The Swordfish is a very unique design. The “eyes” of the two chronograph totalizers are not only unique, they are unprecedented. Certainly difficult and expensive from a manufacturing standpoint, the stainless steel frames (which look like eyes) are “inserted” into the sapphire crystal, which is definitely not something that a Swiss supplier had thought to do to that point. This one element alone was doubtlessly the result of a great deal of research and development and one factor in the relatively high price of this watch. These eyeball-like totalizers also provide for instant recognition: if someone is already familiar with Graham, he or she will be able to tell from a great distance which watch this is. I noticed throughout my test period, however, that many people were unfamiliar with both the modern brand and the iconic historical English watchmaker for which it was named: George Graham (1673-1751).
This watch's stainless steel case is outfitted with one of the nicest screw-in crowns I have ever used. When screwing it in and out, it makes a nice little noise so you know you are actually screwing it. The pushers are extremely well made and do not “poke” the finger thanks to their concave shape. In order to accommodate the “eyes,” the case size likely had to be at least the 46 mm this watch measures in diameter. This in itself is not a problem, but in conjunction with the diamond setting it almost seems like “too much” to someone who may be used to wearing less obvious timepieces. An understated watch this is not! I wore it in the grey color scheme, but it is also available in black or white, with matching dial and strap.
That having been said, the size of the watch is barely noticeable because the lugs and strap are so cleverly laid out. The lugs are curved downward for a snug fit, even on a small wrist like mine. The crocodile skin strap is reinforced in the lug area, which keeps it positioned downward even when it's new, making it feel far less stiff than new straps often do.
The grey dial in sunray polish is very elegant. This is enhanced by the delicate minuterie containing 12 dainty diamonds and the two oversized, gem-set Roman numerals, which also provide great balance to the dial. The absence of a bezel – which would never fit with “eyes” anyway – gives the dial a large and open appearance. While the dial is beautiful, there are perhaps two small disadvantages to it. One is the openworked silver-colored hands; on the masculine version of this watch, these are inlaid with Super-LumiNova to make the dial legible at night. I find the hands better off without the Super-LumiNova inlay to retain the elegant feel, but they are indeed very hard to read in adverse lighting conditions – the trade-off for elegance. Secondly, the totalizers do block the view of the hands sometimes, but since you have to look so carefully at the dial to see the hands anyway, this is also not a problem and something one gets used to quickly.
Adding diamonds to the Swordfish, a watch already heavily marked with character, was a bold move. The first gem-set Swordfish was the Ali Baba, which I thought was a fascinating watch with all its sparkling color. The diamond addition here, too, is appealing to women who like the extra shine – in fact, every woman I met while wearing this watch commented on it very quickly, which is highly unusual. Framing the dial on the stepped part of the case where the bezel generally would be, there are two rows of diamonds. The lugs are embellished with two rows of larger diamonds, and the entire watch boasts almost 4 ct of diamonds – 319 stones in total. While the bulkiness of the Swordfish case in conjunction with the elegance of the dial and diamonds is a visually appealing match, I have to say that I sometimes had a hard time figuring out what to wear with it. Perhaps it is a question of personal style, but it often felt awkward to wear it with elegant clothes, yet like too much with jeans – often making me feel like others might think I was wearing trendy Rhinestones on a cheap watch – which this decidedly is not. Retailing for 29,700 Swiss francs, it is quite an investment actually.
The Valjoux-based chronograph movement pepped up by La Joux-Perret (Graham's joint venture partner) is a most reliable caliber and the timekeeping accuracy was impeccable. A nice detail is the fact that the running seconds is located on the same subdial as the 12-hour counter, which keeps the displays very clean.
