Cvstos spells things out. Definitely Cvstos and not Custos, and Regata, not regatta, because Regata is the original Medieval Latin word for a boat race. The Sealiner Chrono Regata, presented in 2016, was designed specifically for timing the complex series of manoeuvres leading up to the start of a regatta. Everything about this watch is in a nautical spirit, with a screw-down crown in the shape of a winch, chronograph pushers recalling cleats, and, at the base of the dial, teak deck planking. See more regatta countdown chronograph watches here.
Dial layout
The dial has the same sort of visual complication of a yacht, with all its pulleys, wheels and winches. At the centre, hour and minute hands, and chronograph seconds. At three o’clock, the power reserve indicator with a scale from 48 hours to zero, and a date window that frames the number on a laser-cut disc. At six o’clock, chronograph hours, with a pointer on a structure that has the classic pulley motif at the centre, and a sort of helm design around it. At 12 o’clock, the chronograph minutes counter has, at its centre, a disc with a series of 5 cut-out holes, above a background divided into 6 colour-coded sectors. These are used for the countdown.
Pre-regatta countdown
The chronograph is entirely conventional in its function. At the signal marking five minutes before the start, you start the chronograph, and the chronograph minute pointer starts to rotate, along with the disc with the five perforations. This enables you to see the progress of the minutes: after each minute, another of the five windows turns blue. If you wait another five minutes, the windows all become red, and so on. The sectors of the disc under the “Start Regata” disc give an idea as to how this display functions. The last five seconds before the start are shown by the red sector at the top of the dial.
The tonneau case shape is a Cvstos hallmark and its elegance is offset, in terms of functionality, by the impossibility of taking accurate readings, because the tip of the chronograph seconds hand is miles away from the scale on the inner bezel flange, except at the 15 and 45-minute positions, where the scale is interrupted. It’s a beautiful game, a theatrical chronograph like Richard Mille’s piece described in this post.
Large, complex case
The “Challenge” case is 53.7 mm from top to bottom, and 41 mm wide, with two portholes on the case side at 9 o’clock. These provide a view of the movement suspended below the teak-faced mainplate in titanium. The case has a water-resistance rating of 100 metres, so it would be safe to take it on board a yacht. The caseback has a sapphire crystal window that displays the oscillating weight in the shape of a helm. The rotor has its eccentric weight in tungsten, and supporting arms in titanium, an arrangement that reduces unwanted vibration. The movement is the Cvstos 577 automatic chronograph calibre, running at 28,800 vibrations per hour (4 Hertz), with a power reserve of 42 hours. This is probably based on the ETA 7750, but with a lot of modification, including the addition of the power reserve indicator and the Cvstos rotor.
Case and strap variants
The watch is made in several versions, with case in 5N gold (“5N” refers to the colour, rose gold: yellow gold is 2N or 3N, pink gold is 4N, red gold is 6N), blue PVD-coated steel, or bright steel. The rubber strap can be blue, white or red, with a folding clasp that repeats the teak deck design. You can also choose alligator leather straps lined with Alcantara.
Price
The Cvstos SeaLiner Chrono Regata starts from 24,000 Swiss francs. Further information from the Cvstos website.
