Model # FC-396SB6B6
Brand/Model: Frederique
Constant Vintage Rally Chronograph Automatic (limited edition of 1888 pieces)
Movement: in-house Swiss
automatic
Material: stainless steel case,
leather strap
Complications: chronograph
timing in one-second increments up to 12 hours
Price: MSRP $3,395 USD, can
usually be found discounted
Plenty of photos follow the review.
Click on the pictures to enlarge.
The Frederique
Constant (‘FC’ for short) brand is a relative newcomer in the world of
Swiss-Made watches. The company was
formed in 1988 and is an independent, family-owned enterprise. The company’s first watches appeared in 1992
and have since become synonymous with high-quality at affordable prices, which
translates into value. The company has
its headquarters and watchmaking facilities in Geneve.
FC states all of
its watches are ‘individually assembled by hand…in a dust-free and
air-controlled environment with proprietary and custom-made tools and
machineries, with each watch passing an extensive quality control
process.’ This is quite impressive, especially
considering the price points of these timepieces.
Frederique
Constant’s slogan is ‘Live Your Passion’ and the company has become involved in
various forms of motorsports, largely with vintage rallies, hence the genesis
of the watch reviewed here.
Many of FC’s
watches have true in-house movements, which is also nice, considering the
prices at which their watches can be acquired.
I wanted to try an
FC watch and the Vintage Rally collection really appealed to me. This collection celebrates the fabled Peking
to Paris road rally that began way back in 1907. The Peking to Paris rally is still run today,
occurring every few years, covering over 7,500 miles and more than 30 days of
driving. It seems like the ultimate
adventure to me, but alas, the entry fee is at least $60,000 USD not including
your car, fuel, spares, etc. I guess I
will live vicariously through this watch.
The FC Vintage
Rally chronographs come in three styles, with each variation limited to just
1888 pieces, all of which are individually numbered.
The watch reviewed
here is a classic ‘panda’ chronograph, meaning it has black subdials against a
silver or white dial, a look that many watch collectors adore. This watch is extremely legible, although the
hands could stand out a bit more, but it looks smashing and has a bevy of great
features.
The FC Vintage
Rally chronograph starts with a fully polished all stainless steel case (316L
stainless) that measures 42.8mm without the signed crown, 45mm crown
inclusive. Even though these dimensions
sound rather large, this watch does not wear large nor appear oversized on the
wrist, a testament to its overall well-executed design.
Frederique Constant
tends to use this case in several models and even though it has cool
scrolled-down lugs on the side, the case itself is devoid of any complex
chamfers, angles or detailed brushed surfaces.
The bezel is also part of the case, which makes the case easier to
manufacture, hence saving money. This is
not a criticism, but rather one place where the company chooses to save a bit
of money to offer the value it does.
Lug spacing on the
Vintage Rally chrono is a rather odd 23 mm.
I measured it several ways and I came up with 22.5mm, but that’s close
enough. The inside of the strap is
stamped ‘23’, so that is the official size, but in any case, it’s a
non-standard size.
One very nice feature
that FC includes with this watch is double spring bars on each side of the
strap. The strap ends are curved and I
think they use double bars to assure the strap stays put, because curved bars
can be dicey at times. Overall, a great
touch, but it may make putting an aftermarket strap on the watch a bit
difficult to achieve a proper fit.
Case thickness is
14.9mm, with the caseback being a display type secured by six small
screws. The caseback shows off the
nicely finished movement with the exceptionally decorated ‘Peking to Paris’
rotor resplendent in its rose gold color with red and black inlaid
printing. Superb!
The crown is signed
with the FC logo and the chronograph pushers have ‘meat tenderizer’ ends,
meaning they have a cool cross-hatch pattern on them for better tactile
feel. Another small but fine touch. The crown is a bit small for effective hand
winding of the watch, although FC adds a notch on the case below the crown to
make it easier to get your fingernail under the crown to pull it out for
setting. Again, a small, but thoughtful,
detail.
The dial is a model
of simplicity and function, while retaining a great look. The dial is silver (which can look a bit
white in certain light) with hand-applied rectangular markers and hand-polished
pointer style hands. The markers and
hands are in-filled with white lume but lume quality is rather weak. As I noted previously, the hands are a bit
hard to see at times depending on where they are on the dial.
