Hanhart
- Founded
- 1882
- Based in
- Gütenbach, Germany
- In our catalog
- 3 watches from $1,900 to $2,950
Hanhart is one of the oldest chronograph specialists in Germany. Its watches are easy to spot: a fluted bezel, a red pusher and a vintage pilot's dial. Most of the current catalogue is based on watches it made for pilots between the 1930s and the 1950s.
History
Johann A. Hanhart opened a watch shop in Diessenhofen, Switzerland, in 1882 and moved the business to Schwenningen in Germany in 1902. In 1938 Hanhart produced its first one-pusher pilot chronograph and followed with a two-pusher version in 1939. These are the ancestors of today's Pioneer line.
After the war the company made the 417 chronograph for the new West German air force in the 1950s. Steve McQueen wore a Hanhart, which helped make the brand famous with collectors. Today Hanhart is based in Gütenbach in the Black Forest, with Swiss assembly, and it has added divers to its pilot-led range.
Signature models
- 417 ES 1954: The 39 mm reissue of the Bundeswehr chronograph, with a fluted bidirectional bezel and a hand-wound Sellita SW510 M.
- Pioneer Mk I: A 40 mm monopusher chronograph, its one pusher painted red, based on the 1938 original.
- Aquasphere: A 42 mm diver rated to 300 m with a ceramic bezel and a helium valve.
What it's known for
The red pusher, which the brand says started as a way to stop pilots resetting the chronograph by mistake. Fluted bezels, cream lume and old-style logos give the watches a strong vintage character. Water resistance is a useful 10 bar on the chronographs.
Price and positioning
Chronographs cost about $2,700 to $3,800 and the Aquasphere around $2,000. That positions Hanhart against Sinn, Tutima and the Longines and Zenith pilot reissues, with real history and fair prices for a mechanical chronograph.
Hanhart watches in our library
- Hanhart Aquasphere ($1,900 to $2,020)
- Hanhart 417 ES 1954 ($2,950)
- Hanhart Pioneer Mk I ($2,950)