Raketa
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| Product type | 1985 Model "Petrodvorets Classic" |
|---|---|
| Owner | Petrodvorets Watch Factory |
| Country | Russia |
| Introduced | 1961 |
| Website | http://www.raketa.com |
Raketa (Russian: Paкéтa; IPA: [rɐˈkʲɛtə], "rocket") watches, have been manufactured since 1961 by the Petrodvorets Watch Factory in Saint Petersburg. The Petrodvoretz Watch Factory is Russia's oldest factory and was founded by Peter the Great in 1721. Raketa watches were produced for the Red Army, the Soviet Navy, for North Pole expeditions, as well as for civilians. As of today Raketa is one of the rare watch brands in the world producing its movements from A to Z.
On April 12, 1961, Yuri Gagarin made the first manned flight in outer space on the rocket Vostok 1. In honor of this, the Petrodvorets Watch Factory named its watches "rocket", or Raketa in Russian. At the height of the Cold War, however, the name "Raketa" was perceived negatively in the West, as the word was associated with the latest generation of Soviet intercontinental ballistic missiles, the R-16. During Soviet times it became one of the most produced watch brand in the world. In the 1970s the factory produced about 5 million mechanical watches per year.
In 2014 a new high-end Raketa collection based on the new in-house Raketa-Avtomat movement is released including:
With price ranges similar to Swiss luxury brands, quality and finishing of the Raketa timepieces have improved markedly since the USSR of the 60's. Since "Raketa" is one of the rare manufacturers capable of fully producing its watches, including movements, hairspring and escapements, with its parent at Petrodvorets Watch Factory beginning to supply some Swiss watch brands having difficulties acquiring Swiss ETA movements.
Over the years, the Petrodvorets Watch Factory produced more than two dozen versions Raketa movements. Some were equipped with features such as automatic winding, calendars, 24-hour models for polar explorers, anti-magnetic watches (for use in case of a nuclear attack), as well as watches for the military. Mechanical Raketa watches produced in Petrodvorets were exported to many Eastern Bloc and communist countries and are considered one of the most durable and reliable movements in the world and by the 1980s Raketa was producing 5 million watches a year.
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