Panerai Radiomir 1/8 Second PAM 246: Lightning (Second) Strikes Twice (VIDEO)

Officine Panerai is a watchmaker with a rich history of nautical exploits beneath the waves. The Panerai Radiomir 1/8 Second PAM 246 keeps all the bases covered as a sportsman’s chronograph with an open-ocean regatta bent.

As one of only 300 made for the 2006 Panerai Special Series, the Panerai Radiomir PAM 246 is a rarity as well as an exotic.

And exotic it is. The Panerai Radiomir PAM 246 combines two high horology complications rarely seen in isolation, much less together. With a foudroyante (“lightning second”) hand at nine o’clock and center-mounted rattrapante (also known as a “split second”) chronograph, the PAM 246 can time two separate competitors in a sporting event.

A sailing regatta is a perfect example of such a contest; as two vessels round the cones in a match, the two seconds hands rattrapante can be started, stopped, and re-synchronized without stopping the timing sequence itself. The ability to record time gaps between opponents in action while continuing to track total elapsed time is the core advantage of a rattrapante.

All practical applications aside, the rattrapante and foudroyante combine for unrivaled visual fireworks. Even if your onlookers have no grasp of horology or sports timing, the spectacle created by the foudroyante, which jumps eight times per second, and the rattrapante, which features a dynamic tag team of independent chronograph hands, is guaranteed to keep your companions entertained and inquisitive.

Panerai sets the stage for its unique complications by lavishing the PAM 246 with a vintage-inspired sports aesthetic. A high-polish Panerai Radiomir case sets the stage, and a dished tachymeter chapter ring draws the eye inward to the dial. The Panerai Radiomir PAM 246 offers a playful array of colors that evoke the tropical seascapes, exotic locales, and romantic imagery of sailing.

Key lime “sausage” luminova indexes and numerals animate the hour track; brilliant Riviera blue chronograph foudroyante and seconds hands trace the progress of time; the brilliance of a silver flying-second subdial jumps forth from the gloss black background of the dial face.

Among luxury watches, few will compel as many questions, compliments, and spontaneous smiles as the Panerai Radiomir PAM 246.

See this dynamic Panerai Radiomir 1/8 Second PAM 246 in high-resolution images on www.watchuwant.com