Panerai Luminor Forged Titanium PAM01629 Watch Review
At Watches & Wonders 2026, Panerai has released a series of horological double acts, including the Luminor Forged Titanium PAM01629, a limited edition of 100 pieces, and the Luminor PAM01735. While each model has its own unique characteristics, both references subscribe to the ‘form follows function’ principle. Mark McArthur-Christie, a confessed Paneristi, shares his observations.
Image – Panerai Luminor Forged Titanium PAM01629
Panerai – form follows function
It is the pervading law of all things organic and inorganic, of all things physical and metaphysical, of all things human and all things superhuman, of all true manifestations of the head, of the heart, of the soul, that the life is recognisable in its expression, that form ever follows function. This is the law.”
That was the view of the American architect, Louis Sullivan, sometimes called ‘The Father of Skyscrapers’ and coiner of the axiom ‘form follows function’. He could just as easily have been writing about Panerai.
Yes, there are a few variants, but in the minds of most people, Panerai really makes two watches – the Radiomir and the Luminor. And you’d be hard-pressed to find two others that are a clearer expression of Sullivan’s idea.
Both were designed for military use underwater, so used large cases with screw-down or lever-down crowns, housing large dials (easier to see) with a heavy dose of luminosity (same again). No fuss to distract from the job in hand, no fripperies and no faff. You know what you’re getting with a Panerai – a solid, easy-to-read watch that will survive anything you throw at it (and probably put a sizeable dent in anything you throw it at).
Image – Panerai Luminor Forged Titanium PAM01629
Panerai Luminor Forged Titanium PAM01629 and Luminor PAM01735 – two new additions to the fleet
And now there are two more watches to add to the fleet – the PAM01735 and the PAM01629. The 01735 is a classic 47 mm Luminor with a stainless steel case and a dial reminiscent of Panerai’s early ref. 6154. The 01629 is a little more of a departure for the maker, with a 47 mm case but this time in forged titanium; so just as solid, but you’ll burn fewer calories telling the time.
Image – Panerai Luminor PAM01735
Panerai Luminor – crown protection bridge
These days, the Luminor case is familiar to most watch obsessives. But when it was patented in Italy in 1955 (1956 in the USA) it was truly groundbreaking. In the 1950s, watch waterproofing was well-established but still developing. Earlier PAMs (the 3646 for example) had used lead case seals and screw down crowns. The ‘Tight Seal Device’, with the now characteristic lever pivoting in the crown guard, was something very new indeed. And it was effective too – 200 m water resistance straight out of the box.
Now, the characteristic crown guard is the simple way to tell a Luminor from a Radiomir, but it has very practical benefits too. It protects the winding crown in two ways. First, the steel shroud around the crown deflects knocks, scrapes and accidental damage. Then, the locking lever (raise to wind and close to seal) pushes the crown into the case, snug against the gasket, to make a watertight seal when you close it. That means less wear as there’s no crown tube thread to wear out. It also completely removes the risk of any ham-fisted types cross-threading it.
Image – Panerai Luminor PAM01735
Panerai Luminor Forged Titanium PAM01629 and Luminor PAM01735 – P.3000 calibre
Behind the crown, and unlike the early watches, the PAM01735 and PAM01629 don’t feature an Angelus, Cortebert or a Rolex movement, instead they use the latest incarnation of Panerai’s own P.3000 calibre.
Image – Panerai Luminor Forged Titanium PAM01629
This hand-wound movement is a neat glance back to the past, measuring 16 ½ lignes (approximately 37.22 mm), just like the early movements used by Panerai. These were usually around 16 – 20 lignes (a ligne was, of course, a fraction of a pied). The reason they were so much bigger than, say, an ETA 2824 at 11 ½ lignes was because they’d been designed for pocketwatch cases (the same reason some early Panerais had sub-seconds dials at 9 – imagine a pocket watch turned through 90 degrees). Why? To support a large dial (easier to read) and to be robust and easy to work on.
Despite the size, if you wanted proof that a movement as reliable as a tractor doesn’t need to look like the back end of one, here it is. The earliest P.3000s had just two large train and barrel bridges as well as a balance bridge. This newest version uses a large barrel bridge, two smaller bridges for the going train and escapement and a balance bridge.
Image – Panerai Luminor PAM01735
The bridges themselves are brushed and have bevelled edges and polished jewel sinks. Where you can see the movement through the sapphire caseback, the baseplate is decorated with perlage. It’s far from fussy, fits the whole form and function thing and has a solid, reliable, well-finished look that suits the watch well.
It’s a three day movement and uses two spring barrels in series (hence the size of that barrel bridge) and is manually wound. The time you spend on winding you can save on setting – it has a quick-change hour that moves independently of the minute hand, just by pulling the crown out to the first click position.
Panerai Luminor PAM01735 – dial
The standout feature of the PAM01735 is the dial. Panerai is as much about its dials as it is about its cases. After all, the names of their two main collections – Radiomir and Luminor – come from the luminous compounds the firm used for their dials until the early 1960s. The 01735’s dial is intended to evoke ‘.. the soft transformation of dark dials into warm tones, a natural evolution caused by time, natural exposure to the sunlight, and the luminous material once used’. Panerai has matched the vintage tone and texture with vintage-style pencil hands.
