The stainless steel sports watch continues to reign supreme in the realm of horology and for IWC Schaffhausen, their Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph leads the genre in their portfolio. We’re very fortunate that for this week’s hands-on review, we’re getting up close and personal with one of the same; the Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph found under reference IW390703. That’s the one with the two-toned steel and 18ct rose gold case, a crisp white dial and full metal bracelet.
The IWC Portugieser Yacht Club
IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph IW390703 - Credit WatchGecko
The story of the IWC Portugieser is one of my favourites. It all began during the 1930’s when two Portuguese businessmen approached IWC with a request for a large, highly accurate wristwatch with the precision of a marine chronometer. In response, IWC introduced the first Portugieser watch in 1939, it boasted a large case and a pocket watch movement with high levels of accuracy. It was a clean, timeless-looking watch with a simple dial, Arabic numerals and slim leaf-shaped hands – characteristics still well-known in today’s Portugieser collection.
Fast forward to the 1960s, and the demand for yachting and sailing watches was growing so IWC decided to merge the elegance of the Portugieser with the functionality of a nautical timepiece, giving rise to the IWC Yacht Club collection. The Yacht Club models are ultimately the sporty brothers of the dressier Portugieser designs, offering increased water resistance and rubber strap options.
IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph IW390703 - Credit WatchGecko
2020 was a fairly big year for the Portugieser family as the collection was completely singled out by the Swiss watchmaker to be revamped and revitalised. Proportions were reduced ever so slightly, improvements were made to the glass and more importantly, almost the entirety of the collection now utilised in-house movements, further increasing the value propositions of these watches.
These updates also included those in the Yacht Club line-up and one of the first models to be launched as part of the updated series was reference IW390703, the very model we’re getting hands-on with today.
The IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph IW390703
IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph IW390703 - Credit WatchGecko
The IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronographs are the biggest models in the Portugieser family, which makes sense since these are designed to be robust, water resistant sports watches after all. That said, the dimensions do feel a little outdated and this was my initial reaction when I tried on the IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph IW390703 for myself.
I’m not someone who can pull off a watch larger than 42mm, but even so, the 44.6mm width of the IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph feels big even for a sports watch. These days, people seem to be opting for slightly smaller watches between the 36mm and 42mm mark. That said, this is a watch that packs a punch in its visuals and the sizing assists with that – especially its tall 53.5mm lug-to-lug size.
While tall and wide, something that did surprise me about the case was the height. It appears slimmer than the 14.3mm dimensions marked on the watch’s specifications. The downturned, tear-drop shaped lugs help with this as does the finishing used on the stainless steel components. In this instance, the case sides and steel bracelet links are brushed while the top side of the lugs, 18ct rose gold bezel, crown guards, and rose gold bracelet links are polished.
The IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph IW390703 watch lives up to its name as a nautical companion and offers a 100 metre water resistant rating assisted by a screw down crown with integrated pushers. On either side of the crown, two classically shaped piston chronograph pushers allow you to manipulate the complication on display. There’s also sapphire crystal glass on the top and back.
The dial of the IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph IW390703 watch is really nicely executed. Despite displaying a whole lot of functionality, it still manages to keep things clean and tidy. The display is white and set with raised, 18ct rose gold Arabic numerals each paired with their own slightly luminescent index. To match, the leaf-shaped central hands for the hours and minutes are luminous and sit beside a slim chronograph seconds hand in 18ct rose gold.
IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph IW390703 - Credit WatchGecko
The display also presents a 60 minute track around the periphery which leads down to the Portugieser’s traditional printed railroad track in black. To match, black printing is used on the scales for the small seconds, joined by a bright red hand and integrated date window, and the clever 12 o’clock counter for both the chronograph’s minutes and hours. It is ingenious integrations like this that helps to keep the IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph looking so tidy.
Fuelling the IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph IW390703 watch is the in-house 89361 automatic winding movement. This is where more of the updates for the Portugieser can be found. It comes with a four pawl, rather than a two pawl, Pellaton winding system and arrives with a 68 hour power reserve when fully wound. There are also 38 jewels, a frequency of 28,800vph and some very attractive Côtes de Genève decoration visible through the case back.
IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph IW390703 - Credit WatchGecko
Before today, I always thought of the IWC Portugieser Yacht Club as sporty and nautical, as it should be with a name like that. So, when reference IW390703 arrived on, I was surprised at just how dressy it wore. We all know a strap can change the look of a watch dramatically, and that’s definitely the case here. The two-toned stainless steel and 18ct rose gold bracelet makes this watch feel flashy and luxurious.
Don’t let that put you off though. The addition of the bracelet allows this model to be an almost perfect blend of some of IWC’s more aggressive sports watches and their more stereotypically sophisticated dress watches. Plus, if you do prefer a more casual, laid-back look, you could easily swap out this bracelet for one of rubber or textile.
Conclusion
IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph IW390703 - Credit WatchGecko
There have been several occasions in my career where I have had to pinch myself to remind myself my job is real. Being sent an IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph to review, one in 18ct rose gold with full two-toned bracelet, was one of these occasions. I’ve not had much hands-on time with IWC before, so this was a real treat.
It’s a beautiful watch with incredible finishing and a top-end movement to match. Reference IW390703 is definitely the dressiest model out of the current line-up, but it’s a wonderful example of sports elegance and I have no doubt it will suit those with a love of large, flashy watches. While it might not be one to recommend to newbies in the watch collecting world, or those with smaller wrists, it’s certainly one deserving of many collector’s bucket lists.
The IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph IW390703 is part of the Swiss watchmaker’s permanent collection and is available for £17,800.
Technical Specifications:
- Brand: IWC Schaffhausen
- Model: Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph IW390703
- Price: £17,800
- Material: Stainless steel & 18ct rose gold
- Movement: In-house calibre 89361 automatic winding
- Complications: Hours, minutes, small seconds, chronograph seconds, minutes and hours
- Dial: White with 18ct rose gold hands and numerals
- Size: 44.6mm wide, 14.3mm tall
- Strap: Two-toned bracelet
- Water Resistance: 100 metres
- Glass: Sapphire crystal