The chronograph
subdials are nice and large, without looking garish and feature clear white
printing on the markers and arabics, with white pointer style hands. The subdials are ever so slightly set into
the dial and feature black backgrounds with circular patterning.
The chronograph
seconds hand is a simple silver stick.
The subdial at 3 is the chronograph 30-minute totalizer, the subdial at
6 is the chronograph 12-hour totalizer and the subdial at 9 is the seconds hand
for the watch.
There is also a black chapter ring with one-fifth minute gradations encircling the dial. Minimal dial printing is a great touch, as many readers know I don’t like a lot of extraneous printing on a watch dial. The name ‘Frederique Constant’ appears below the 12 position, with ‘Geneve’ below the company name. And that’s it! Simplicity at its finest.
The dial is capped
with a convex (very slightly domed) sapphire crystal that is fit perfectly into
the case. Overall build quality and fit
and finish on this watch is excellent.
The FC Vintage
Rally chronograph is factory rated at 10 ATM of water resistance.
Inside the Vintage
Rally chronograph is FC’s caliber FC-396 in-house chronograph movement. Set in 30 jewels and beating at 28,800 vph,
this movement hacks and can be manually wound.
The movement is finished to a reasonable degree of finery, with polished
plates and perlage appearing in certain areas.
And of course, the decorated rotor is worth the price of admission on
its own.
While I have found
the accuracy of the movement to be nothing to write home about, I’m sure it
could be regulated down tighter. I have also
found other manufacturer’s in-house designs to be lacking somewhat in the
accuracy department, so this point is not a dint to FC.
During my
stewardship and wearing, the FC Vintage Chrono has run about +11seconds/24
hours, with a solid power reserve of 52-3/4 hours. All watch functions, from time setting and
winding to start/stop/reset of the chrono work flawlessly. Overall, I give this in-house movement a
thumbs up.
The FC Vintage
Rally chronograph comes on a black ‘crococalf’ strap (leather with croc
patterning) with gray contrast stitching.
The strap is moderately padded and has curved ends at the case with the
aforementioned double spring bars. The
strap measures 22.5/23mm at the lugs and tapers to 18mm at the clasp.
The clasp is a
polished machined deployant with a signed pushbutton release. The part of the clasp that carries the FC
logo is brushed with the logo in polished relief. The clasp is the type that allows the free
end of the strap to tuck under the other end of the strap, so the watch has a
clean look and feel while being worn.
Another nice detail
is that the clasp has two pins that push into the holes on the strap to secure
the strap tightly to the clasp. Many
makers use only one pin to secure their deployants to a leather strap, so
again, props to FC.
While the strap is
fairly nicely finished, I feel it could be of a higher quality and perhaps made
of genuine crocodile, especially for the price point. This is one more area where I feel FC
compromised a bit to keep costs down.
Presentation is
superb; a substantial outer box with a padded inner box with a plaque
commemorating the Peking to Paris rally.
The instructions and warranty information are placed in their own holder
in a cut-out in the outer box, underneath where the inner box sits. All told, it’s a fine way to present this
watch.
The Frederique
Constant Vintage Rally chronograph is an outstanding piece. It combines an in-house movement with a classic
design theme to create a watch that is unique in its own way and one that wears
beautifully and looks great on the wrist.
If you’re considering the Frederique Constant brand, the Vintage Rally
chronograph series is a great introduction to this fledgling Swiss marque.
Pros: in-house
chronograph movement, great ‘panda’ dial layout, highly functional yet simple
and elegant design, fantastic decorated rotor, many nifty small details
Cons: crown could be larger, strap could be
higher quality, tighter accuracy would be a plus, hands a bit hard to read at
times
Verdict: a
high-quality, unique and fairly rare watch that represents strong value with an
in-house movement and true Swiss manufacture and design. Frederique Constant has a winner here and this
watch should bear strong consideration if you want a well-designed and sporty
automatic chronograph
Thanks for reading
and enjoy the pics.
Excelsior!
-Marc
