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Longines Master Collection 35mm Automatic Mens Watch
Ref. L26284576
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Stepping up in the same colour and case shape
The Master Collection has always sat at the formal end of Longines's range — a dress watch built around restraint, where decoration is kept to what can be justified. Here the justification is twelve Top Wesselton VS-SI diamonds, each one a dot marker set into the black lacquered dial. At 0.055 carats across the twelve, they are not there to impress from across the room; they are what you notice when the dial catches light at the right angle. The movement inside has been updated from the ETA-derived calibre that earlier versions carried, and the difference is felt rather than seen. The L888 runs at 25,200 vibrations per hour — slower than the standard 28,800 — and that unhurried beat is part of what allows it to sustain 72 hours of reserve, well beyond what a Friday-to-Monday wrist asks of it. At 9.2mm thick, the case sits low enough to disappear under a shirt cuff, which is precisely where this kind of watch belongs. The hands are silver-tone leaf, with no lume — appropriate, given where the watch is likely to be worn, but worth knowing. The bracelet closes with a triple-safety folding clasp, and the links size through pin-and-collar channels rather than a tool-required system, which makes adjustment practical rather than ceremonial.
- Reference
- L26284576
- Brand
- Longines
- Collection
- Master Collection
- Case size
- 35mm
- Case thickness
- 9.20mm
- Lug width
- 20mm
- Case material
- Stainless steel
- Case shape
- Round
- Dial
- Black
- Crystal
- Sapphire
- Movement
- Automatic
- Calibre
- ETA 2892
- Functions
- Date
- Water resistance
- 30m
- Bracelet / strap
- Stainless steel bracelet
- Strap colour
- Silver
- Clasp
- Folding clasp
- Lume
- Luminous
- Condition
- Ex-display
- Retailer
- Goldsmiths
Additional specifications
- Lug-to-lug
- 44.50mm
- Power reserve
- 72 hours
Learn more about Longines
Auguste Agassiz began trading watches in Saint-Imier in 1832, but the modern company dates from 1860, when his nephew Ernest Francillon built a factory in the meadows beside the Suze — the longines of the local dialect — and consolidated the scattered outworkers of the region under one roof.
Longines registered its winged hourglass in 1889. It is the oldest watch trademark still in continuous use.
The company's identity was built on precision and on timing things in public. It supplied chronographs for the first modern Olympic events it timed in 1896, timed the 1912 Federal Gymnastics Festival with a broken-wire mechanism accurate to a hundredth of a second, and developed the photo-finish camera and the quartz timing devices used across twentieth-century athletics.
Its aviation associations are equally deep. Longines instruments were carried by Charles Lindbergh across the Atlantic in 1927, and the Hour Angle watch, designed to Lindbergh's own specification to simplify longitude calculation, remains in the catalogue. Amelia Earhart and Howard Hughes both navigated by Longines.
The house was among the most decorated at nineteenth-century observatory trials, holding numerous precision records. Since joining the Swatch Group in 1983 it has occupied the accessible-heritage position: exclusive ETA-based movements, archive-driven designs through the Heritage line, and volume that makes it one of the group's most important brands.
- 1860
- Ernest Francillon builds the factory at Les Longines.
- 1889
- The winged hourglass is registered — the oldest watch trademark in use.
- 1912
- Broken-wire timing achieves hundredth-second accuracy.
- 1927
- Lindbergh crosses the Atlantic with Longines instruments.
- 1983
- Becomes part of the Swatch Group.
Also in 4 collections
This watch appears in Stainless Steel Watches (2,953), Watches Under 37mm (1,579), Automatic Watches (1,324) and Pre-Owned, Ex-Display & Vintage Watches (100).
Manufacturer’s guarantee
What the specifications mean
A mechanical watch for everyday wear.
Strengths
- 35mm suits most wrists
- Sapphire crystal, which resists scratching
- 72-hour reserve survives a weekend off the wrist
- Luminous hands and markers for low light
- Sits in the lower half of Longines's range as we list it
Worth knowing
- 30m means keeping it away from water
Compare alternatives
Watches from other brands at a similar price, style and size, so you can see what else your budget can buy.
| Specification | L26284576 | 01 733 7813 4151-07 5 | T9312074103101 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £1,763 | £1,750 | £1,825 |
| Case size | 35mm | 35mm | 35mm |
| Water resistance | 30m | 50m | 100m |
| Movement | Automatic | Automatic | Automatic |
| Strap | Stainless steel bracelet | Leather strap | Stainless steel bracelet |
| Power reserve | 72 hours | 41 hours | 80 hours |
| This watch |
|
|
Your new watch
Frequently asked questions, and things you should know about this watch
Can I swim with it?
No. At 30m it will survive rain and handwashing, but not submersion of any kind.
Will the glass scratch?
Unlikely. Sapphire is second only to diamond in hardness and shrugs off everyday marking.
Does it need a battery?
No. It is automatic — the motion of your wrist winds it, and there is no cell to replace.
How long does it run for when it's not worn?
About 72 hours fully wound — enough to sit off the wrist over a weekend and still be running.
What size strap does it take?
20mm. Any strap of that width will fit, and on most modern watches quick-release bars make the swap a two-minute job with no tools.
Will it fit my wrist?
Lug-to-lug is 44.50mm, which suits wrists from roughly 16cm (6¼ inches) upward.
Lug-to-lug decides fit more than case diameter does.
Is it a men's or women's watch?
Listed as men's, though at 35mm it sits in the range that suits anyone.
Cheapest place to buy
Goldsmiths at £1,763, ex-display. No UK retailer we track lists this reference new.
Is this available new?
Not from the UK retailers we track. This reference is listed as ex-display only, at £1,763 from Goldsmiths. Ex-display watches are unworn shop stock rather than second-hand — sold below the recommended retail price, and with the manufacturer’s guarantee intact.
Who are Goldsmiths?
Goldsmiths has been selling watches in Britain since 1778 and is part of the Watches of Switzerland Group, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange. They are an authorised dealer, so a watch comes with the manufacturer’s own warranty.
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