Recently added for sale in the shop, a 1970s LeJour "Poor Man's Heuer" PVD automatic chronograph, with PVD bracelet The 1970’s were a legit transition point for the Swiss watchmaking industry, which attempted to survive the quartz onslaught (brought on, ironically, by Seiko) by contracting with other brands to do whatever it took – even if it meant putting their names on watches that weren’t Swiss. With the patina’d lume and a slender yet poignant orange central chronograph hand, there’s more than enough visual contrast going on here to make the watch visually engaging. Couple this with an angled inner tachymeter bezel, and it all adds up to 1970/80’s Porsche gauges and later German watches. During the 1970/80s, LeJour specialized in more affordable versions of watches nearly identical to Heuer and Porsche Design/Orfina offerings – such as the "Poor Man's Heuer," LeJour's popular Valjoux-powered chronograph, which was identical to the Pasadena, save for the absence of the Heuer logo. These represent an interesting facet of Heuer’s history and a way for individuals to collect these chronographs on a more reasonable budget. Heuer manufactured LeJour chronographs under a private-label arrangement, and, under the terms of the arrangement Heuer manufactured an array of watches, which LeJour then distributed; some, like the Heuer Pasadena and LeJour model 7750 used the exact same cases and dials. And, just in time for the 2020 release (maybe?) of the sequel to the movie that made Tom Cruise’s career, namely “Top Gun,” the Orfina PVD variant of this watch (marketed under the Porsche name brand) adorned the wrist of Cruise’s LT Pete "Maverick” in the original 1986 Top Gun flick www.dcvintagewatches.com #lejour @dcvintagewatches #womw #watchesofinstagram #watchfam #wristgame #watchoftheday #DC #LA #SoCal #redbarcrew #DCVW #wis #edc #instawatch #fratellowatches #wotd #klocksnack #GoAnalog #watchesforsale #forsale #Heuer #dontcrackunderpressure @calibre11 #vintageheuer #tagheuer @tagheuer @on_the_dash (at Highway to the Danger Zone) https://www.instagram.com/p/CFA6cmQHgvH/?igshid=1ktsoj5oobmcb