Flieger Friday with the Hanhart Pioneer 417 ES Red Lion

[Mach]

My first German piece has arrived! Now in today's crazy horology environment, Hanhart may not exactly be a household name that immediately comes to mind. But, it has a rich history in pilot's watches, especially the 417, the first pilot's chronograph created for the Bundeswehr (West German Armed Forces) in the mid 1950's. Over the course of a decade, it is believed that approximately 500 of these were produced in two variants, a chrome-plated brass, reference 417, and a stainless steel, reference 417 ES ("Edelstahl," meaning stainless steel in German). The late, legendary actor, Steve McQueen, was often seen sporting the 417 ES:

* Photo by Francois Gragnon / Paris Match via Getty Images *

In October 2020, Hanhart jumped on the Heritage / Tribute bandwagon with their re-edition of the Pioneer 417 ES. Although it's quite faithful to the original in design aesthetics, its diameter increased to 42mm instead of the original's 39mm. It's been positively embraced by enthusiasts with backorders expected to be fulfilled in March 2022. There are been a few times where I have placed it "in my cart," but, I never actually followed through and pulled the trigger. My resistance was due to the hope that Hanhart would listen to customers' feedback and release a 39mm re-edition.

* Photo courtesy of Hanhart.com *

Back in November, I was at a client engagement in Kansas City where one is not allowed to have their cellphones in the plant. Fortunately, just as I was finishing my lunch, there was an email announcing Hanhart's release of the Pioneer 417 ES Red Lion in a limited edition run of 150 pieces. After reading that the diameter was 39mm, there was no hesitation to pull the trigger and submit the required deposit on what would be my first German piece. With no ETA, I had prepared myself for a late January / early February 2022 arrival. To my surprise, the AD sent me an email mid-week stating my watch was ready to be shipped, which finally arrived late this morning:




Some visual differences from the standard 42mm 417 ES include "Antimagnetic" on the dial and Hanhart's trademark red pusher. Officially, this was to prevent pilots from inadvertently resetting the stopwatch. Unofficially, their wives would paint the pushers with red nail polish so they would always think of their wives and return safely. I'll let you decide what to believe! ;D


In addition to the smaller 39mm diameter case size, the lug-to-lug length was reduced from 49.75mm to 46.00mm:


This is my first experience with a bund strap, which was extremely easy to remove:


Now, to be frank, I was not aware that this piece was a collaboration with YouTube influencer, Urban Gentry. I had never heard of him before nor had I seen any of his videos until learning about this collaboration on another forum. Fortunately, since the Urban Gentry logo engraving is on the case back, it doesn't bother me. Out of sight, out of mind:


Have a Happy, Safe, and Prosperous New Year!

[myporsche]

Congratulations on a beautiful watch. I passed on this one because for me a watch created by a YouTube influencer is too much (passed on the rake edition as well), I do prefer the 42mm regular production 417. With that being said I like the historical influences on this one such as the addition of the red pusher, and am a huge fan of the brand in general. Actually have something very special for myself coming in a few days.

[Mach]

Originally Posted by myporsche

Congratulations on a beautiful watch. I passed on this one because for me a watch created by a YouTube influencer is too much (passed on the rake edition as well), I do prefer the 42mm regular production 417. With that being said I like the historical influences on this one such as the addition of the red pusher, and am a huge fan of the brand in general. Actually have something very special for myself coming in a few days.

Thanks! Fortunately, I was ignorant of this collaboration and took the plunge!

As I mentioned, this is my first time experiencing a bund strap. I removed the bund expecting to prefer the strap only. But, to my surprise, I actually prefer it on the bund strap.

Congrats on that something special that will arrive shortly within the new year! Happy New Year!

[Justindo]

Congratulations! That's a great looking watch and the one I'd get, even though I don't love The Urban Gentry aspect. Happy New Year!

[myporsche]

Originally Posted by Mach

Thanks! Fortunately, I was ignorant of this collaboration and took the plunge!

As I mentioned, this is my first time experiencing a bund strap. I removed the bund expecting to prefer the strap only. But, to my surprise, I actually prefer it on the bund strap.

Congrats on that something special that will arrive shortly within the new year! Happy New Year!

Bund strap looks comfortable and watch looks great on you, thank you and happy new year.

[14060man]

Originally Posted by Mach

Thanks! Fortunately, I was ignorant of this collaboration and took the plunge!

As I mentioned, this is my first time experiencing a bund strap. I removed the bund expecting to prefer the strap only. But, to my surprise, I actually prefer it on the bund strap.

Congrats on that something special that will arrive shortly within the new year! Happy New Year!

What’s your wrist size? Nice that Hanhart brought back the original 39mm size. Since they created tooling for 39mm, I would imagine they will issue this as a regular non-limited edition soon.

[DoricSpiker]

Congrats on a great watch. Big Bang for your buck with Hanhart. Here is a pic of my regular 417 ES.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[scarlet knight]

Very attractive! A 39mm regular run would be of interest to me.

[Mach]

Originally Posted by DoricSpiker

Congrats on a great watch. Big Bang for your buck with Hanhart. Here is a pic of my regular 417 ES.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks! Congrats as your 417 ES as well!

[Mach]

Originally Posted by scarlet knight

Very attractive! A 39mm regular run would be of interest to me.

According to Hanhart's IG, the first half of this year:

[Mach]

Originally Posted by 14060man

What’s your wrist size? Nice that Hanhart brought back the original 39mm size. Since they created tooling for 39mm, I would imagine they will issue this as a regular non-limited edition soon.

16cm

[GradyPhilpott]

Very nice watch.

Congratulations!

[scarlet knight]

Originally Posted by Mach

According to Hanhart's IG, the first half of this year:

Admired the Hanharts at a Watch Buys show in NYC pre-pandemic.

[Kevin of Larchmont]

Very nice! I just picked up my 417 ES 42mm today. Stoked!

[Mach]

Originally Posted by Kevin of Larchmont

Very nice! I just picked up my 417 ES 42mm today. Stoked!

Congrats! Post some photos when you get an opportunity!

[scarlet knight]

Originally Posted by Mach

According to Hanhart's IG, the first half of this year:

Thank you for that update!

[Aetius]

Congrats for this Red Lion !
Here is my Copperhead

https://servimg.com/view/18336556/126

[scarlet knight]

Great looking watch!Thank you for a well presented post!