Nicknamed the “Navy,” this piece comes from the generation that made the Offshore wearable every day instead of only on occasions. Anyone who loved the line back when it scandalized Switzerland tends to land here once they want the attitude without the argument. Charisma ages well.

Presents itself in mint condition with little to no signs of wear. Stamped with the “Méga Tapisserie” waffle pattern, the blue dial catches light in hundreds of tiny squares and shifts from midnight to steel. Framed by an octagonal bezel and eight hexagonal screws, the stainless steel case plays brushed tops against mirror-polished bevels. Set behind sapphire, the caseback opens onto a 22k gold rotor engraved with the Audemars and Piguet family crests.

Functions include hours, minutes, small seconds, date, chronograph, and tachymeter. Sitting at three o’clock between two guards is a black ceramic screw-down crown, unlocked with a few turns counterclockwise. After a month resting, wind thirty turns, pull the crown one click and set the date to yesterday, then pull a second click and walk the hands past midnight to today. Push the crown back in and screw it down to lock water resistance at 100 meters, sealing in the self-winding calibre 3126/3840 and its 50 hours of power reserve. Above and below it sit ceramic pushers, the top one starting and stopping the orange chronograph hand, the bottom one snapping it and the counters at nine and six o’clock back to zero.

Comes as a full set, double-boxed with warranty booklet, instruction manual, quick user guide, Audemars Piguet hang tag, and document folio.

Long out of production, this execution never carried over into the current lineup. Collectors chasing that era usually want it complete, and complete is the part that takes years to find. Sets like this rarely get easier to buy by waiting.