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IWC · Family: Portugieser Chronograph

IWC Portugieser Chronograph IW371617

The IWC Portugieser Chronograph IW371617 is IWC's in-house automatic chronograph in a 41mm steel case, with a silvered dial, black sub-dials, and a date window at 6 o'clock. It runs Calibre 69355, a column-wheel movement with IWC's Pellaton winding system, delivering roughly 46 hours of power reserve. Cazador has no verified price observations. Its differential: it replaced an older ébauche-based caliber with a column-wheel chronograph fully developed in-house by IWC.

Specifications

Case diameter
41 mm
Case material
Stainless steel
Movement
IWC Calibre 69355, in-house, automatic, column wheel, bidirectional Pellaton winding
Power reserve
~46 hours
Water resistance
30 m
Dial
Silvered/opaline, black sub-dials (12-hour counter at 12, small seconds at 9), date window at 6
Crystal
Sapphire
Strap
Leather, steel deployant buckle [UNVERIFIED: exact leather color not precisely confirmed in this source]
Launch year
[UNVERIFIED] — exact introduction year of this specific reference within the Portugieser Chronograph family not precisely confirmed in this source
Status
[UNVERIFIED] — verify against IWC's most recent catalog before publishing

Price & trend

Insufficient data

3 of 5 price observations needed to show a reliable range

Insufficient data: 3 PricePoint observations recorded as of today. Cazador does not estimate or infer a market range without sourced data.

History

The Portugieser line traces back to an unusual brief: in 1939, two Portuguese merchants asked IWC for wristwatches with the accuracy of a pocket watch, which forced the manufacture to house a larger pocket-watch-grade movement inside a wristwatch case — hence the generous size and uncluttered dial that still define the entire Portugieser family today.

The Portugieser Chronograph, within that family, has gone through several generations of movement. This reference, the IW371617, runs IWC's Calibre 69355, a column-wheel automatic chronograph developed and manufactured entirely in-house, which replaced earlier generations built on a modified ébauche base.

A distinctive technical element of the Calibre 69355 is the Pellaton winding system, devised by IWC watchmaker Albert Pellaton in the 1950s for automatic winding: a pawl-based mechanism that harvests energy from the rotor's motion in both directions of rotation, unlike systems that only wind on one swing. IWC has retained and refined this system across its more recent in-house calibers.

This reference's dial follows the classic Portugieser Chronograph layout: a silvered or opaline base, two black sub-dials — a 12-hour counter at 12 o'clock and small seconds at 9 — and a date window at 6, a feature absent from the model's earliest generations and added in later ones.

Rated to 30 meters of water resistance, the Portugieser Chronograph isn't built as a dive watch or for intensive technical use — it's a dress chronograph from a manufacture, meant for daily wear and formal occasions alike.

Frequently asked questions

How much does an IWC Portugieser Chronograph IW371617 cost?

Cazador has no verified PricePoint observations for this reference, so we cannot publish a reliable market range.

What is the difference between Calibre 69355 and earlier Portugieser Chronograph movements?

Our sourced data confirms Calibre 69355 is a column-wheel chronograph developed and manufactured entirely in-house by IWC, while earlier generations of the model used a modified ébauche base. A detailed reference-by-reference comparison is not part of the input consulted here.

What is the Pellaton winding system on the IWC Portugieser?

It's a pawl-based automatic winding mechanism, devised by watchmaker Albert Pellaton in the 1950s, that winds the mainspring using rotor motion in both directions of rotation.

How much power reserve does the IWC Calibre 69355 have?

Approximately 46 hours, per the manufacture data consulted for this fiche.

Where is the date window on the Portugieser Chronograph IW371617?

The date window sits at 6 o'clock, between the chronograph's two sub-dials (12-hour counter at 12, small seconds at 9).

Is the IWC Portugieser Chronograph suitable for diving?

No. Rated to 30 meters of water resistance, it covers daily wear and splashes but isn't built as a technical dive watch.

Is the IWC Portugieser Chronograph IW371617 still in production?

We do not precisely confirm this in this fiche; verify against IWC's most recent catalog before assuming current availability.