A Swiss army chronograph watch works in a similar way to an ordinary stopwatch. The chronograph was first launched as a wristwatch roughly a century ago. The chronograph was invented by a French national by the name of Rieussec in 1821.

The word chronograph comes from the Greek words “chronos” which means “time”, and “graph” which means “writing”. Therefore Swiss army chronograph watches should be more accurately called a chronoscope these days, as there is no real writing involved anymore.

Swiss Chronograph Wrist Watches

In 1990, the well-known watch makers “Swatch” aided in creating a public craze for Swiss chronograph watches. Before this time, although chronograph watches had been around for 90 years, they had not been implemented into wrist watches. The Swiss army chronograph was an instant success and became extremely popular

Swiss Army Chronograph Mechanics

In addition to timekeeping on the main dial, Swiss army chronographs also have ancillary dials which have a range of scales on them. This means they can be used for very specific time measurements. The number of dials on a chronograph watch varies depending on the design. There can be as many as four dials, each one designed for a slightly different function.

However, it is very frequent for one of the dials on the chronograph to be situated on the number nine of the main watch face, showing continuous seconds. A Swiss army chronograph watch is activated as a stopwatch when a button is pressed on the side. One of the small dials will start to record the seconds that pass.

Swiss Army Chronograph Watch

In the early 20th century, numerous Swiss chronograph watches were used by the army. This was because Swiss watches were well-known for their accurate timekeeping and durability.

Buying Swiss Chronograph Watches

Buying a Swiss army chronograph watch these days is more of a fashion statement than a need for accurate timekeeping to the second. The attractiveness of the Swiss army chronograph watch seems to be its exciting and sporting image. It is sought-after with the public because it is the watch of many celebrities from actors to footballers.

Related Articles: