Panerai Luminor Composite Marina Automatic 44mm (PAM 386)

The Panerai Composite is a special in-house synthetic ceramic created by the Officine Panerai watch brand. In 2011, the company takes out this special material and uses the Panerai Composite in its line of novelties that was introduced in the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie (SIHH) 2011 convention last January. The Panerai Composite is remarkable for its lightness and strength and has been widely used in the aeronautics industry as well as in the auto and motorcycle industry for the creation of high-performance and high-strength components. It is harder and lighter than the usual zirconia-based ceramics commonly used in the watch-making industry and even harder than common metals such as aluminum, steel or even titanium. It is also reportedly lighter than titanium, steel and zirconia. The Panerai Composite is also synthesizable to various colours, which along with its durability and lightness, makes it an extremely usable material in watch-making, an industry that requires excellence in both technological innovation and artistic creativity.

First introduced in 2010 with the Radiomir Composite® Marina Militare 8 Giorni, the Panerai Composite is a special synthetic ceramic produced through the watch brand’s special in-house aluminum ceramisation process. The Radiomir Composite has since become one of the watch brand’s most popular Panerai models of 2010. The watch brand follows up its success in 2011 by re-introducing the material with the Panerai Luminor Composite Marina 1950 3 Days Automatic 44mm.

Like the other watches in Panerai’s 2011 Novelties collection, the Luminor Composite Marina 1950 3 Days Automatic 40mm features an automatic mechanical movement using the latest Panerai P.9000 calibre created exclusively by Panerai. The movement is 13 3⁄4 lignes or approximately 31 millimeters in size and features a 3-day, 2-barrel power reserve. The watch uses a third-party Glucydur balance to increase accuracy as well as a third-party Incabloc anti-shock device to enhance durability. A total of 28 jewels and 197 components were used in the creation of this watch. The Luminor Composite Marina 1950 carries Panerai’s signature simplistic style with a simple hour display, minutes, small seconds and date display on the dial. The dial itself is a dark chocolate brown with Arabic numeral hour markers and indices made of a lighter brown super-luminova luminous material. A discreet submerged date display is at the 3 o’clock position, and a small seconds sub dial is at the right of the 9 o’clock hour marker.

The watch channels its vintage look with a regular-sized 44mm diameter case made of a dark brown Panerai Composite material with an integrated bezel and a protected crown also made of the same material. The dial is protected by a 2.6mm thick clear sapphire crystal made of corundum with anti- reflective coating. The same sapphire covers the case back to proudly display Panerai exclusive P.9000 calibre movement and surrounded by an external ring also made of Panerai Composite.

The Panerai Luminor Composite Marina comes with personalized two-tone light brown leather strap with white stitching completed by a large buckle also made of Panerai Composite. The Panerai Luminor Composite Marina 1950 3 Days Automatic 44mm model may be released in a limited edition.

Specification of Panerai Luminor Composite Marina Automatic 44mm  (PAM 386)

Price: N/A, Around €7000
Movement: Panerai P.9000 Calibre, automatic, 197 parts, 31 mm in diameter, 7.9 mm thick, 28 jewels, two mainspring barrels, 28,800 vph, in-house
Functions: Hour, minutes, small seconds, date
Power reserve: 72 hours (3 Days)
Case material: Ceramic
Bezel material: Ceramic
Case shape: Cushion
Case size: 44.0 mm
Case height: N/A
Dial: Black
Numerals: Arabic
Hands: Steel, black
Water resistance: 300 meters
Strap: Brown leather strap with large composite buckle
Crystal: Sapphire, AR-coated
Case back: Sapphire

Official website about Panerai Luminor Composite Marina Automatic 44mm (PAM 386)