Introducing the Guinand DuoIndikator Big Pilot Chronograph

Guinand is a brand that’s gotten its fair share of well-deserved coverage here on Worn & Wound. At one time, the German firm was under the tutelage of the late Helmut Sinn, and today, Guinand continues Mr. Sinn’s mission of bringing solid, well-priced tool watches into the world. For a brand overview, check out my writeup from a few years back.

Today, we’re going to take a look at a model in Guinand’s Duochronograph range—the DuoIndikator Big Pilot. Like many chronographs at this price point, the DuoIndikator is equipped with a Valjoux 7750 chronograph caliber, which features three registers at 6, 9, and 12, and a date/day at three (click here to learn more about the Valjoux 7750).

The DuoIndikator, however, strips that classically three-register setup down to a dual-register layout, with the minutes totalizer and hours totalizer at 12 and 6, respectively. But rather than leave the running seconds indicator off entirely, at 8 o’clock there’s a small aperture with a rotating disc underneath to indicate the seconds. Over the course of a minute, the aperture fills in red, and at exactly 60 seconds a white vertical line appears to show the start of a new minute. It’s a neat way to keep that oh-so-desirable dial symmetry without tossing the functionality of a running seconds.

The stainless steel case measures 42.66 millimeters wide, 49.7 millimeters lug-to-lug, 15.6 millimeters thick, and 22 millimeters at the lugs. The case can be had in a polished or bead-blasted finish. The pilot bezel is bi-directional, the crown screws down and is sealed with double O-rings, and the case is pressure resistant up to 20 bar. A domed sapphire crystal with an internal anti-reflective coating protects the dial, and sapphire around back offers a view of the nicely decorated caliber within. All 7750 movements are regulated to 5 positions by Guinand.

The dial is anthracite sunburst with large silver registers. Applied indices are present at each hour with a mix of bars (at 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, and 11) and dots (3, 6, 9 and doubled at 12). Framing the dial is a white tachymeter scale, and there’s a bit of red at the seconds indicator and the chronograph hands.

The DuoIndikator is available on a number of different straps, among them a vintage style veg-tanned band, a stitched strap with pull-up leather, and a shark leather strap. The latter of the three isn’t really my cup of tea, but the other two are spot on for the watch. There are a couple of customization options available, among them the choice of band, the choice of clasp, and an English day wheel. Some come with a surcharge, but they’re relatively reasonable everything considered.

For orders outside of the EU, the starting price is Euro 1,681.27, which is roughly $1918.33 USD. Overall, it’s a great price for a solid watch from a trusted German brand. Having handled a few Guinands myself in recent years, I can vouch that the brand makes an excellent product worthy of consideration.  Guinand

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Ilya is Worn & Wound's Managing Editor and Video Producer. He believes that when it comes to watches, quality, simplicity and functionality are king. This may very well explain his love for German and military-inspired watches. In addition to watches, Ilya brings an encyclopedic knowledge of leather, denim and all things related to menswear.
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