Panerai Luminor 1950 Flyback Review – PAM212

It has been awhile since I have done a review. The PAM212 is my third Panerai, behind the PAM005 Base, and the newer PAM312. Originally, I purchased the PAM312 to be my everyday watch, only to find it not what I wanted out of a Panerai. I then picked up this PAM212 used, but got off to a bumpy start. The seller did not actually describe the dings and crystal AR damage very well. And it was just these niggly things that did not sit well, so it was sent to Panerai in Texas for a new crystal, which turned into several other “suggested” services. Long story short, I received it back with a new crystal, new gaskets throughout, and complete refinish. It is truly a stunner now.


I will try to offer as much useful information as possible and keep my personal opinion to a minimum, although I sure it will sneak in.


I will assume most know the history of Panerai so I will not try to cover an already heavily covered topic.


On to the review:


The Case:


The 44mm case is, as the name indicates an homage to the Panerai Cases of the 1950’s versus the square style cases of the current Luminor line. The 212 has beautifully flowing lines, and viewing it from the side, is reminiscent of looking at the profile of the hull of a boat.





On the wrist, the case is very, very comfortable. The shape of the caseback rounds outward slightly from the movement allowing thecase body and to a lesser degree the crown guard and chronograph pushers to sit up off the wrist and not dig into the wrist. There are so many angles at work with this case, from the downward sloping case edges, to the rounded case body. All the lines work to draw the eye onward over the case. The downward sloped case edges flow right into the case lugs. And although the case lugs appear to come to a point, they do not dig in the wrist at any point. The hull like shape of the case body also contrasts nicely against the lugs. Despite the case size, it does fit nicely under a shirt cuff.


The mix of the bushed finish of the case contrasts nicely with the high polish of the bezel, and caseback. This is also when Panerai switched from the square chronograph pushers to the round button style. This particular model was before the introduction of the quick-change strap system, and has the screw in lug bars. Personally, for this particular watch I wanted the screw in lug bars because it completed the heritage of the piece for me.






Without getting into too much of the Panerai history; Panerai had always used movements from a supplier. I appreciated the 1950 case design, it housed an upgraded ETA 7750, and I felt to complete this, for me the screw in lug bars were the final touch. I say this knowing it is only my personal opinion. However, in the later models, the quick-change strap system was introduced and is available.


The case is 44mm wide without crown guard and pushers, 53mm tall, and 17mm thick and offers 150 meters water resistance.


The Bezel:


The Bezel is a very nice high polish. Here I appreciated that the Tachymeter was not printed on the Bezel, but rather was placed safely inside as the chapter ring above the dial. I have found that the Bezel inevitably picks up the occasional ding, no matter how careful one is, and can quickly detract from the usefulness and readability of the Tachymeter scale, if printed on the Bezel.







The Dial and Hands:


The dial is a very attractive matte black, the numbers and indices contrast well with the green of the Luminova. In addition to the Tachymeter, mentioned above in the Bezel section, the minute track is also printed on the outer edge of the dial. The second’s sub dial and the 30-minute chronograph counter are also lumed. However, the lack of a date on the 212’s dial is what I appreciate the most. It leaves the dial uncluttered in my personal opinion. The dial appears slightly smaller than the dial of the PAM005.





The Crystal:


The crystal on the top is a very thick and very domed Sapphire with Anti Reflective coating. The shape of the crystal is also an homage to the 1950’s Panerai design. Just another, in a long list of details that pay tribute to original Panerai designs.


On the back to display the movement is also a sapphire crystal.


The Lume:


The sausage style dial provides plenty of glow. Although not as much as a PAM005 simply because of the amount of lume. The numbers and indices are thinner than on the base model dials. Again, it is a Panerai, so you will not be disappointed with the Lume.


The Movement:


Inside is a highly decorated, and modified ETA 7750 Chronograph that is COSC Certified. I know many have looked down on the ETA 7750being put into a “Luxury” watch, but the fact remains that the Valjoux and the ETA 7750 is, and remains a workhorse of a movement.






And although you can find 7750’s offered in many watches, very few are as finely finished, and modified as this. The off the self ETA 7750comes with 28 Jewels, the Panerai version comes in at 30 Jewels. They even Jeweled the Chronograph Minute Counter Wheel. The Balance Wheel and hairspring have been upgraded.


In addition to the finishing, this movement has had the Flyback function added. The Flyback function allows you to start the chronograph, and then at any point during the timed event to reset and restart the chronograph from 0 with one push of the reset button.


On the wrist, it runs at +2 seconds a day. The power reserve is well over the stated power reserve of 42 hours, and closer to 48.


The Chronograph Function:


The chronograph works very well and crisply. The depression of the start/stop pushers or reset pushers offers the right amount of resistance and produces a satisfying click. Reset of the chronograph is very smooth, as is the reset of the flyback function.


The Strap(s):


The straps, this may be one of the single best features of a Panerai, all the strap options available. Out of the box, the PAM 212 comes with a grayish leather carbon fiber style strap on a deployant clasp, and the second strap is the Panerai rubber strap. Personally, I think the PAM212 works very well on the new style Submersible Rubber strap on a Panerai Tang Buckle. Whichever strap you choose, you can’t go wrong.





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