Tissot · Review

Tissot Chemin des Tourelles Powermatic 80 review

By the Watch Winder team · Updated September 2026 · Based on published reviews and owner reports

The Chemin des Tourelles is Tissot's dress watch, named after the street in Le Locle where its factory has stood since 1907. The 2023 redesign gave it a domed dial, dauphine-style hands, slimmer lugs and an 80-hour movement with an anti-magnetic Nivachron hairspring, all for under $1,000. It's one of the most refined watches Tissot makes. It is not a sports watch, and the date window is the detail people argue about.

Specs at a glance

Design and dial

The 2023 update kept the Chemin des Tourelles' round, classical outline and changed almost everything else. The dial is now domed, so the faceted baton markers curve down toward the edge, and the hands are half-matte and half-polished so they catch the light as you tilt your wrist. There are two dial styles: a soft sunray with batons, and a dual-finish version with a clous de Paris chapter ring and applied Roman numerals. Monochrome called the result more luxurious and more refined than the previous generation, with a neo-vintage feel.

aBlogtoWatch liked the blue semi-matte sunburst, which shows sapphire-blue highlights at an angle, though it noted that the dial texture disappears in most lighting. The one real sticking point is the date. It sits at 6 o'clock in a bright white window, and aBlogtoWatch predicted it would divide enthusiasts. Monochrome's readers agreed. If you want a date-free dial, the skeleton drops it entirely.

The skeleton (T139.836), launched in 2024, uses an openworked dial with a solid outer ring: blue with clous de Paris and Roman numerals on the bracelet version, or ivory and black PVD versions on leather with sunray rings and batons. It's a restrained take on openworking, and the movement's visible surfaces are brushed to suit the dial.

Case, size and wearability

This is where the redesign pays off. The lugs are shorter and slimmer and bend down toward the wrist, the bezel is narrow and rounded, and the case sides are undercut. aBlogtoWatch said this trims a lot of visual weight, and it praised small touches like the polished bevels where the lugs meet the case. Monochrome found the 39mm especially comfortable and said it slides under a cuff easily, despite the automatic movement.

Thickness is about 11.2mm for both sizes, and much of that is the domed crystal. Watch Advice pointed out that the case itself is only around 8.3mm, which is why it looks slimmer than the figure suggests. Tissot doesn't publish lug-to-lug. Watch Advice measured about 42mm on the 39mm, while Monochrome lists 43.7mm for the 39mm skeleton. Either way, the 39mm suits most wrists. The 42mm with 22mm lugs wears true to its size, so if your wrist is under about 6.5 inches, it's worth trying one on.

Size availability has shifted. At launch there were 34mm, 39mm and 42mm cases. As of September 2026, Tissot's US site lists the regular Chemin des Tourelles only in 42mm, and the 39mm only as the skeleton. Product pages for several standard 39mm T139.807 references now return as removed. You can still find them elsewhere, but the 42mm is now the mainstream version.

Movement and power reserve

Inside is the Powermatic 80, the same family used in the PRX and Gentleman. It's built on the ETA 2824 architecture, slowed to 21,600 vibrations per hour with a longer mainspring for an 80-hour reserve. Here it gets the Nivachron balance spring, a Swatch Group alloy that resists everyday magnetism much better than a traditional spring. aBlogtoWatch called it an impressive performer. Tissot doesn't publish an accuracy spec for this model.

The honest caveat is the view through the back. Reviewers from Watch Advice to Monochrome describe the finishing as basic or industrial, which is fair at this price but a little at odds with a dressy exterior. The skeleton makes more of the movement from the front, where its brushed bridges are the point of the design.

Eighty hours matters more on a dress watch than on most. It's the kind of watch you wear to a wedding on Saturday and then not again for a week or two. It will survive a weekend off the wrist, but not a fortnight. Check your own routine with the Will my watch stop? calculator. Watch Winder counts down its 80-hour reserve and reminds you before it stops, so you're not resetting the time and date before an event.

Bracelet and strap

The redesigned five-link steel bracelet has pronounced bevels and alternating brushed and polished links, and it suits the dressy case better than a sporty three-link would. The leather straps are embossed calf with a butterfly clasp. Everything uses quick-release bars, so switching between steel and leather takes seconds.

The weaker parts are the details. aBlogtoWatch found the leather strap serviceable but basic next to the case and dial. Watch Advice reported that the push-button clasp felt less sturdy than expected and occasionally opened by accident. Many owners keep the bracelet version and add a better leather strap later.

What owners say after months of wear

Owners mostly describe the Chemin des Tourelles as the watch that finally made them wear something dressy. The case shape and dial finishing are praised again and again, and the bracelet version is often singled out as the one to get. The 80-hour reserve is a quiet favorite for a watch that doesn't get daily wear.

The complaints are consistent. The white date window is the most common, followed by glare from the domed crystal and the modest 50m rating, which makes some owners nervous about swimming in it. Reactions to the skeleton, including from Monochrome's readers, are more divided: some love the look, while others think the movement isn't decorated enough to deserve being shown off.

Alternatives worth considering

• Tissot Gentleman: same movement family with a silicon hairspring, 100m water resistance and a more versatile, sportier look. Less elegant.
• Tissot Le Locle Powermatic 80: Tissot's more traditional dress option, with Roman numerals and a clous de Paris centre. Cheaper, but only 30m water resistant and less refined in the case.
• Seiko Presage Cocktail Time: a more dramatic dial for less money, but a much shorter reserve.
• Tissot PRX Powermatic 80: if you want one watch that dresses up and down, the PRX has more personality and a tougher build, but it isn't a true dress watch.

Who should buy it

Buy the Chemin des Tourelles if you want a proper dress watch with a Swiss automatic, sapphire and a long reserve, and you care about how the case and dial are shaped. Choose the 42mm for larger wrists, or the 39mm skeleton if you want the smaller size and don't need a date. Skip it if you need a watch you can swim in without thinking, or if that date window will bother you every time you look down.

Because it's likely to be one watch among several, it will often sit in a drawer. Watch Winder suggests which watch to wear next so none of them run down, and if it does stop, check the date-change danger zone before setting the date.

FAQ

Sources

• Tissot: Chemin des Tourelles 42mm, T139.407.16.041.00 (specifications and price)
• Tissot: Chemin des Tourelles Skeleton 39mm, T139.836.11.048.00 (specifications and price)
• aBlogtoWatch: Watch Review, Tissot Chemin des Tourelles
• Monochrome: Hands-On, the New Tissot Chemin des Tourelles Collection
• Monochrome: First Look, the Tissot Chemin des Tourelles Skeleton