from/my/collection: Girard-Perregaux Laureato Evo3 Chronograph “GP Club” 80180

For the very start of my watch collecting years, the Girard-Perregaux Laureato Evo3 Chronograph plays a vital role. It was my fifth GP watch I bought and one that kept me going all the way to where I am today.

Today it is also the watch that is the longest in my possession, so as such a great watch to start this Blog with.

The Laureato Evo3 in my collection has a steel case with mostly brushed finish and a rubber strap. The octagonal bezel is the typical feature of the Laureato since its inception in 1975.

As the name gives it away, this is “evolution” 3, so the 4^th generation since 1975. The Evo3 was born in 2004 and was at the time quite a large watch with 44mm diameter. The size however works very well on the wrist due to the absence of lugs and the integrated strap. The strap attachment does prevent one from changing to non-OEM straps but that is a small price to pay for the comfort and integrated look.

This Chronograph is a limited edition of 50 pieces for the “GP Club” Italy. Most watches released for the GP Club Italy had a limitation of 50 pieces. A very similar non-limited version however also existed.

The dial design and layout is quite unique. You can see 4 symmetric sub-dials that provide a great visual effect but all serve good and well-thought-through functions.

On top you have the date subdial. Not all versions of the Laureato opted for the full symmetry with some versions using a different style of subdial for the date, but here on this version you do have the full symmetry.

At 3 you have the small running seconds, displayed with a red-painted hand. At 9 on the other hand you now have a 24 hour display which is rarely seen on a Chronograph with simple date function.

So we already used 3 out of 4 subdials and have not yet had any Chronograph function. There is a central again red-painted Chronograph seconds hand and a not often seen central Chronograph minute counter. The white hand with red arrow runs synchronous with the normal Minute hand but of course measuring the elapsed minutes of the running Chronograph.

Finally, at 6 there is a 12 hour counter for the Chronograph, providing enough room to even measure longer time periods. Inside that subdial a small red text “Limited Edition” is printed for the GP Club Laureato.

There are a few other nice features on the dial, like the waffle pattern or the applied luminous numerals. In fact, there is a lot of good lume on that watch that makes it glow in the dark.

Coming back to the strap options: The series of 50 Limited Pieces for GP Club Italy was delivered with a tan alligator strap and a 19mm Deployant buckle. The tan straps gives the watch a very different look. I have now opted for the rubber strap and pin buckle as it provides the best fit and comfort.