Introducing: Panerai’s Luminor Marina PAM01707 Is All Classic Everything, Except For The High-Tech Composite Case
What We Know As one of the more recognisable watch designs, period, the current Panerai Luminor shape has been rendered in many different materials since the 1955 introduction of the crown protection device. This latest take, the Luminor Marina PAM01707, is cased in Carbotech, a composite material combining carbon fibre sheets and polyether ether ketone, resulting in excellent anti-corrosion properties and lightness. Though Panerai’s products now comfortably sit in the luxury watchmaking category, it hasn't stopped them from using avant-garde materials suited to the original intent of their designs. Measuring 44mm across and 14.5mm thick, the PAM01707 has all the hallmarks of a classic Panerai, with its cushion-shaped mid-case sandwiched by a round, striated Carbotech bezel and a DLC-treated titanium caseback. The signature bridge, which spans the right-hand side of the case and protects and locks the crown, is also rendered in carbon, matching the uneven, textured finish of the rest of the case. This sanga-based analogy can be expanded on for the dial, another Panerai hallmark. The textured, matte top plate features cut-outs for the stick indices and Arabic numerals at the cardinal points, as well as the small seconds indicator at 9 o’clock, allowing the fauxtinated Super-LumiNova bottom layer to shine through. Here pictured on brown calf leather, Panerai also includes an “Officine Panerai”-branded black rubber strap so you can actually take the watch swimming, th...