Diving with the New ZRC Grands Fonds Heterium

ZRC is a Swiss model that appears to reside on the shadowy periphery of the watch world. Regardless of being based over 120 years in the past, I can rely the instances they’ve come up in informal watch conversations on no fingers. That’s to say, it by no means occurs. Even once I agreed to take this new ZRC Grands Fonds Heterium for a diving check and test it out, I used to be pondering to myself, “These are those with the crown on the underside proper?” and “…one thing to do with the French Navy?” This represented my total information of the model, so I used to be excited to do a little analysis and eventually be taught a concrete truth or two. After digging into it, I’ve concluded it’s a crying disgrace that we don’t discuss ZRC Watches extra usually, so hopefully we will flip over that new leaf collectively, beginning proper right here and proper now. Let’s begin with just a little historical past.

Model Historical past

Based in 1904 in Geneva by Edmond Zuccolo and Joseph Rochet, ZRC spent their early years as a purveyor of chains for pocket watches. Additionally they created the first-ever claw bracelets, to permit pocket watches to be worn on the wrist. This may put them up there with the pioneers of the early days of wristwatches, however who did that first is a debate for one more time.

In 1917, ZRC received the highly-coveted Prix de l’Industrie Nouvelle de Genève (Geneva Prize for New Trade) for creating the first-ever extendable metallic watch bracelet, and they’d spend the following few a long time specializing in watch bracelets and straps, whereas additionally manufacturing watch circumstances for different private-label manufacturers. Starting within the Thirties they might begin to specialize in making waterproof watch circumstances with a purpose to meet the elevated demand from new army purposes and applied sciences.

In 1958 Mr. Yves Pastre, an area watchmaker and store proprietor in Toulon, France, gave ZRC’s industrial director on the time, a sure Mr. Bourdain, an thought: the French Navy was in search of a water-resistant watch provider, and since ZRC already had years of expertise constructing waterproof watch circumstances for others, why not make one among their very own and make a bid on the contract? The ensuing undertaking and bid was successful. This may be the start of the ZRC Grands Fonds line of watches and they’d go on to equip French Naval divers for the following 35 years, till 1995.

Soar forward to 2014 – Georges Brunet, the great-grandson of founder Joseph Rochet, determined to supply a re-release of the Grands Fonds to commemorate the one hundred and tenth anniversary of the corporate’s founding. Some manufacturing and growth points would delay {that a} bit and it was truly launched in 2015 for the corporate’s 111th birthday, however shut sufficient! The GF300 was launched in a restricted version of 300 items and the Grands Fonds had been reborn. With the success of this launch and a rising public urge for food for the tales and lore of classic dive watches, Mr. Brunet determined to totally relaunch the model and the Grands Fonds line in 2018.

The ZRC Grands Fonds Heterium

Now, in 2025, ZRC has two strains of dive watches: the lately launched Securicode line, which is a tribute to their very first dive watch again within the Nineteen Sixties, and the flagship Grands Fonds line, one among which we took diving and can discuss right here right now, the ZRC Grands Fonds Heterium.

The fashionable commonplace within the Grands Fonds line known as the Réédition, their pure, black dial no-date dive watch. This Heterium is that very same watch however with a beautiful blue-to-black gradient dial. It is a 41.5mm chrome steel Software watch with a capital T. Contemplating the trendy model has NEVER produced a watch that was not a dive watch, we should always count on nothing much less. The angular, nearly brutalist case is all enterprise, as is the very recognizable crown on the 6 o’clock place, a Grands Fonds trademark. This was carried out to maintain the crown out of the way in which and to make use of a novel fail-safe characteristic utilizing the cutout within the bracelet or strap, the CPS or Crown Safety System. The scale of the little cutout makes it not possible to put on the watch except the crown is within the totally screwed-down place, eliminating the potential for unintended flooding on account of consumer carelessness. You technically can put on it within the incorrect place however the bracelet doesn’t articulate totally and you’ll inform one thing is flawed. It takes a bit to get used to manipulating the crown on this place (additionally as a result of it screws down in the other way of a typical crown), nevertheless it’s second nature when you get the grasp of it.

The gradient blue dial is gorgeous to have a look at and likewise extremely legible, partly because of the massive blocky sword fingers and partly on account of having Tremendous-LumiNova in all places, from the utilized indices to little inner pips off of each hour marker to the big fingers to the inlaid bezel markers. The black ceramic bezel options one other little bit of patented and acronym’d ZRC know-how. The ECS, or Simple Clear System, is just a little slot on high of, and a channel operating throughout the bezel that enables recent water to be circulated by way of to forestall the buildup of salt between the bezel and case, which may trigger corrosion over time. I’ve personally by no means spent sufficient time with one watch in salt water to have this be an issue, nevertheless it was carried out after a suggestion from Yves Pastre, watchmaker to the French Navy, in order that’s adequate for me. Whether or not you want this characteristic in your day-to-day life or not, it’s an fascinating little bit of tech.

