Vulcain – The enthusiast watch brand back with a bang

The Swiss unsung brand Vulcain lay in semi-dormancy for a long time but experienced a renaissance a few years ago that aimed to take the distinguished company back to its days of greatness. Eqotime goes through the history and presents the wristwatches that have been launched since the return. 

Text: Filip Ericsson

Vulcain is one of those brands that is completely unknown to the majority of people, but which at the same time is legendary in the right circles. The company was founded by the Jewish industrialist family Ditisheim in the heart of the watch industry, La Chaux de Fonds in western Switzerland in 1858, and played an important role in the emergence of the Swiss watch industry. The company, which at first went under the name Ditisheim & Cie, focused on pocket watches with advanced complications for which it won a number of prizes during the end of the 1800s. In 1898 the business was renamed Vulcain Fabrique while the first wristwatch appeared in 1909. 

Vulcain then continued as a respected manufacturer of wristwatches during the first half of the 1900s, but the watch that came to bring the real fame and remain synonymous with the brand from then on was the alarm watch Vulcain Cricket.  

Cricket 

The Cricket was launched in 1947, and even though it was not, as many claim, the world's first wristwatch with an alarm function (Eterna was earlier), it still remained a sensation. Eterna's variant appeared as early as 1914 so the Cricket was at least likely to have been the only alarm wristwatch on the market at its launch in 1947, and had been gifted a completely new, patented construction that gave a never before heard ringing signal. 

The skilled watchmakers at Vulcain scratched their heads to get the ringing signal loud enough. The French scientist Paul Langevin did however find the solution to the problem and developed a double case back where the outer one was filled with holes and where the space between these made a resonance possible when the little hammer struck inside the movement. Beyond this a mechanism with double barrels was constructed which meant that the alarm function was freed from the movement's winding function. This gave a ringtone that lasted a full 25 seconds. The new hand-wound movement was called Caliber 120 and won the international chronometer competition at the observatory in Neuchatel in 1948. 

The Cricket and the White House 

Vulcain is probably most famous of all for its connection to American presidents. It was Harry S Truman who began this accidental connection when the White House press department in 1953 gave him a Cricket in 14 carat gold in connection with him leaving his office. Truman's successor Dwight Eisenhower was also given a Cricket, as was his vice president Richard Nixon in 1955. 

The democratic president Lyndon Johnson also wore a Cricket but bought it all by himself during a trip to Switzerland. He also ordered 200 of them to give away as gifts during his presidency. After that most presidents have been given a Cricket as a matter of tradition – and as brand building one must presume. 

More Cricket but not only 

Vulcain may be best known for its alarm watch but has more notable models in its long history. The Vulcain Chronograph from 1940, the Full Calendar from 1953 and the diver's watch Skindiver from 1960 were all elegant Vulcain watches that adorned the offering of the time. The real star was however yet another Cricket: the Nautical. The Cricket Nautical was something as unusual as a diver's watch with an alarm. It was not however entirely unique, or first. The Jaeger-LeCoultre Memovox Deep Sea had been launched in 1959 while Vulcain's contribution appeared in 1961.  

The Nautical had a triple case back that gave a ringing signal loud enough to be heard below the surface. Divers could thereby use the alarm to mark the time when it was time to ascend. The dial, then, received a distinctive design that also showed the time for pressure reduction.  

Merger, quartz crisis and takeover 

In 1961 Vulcain's independence ceased when it formed the MSR group together with Revue Thommen, Buser and Phénix. During the quartz crisis in the 1980s Vulcain disappeared as a brand even though it continued to build watches for the other brands within the group. The problems continued during the 90s whereupon the factory closed its gates in La Caux-de-Fonds in 1999. The name Vulcain was bought up by PMH (Production et marketing Horologer) whereupon a new business grew forth in Le Locle in 2002 with a relaunch of the Cricket. In 2009 the company was sold again, this time to Suisse Excellence Holding which invested in a new movement for the Cricket. Caliber V21 got automatic winding, for the first time at Cricket. 

In 2017 there was however a change of ownership once again when the Luxembourg-based Promobe Sa took over the sleepy little business. And this time it was meant seriously, to blow life into the distinguished brand. One Guillaume Laidet was hired to achieve the sensitivity that was required to bring the whole thing home. Laidet was after all behind Nivada Grenchen's as well as Excelsior Park's brilliant returns, so a worse brand wizard was easy to find. 

Vulcain's watches today 

After that it went forward in leaps and bounds. Today a whole palette of wristwatches strongly touched by the days of greatness is offered. The prices are restrained and the new launches have been carried out with a careful hand and at times magnificent finesse. Let us present them all. 

Cricket

The main track in Vulcain's rebirth is of course the Cricket series which was first out in 2022. The new watches looked roughly as they did in 1947, difficult beautiful creations and completely right for the times with the market's still persistent retro trend.  

The Cricket offering is today relatively extensive with a choice of two case sizes of 36mm and 39mm respectively, as well as three different series: Classique, Tradition and President. The differences lie in the typeface and colour choice of the dials. All variants in the President series are sold in a limited edition of only 25, 50 or 100 examples while Classique and Tradition are unlimited. 

The thickness is 12.8mm, satisfyingly lean considering the advanced alarm mechanics under the shell, while the water resistance is given as 50 metres. Sapphire crystal is found on the front as well as the back.  

The Cricket is driven by the company's own Caliber V10, a hand-wound unit with ancestry all the way from the model's origin. It beats at only 18 000 vibrations per hour and has a power reserve of 52 hours. Some modifications have been made over the years but at its base it is the same movement that premiered in 1947.  

V10 thus lacks some modern attributes that are found in better movements today and this means that the precision with +20/-5 seconds of expected drift per day does not reach up to for instance a modern chronometer, but must be considered good precision considering the circumstances. The Cricket movement can after all, with its alarm-triggering little hammer, still be seen as a real technical treat! 

The watches can be bought directly through the company's website and the prices vary from around 45 000 kronor to about 56 000 kronor depending on model and exchange rate.   

Nautical Heritage 

The Vulcain Nautical Heritage is a remake of the 1961 Cricket Nautical. This one too is driven by the classic, manual V10 movement but is water resistant to 300 metres. The measurements are 42mm in diameter and an almost shocking 17.35mm in height. The Nautical Heritage is thus a real beast!

Beyond a traditional steel variant there is also a black-painted one with the name Full Black which is limited to 50 examples. The price is about 59 000 kronor for both variants and the watches are delivered with a black rubber strap.  

Vulcain Nautique Skindiver  

The Nautique Skindiver is hardly surprisingly a modern successor to the 1960 diver's watch with the same name. The appearance is similar but the technology of course updated with for instance sapphire crystal and a ceramic bezel. 

They have recreated an elegant, moderately sized diver's watch that thereby suits being worn to a slightly more elegant occasion when you have finished swimming for the day. The new Skindiver measures a restrained 38mm in diameter with a thickness of 12.2mm. 

Despite the “Skindiver” epithet it is water resistant to the equivalent of 200 metres with the diving ring rotating in one direction, as on a professional diver's watch. The term Skindiver arose incidentally when the western world's growing middle class during the 1950s began going on sun holidays and consequently taking up snorkelling and amateur diving. The manufacturers quickly got their eyes on this and began providing suitable wristwatches, whereupon the term Skindiver was born.  

Inside the new Skindiver ticks the eternal people's movement ETA 2824–2 which should make a perfect engine for this type of wristwatch, as well as making possible the price class in which Vulcain apparently wishes to operate in. The manufacturer can focus on providing high quality without the price running away either in purchase or in maintenance. At the same time a 2824 movement is, despite its simplicity, in itself a quality product that can last a lifetime. 

The Skindiver Nautique is available with a black, blue, orange and salmon-coloured dial. A lovely purple variant in a limited edition has also been sold but is sold out. The model is sold with a rubber or leather strap or alternatively a steel bracelet. Beyond the above steel variants there are also bronze and PVD variants.  

This simplest series of Skindiver watches can be had for around 18 000 kronor with a leather or rubber strap and about 21 000 kronor with the beautiful steel bracelet, when they are bought from the company's website. The prices are slightly higher at Swedish retailers.  

Skindiver GMT & Chrono 

Subsequently the Skindiver has been given additions in the form of a GMT and a chronograph. The Skindiver GMT shares measurements and specifications with its simpler sibling but has been gifted a 24-hour indicator on the bezel and a small hand that shows the second time zone of course.
That thus means the same pleasant measurements (38.3×12.2mm), ceramic bezel, 200 metres of water resistance and a choice between rubber strap and steel bracelet. The dial is black or white while a blue and a purple are sold in 100 examples each. Unclear whether they are still around when you read this.
Unlike the ordinary Skindiver there is however an automatic Soprod Caliber C125 in here. This too a reliable, Swiss movement that makes an appealing price level possible. The GMT is sold for about 22 000 kronor with a rubber strap and a good 25 000 kronor with the bracelet. A versatile package undeniably and you probably just want to snap one on and sit yourself on the plane to a far-off country!
The Skindiver Chrono is a mechanical chronograph with two subdials, one for the seconds hand and one for the chronograph's minute scale. It measures 39.7mm in diameter and 13 in height. The bezel is ceramic here too but rotating in both directions. The chronograph also manages a good 200 metres.
Inside sits an ETA 7753, an automatic movement that thanks to its quality and value for money in true ETA spirit is also used by many other brands. There is no date and the power reserve is 42 hours.
The dials are of the so-called panda type with contrasting chronograph subdials. You choose between black and white of the unlimited editions while more colours are sold in limited editions. They are salmon, ice blue, green and meteorite. A Skindiver Chrono can be had for around 30 000 kronor with a leather strap and 33 000 kronor with the bracelet.

Monopusher Heritage 

Another successful reincarnation of a fifties model from the brand is the chronograph Monopusher Heritage which appeared in 2023, and which is something as unusual as a chronograph that is controlled with only one button. Hence the name.  

As is proper when a beautiful 50s watch is to rise again, the Monoposher's artfully turned case frames a captivating dial in black with gold-coloured numerals and hands. The case measures a modest 39mm in diameter and 13mm in thickness.  

The movement is a Sellita SW510, a hand-wound calibre that has sat in many chronographs from various brands over the years. Undeniably a proven, exact and reliable movement that is moreover cost-effective. The power reserve is a fine 58 hours.  

A single button, at the top right of the case, controls all chronograph functions like start/stop/reset. On the dial there is also a so-called pulsometer of an old-fashioned cut, but few are likely to use it. Sapphire crystal is found on the front while the back is covered. The water resistance is to the equivalent of 50 metres.  

Beyond the mentioned black dial there are more shouty alternatives in turquoise and light green while a couple of limited editions with other dials have also been sold.  

The Monopusher is delivered with a classic leather strap or Vulcain's distinctive steel bracelet. The prices on the website are around 33 000 kronor with a leather strap and about 36 000 kronor with the bracelet, figures that – again – can shift with the Euro rate against the krona.  

Chronograph 1970s 

Yet another retro-touched chronograph in Vulcain's ever more swelling offering is the Chronograph 1970s, which has thus taken inspiration from slightly more modern times. Here too the hand-wound Sellita Caliber SW510 fits while the outer measurements are somewhat skinnier at 38mm in diameter and only 12.4mm in thickness.  

The Chronograph 1970s gives a slightly glossier impression with its blue or black dial in panda style. An all-black dial is also offered while a silver- and a green-coloured one are now sold out. The model is offered with a leather or rubber strap and costs barely 30 000 kronor. 

Grand Prix 

Vulcain's least costly offering is the elegantly minimalist Grand Prix which appeared in the spring of 2024. This one too draws inspiration from the 1950s model with the same name but does not feel like a pure retro model, it seems more timeless in its expression.  

The Grand Prix is a classic men's watch towards the dressier side and offers only the time through its three hands. There is thus no date. The case measures a moderate 39mm in diameter while the thickness at a rather bloated 12.7mm perhaps does not quite play along with the Grand Prix's elegant appearance otherwise. The water resistance is in any case given as 50 metres, quite satisfying enough for a dress watch.  

Inside sits Caliber L24 from the Swiss movement manufacturer Landeron. It is automatically wound, beats at a classic 28 800 vibrations per hour and gives a moderate 40 hours of power reserve. Interestingly there is both a large, centrally placed seconds hand and a small hand at six o'clock to choose from. The movement can in any case be compared with the ETA 2824-2 in its specifications and thereby gives here too the conditions for long-lasting and carefree ownership at an appealing price. 

A number of dials are available as options. Blue and green for the variants with a small seconds hand and champagne, silver and black with a large seconds hand, all in so-called sunray-execution, are available. 

The Grand Prix is delivered with a selection of leather and rubber straps. The price is a good 14 000 kronor with a large seconds hand and barely 16 000 kronor with a small hand. A good-looking and good-value way to bask in the cool Vulcain glow, even if it happens with the utmost discretion! 

Vulcain's essence & positioning 

Vulcain's owners have chosen to position the new products in the lower spectrum of the luxury watch market, where brands like for instance Longines and Oris reside. They have invested in recreating the watches from the brand's heyday, probably a wise strategy since an enthusiast-driven company like Vulcain surely gains from playing on romantic strings. Besides, the retro trend does still stand strong in the market for better wristwatches.  

That the Cricket houses a movement developed and built within the company's walls of course gives an extra dimension and exclusivity to the brand. The watches are beautiful and tastefully executed and seem very good value. That the exclusively mechanical movements that sit in the other models are bought from outside is of course a condition for that.  

The Cricket undoubtedly makes up the main course in Vulcain's new palette, something that hardly surprises, for it is the Cricket that has always, or at least since 1947, been the company's most brightly shining star. At the same time it is satisfying that they have dug deeper into their history and developed modern variants of slender models such as the Skindiver and the Monopusher. You instinctively want them, an outstanding grade! 

That the entry to the Vulcain magic, the Grand Prix, is so attractive and purchase-friendly finally puts the dot over the “i” on a brilliant return. Let us now hope that people buy them, because Vulcain deserves it in cubes! 

Read more at Vulcain.