Panerai Radiomir 1940 3 Days Oro Rosso PAM00515: Red Gold Radiomir on ‘Roids

• Panerai Radiomir “1940” means a bigger, bolder old-school Panerai.

• Fortified by the 47mm “1940” case, this Radiomir goes toe-to-toe with Offshores and Big Bangs.

• The Panerai Radiomir 1940 3 Days Oro Rosso PAM00515 adds Panerai‘s unique 18k Red Gold.

• This example is one of only 500 produced; exclusivity comes standard.

In 2012, Officine Panerai launched the “1940,” a case style best described as the Swiss-Italian watchmaker’s evolutionary missing link.

Developed between the first Panerai combat dive watches of the 1930s and the famed 6152 (“Luminor”) case of the 1950s, the “1940” template hauled Panerai’s lug and case design out of the pocket watch era and into the age of NATO.

Bigger, more highly contoured, and more robust than the latter-day Radiomir form inherited from the 1997 PAM00021, the steroidal 1940 case does for the Radiomir what the “1950” did for the Luminor in 2002. The Panerai Radiomir 1940 3 Days Oro Rosso PAM00515 is a standout within the new school of Radiomir style.

With any Panerai, size is a given, and visual punch comes standard, but the PAM00515 is a relentless attention magnet.

While tastefully balanced like a single-malt scotch, the PAM00515 hits just as hard. The 1940 case finally allows the Radiomir to hold its own in the style stakes with the legendary Luminor.

Now equipped with  integrated lugs and a sinuously contoured 47mm case, the Radiomir 1940 has the wrist stance to rival its celebrated sibling. Moreover, the once-delicate (even dainty) Radiomir has hit the gym with a vengeance, and its broad shoulders look ready to pile-drive the Offshores and Big Bangs of the world.

Size and shape notwithstanding, it’s the Panerai red gold that stuns. This gold screams “ROSSO.” While words like pink, rose, and red gold are bandied indescriminately in the luxury watch sector, the terms are anything but interchangeable. Truly red gold of the variety employed on the PAM00515 Oro Rosso looks the part and is arresting in the flesh.

Panerai achieves this visual kick by employing an 18-karat red gold alloy that includes an abnormally large copper component.

The result is an intoxicating hue that seems to split the difference between yellow gold and red wine. Photos do no justice to this Panerai gold blend, and any Paneristi within driving distance of watchuwant.com’s Hollywood, Florida headquarters owe themselves a road trip to experience the PAM00515 in the metal.

And this metal won’t disappoint.

While the sheer radiance of the red element is the Panerai alloy’s standout quality, unseen but vital is the addition of platinum into the blend. Meter-deep red gold finishes aren’t unheard of in the luxury watch sector, but there’s a price to be paid; most truly red golds will oxidize and fade as the copper element degrades.

With its proprietary red gold alloy, Panerai has come closer than any other watchmaker to duplicating Rolex’s signature “Everose” fade-free pink alloy. But remember; even Everose rates only “pink” on the gold pigmentation spectrum. Panerai’s “5NPt” red gold formula is entirely unique.

Case aside, the Radiomir 1940 Oro Rosso is a true rarity with manifold charisma. Only 500 examples of this exceptional Panerai have been produced, and the exceptional content continues where the bezel ends. The Radiomir’s 1940’s “inner space” is remarkable.

A tobacco dial with “sandwich” construction is the main event.

Panerai developed the two-piece “sandwich” in the years immediately preceding World War II to improve the low-light visibility of its dial. The structure consists of a fully-lumed base topped with a cutout “stencil” of the indexes and numerals; the effect is gorgeous depth in daylight and yields explosive radiance when night falls.

On the 1940 Oro Rosso, Panerai employs a rich and consonant palette of colors. The PAM00515 sandwich dial is rendered in a delicate tobacco brown that offers a superb compliment to the 18k red gold hands and “dirty dial” simulated-patina lume.

While Panerai generally employs tan-tinted luminova to recreate the aged aesthetic of vintage Panerai dive watch dials, the material is employed herein complete the trifecta of red gold, tobacco dial, and aged indexes.

Since debuting its first exclusive movements in 2005, Panerai has made great strides in extending these manifattura mechanisms to the company’s bedrock sports watches.

No longer the sole domain of complicated (certain Paneristi may say “impure”) models, “in-house” movements like the P.3000 in the Radiomir 1940 Oro Rosso imbue the three-hand Panerai references with a pedigree once unknown in the Florentine brand’s catalog.

Every Panerai caliber P.3000 is produced in the firm’s dedicated movement facility in Neuchâtel, Switzerland. Fine finish abounds.

Each plate features a straight-grained finish known as dressage that removes the birth scars from the components’ creation and imparts a premium aesthetic. All plates and levers features polished anglage to remove sheer breaks at the edge of flat expanses, the base plate is adorned with tight overlapping perlage pattern, and all screw heads are polished for maximum visual impact.

Real hand-wrought value has been added to every visible surface, and the circular-grained train wheels peaking from beneath the plates suggest extensive work has been invested even in those portions obscured from view.

That’s the mark of a true luxury maison, and its a testament to how far Panerai has come as an elite manufacture.

A brown alligator strap with contrasting off-white stitching completes Panerai‘s picture of elegance. Alligator straps are an uncommon accessory on Panerai watches; rubber for rough play and calf leather for historic homage represent the balance of the Officine‘s production.

But the deep saddle brown of this ‘gator is a perfect match for the tobacco dial, and the light tint of the stitching plays beautifully against the matching tone of the dial lume.

watchuwant.com is proud to offer this Panerai Radiomir 1940 3 Days Oro Rosso PAM00515 with a complete factory set. All manufacturer boxes, papers, accessories, and sales documentation are included with this pre-owned watch.

Indistinguishable from new and purchased in June of 2014, this PAM00515 retains the balance of Panerai‘s factory warranty.

Like new, beautiful, and beautifully built, this PAM00515 is a Radiomir that makes no apologies. No longer the nostalgia leader and perennial undercard of the Panerai catalog, the “1940” case elevates the original Panerai combat diver to equal billing with the storied Luminor.

And this one is 18-karat red gold – very, very red gold.