ZRC specialize in one thing referred to as “programmed deformation of supplies” which based on Google refers to “designing supplies with particular and controllable deformation behaviours below sure situations.” This scientific strategy permits them to make watches which might be water resistant to nice depths with out having to resort to super-thick circumstances and crystals to take action. Certainly, this watch is rated right down to 1,000 metres, nicely past the dive watch commonplace of 300 metres, but is by some means solely about 13mm thick, and 14mm counting the crystal. It’s definitely the thinnest 1,000-metre diver I’ve ever dealt with – and needless to say it’s truly examined to 1,500m.

The case again is one more fascinating piece of know-how, with a mechanism borrowed from the way in which submarine hatches shut and seal. From ZRC, “the caseback consists of two distinct components. A clamping ring places stress on the shielded again which then applies a vertical stress on the gasket. Subsequently the armoured again stays ‘free’ and can accompany the ambient stress that it relays on the joint with a purpose to steadiness the pressures with out ever compromising the case.” I might want to see that in a video to really perceive the internal workings nevertheless it definitely sounds cool, and something that makes for a thinner deep-dive watch is a victory.

Yet one more fascinating and distinctive a part of this watch is the bracelet, no shock since ZRC spent years working as a bracelet producer. It’s a unusual mixture of 1 extra-long hyperlink, then an open, ladder-style hyperlink, after which regular hyperlinks coming off either side of the case. The additional-long hyperlinks every have a built-in spring system, which works as a diver extension with out having to deploy something, because it routinely stretches to suit over a wetsuit. It’s an excellent little characteristic that I now need in each bracelet throughout the board. The clasp can also be distinctive, being a small hook that you just use to lock every finish, after which a small rotating piece of metallic covers the connection to maintain it in place. It’s just a little difficult to placed on by oneself, particularly over a wetsuit, however in any other case it’s by far essentially the most fascinating bracelet I’ve seen for the reason that first Tudor Pelagos bracelet got here out.

The motion inside is the Sellita Elaborate SW300-1. The highest-tier model of this well-known automated motion (an alternative choice to the ETA 2892) beats at 28,800vph with an influence reserve of 56 hours and is rated to +/- 5 seconds per day, which is near COSC spec with out truly being COSC licensed. That covers all of the specs so now let’s take it diving.

The Grands Fonds Heterium In The Water

We took the ZRC Grands Fonds Heterium on just a few shipwreck and reef dives down south Florida and it proved to be a wonderful diving companion. I attempted it on the bracelet and the rubber strap, and whereas my desire could be the bracelet, the issue of placing it on with out assist from a buddy would most likely lead me to go for the rubber strap if this was my watch often used for diving. Both choice was very comfy and the truth that ZRC has used screws to connect the strap as an alternative of the standard spring bars means there may be little fear of the watch popping off below the rigours of scuba diving. The 60-click bezel units simply and has a really satisfying motion. My solely critique is there could possibly be just a little bit extra grip or possibly a barely bigger bezel to assist with articulation, because it’s very skinny, particularly with a gloved hand.

Underwater the watch is extremely legible because of the barely reflective nature of the dial and the copious quantities of lume. The bigger minute hand by no means left any doubt as to how lengthy I had been underwater at a fast look. It might be just a little simpler to calculate with precise numerals on the bezel however it might take away from the aesthetics so I believe that’s a good trade-off for what’s successfully a backup timer anyway. From an aesthetic and romantic standpoint, the watch has tons of classic appeal and provides you the sensation you would be doing one thing vital like smoking cigarettes on deck with Jacques Cousteau or clearing harbours of explosives with the French Frogmen of the Nineteen Sixties, and don’t all of us wish to really feel like that a minimum of occasionally?

Closing Ideas

The extra I discovered about ZRC researching this text, the extra stunned I turned that they appear to get so little recognition, as their technical and army chops put them up there with the Tudors and Rolexes of the watch world. Perhaps that’s for one of the best, as watch fanatics love the proverbial “secret handshake.” However, since Mr. Brunet stated they’re engaged on extra growth of the model and likewise on impending chronograph and GMT fashions, I believe it’s protected to say that this secret membership received’t be a secret very for much longer.

Now out there from licensed sellers for CHF 3,290 on rubber strap and CHF 3,690 on metal bracelet. Extra information at zrc1904.com.