The new from the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie SIHH 2016 Panerai Luminor 8 Days Set PAM 786 includes two of our favorite all time Panerais. The set, available in a limited edition of 500 pieces contains two watches inspired by models created in the pre-Vendôme era. According to the history of the brand, pre-vendome refers to the time from 1993 —the year of the first collection made for the public— to 1997, the year in which Panerai was acquired by Vendôme, part of the Richemont Group. In those years, a very small number of watches were produced and they quickly became highly sought after in the collector’s market. Along with the Panerai Luminor 8 Days Daylight PAM 650 we have here for our hands-on review, the other watch supplied in the special box set PAM 786 is the Luminor Black Seal Left-Handed —Destro— 8 Days PAM 649 —read and see our live pics of it here.

The two watches are supplied in a box inspired by those used for vintage Luminor watches, made of pear wood with a teak base and containing a model of the 'Siluro a Lenta Corsa' —human slow speed torpedo—, together with a rare publication about the military equipment of the special forces of the Royal Italian Navy, in which Panerai watches and instruments appear.

The Panerai Luminor Daylight 8 Days PAM 650, one of the watches in the Luminor 8 Days Set PAM 786, is the reproduction of a model of 1996 It is likely that this version was replaced after the delivery of the first prototypes, so the few surviving examples have become extremely rare. The Panerai Luminor Daylight 8 Days PAM 650 comes in a highly polished stainless steel case measuring 44 mm in diameter with a mirror polished bezel and a white sausage dial with blue luminous Arabic numerals and hour markers with small seconds at 9 o'clock.

The watch is powered by the new manual wound Panerai calibre P.5000 with a power reserve of 8 days, thanks to its two barrels and 127 components. Unfortunately the calibre is not visible as the watches are fit with screwed-on solid case backs, but fortunately, the solid case backs were designed to replicate the old school looking Pre-Vendome Panerai era in a flawless execution.

The Panerai Luminor Daylight 8 Days PAM 650 features a blue alligator strap, while the Panerai Luminor Black Seal Left-Handed —Destro— 8 Days PAM 649 comes with a calf Ponte Vecchio dark brown strap with contrast stitching. Both watches are equipped with Pre-Vendome lookingbuckles that are sewn-in to the straps.