IWC Pilot's Chronograph Top Gun 'Lake Tahoe'

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REF IW389105
Automatic
44.5 MM
– Show less
SKU AS08019
Article Number 40970063
ref IW389105
case size 44.5 MM
movement Automatic Winding
approximate age 2020s
dial color Black
material Ceramic
style Aviator
category Pre-Owned Contemporary
bracelet Rubber
lug width 20 MM
Includes Signed textured white rubber strap with signed stainless steel deployant clasp. Also includes outer box, signed black leather watch tube, books, hangtag, and warranty card dated 9/9/2022.
overall condition The case is in outstanding condition overall showing virtually no wear. Luminous matte black dial with recessed subsidiary registers and printed 'Arabic' indices is in as-new condition with matching ‘sword’ handset. Signed crown.
REF IW389105
Automatic
44.5 MM
– Show less
SKU AS08019
Article Number 40970063
ref IW389105
case size 44.5 MM
movement Automatic Winding
approximate age 2020s
dial color Black
material Ceramic
style Aviator
category Pre-Owned Contemporary
bracelet Rubber
lug width 20 MM
Includes Signed textured white rubber strap with signed stainless steel deployant clasp. Also includes outer box, signed black leather watch tube, books, hangtag, and warranty card dated 9/9/2022.
overall condition The case is in outstanding condition overall showing virtually no wear. Luminous matte black dial with recessed subsidiary registers and printed 'Arabic' indices is in as-new condition with matching ‘sword’ handset. Signed crown.

Why We Love it

There is perhaps no more versatile complication than the chronograph. 

From race cars to rocket ships, boats to battlefields, you are likely to find a chronograph being employed to measure a plethora of tasks and times. From the Greek khrónos (“time”) and gráphō (“to write”), a chronograph is a watch that has the ability to record time, generally via the addition of small sub-counters that register minutes and hours.

And what better use for a chronograph than within the confines of a pilot’s watch? IWC makes some of the finest pilot’s watches in the world, with a history stretching back to the early decades of the 20th century. Indeed, its contemporary takes on classic military aviator’s timepieces are so embedded in the horological zeitgeist, that chances are when someone says ‘pilot’s watch,’ it’s an IWC that comes to mind.

Since its introduction, ceramic cases have been used extensively by IWC and other manufactures, starting with the Reference 3705 in the 1990s. Recently, it has expanded within the lineup with new and clever iterations being released every so often — most of which fall within the Top Gun line.

This particular piece, a Reference IW389105, is dubbed the "Lake Tahoe" for its crisp white looks reminiscent of the wintery landscape found around the Lake Tahoe and the uniforms of the U.S. Navy.

This 44.5mm Pilot’s Chronograph features a white ceramic case with a matching white textured rubber strap with a signed steel deployant clasp. Inside it has a luminous matte black dial with printed 'Arabic' indices and a triple-register chronograph layout with a day/date at 3:00, a matching handset, and a signed steel crown with matching steel pump pushers.

While an all-white watch, particularly a large pilot's chronograph, is not going to be for everyone, this piece with its virtually untouchable brand provenance in aviation and its continued use of ceramics is sure be remembered and sought after.

Limited, striking, and as functional as ever, the Lake Tahoe is truly something to behold and we're more into it than we thought we'd be.

Brand Story

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When an American watchmaker named Florentine Ariosto Jones arrived in Schaffhausen, Switzerland in 1868, he found a city almost frozen in time. Though the Industrial Revolution had swept through America, in Switzerland the situation was very different. Watchmakers still plied their trades by their own firesides, as they had done for centuries. But Jones had in mind something different — an American-style factory where the watches would be designed and assembled in keeping with the old Swiss ways. His methods caught on, and soon there were 196 people employed at his factory.
Though the International Watch Company was founded 35 years before Wilbur and Orville Wright’s first flight, the association between IWC and aviation began just as the age of flight dawned: A pocket watch made by the company in the 1890s found its way into the pocket of one Robert Albert Lotter, a pilot in the German Luftwaffe who served with distinction during the First World War.
Two decades later, in 1936, IWC released a watch that set the standard for pilot’s watch design, the Spezialuhr für Flieger, or Special Pilot's Watch. Another would follow in 1940, the Beobachtungs-ühren (“observation watch”), which spawned an entire model line in IWC’s current collection called the Big Pilot. However, despite the Big Pilot’s current popularity, it was the Special Pilot’s Watch that would lay the cornerstone for IWC’s most iconic line: the Mark series of pilot’s watches.
IWC released the Mark XI in 1948 according to specifications set forth by the British Ministry of Defense. These watches had to be legible, compact, and able to withstand exposure to the magnetic fields emitted by instruments in an airplane’s cockpit. The Mark XI, therefore, had a black dial with large luminous Arabic numbers, while its incredibly robust Calibre 89 movement was encased in an iron cage. (Later, in the 1950s and 1960s, IWC would produce myriad dress watches in steel and gold based upon the Calibre 89 movement, which remain relatively plentiful on the vintage market.)
The Mark XI served as the basis for design inspiration for a robust line of pilot’s watches still being produced today – easily identifiable by their clean, uncluttered dials, robust cases, and outstanding quality.

A:S Guarantee

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Our Pledge

Analog:Shift stands behind the authenticity of our products in perpetuity.

Condition

Since our pieces are vintage or pre-owned, please expect wear & patina from usage and age. Please read each item description and examine all product images.

Warranty

We back each Analog:Shift vintage timepiece with a one-year mechanical warranty from the date of purchase.

International Buyers

Please contact us prior to purchase for additional details on shipping and payment options.

Shipping & Returns

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All of our watches include complementary insured shipping within the 50 states.

Most of our products are on hand and will ship directly from our headquarters in New York City. In some cases, watches will be shipped directly from one of our authorized partners.

We generally ship our products via FedEx, fully insured, within 5 business days of purchase. An adult signature is required for receipt of all packages for insurance purposes. Expedited shipping is available at an additional cost. We are also happy to hand deliver your purchase in Manhattan or you may pick it up at our showroom.

Returns must be sent overnight or by priority international delivery, fully insured and paid for by the customer. A restocking fee may apply. Watches must be returned in the same condition as initially shipped.

We welcome international buyers, please contact us prior to purchase for additional details on shipping and payment options.

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IWC Pilot's Chronograph Top Gun 'Lake Tahoe'

IWC Pilot's Chronograph Top Gun 'Lake Tahoe'

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IWC Pilot's Chronograph Top Gun 'Lake Tahoe'

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