In just five short years after Rado reintroduced the Captain Cook dive watch, it’s become a major linchpin in the brand’s contemporary identity, with reimaginings that include a full makeover in the watchmaker’s signature ceramic material back in 2021 and reissuing the Captain Cook Over-Pole Worldtimer a couple of months ago. But this wouldn’t be the first time the Captain Cook played a major part in Rado’s rebranding. Upon its debut in 1962, it not only gave the Swiss company its new anchor logo but kickstarted its newfound focus on forward-thinking design and mechanics.
Now, Rado has unveiled the most dramatically different interpretation of the Captain Cook framework yet. For the first time, the watchmaker has implemented a chronograph movement into the iconic dive watch while still retaining the inherent qualities of the watch, such as 30 bar water resistance, the concave unidirectional bezel with high-tech ceramic inlay, and heightened legibility thanks to the anti-reflective, scratch-resistant domed sapphire crystal and Super-LumiNova coating on the numbers, indices, and broad arrow handset.
With a classic bicompax chronograph layout featuring a 30-minute register at 9 o’clock and a running seconds counter at 3, the 43mm watch is powered by an R801 automatic movement and sports screw-down pushers on either side of the screw-down crown. The watch features a date window at the 6 o’clock position to keep the symmetry intact, along with the familiar swinging anchor logo at 12. The watch is available on a trio of strap options, including a three-link stainless steel bracelet, a stitched leather strap, and a nylon NATO.
Available in blue and black versions in stainless steel, along with a bronze-cased reference in blue, the Captain Cook Automatic Chronograph is now available through Rado’s online store from $3,710.
