Swiss chronographs: history, technology and models

What is a chronograph?

A chronograph is a watch with a built-in stopwatch. Next to the normal hours and minutes, it has a separate seconds hand that you start, stop and reset with pushers on the side of the case. Small sub-dials, called counters or registers, add up the elapsed minutes and often the hours. On most modern pieces the pusher at 2 o'clock starts and stops the timing, and the pusher at 4 o'clock sends the hands back to zero.

The word is often confused with "chronometer". A chronometer is a watch that has passed a precision test, for example at the Swiss COSC. A chronograph measures intervals. A watch can be both, either or neither. A chronograph also differs from a simple timer bezel, as found on dive watches: the bezel only marks a starting point, while a chronograph measures time with its own mechanism and can show fractions of a second.

Many pilot's, racing and sports watches are chronographs, and some dress watches hide one in a slim gold case.

History of the chronograph

The story starts in Paris. In 1816 the watchmaker Louis Moinet built a "compteur de tierces", an instrument he used with astronomical equipment. It could measure sixtieths of a second and ran at a very high frequency for its time. For almost two centuries, the invention was credited to Nicolas Rieussec. In 1821 Rieussec made a timer for King Louis XVIII to time horse races. It dropped ink onto a turning dial, which is where the name "chronograph", literally "time writer", comes from. Moinet's piece only came back to public attention in 2012 and 2013, when it was auctioned and identified as the earlier instrument.

These early timers could start and stop, but not easily reset. The decisive step came from Adolphe Nicole, a Swiss watchmaker working in London. In 1844 he patented a heart-shaped cam that sends the hand back to zero. In 1862 an improved patent made the system practical to fit into ordinary pocket watches. The heart cam is still used in almost every mechanical chronograph today. The column wheel, a small toothed wheel that coordinates start, stop and reset, also took shape in this period.

Through the late 19th century, chronographs were pocket watches used by doctors, engineers and sports timekeepers. The move to the wrist came in the 1910s. Longines and Omega were among the first to offer wrist chronographs, and Longines' calibre 13.33Z, a single-pusher movement, was used into the 1930s. In those early watches, one button did everything: start, stop, reset, in that order.

Breitling played a central role in giving the chronograph its modern shape. In 1915 Gaston Breitling launched a wrist chronograph with an independent pusher at 2 o'clock, separate from the crown. In 1933 and 1934 his son Willy Breitling patented a second pusher at 4 o'clock just for the reset. That meant you could stop and restart the timing without going back to zero, which is the layout nearly every chronograph still uses. Longines patented the flyback function in 1936 and produced it in series with calibre 13ZN. A flyback lets a pilot reset and restart the timing with one press.

The 1940s to 1960s were the golden age of the manual-wind chronograph. Specialist movement makers such as Valjoux, Lemania and Venus supplied many brands. Universal Genève made its Compax and Tri-Compax models, Patek Philippe built some of the most admired complicated chronographs, and Breitling launched the Navitimer with a slide-rule bezel for pilots in 1952. In 1957 Omega introduced the Speedmaster, reference CK2915, with the tachymeter scale on the bezel. NASA certified the Speedmaster for manned space missions in 1965, and in July 1969 Buzz Aldrin wore one on the Moon during Apollo 11. Motor racing gave chronographs another stage. Heuer released the Autavia wristwatch in 1962 and the Carrera in 1963. Rolex introduced the Cosmograph, soon called Daytona, in 1963 with a Valjoux-based movement.

Then came the race for the automatic chronograph. Fitting a stopwatch and an automatic winding system into one wristwatch was a hard technical problem. On 10 January 1969 Zenith announced the El Primero, an integrated automatic chronograph running at 36,000 vibrations per hour. On 3 March 1969 a group of Heuer, Breitling, Hamilton-Buren and the module specialist Dubois Dépraz presented their Chronomatic Calibre 11, with the crown on the left side. Heuer used it in the new square Monaco as well as in the Autavia and Carrera. In Japan, Seiko launched its own automatic chronograph the same year.

The victory was short. Cheap quartz watches arrived in the 1970s and hit the Swiss mechanical industry hard. The Valjoux 7750, a robust automatic chronograph designed by Edmond Capt with a cam system instead of a column wheel, appeared in the mid-1970s, and its production was stopped soon after. Capt kept the plans and tools. At Zenith, watchmaker Charles Vermot hid the El Primero tooling when the owners decided to stop mechanical production.

Both decisions paid off. Demand for mechanical watches returned in the 1980s. The 7750 went back into production and became one of the most widely used chronograph movements in the world. Rolex chose a modified El Primero for the automatic Daytona in 1988, and in 2000 replaced it with its own calibre 4130. Since then, many brands have developed in-house chronograph movements, from Breitling and TAG Heuer to Omega, Tudor, IWC and Patek Philippe.

