Halda, the Swedish watchmaking brand located in the vicinity of Stockholm, has presented a new mechanical model from its Race Pilot series. The watch is available in three different dial colors, each of them featuring modern design and guilloche decorations. Inside its sturdy titanium mid-sized cases with DLC coating there is a reliable Zenith’s automatic movement with an automatic winding. Not too complicated, the racing-themed newcomer complements its basic timekeeping function with only small seconds, date and power reserve indications. However, there is a twist to the story, since there is also an option to remove the case with the mechanical caliber and replace it with a case featuring an electronic module that allows multitude of measurements and information that are very useful for race car drivers. For example, it has data about 150 world’s most popular racetracks and it allows computation of the average speed. The watch can be bought solely with a mechanical beating heart, or as a set that includes both types of movements. This is the decision that determines whether the price will be around $13,000 or $19,000.
Halda Race Pilot Mechanical Watch
Durable Titanium Housing
As its name suggests, the new watch by Halda is dedicated to and inspired by racing. This can be seen in various elements of its dynamical design. It is the idea behind the creation of its light and resistant round housing constructed from titanium that has a black diamond-like carbon finish. The housing itself is fairly complex and it consists of 29 components. One of its distinguishing features is a specific shape of the fixed bezel which is also made from titanium and which is safely secured to the case with eight screws. As for the dimensions of the housing with the waterproofness to 50 meters, its diameter measures to the mid-sized 45 mm. On the other hand, its profile is a bit chunkier and measures to 16.9 mm. The crown of Halda Race Pilot Mechanical watch is constructed from steel which possesses a red anodized central section made from aluminum. On the front side, there is a domed sapphire glass with a glare-proof treatment on single side. Sapphire is present once again on its transparent rear side, this time constructed in order to create a magnifying effect in order to enable a better insight to the watch’s mechanical movement.
Halda Race Pilot Mechanical Watch Front
Self-Winding Caliber 685 by Zenith
As for the movement in question, it is Zenith Caliber 685 with 38 jewels. Its balance oscillates at the frequency of 28,800. It is likewise important to note that the mechanical movement includes self-winding system and a power reserve that lasts for 50 hours. When the decorations are concerned, the movement’s rotor which is made from heavy metal and visible through the back is graced with Geneva stripes and Clous de Paris decorations. Other present finishes are perlage and snailing.
Halda Race Pilot Mechanical Watch Back
Three Available Multilayered Dark Dials
When the appearance of the dial is concerned, it especially shows that the Helda’s newcomer has a racing spirit as its basis. It is multi-leveled and made with visual elements that look like the ones that can be seen on a dash-board of a car. This is especially the case with its power reserve indicator which occupies the space from twelve to three o’clock, as well as to some extent with its small seconds counter which sits at the nine o’clock position. Furthermore, the face of Helda Race Pilot Mechanical includes a date aperture at the bottom, skeletonized hands with luminous tips, six Arabic numerals and six more luminous hour markers. For the more refined looks, the manufacturer opted to decorate the dial with engine-turned motifs, namely Cotes de Geneva and Clous de Paris motifs. As it has been mentioned, there are three dark options for the color of the dial. These are Silver Geneva, Gun Metal and Black Luminova. The attachment coupled with Halda Race Pilot Mechanical timepiece is a black band made from natural rubber. The wristlet locks with a steel buckle.
Halda Race Pilot Mechanical Watch Profile
A Reserve Optional Case
The interchangeable case with an electronic module certainly lacks the charm of the mechanical one, but on the other hand it comes with a host of handy features. When speaking about the construction of the case, it should be said that it is also made from black-coated titanium. However, in this instance, the case-back is made of steel, while the glass is from pre-heated and selected quartz. The crystal of the Halda’s race module includes an LCD display with LED backlight. Naturally, the interchangeable case has the same width of 45 mm as the first one that encases the mechanical movement, but this one is slightly thicker with the profile of 17.6 mm. Moreover, it has pushers made from the same kind of material as the first one’s crown and it retains water resistance to 50 meters. Inside the reserve housing there is electronic Caliber HR 2012-1 which features a low energy consumption processor that allows power saving mode and an end-of-life indication. As the manufacturer claims, its battery will last for at least two years.
Halda Race Pilot Interchangeable
Useful Racing Features
The electronic module utilizes a special software named RP-A which the manufacturer developed in the collaboration with race car pilots in order to provide the optimal features which are in this case quite extensive. For starters, the watch includes information about no less than 150 best-known race circuits and it also enables its wearer to calculate his average speed on the track. Moreover, there are likewise a FIA Formula 1 Countdown function (made with an alert system that measures the time left until Formation Lap, designed in accordance with FIA’s standards), a race chronograph with the accuracy within 1/100th of a second and a G-force indication which measures the forces that influence the watch and its wearer from all three axis. The additional present functions that Helda included in the module are a countdown timer, an alarm with amplified sound (enabled by the construction of the case), a world timer feature with the information for as much as 193 countries, a dual time and finally, a perpetual calendar feature (with indication for day, date, week, month and year).
