This may be the first time that I have discussed Italian Ennebi watches on aBlogtoRead.com but they are definitely worthy of your attention. Along the Panerai and Anonimo vein, Ennebi watches are Italian divers with a retro spirit and an even more intense retro vibe to them. As part of a new vintage collection these two pieces are the Ennebi Fondale Vintage Base and California watches.
Each of the models is limited to just 33 pieces – so not many will be available. The watches are in rather large 50mm wide steel cases but the lugs are stubby so they will look OK on most wrists. The cases are water-resistant to 1000 meters and have a domed sapphire crystal. I appreciate the crown guard as well as the design of the crown that makes it large and easy to grip for winding/adjustment but also low profile.
A lot of the vintage spirit comes across in the watch dial. Black with lume hand-painted into inset areas, there is a sort of hand-made look to it that appeals to many vintage watch lovers. The large amount of lume makes it easy to read and I enjoy the petite (but present) subsidiary seconds dial.
The two models have different dials and my favorite is the Fondale Vintage California (ref. 9693). It has (not surprisingly) a California style dial with Roman numerals on top and Arabic numerals below. The design of the subsidiary seconds dial is also unique to this piece. On the bezel, Ennebi places a very cool solid gold skull at the 12 o’clock position. Bad-ass.
For the Fondale Vintage Base model (ref. 9691), you have a more standard looking dial with Arabic numerals and baton markers. On this model, the solid gold marker at 12 o’clock is actually a small diving helmet. Inside each of the watches is a Swiss ETA Unitas 6497 manually wound movement with about 44 hours of power reserve. I prefer an automatic but I do understand that not everyone does.
Ennebi will offer two hand-made Italian leather straps with each watch. One strap will be black while the other will be tan. Once again, both of these watches will be limited to 33 pieces and will have a price of $3,300. You can get them at Gnomon watches here for the Fondale Vintage Base and here for the Fondale Vintage California.