Image – Panerai Luminor PAM01735
Panerai Luminor Forged Titanium PAM01629 and Luminor PAM01735 – cases
If you’re looking for a watch that’s still properly in the Panerai tradition but with a difference, the PAM01735’s partner might fit. Rather than the more usual stainless steel, the PAM01629’s case is cut from forged titanium. The process involves heating and hammering two different grades of the metal until they meld, with a final finishing process to show off the striations between them. Because of the forging process, no two watches are alike, so you get that rarest of things – a unique production watch.
Panerai knows what it’s doing when it comes to titanium cases. It’s been working with the metal since 1985 when it unveiled the first Mille Metri prototype, a watch capable of withstanding ‘more than one hundred atmospheres of pressure’, hence its name. The Italian-Swiss brand has subsequently produced several titanium watches over the years.
Image – Panerai Luminor Forged Titanium PAM01629
Producing the entire case – mid-case, bezel, crown protective bridge and lever – from titanium means not only a watch with high strength and corrosion resistance, but one that’s 40% lighter than a steel cased model. So, despite being a characteristically chunky 47 mm, you won’t strain anything by checking the time.
The grey of the titanium case matches the anthracite sun-brushed dial and the lume requirements are looked after by beige Super-LumiNova on the hands and the large, sandwich numerals. This one is as easy to see at night as it is during the day; handy for those of us who tend to squint at some dials nowadays.
Panerai Luminor Forged Titanium PAM01629 and Luminor PAM01735 – water resistance 10 bar
Water resistance for both the stainless case of the PAM01735 and the titanium PAM01629 is identical at 10 bar (~100 meters), although the firm actually tests deeper than that, making sure each watch exceeds its guaranteed rating by 25%. The process involves assembling the watch, followed by an initial vacuum unit test. After all, if you’ve got it wrong at this stage and something’s leaking, it’s better to find out in a vacuum tester than under water pressure. If the watch passes that, it’s straight into a water-filled test unit that replicates its target pressure, plus the 25%. Every watch goes through this process. The firm also uses tougher tests that verify the watertightness of a watch where the case and gaskets have undergone a simulated 10 years of ageing.
Panerai Luminor – tool watch
Panerai tends to take the whole ‘tool watch’ thing seriously, even if most Paneristi are more likely to be deep-diving an Excel spreadsheet nowadays. That extends to the way they fix straps to Radiomirs. Spring bars are fine, but it’s still remarkably easy to pop one and lose a watch. So the screw-in bars on a PAM are not just tool-y but a downright sensible idea. You’d have to try pretty hard to knock or shake them loose. The other major benefit for the ham-fisted is the simplicity with which they can unscrew a bar, rather than butchering a watch case with a spring bar tool, too little ability and too much enthusiasm.
Panerai Luminor Forged Titanium PAM01629 and Luminor PAM01735 – straps & boxes
Strapwise, the PAM01735 arrives on a dark brown calf leather strap with beige stitching and a serious, no-messing trapezoidal steel buckle. You also get a black rubber strap. Its titanium partner turns up with a beige calf scamosciato (suede to you, guv) strap with white stitching and this time a trapezoidal buckle in titanium. There’s a black rubber strap in the box too – sometimes PAM leather straps are just too nice to spoil.
Talking of boxes, it would be good if a few other makers nip down to their local Panerai shop and look at the packaging in which the firm sends out its watches. Yes, a screwdriver to change the strap is handy (it ensures the correct size is used and thus avoids the case massacre mentioned above), but look at the quality of the watch boxes: proper screwed-in hinges, real joints and lacquer polish you can see your face in.
Closing remarks
Technology, materials and movements may have come a long way since the first military Luminors and Radiomirs saw the water, but their form still follows just the same function.
Further reading
Technical Specifications
- Model: Panerai Luminor Forged Titanium PAM01629
- Case: forged titanium case, bezel and crown protecting bridge, 47 mm diameter, water resistance 10 ATM (100m), sapphire crystal to the front and exhibition caseback
- Functions: Hours, minutes
- Movement: P.3000 calibre, hand-wound movement, frequency 21,600 vph (3 Hz), 21 jewels, power reserve 3 days
- Strap: light beige calf leather strap with beige stitching and trapezoidal titanium buckle. Also supplied with an additional black rubber strap.
- Price: £19,800 (RRP as of 14.4.2026)
- Limited Edition: 100 pieces
- Model: Panerai Luminor PAM01735
- Case: polished steel case, bezel and crown protecting bridge, 47 mm diameter, water resistance 10 ATM (100m), sapphire crystal to the front and exhibition caseback
- Functions: Hours, minutes, small seconds
- Movement: P.3000 calibre, hand-wound movement, frequency 21,600 vph (3 Hz), 21 jewels, power reserve 3 days
- Strap: dark brown calf leather strap with beige stitching and trapezoidal titanium buckle. Also supplied with an additional black rubber strap.
- Price: £10,400 (RRP as of 14.4.2026)
