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Longines Spirit Zulu Time 39mm Mens Watch Blue
Ref. L38024932
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Stepping up in the same colour and case shape
The Spirit collection is Longines invoking its own aviation and exploration history — the brand supplied instruments to record-breaking pilots and expeditions through the early twentieth century, and the Zulu Time is the GMT expression of that lineage, its name taken from the universal time reference that pilots still use. The L844.4 that runs it is COSC-certified and carries a silicon balance spring, which means it holds its rate against magnetic fields that would trouble a conventional lever escapement and backs that up with a 72-hour reserve. At 39mm with a lug-to-lug of 46.8mm, this sits noticeably closer to the wrist than the 42mm version in the same family, and the leather strap keeps the overall mass well down from what a bracelet would add. The GMT here is the more useful kind: local time can be pushed forward or back in single-hour steps without touching the running seconds or home time, which matters in practice when you cross a time zone at the airport rather than at a desk. The sunray blue dial and the ceramic bezel read as a matched set rather than two departments of the watch working independently. The deployant clasp has a built-in micro-adjustment, so fit can be changed by a few millimetres without tools — a small thing that becomes relevant as leather stretches across a warm summer.
- Reference
- L38024932
- Brand
- Longines
- Collection
- Spirit
- Case size
- 39mm
- Case thickness
- 13.5mm
- Lug width
- 21mm
- Case material
- Stainless steel
- Case shape
- Round
- Dial
- Blue
- Crystal
- Sapphire
- Bezel
- Bidirectional rotating
- Movement
- Automatic
- Calibre
- ETA A31.L411
- Functions
- GMT, Date
- Water resistance
- 100m
- Bracelet / strap
- Leather strap
- Strap colour
- Blue
- Clasp
- Deployant clasp
- Lume
- Super-LumiNova
- Retailer
- Goldsmiths
Additional specifications
- Lug-to-lug
- 46.8mm
- 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 6 collections
This watch appears in Stainless Steel Watches (2,425), Automatic Watches (1,203), Leather Strap Watches (767), Blue Dial Watches (640), Dress Watches (349) and GMT Watches (154).
Manufacturer’s guarantee
What the specifications mean
A mechanical watch for everyday wear.
Strengths
- 100m water resistance covers swimming and watersports
- 39mm suits most wrists
- Sapphire crystal, which resists scratching
- 72-hour reserve survives a weekend off the wrist
- Luminous hands and markers for low light
Worth knowing
- Leather does not suit regular contact with 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 | L38024932 |  01 771 7791 4054-07 8 20 18 |  SLA087J1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £2,900 | £2,840 | £2,900 |
| Case size | 39mm | 40mm | 41mm |
| Water resistance | 100m | 100m | 100m |
| Movement | Automatic | Automatic | Automatic |
| Strap | Leather strap | Stainless steel bracelet | Stainless steel bracelet |
| Power reserve | 72 hours | 48 hours | 72 hours |
| This watch | Closely matched |
|
Your new watch
Frequently asked questions, and things you should know about this watch
Can I swim with it?
Yes. At 100m it is rated for swimming and snorkelling, though not for diving.
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?
21mm. 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 46.8mm, 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 39mm it sits in the range that suits anyone.
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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