I'll start with a few of mine ...
Zenith cal. 680 -
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This is a pre-Nataf model from the late 1990s. The Elite caliber family (initially, the cal. 670 - indirectly driven center seconds and the cal. 680 - directly driven small seconds at "9") was introduced in 1994 and went on to win a couple of awards that year. It is a very nice movement indeed, but often overshadowed by the illustrious El Primero. The Elite calibers were considered thin, but I believe they still are the thinnest movements in serial production with bi-directional winding and quickset date. The movement is 3.47mm thick and the watch case is about 7.4mm thick.
The old IWC Porto (IWC cal. 3254/JLC cal. 889) -
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The JLC cal. 889 was a "tractor" for a lot of subsequent JLC complications particularly in the '90s, and a very fine movement on its own (the thinness of which lent itself readily to dress watches not only for JLC but for other brands, for eg. VC and IWC). IWC made this fine example of a classic case about 7.5mm thick (the movement is just 3.25mm thick!).
A real blast from the past - the Universal Geneve Polerouter Date (I believe the UG cal. 69 introduced in 1962) -
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One of the better early examples of a micro-rotor movement, the UG cal. 69 is the culmination of the unique movement design which started with the cal. 215. The Polerouter is a classic Gerald Genta design, and a case can be made for its beauty exceeding the legendary "pie-pan" Connie (also, a Genta design). This watch case clocks in at just under 7.2mm thick.
And finally, what is considered a really nice modern movement as well, a GP Classic Elegance housing a cal. 3300 (ref. 9053) -
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The GP cal. 3300 is also a movement designed in the '90s, at about the same time as Zenith's Elite family and is just as good a movement (if not better). GP still uses it in their time-only dressy pieces which call for a thin movement. This movement is very thin indeed (3.28mm) and the movement finish is on par with JLC's 889/899 family. This is an elegant watch measuring 7.5mm in thickness.
And now, on to the manual wind watches ...
Vintage JLC ultra-thin with a cal. 839 -
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The thinnest watch in my collection, the case is under 5mm thick! The movement is not as thin as the earlier ultra thin calibers, but among the thinnest modern handwind calibers (in the cal. 849 guise), an astonishing 1.9mm, I believe. The watch is a thing of beauty and a timeless design.
And finally, a Zenith cal. 126 powered beauty!
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This movement was made in the 1950s and powered over a 100,000 Zeniths made in that decade. I think the movement is about 2.9mm thick and the watch case is about 6mm thick!
Zenith cal. 680 -
This is a pre-Nataf model from the late 1990s. The Elite caliber family (initially, the cal. 670 - indirectly driven center seconds and the cal. 680 - directly driven small seconds at "9") was introduced in 1994 and went on to win a couple of awards that year. It is a very nice movement indeed, but often overshadowed by the illustrious El Primero. The Elite calibers were considered thin, but I believe they still are the thinnest movements in serial production with bi-directional winding and quickset date. The movement is 3.47mm thick and the watch case is about 7.4mm thick.
The old IWC Porto (IWC cal. 3254/JLC cal. 889) -
The JLC cal. 889 was a "tractor" for a lot of subsequent JLC complications particularly in the '90s, and a very fine movement on its own (the thinness of which lent itself readily to dress watches not only for JLC but for other brands, for eg. VC and IWC). IWC made this fine example of a classic case about 7.5mm thick (the movement is just 3.25mm thick!).
A real blast from the past - the Universal Geneve Polerouter Date (I believe the UG cal. 69 introduced in 1962) -
One of the better early examples of a micro-rotor movement, the UG cal. 69 is the culmination of the unique movement design which started with the cal. 215. The Polerouter is a classic Gerald Genta design, and a case can be made for its beauty exceeding the legendary "pie-pan" Connie (also, a Genta design). This watch case clocks in at just under 7.2mm thick.
And finally, what is considered a really nice modern movement as well, a GP Classic Elegance housing a cal. 3300 (ref. 9053) -
The GP cal. 3300 is also a movement designed in the '90s, at about the same time as Zenith's Elite family and is just as good a movement (if not better). GP still uses it in their time-only dressy pieces which call for a thin movement. This movement is very thin indeed (3.28mm) and the movement finish is on par with JLC's 889/899 family. This is an elegant watch measuring 7.5mm in thickness.
And now, on to the manual wind watches ...
Vintage JLC ultra-thin with a cal. 839 -
The thinnest watch in my collection, the case is under 5mm thick! The movement is not as thin as the earlier ultra thin calibers, but among the thinnest modern handwind calibers (in the cal. 849 guise), an astonishing 1.9mm, I believe. The watch is a thing of beauty and a timeless design.
And finally, a Zenith cal. 126 powered beauty!
This movement was made in the 1950s and powered over a 100,000 Zeniths made in that decade. I think the movement is about 2.9mm thick and the watch case is about 6mm thick!
The movement is 2.1mm in height, while the watch is 5.1mm thick. This is according the website, of course. I haven't measured myself.
