P. Douglas Grewer, Executive Vice President of Heuer Time Corporation, presents Heuer’s Aquastar Regate at Intrepid skipper Emile “Bus” Mosbacher
(Right) U.S.Intrepid (US22), victory in America's Cup Race against Australia's challenger (left) Dame Pattie.
Heuer's Aquastar Regate Intrepid
Heuer celebrated Intrepid's victory by introducing the Skipper, a completely new model chronograph.
Compressor Case ref. 7764
Although the Skipper's first execution was a colorful tribute to Intrepid's defense of the America's Cup in the America's Cup, Heuer quickly moved the Skipper model into a new case better suited for yacht timing: the compressor case of Autavia (ref. 7763). The tough case provided superior waterproofing over the screw-back Carrera. The caseback was marked with the guarantee that has appeared on every Autavia since 1962: "Waterproof Guaranteed, 330 Feet Below Water". A 40mm Autavia Case was also better suited for yachtsmen and had a larger countdown register to increase legibility.
Heuer changed the colour scheme of the Skipper with the Autavia move. The dial and running seconds recorder were made in black and the chronograph countdown recorder was divided into three sections - red, blue, and white.
Skipper Compression case REF. 7764
Skippers in the 1970s - Manual and Automatic
Heuer's catalog changed drastically in 1969 with the introduction of the Chronomatic/Calibre11 automatic movement for its chronographs. New C-shape case designs were created for the Autavia as well as the Carrera to accommodate the larger modular movement. The Skipper did not experience any immediate changes, and remained in its Autavia compressor box. However, Heuer started using C-shape boxes for manual-wind movements around 1972, and the Skipper (ref. It arrived at its third home, 73464.
The dial and bezel colours returned to the original deep-blue of the first Skipper. Red, white, and blue continued for the countdown recorder. The time-of day hands were bright orange, which was consistent with the orange accent on the chronograph hand of the first Skipper. All future Skipper models will have a date added at 6 o’clock.
The first automatic skipper (ref. The first automatic Skipper (ref. 1564) was introduced by Heuer in 1972. The Calibre 15's 30-minute capacity was also modified to supply the Skipper with the 15-minute countdown.roger dubuis replica The ref. was produced later in the process. 73464 Skippers: The red-white-blue sequence in the countdown recorder was changed to white-blue, and this new sequence was used for the rest of the Skipper production.
Skipper ref. 15640, introduced 1972
Bigger Cases for Mineral Crystals
Heuer altered the case for the automatic Autavia towards the end 1972 so it could accommodate a mineral crystal. These cases (ref. These cases (ref. 15640 for Skipper) have a more prominent profile than earlier C-shape models, and have a thicker black flange between crystal and dial.
Heuer introduced a new ref. in 1978. 15640 Skipper has a gloss-black dial that contrasts with the brightly-colored time-of-day hands. To match the dial, the bezel was returned to black.
