PATEK PHILIPPE 5980/1A CHRONOGRAPH STEEL

The Nautilus is the seminal luxury sports watch, which Patek Philippe debuted in the 1970s to immediate success. To commemorate the 30th Anniversary of the Nautilus in 2006, Patek introduced this reference 5980 Nautilus chronograph. It’s a heck of a nice watch, and our watch is brand spanking new. Double sealed, in fact.

The Nautilus case is immediately recognizable from its rounded squarish shaped bezel. The bracelet is integral to the case. Dimensions are 41.5mm wide by 12.6mm thick. Being a sports watch, and with the name Nautilus, one could conclude that the case offers excellent water resistance… and it does, down to 120 meters. The case back features a sapphire crystal to view the automatic Patek Philippe movement. The front crystal is also sapphire. The chronograph pushers are semi integrated into the case side, next to the “shoulders” that protect the crown.

If you have never personally examined a Nautilus, you are missing one of the best finished watches ever, from any manufacturer. Featuring alternately brushed and polished steel surfaces, most case parts are also beveled to eliminate sharp edges. It’s unusual that a watch becomes famous for its case, but perfectly understandable when you examine, own and appreciate a Nautilus.

Movement is the automatic winding Patek Philippe Caliber CH 28-520 with 35 jewels and unique zirconia oxide ball bearings for the rotor to glide on. This chronograph caliber features column wheel construction, which is universally acknowledged to be the best engineered chronograph system ever devised (but expensive to build – hence its rarity).

Dial is grey blue color and features date display at 3 o’clock. The dial surface features horizontal channeling which looks great, along with applied luminous hour markers. The chronograph sub dial at 6 o’clock consolidates the minutes and hours totalizer by deploying two hands. This system of displaying elapsed time is ingenious because the wearer can discern the elapsed minutes and seconds at a glance, instead of looking at separate subdials like all other chronograph interfaces use.

The pictures below are file photos so you can get a good look at a 5980. The watch being offered for sale is shown in the last picture, and is sealed not only in its factory plastic pouch, but also the red shipping box is still sealed. The watch is brand new and is complete with box and papers.