Panerai wristwatch photo blog: PAM356 Luminor Chrono Daylight 44mm

Thursday, July 7, 2011

PAM356 Luminor Chrono Daylight 44mm

Although perhaps not a model that makes the hard core Panerai enthusiast's heart beat faster at first, the new Panerai PAM356 is a very nice looking and functional wristwatch. The 356 was introduced in Geneva in January this year and I think that this is one of the few models that's already available. It is a regular production watch. The Luminova has the same beige color as the Luminova that is used on for instance the PAM360, called "faux patina" by some (but hopefully not by you, because it sounds pretty stupid to me). Anyway, if you are looking for a watch that offers the functions, the quality and the image of a luxury watch, but without the pretense - this might be the one you've been looking for.

PAM356 Luminor Chrono Daylight 44mm

The watch has the ETA based Panerai OP XIX calibre which offers hours, minutes, seconds, a date and a chronograph. The case is 44mm brushed steel and the watch has a solid steel caseback. The PAM356 does have a quick date change function, but it is not operated in the usual way (i.e. pulling out the crown one click). There's a so called "date corrector" at the 10 o'clock position which you can see in the below photo. A special tool is supplied with the watch to operate this function ie to change the date.

The "date corrector" at the 10 o'clock position

The 356 sets forth on a tradition of Panerai watches with the text Daylight on the dial. It's a reference to Sylvester Stallone's movie Daylight. He spotted and bought a Luminor in Rome in 1995 to wear during the shooting of the movie and he then ordered a number of watches with his signature on the case back, as gifts to friends. Those watches are sought after collectibles and very valuable now.