Journey of Reverso: Part 1 (Reverso Squadra Hometime)

This is a series I'm doing about the five JLC Reversos I've owned in the past year, It will be updated weekly.

After thoroughly considering my upgrade options from the Breitling I received as a present, I settled on none other than Jaeger-LeCoultre. The brand was all in-house, generally well finished, and above all, of excellent value. After debating for some time I settled on the Reverso Squadra Hometime on a steel bracelet (Ref. 7008120 or 230.8.77). The choice was simple: The Reverso has the strongest JLC DNA, It had an innovative and strong 977 autotractor movement and was, in my opinion, the modern incarnation of the classic reverso which had been a sports watch. It also came on a bracelet which I prefer for durability and versatility.

I didn’t get a chance to try it on my 6.5 inch wrist so when it came, I learned that it was extremely large. The dimensions are 50.5 mm x 35 mm x 14 mm, but don’t let the 35 mm fool you, due to the fixed end links on the bracelet, the case is well over 50 mm long.

Some basic specs:

Released in 2006

JLC 977 “Autotractor” movement: Mechanical automatic winding, 234 parts, 29 jewels, 28,800 VPH, 48 hr power reserve.

Ceramic ball bearings

Freesprung balance with 4 adjustment screws and flat hairspring, incabloc.

Balance bridge

Stop seconds mechanism

GMT "hometime" indication with Day/Night indicator

JLC rocker style unidirectional automatic winding mechanism.

Rhodium plated with blued screws.

Slightly curved Sapphire crystal on both sides

Water resistant to 5 atm

MSRP (USD): 8,000 steel on alligator and rubber, 9,350 steel on steel, 21,100 rose gold on articulated rubber or alligator, 39,100 rose gold on rose gold (prices current as of Aug 23rd 2012)

Performance/movement

The watch certainly has no problems performing, on my wrist it was running a consistent 5.5 seconds fast everyday. JLC adjusts their watches so that they never run slow in any position. The disadvantage to reversos is that due to the difficulty of taking apart the case, adjustments can’t be done as easily or cheaply. The movement, as written on Purists for the 975 movement which the 977 is based on, is nice but not stellar. The superfluous holes drilled in the bridges for the CNC process are distracting, and the weight is not 22k gold as on most other models. It’s certainly pretty to look at, just not THAT pretty.

The GMT function worked quite well, the skeleton "home" hour hand stays the same while the normal hour hand can be moved around in one hour increments. The AM/PM indicator is synced to the skeleton "home" hand while the date is synced to the normal hour hand. The date is not quick setting but can be set in both directions due to the innovative maltese cross date mechanism.

I personally don't feel comfortable moving any hand on the watch but JLC says it's fine.

Bracelet

The bracelet is quite nice feeling, links are attached with screws. I had an issue where one of the screws kept coming loose regardless of how often they were tightened, my watchmaker recommended some blue Loctite but I just tightened the screw when I saw it come out. The edges of the bracelet are quite sharp which in my opinion is appropriate for this very geometric watch. There are 2 micro extensions on both sides of the clasp that will extend the bracelet by 4 mm at a time, this is essential to getting a good fit for the bracelet.

Bracelet before extension

Bracelet after 4 mm extension

Case 

The case is the same as a standard reverse case, only a lot bigger and square. The perlage on the inside of the steel backing is as fine as ever. The edges are again, quite sharp and the only issue I had was when I wore dress shirts, the edge of the case rubbed against the shirt and formed a persistent bit of white power on the inside of the case. This is not really an issue since the watch is a sports watch and not meant to be worn with work or formal clothing.

Perlage on back plate

The white fibers

Always fun to watch the rotor spinning, and quite smoothly too!

A word about the dial:

After having seen the more expensive black dial version, I believe that the white silver dial is the way to go, the simple horizontal guilloche is perfectly harmonized for the watch. 

This was my first reverso, with many to come, and if you have a 7+ inch wrist, it would be a great fit. It’s a solid tank of a watch with a movement to match.

Just keep in mind it’s as thick as a Rolex Sea Dweller and wears as large as a 44mm Panerai. Don't expect a Patek finish either.

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