Time stands still for a Swiss-made timepiece from Heuer of Manhattan
The delicate instruments needed for precision timing in various sports are in abundant supply at the Heuer Timer Corporation of 441 Lexington Ave., New York. Heuer (rhymes with lawyer) is the U.S. representative of the Heuer-Leonidas company of Biel-Bienne, Switzerland, a manufacturer of precision timepieces since 1860. The Swiss factory where the Heuer timers and chronographs are made employs more than 130 specialists in these mechanisms. The complete line includes 1/5-to 1/100-second timers for sports, and for medical and industrial uses; pocket and wrist chronographs; and dashboard instruments for auto-rally enthusiasts. All Heuer timers have jeweled movements, unbreakable mainsprings, and are antimagnetic.
A timer does not tell the time of day, of course; it is designed to run for only a few hours without rewinding. A large central hand moves forward at the rate of 1/5, 1/10, 1/50 or 1/100 second, and a smaller hand records up to 30 or 60 minutes. The hands can be started, stopped and returned to zero.
Five other timers are strictly for yachtsmen. The Century model is the only waterproof yacht timer on the market. It was used by both Americans and Australians at the America's Cup races in 1964. It has a large color-coded central five-minute register, and comes complete with white nylon strap and neck cord for $49.50.
A chronograph is a watch that tells the time in hours, minutes and seconds, and is also equipped to allow continuous or intermittent timings accurate to 1/5 second and lasting from a fraction of a second up to a maximum of 12 hours. It may also have an additional scale calibrated in 100ths of a minute to express times in decimals, and a tachometric scale to determine the average speed of a vehicle tested over a certain distance. An excellent chronograph is the No. 11202 for $150, which comes with a leather carrying case for $21.50.
The Autavia 12 wrist chronograph is handy for both sky diver and skin diver. Cased in stainless steel, it is guaranteed to function correctly at altitudes up to 35,000 feet and in depths of 330 feet underwater. It costs $119.50. Heuer also sells a variety of dashboard instruments, all with seven jewels, luminous dials and hands, and running time of 24 hours. A double combination, the Rally Master at $119.50, consists of a Master-Time clock for time of day and total elapsed time, and the Monte-Carlo for time of trip or elapsed time during a lap. The 10% federal tax is not included in the above prices.