces an autonomy of 60 hours, performing at a rate of 28,800 vibrations per hour. The IWC Pilot’s Watch Timezoner Top Gun Ceratanium is finished on a supple black rubber band with a textile inlay and secures to the wrist with a Ceratanium fastening.

IWC Pilot’s Watch Double Chronograph Top Gun Ceratanium IW371815

The IWC Pilot’s Watch Double Chronograph Top Gun Ceratanium reference IW371815 injects a somewhat sportier feel to the wrist. Crafted from the same Ceratanium material, the design is the brand’s first “jet black” design of its kind and boasts subtle injections of red here and there. The Double Rattrapante Chronograph is sleek and stealthy, measuring a diameter of 44mm on the wrist. Light and rigid, the watch boasts scratch resistance, corrosion resistance, strength, lightweight qualities, and durability through and through. The chronograph is no ordinary chronograph either. It features a push-button at 10 o’clock. The chronograph timing begins in the same way. Activating the 2 o’clock pusher begins both hands at the same time, however. The 10 o’clock pusher, once pressed, stops the first hand. Pressing the same button again makes that first hand instantly catch up with the second and continue to move. But to measure two objects, you simply stop the first one with the 10 o’clock pusher and press the 2 o’clock pusher to stop the second hand. The difference between the two timings can then be measured.

Experts at IWC choose to highlight the 10 o’clock pusher of this ratrappante chronograph with a band of red to match one of the chronograph seconds hands. The rest of the dial resumes its usual, discipline chronograph style, with a 30-minute counter at 12 o’clock, a 12-hour totaliser at 6 o’clock and a small seconds function at 9 o’clock. The Arabic numerals around the edge of the dial are executed in black and all elements on the dial are protected by a sapphire crystal glass lens. This watch is powered by the Calibre 79420, which comprises 247 hand-assembled components. It performs at a rate of 28,800 vibrations per hour and produces a power reserve of 44 hours once fully wound. This Pilot’s Watch Double Chronograph Top Gun Ceratanium model is finished on another black rubber strap with a textile inlay.

If you’d like to enquire further about either of these two black Ceratanium IWC watches, you can email us on help@jurawatches.co.uk or call us on 01335 453453.