• 1816 – Louis Moinet builds his compteur de tierces.
• 1821 – Nicolas Rieussec makes his ink-marking timer for horse races.
• 1844 – Adolphe Nicole patents the heart-cam reset.
• 1915 – Breitling separates the chronograph pusher from the crown.
• 1934 – Breitling's second pusher for the reset is patented.
• 1936 – Longines patents the flyback and launches calibre 13ZN.
• 1957 – Omega Speedmaster introduced.
• 1963 – Rolex Cosmograph Daytona and Heuer Carrera introduced.
• 1969 – Zenith El Primero and Chronomatic Calibre 11; the Speedmaster reaches the Moon.
• 2000 – Rolex introduces its in-house Daytona calibre 4130.

Features and technology

Inside, two designs dominate. A column wheel chronograph uses a small turret-shaped wheel to control the levers. It is more expensive to make, and many collectors like its soft, precise pusher feel. A cam (or shuttle) system, as in the Valjoux 7750, uses shaped plates instead. It is cheaper, robust and easy to service, but the pushers usually feel firmer.

The clutch connects the chronograph to the running movement. A horizontal clutch uses gears that mesh sideways, which can make the hand jump slightly at the start. A vertical clutch uses friction discs stacked on top of each other and starts more smoothly. Movements are also either integrated, with the chronograph built into the base calibre, or modular, with a chronograph module added on top of a simple movement.

Several complications build on the basic chronograph:

• Flyback (retour en vol): one press of the reset pusher while timing sends the hand to zero and restarts it immediately.
• Rattrapante (split-seconds): two stacked seconds hands. You can stop one to read an intermediate time while the other keeps running, then let it catch up. It is one of the most demanding complications to build.
• Monopusher: start, stop and reset on one button, often in the crown, as on the earliest wrist chronographs.

The scales on the dial or bezel turn the stopwatch into a calculator. A tachymeter shows speed over a known distance, usually one kilometer or mile. A telemeter shows distance from the delay between seeing and hearing an event, such as lightning. A pulsometer lets a doctor read the heart rate after counting a set number of beats. A slide-rule bezel, as on the Navitimer, adds flight calculations. Today most mechanical chronographs run at 28,800 vibrations per hour, which allows timing to one eighth of a second, while high-beat calibres like the El Primero measure tenths.

Famous Swiss chronograph models

• Patek Philippe 1518 (1941) – a perpetual calendar chronograph that set the template for complicated wrist chronographs.
• Universal Genève Tri-Compax – combined a chronograph with a full calendar and moon phase; a classic of the golden era.
• Breitling Navitimer (1952) – the pilot's chronograph with a circular slide rule.
• Omega Speedmaster (1957) – the first with the tachymeter on the bezel and the watch worn on the Moon in 1969.
• Heuer Autavia (1962) – a racing and aviation chronograph with a rotating bezel.
• Heuer Carrera (1963) – Jack Heuer's clean, readable racing chronograph.
• Rolex Cosmograph Daytona (1963) – one of the most sought-after chronographs on the pre-owned market.
• Zenith El Primero (1969) – the integrated high-beat automatic chronograph that still powers Zenith models.
• Heuer Monaco (1969) – the square case, the Calibre 11 and the crown on the left.
• Breguet Type XX – a flyback chronograph developed for military pilots.
• Chopard Mille Miglia (1988) – a racing chronograph linked to the Italian classic car rally.
• IWC Portugieser Chronograph – a clean, large chronograph with two sub-dials.
• Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore (1993) – the oversized sports chronograph that changed luxury watch proportions.
• Hublot Big Bang (2005) – a fusion of materials around a chronograph that revived the brand.

Chronographs on the pre-owned market

Chronographs are among the most collected watch types. Their value depends on a few clear points. The first is the reference and movement. Collectors pay attention to which calibre is inside: a Speedmaster with calibre 321, a manual-wind Daytona with Valjoux base, or an early El Primero are valued differently from later versions. Column-wheel and in-house calibres generally attract more interest than modular movements.

The second is originality. Original dials, hands, pushers and bezels matter a lot. A service replacement dial or a polished case with soft edges can reduce the value of a vintage piece. On the other hand, a correct service record with original parts kept is a plus. Box and papers help, especially for modern Rolex, Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet chronographs.

