Rado
Rado Captain Cook 40 mm Black Stainless
Photography on request
Front view
Dial, hands and bezel as delivered.
Case-back view
Case-back engraving and, where fitted, the sapphire display.
Movement
Calibre with its finishing and decoration.
On the wrist
Worn shot for proportion and strap drape.
Rado · Captain Cook
Rado Captain Cook 40 mm Black Stainless
Reference 63566ST.27
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Rado
- Collection
- Captain Cook
- Model
- Rado Captain Cook 40 mm Black Stainless
- Reference number
- 63566ST.27
- Year / era
- 2013 · 2010s — modern production
- Complication
- Minute repeater
- Movement
- Automatic, 38-hour reserve
- Case material
- Stainless steel
- Dial type
- Black lacquer
- Strap / bracelet
- White rubber velcro strap
- Water resistance
- 300 m
- Limited-edition status
- Regular production, not a limited edition
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 40 mm
- Case thickness
- 11.3 mm
- Case material
- Stainless steel
- Bezel
- Unidirectional ceramic 60-minute
- Crystal
- Flat sapphire with Cyclops lens
- Dial
- Black lacquer
- Hands
- Mercedes hour hand with Chromalight display
- Indexes
- Applied Arabic numerals with luminous coating
- Bracelet / strap
- White rubber velcro strap
- Clasp / buckle
- Triple-folding clasp with safety catch
- Water resistance
- 300 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 8C — Automatic, 38-hour reserve
- Movement type
- Manual-winding
- Frequency
- 21,600 vph (3 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 10 days
- Number of jewels
- 40 jewels
- Complications
- Minute repeater
- Functions
- Annual calendar, moon phase
- Watchmaker
- The calibre is built in-house and adjusted in five positions before delivery.
Production & market
- Production period
- 2013 – 2016
- Limited-edition quantity
- Not applicable
- Current market information
- Thin secondary-market supply — pricing is set piece by piece at auction.
Designer
In-house design studio
The reference was drawn by the manufacture's internal design office, where case, dial and movement architects work alongside the watchmakers rather than as an outside commission.
Historical significance
Rado Captain Cook 40 mm Black Stainless sits within Rado's Captain Cook line, introduced in 2013. It carries the house codes established since 1917 — stainless steel case, black lacquer dial and automatic, 38-hour reserve — and is one of the references collectors use to date the evolution of the collection.
Interesting facts
- The movement's bridges are decorated even where they will never be seen once the watch is cased.
- The bracelet tapers across its length, which is why the profile looks thinner on the wrist than the specification suggests.
- The reference was originally planned as a one-year run and stayed in the catalogue for well over a decade.
The House
Rado
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 1917
- Founder
- Fritz, Ernst & Werner Schlup
- Headquarters
- Switzerland
- Tier
- Affordable & Tool Watches
- Major collections
- Captain Cook, DiaStar, True Square, Florence, Hyperchrome
- Signature technologies
- Shock-absorbing movement mounting · Hand-applied guilloché dials · Composite and ceramic case materials
- Famous movements
- Automatic COSC chronometer · Quartz · Automatic Powermatic 80 · Automatic, 38-hour reserve
- Notable watches
- Rado Captain Cook 43 mm Meteorite 18k (1952) · Rado Captain Cook 40 mm Black 18k (1971) · Rado Captain Cook 37 mm Blue Sapphire (2003) · Rado Captain Cook 40 mm Salmon Ceramic (1957)
Brand history
Rado has spent more than 109 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's Captain Cook, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
Fritz, Ernst & Werner Schlup established Rado in 1917, working from Switzerland at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every Rado calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
1917
Fritz, Ernst & Werner Schlup founds Rado in Switzerland.
1969
The quartz era forces Rado to redefine mechanical watchmaking.
1990
Rado enters the modern collector market with its signature lines.
2024
Rado continues to produce Captain Cook, DiaStar, True Square and other icons in limited numbers.