Why This Watch Matters

Viable in any vintage collection, IWC's Pellaton (not Peloton – that's what you ride in your living room) powered three-handers are stunningly simple.

The Full Story

You may be sensing a theme here lately with all the 1960s IWC watches in our vintage drops. We're really pleased to offer a few examples of what we feel are still a bit under-the-radar relative to a lot of the vintage-watch world. Continually impressive in the metal, these simple, self-winding IWC dress watches offer a ton of design chops and are often found in larger water-resistant cases. The ref. 847A we have here is certainly no outlier.

Devoid of any information you don't need, IWC kept the text to a minimum on this watch, with only the company's vintage script logo and a subtle "AUTOMATIC" indication above the six o'clock position and a "SWISS" wordmark underneath it at the very bottom of the dial. The applied hour baton markers and dauphine hands have black accents that add stark contrast against the monochrome design. The date window is set slightly closer to the center of the dial, compared to its usual placement further to the right, which is a slightly interesting attribute. This example benefits from a lack of lume. Without luminous material in the hands or dial, a bump on your desk or door frame will lead to catastrophe far less often.

Under the hood is the self-winding caliber 8541 (the "1" at the end indicates this variant includes a date function), which is based on the brand's proprietary Pellaton automatic winding system that was developed by Albert Pellaton in 1950. This new self-winding architecture was considered revolutionary for its time, as it allowed energy to be transferred from the bi-directional rotor to the mainspring, a considerably more efficient solution compared to other self-winding movements of the era. Another practical feature of this caliber is that the date can be advanced by moving the hands either forward or backward, instead of having to make a full rotation. Nearly 70 years since its creation, variations of the Pellaton self-winding system are still in use today in some modern IWC creations.

We paired this simple IWC watch with our Bedford suede watch strap in a slate grey, the look is perfect for any season and any occasion.

The Fine Print

What We Love And What You Should Know

Things We Love:

- Larger case size
- Beautiful light champagne patina on dial
- "Non-lume" dial and hands

Things To Know:

This watch is in overall great condition. The case is strong with sharp lines on the bezel and lugs. There are some light scratches and indentations on the case, notably on the caseback, something most likely caused from the case being opened. There are a few scratches on the top of the lugs. The crown is unsigned.

The silver dial has developed very light patina throughout and presents as champagne in some lights. The hour markers and hands have developed some patina and match nicely. 

The crystal has some scratches. The date wheel has developed some patina. The dial, case, and movement are signed by IWC. This watch was photographed on a 175mm/6.9inch wrist.