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Longines Weems Second-Setting 47.5mm Mens Watch
Ref. L27138110
Sits in Longines’s upper tier here — more premium than three quarters of the Longines watches we list, which start at £1,050.
Price range £1,050 to £22,850 across 194 Longines watches in stock.The original Weems system dates to 1929, when Philip Van Horn Weems devised a method for pilots to synchronise their watches to a radio time signal mid-flight by spinning an inner disc against the fixed seconds track — a practical solution to a genuine problem of early aerial navigation. Longines was instrumental in producing the watches that made that method work, and this piece is a faithful reconstruction of that instrument in solid 18ct rose gold, down to the rotating silvered inner disc that gives the Weems its name. At 47.5mm across and 58.2mm lug to lug, it wears as the original instrument wore: large, commanding, and unmistakably purposeful. The white lacquered dial with Roman numerals reads clearly at a glance, which is precisely what it was designed to do. The L699 movement draws on the ETA Valgranges A07.161, an oversized calibre engineered specifically so that the movement architecture scales properly to a case of this diameter rather than floating lost inside it — the result is mechanically stable and beats at 28,800vph. At 161.7 grams in solid gold, this is not a watch that disappears on the wrist. Rather than applying luminous compound, the dial relies entirely on its high-contrast layout for legibility — consistent with the original's appearance and, in a watch kept for its historical fidelity, the correct choice.
- Reference
- L27138110
- Brand
- Longines
- Collection
- Heritage AvigationCase Size: 47
- Case size
- 47.5mm
- Case thickness
- 15.5mm
- Lug width
- 25mm
- Case material
- Rose gold
- Case shape
- Round
- Dial
- White
- Crystal
- Sapphire
- Bezel
- Bidirectional rotating
- Movement
- Automatic
- Calibre
- L699
- Functions
- Small seconds
- Water resistance
- 30m
- Bracelet / strap
- Leather strap
- Strap colour
- Brown
- Clasp
- Buckle
- Lume
- Luminous
- Retailer
- Goldsmiths
Additional specifications
- Lug-to-lug
- 58.20mm
- Power reserve
- 46 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.
Manufacturer’s guarantee
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 46 hours fully wound — enough to survive a night off the wrist, but not a full weekend.
What size strap does it take?
25mm. 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 58.20mm, which suits wrists from roughly 18.5cm (7¼ 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.
Cheapest place to buy
Goldsmiths is the only UK retailer we track stocking this reference, so there is nothing to compare it against today.
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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