IWC Schaffhausen Portugieser Reverse Panda – Review

IWC Schaffhausen Portugieser Chronograph Ref. IW3714-04 Reverse Panda

If you are eagle-eyed and you’re a movie fan, you’ve probably seen this watch somewhere! The watch was featured in the French movie called Anthony Zimmer and you could also see the watch on the wrist of Jamie Foxx in the 2006 film Miami Vice.

Actually there was an extremely rare, limited edition with only 50 pieces launched, all engraved with a special Miami Vice logo on the case back.

I got the chance to wore this beautiful chronograph for a few weeks. I could say I pretty like this piece.

It has a 40.9 mm stainless steel case,  and it was available in white gold as well. I know that the black color makes things look smaller, but with the slim bezel, for me it looks even bigger! I could say that all the parts are nicely finished, brushed and polished. Although the lug endings could be a little bit smoother, or that’s just my obsession. It has a polished case back, where you can see the serial number and the full brand name. On the right side you can find the marked crown and the two chronograph buttons. The buttons have a special sound when I push them, I can literally feel when the chronograph mechanism starts.

The lug to lug size is 47mm, it has a 20mm lug width and the watch is 12.3mm thick. For my wrist these dimensions are quite good, perfectly fits under jacket sleeves.

The 20mm lug width makes it easier to find any kind of leather straps you like. This particular watch has a black non-factory leather strap with a marked factory IWC folding clasp. The clasp is good quality. I also like folding clasps and butterfly clasps, because with them the leather strap has a longer lifespan.

Now comes the best part: the dial. The watch world has an obsession about “panda” and “reverse panda” dials. This one is the “reverse panda”. It has a black dial and the subdials are silver. This black and silver color combination gives me a little vintage feeling. It’s a pilot style watch so the arabic numerals are bigger than usual, they are easy to read.

At 3 you can find the IWC Schaffhausen logo and at 9 a “Chronograph Automatic” sign. The subdial at 12 is a 30 minute counter, the other subdial at 6 is the second counter. The hands of the subdials are shiny dark blue colored. It is easier to see them on the white colored subdials, I really like this kind of blue. The leaf styled hour and minute hands are polished, they are in a perfect balance with the whole dial. They are not too thick, not too aggressive, I’d say they are more restrained. I also could say everything is perfectly balanced and everything is symmetric. One more important thing. It has no lumes on the hands. That’s why it’s more of a dress watch and less of a pilot.

The Portugieser has a sapphire crystal which for me is pretty important. It also has a 30m water resistance, which is okay for these types of chronograph watches. I would say 50 meters would be a little bit better, but I still wouldn’t wear it in the shower.

Inside of the watch works a modified ETA/Valjoux 7750 automatic movement. IWC calls it caliber 79350. It has around 44 hours power reserve and 28,800 (4 Hz) vibrations per hour. 

The Portuguieser IW3714-04 was originally released between 1998-2012. Therefore you can only buy the watch second hand. The prices are between 4000-6000€.

All in all this watch is a mesmerising and classic piece. It’s not for everybody I could say. This is a watch for a certain class, and not just because of the price.

I would like to thank the owner who lent me this beautiful watch!

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