Sought-after pieces include vintage Heuer, Universal Genève and Breitling chronographs, early Speedmasters, and vintage Daytonas, especially those with the "exotic" dial nicknamed after Paul Newman. The most famous result is Paul Newman's own Rolex Cosmograph Daytona reference 6239, which sold at Phillips in New York in October 2017 for USD 17.8 million. That is an exceptional case with a celebrity provenance, not a guide to everyday values. Most modern chronographs with ETA or Sellita movements trade at much more modest prices.

What to check before buying or selling

A chronograph has more moving parts than a simple watch, so the checks go further:

• Start, stop, reset: run the chronograph several times. The seconds hand should start without a jump, stop exactly and return to zero cleanly.
• Counters: let it run beyond one minute and check that the minute counter advances correctly, and later the hour counter.
• Pushers: they should feel even and spring back. Sticky or loose pushers may point to wear or missing seals.
• Running with the chronograph on: an older watch whose amplitude drops sharply when the chronograph runs may need a service.
• Service history: a chronograph service costs more than for a simple watch. Ask for invoices and whether original parts were returned.
• Correct parts: compare the dial, hands, bezel and movement with the reference. Mixed parts are common in vintage chronographs.
• Water resistance: unless the maker says otherwise, do not press the pushers under water.

Popular chronographs are heavily copied. Before you pay or ship, read our guide on how to spot a fake watch and check the serial number and movement.

What is your chronograph worth?

If you own a chronograph and want to know what it might be worth, upload a few photos for a free watch value estimate. Note the reference, movement and service history if you have them. For estates, insurance or a written document, you can order a watch appraisal.

Swiss chronographs brands A–Z

42 Swiss brands with chronographs in their current or historic range. Click a brand for its full history and value guide.

• Alpina – Startimer Pilot Chronograph, Alpiner Chronograph
• Angelus – Chronodate
• Audemars Piguet – Royal Oak Chronograph, Royal Oak Offshore, Code 11.59 Chronograph
• Baume & Mercier – Clifton Chronograph, Capeland
• Blancpain – Air Command, Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph
• Breguet – Type XX, Type XXI
• Breitling – Navitimer, Chronomat, Premier, Top Time
• Carl F. Bucherer – Manero Flyback, Patravi ChronoGrade
• Certina – DS Chronograph, DS-2 Chronograph
• Chopard – Mille Miglia, Alpine Eagle Chrono
• Chronoswiss – Opus, Pacific Chronograph
• Eberhard & Co. – Chrono 4, Tazio Nuvolari
• Edox – Chronoffshore-1, Chronorally
• F.P. Journe – Centigraphe Souverain, Chronographe Monopoussoir Rattrapante
• Fortis – Official Cosmonauts Chronograph, Flieger Chronograph
• Frederique Constant – Flyback Chronograph Manufacture, Highlife Chronograph
• Gallet – MultiChron
• Girard-Perregaux – Laureato Chronograph
• Hamilton – Intra-Matic Auto Chrono, Chrono-Matic, Khaki Field Chrono
• Hublot – Big Bang, Big Bang Unico, Classic Fusion Chronograph
• IWC Schaffhausen – Portugieser Chronograph, Pilot's Watch Chronograph, Da Vinci Chronograph
• Jaeger-LeCoultre – Master Control Chronograph, Duomètre Chronographe
• Longines – Spirit Flyback, Avigation BigEye, Conquest Chronograph, Heritage Classic Chronograph
• Louis Moinet – Memoris
• Maurice Lacroix – Pontos Chronograph, Aikon Chronograph
• Mido – Multifort Chronograph, Ocean Star Chronograph
• Norqain – Adventure Sport Chrono
• Omega – Speedmaster, Speedmaster Moonwatch, Seamaster Diver 300M Chronograph
• Oris – Chronoris, Big Crown ProPilot Chronograph
• Patek Philippe – 5172 Chronograph, 5270 Perpetual Calendar Chronograph, Nautilus Chronograph, Aquanaut Chronograph
• Piaget – Polo Chronograph
• Rado – HyperChrome Chronograph
• Raymond Weil – Freelancer Chronograph
• Richard Mille – RM 011
• Rolex – Cosmograph Daytona
• TAG Heuer – Carrera, Monaco, Autavia, Formula 1
• Tissot – PRX Chronograph, PRS 516, Heritage 1973, Chrono XL
• Tudor – Black Bay Chrono, Heritage Chrono
• Ulysse Nardin – Marine Chronograph
• Universal Genève – Compax, Tri-Compax, Aero-Compax
• Vacheron Constantin – Overseas Chronograph, Cornes de Vache 1955, Harmony Chronograph
• Zenith – El Primero, Chronomaster Sport, Chronomaster Original, Defy El Primero 21

Other watch types

• Dive watches
• Pilot watches
• Dress watches
• Military watches
• Sports watches
• Jewelry watches
• Skeleton watches

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