quote:

Originally posted by Johnny 3eagles:
I'd go diveographonometer.

Very cool diver! Those are tritium indices right? I wish more manufacturers offered tritium on their divers.

If I ever manage to make my own watch brand I would 100% offer tritium and a tide graph on my flagship automatic mechanical diving Chronograph. I think it’s lazy and ridiculous that for a “diving” watch with wonderful water resistance more manufacturers haven’t considered adding such a complication to their catalogs. Sinn was brave and made one but chose one of their most polarizing cases which was unfortunate. That said they tend to say sold out so that’s also something interesting to ponder.

Heuer did it brilliantly in the 1970’s. While not wildly popular the Heuer Solunar is able to track the tide for two weeks and today they sell for around $6-9k depending on condition. Sadly it seems the watch world by and large (except for Casio & the awesome G-Shock line) forgot about it as an important function.



tjcj, That Hamilton is gorgeous!! How old is it? It appears to be a bit older than my funky 1970’s Hamilton diver, which is the oldest Hamilton in my collection.



Hamilton made a 40 or maybe 41mm diver with somewhat similar colors but the newer version is far more conservative or not quite as bold compared to the vintage diver. The newest Hamilton variants of this line have grown to 43mm which is a damn shame.

quote:

Originally posted by stickman428:
I wish more manufacturers offered tritium on their divers.

I think the issue is the relatively short half-life of tritium. Tritium goes noticeably dim by 5ish years, and practically dead by 10ish. Most folks won't want to be sending in their watches for tritium capsule replacement every 7ish years. (And for those that do, there are still at least a few options, like Marathon.)

While light-activated lume does fade with time as well, that's a gradual process over several decades.

When you consider the standard service interval for a modern automatic mechanical watch is 5-7 years you’ll realize it’s just an opportunity for the manufacturer to up sell you.

I have a Ball Chronograph that is fairly new and one that is 8 years old. The new one is almost as bright as a cell phone if you try to sleep with it on your wrist. The 8 year old blue tritium while not as bright kicks the shit out of even Seiko’s lume after a few hours. These two models both have 66 individual tritium tubes.

quote:

Originally posted by stickman428:

tjcj, That Hamilton is gorgeous!! How old is it? It appears to be a bit older than my funky 1970’s Hamilton diver, which is the oldest Hamilton in my collection.



Hamilton made a 40 or maybe 41mm diver with somewhat similar colors but the newer version is far more conservative or not quite as bold compared to the vintage diver. The newest Hamilton variants of this line have grown to 43mm which is a damn shame.

The pocket watch is 1924-1935, Probably could research serial # and narrow it down. Sold my other pocket watches, kept this one because of the numbers matching box.
Cool 70s diver. I hear you about the larger divers. getting smaller as I age and 40mm is about right.

Sinn’s 41mm titanium chronograph case just might be my absolute favorite watch case. It is EXTREMELY lightweight and the bead blasted titanium compliments the matte grey dial perfectly.

The Sinn 203 Ti is a masterpiece.

The titanium bracelet is also crazy light. I like the bracelet but I love this watch on a NATO. It’s the only Chronograph besides my tiny Squale Corallo that is comfortable enough that I forget I’m wearing a watch. My Sinn 206 and Omega Seamaster Chronograph are both pretty heavy on the wrist.

This might be the ultimate tool watch. The moisture capsule on the side of the case is a neat feature and another reason I love Sinn.

It’s a shame Sinn doesn’t sell direct like Steinhart and Christopher Ward. Their US vendor is perpetually sold out of their more interesting watches. They also never responded to two of my emails regarding purchasing half links for my Sinn Arktis II fine bracelet.

Stick-
NICE!!!!
Like you, YES that Ti bracelet looks great on it, but so does that NATO!

That's a sweet Sinn, stick!

Stick, darn you. I love that Sinn

quote:

Originally posted by tjcj:
I almost bought The Black pvd Tissot PRS 516 with the blue second hand and blue ring below the bezel. Good looking watch but it uses the Powermatic 7 series movement instead of the 8 series. Happy with the Hamilton.
Here's my oldest Hamilton. IMG_1130 by Tom C, on Flickr IMG_1129 by Tom C, on Flickr

Do you know how old that is?

My grandmother worked for Hamilton as a watchmaker from sometime from the early '30s until she retired sometime in the 1970s. Women didn't get the higher-status final assembly jobs, but did make parts and subassemblies.

Whenever I see Hamiltons of that era, I always wonder if my grandmother made any part of it.

quote:

Originally posted by jhe888:
Do you know how old that is?

My grandmother worked for Hamilton as a watchmaker from sometime from the early '30s until she retired sometime in the 1970s. Women didn't get the higher-status final assembly jobs, but did make parts and subassemblies.

Whenever I see Hamiltons of that era, I always wonder if my grandmother made any part of it.

It got buried in a post mid-page

quote:

Originally posted by tjcj:
The pocket watch is 1924-1935, Probably could research serial # and narrow it down. Sold my other pocket watches, kept this one because of the numbers matching box.
Cool 70s diver. I hear you about the larger divers. getting smaller as I age and 40mm is about right.

Jhe888 Grandma probably had something to do with the two watches on the left. The Masterpiece is a presentation watch engraved, "Great Lakes Carbon Corporation, Lawrence R Beadle, Twenty Five years of service 1967. The Brown banded is a non-Swiss mechanical movement, so same era. The two on the right are Swiss Automatics, so not Grandmas but same era. I for certain had some Hamiltons that Grandma had a hand in. Thanks Grandma.
IMG_1150 by Tom C, on Flickr

Love that Sinn, Stickman!

Those are some classy Hamiltons.

quote:

Originally posted by P250UA5:
Those are some classy Hamiltons.

Thank you, All run and get worn, but the Hamilton Khaki Field King and the Tissot Gentlemens are worn the most these days.

Joined the Helm crowd. The lume is impressive. Thanks again, h20ys!!



Terrible photo replaced.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: P220 Smudge,

You might want to send that back to Helm for warranty work... The markings are quite blurry.

quote:

Originally posted by pulicords:

quote:

Originally posted by stickman428:
That’s right fischtown7! Backpfeifengesicht is one heck of a word and definitely one of my favorites in the German language.

Yes it is a limited edition Sinn and I did indeed get it.

You definitely qualify as a "Sinner" Stickman! It's nice to see you in the club with that beauty!

I sinned too this week, after checking out a cousin of Sinn: Hanhart. They just dropped a new "Flieger", and I couldn't resist it or dither and miss out on the opportunity. It's their Pioneer One NightBlue Limited Edition (150 pieces), with a deep blue dial and black PVD/DLC steel case. I wish the dark blue with red trim leather strap fit me, but it was a bit too tight with the second to last notch used. I'm still checking out other straps for this, but for the time being, this NATO Supreme from Crown and Buckle will do nicely.

Link for those who might be interested in acquiring one: https://www.watchbuys.com/stor...-Edition-10p7198.htm

That is a gorgeous watch pulicords!

I love rotating bezels. I looked at the specs and to my shock discovered that your Hanhart’s fluted bezel rotates. Very cool! I love the look of that watch! Easy to read, aesthetically pleasing dial with a minute track too. That was a very good score. It looks fantastic on that blue NATO.



P220 Smudge, Congrats on the Helm! The Komodo is a great watch. I like that the dial sort of has the Seiko SBBN007 vibe going on. No that isn’t my SBBN007 but I’ve wanted to build a mod with its dial for a while now.

quote:

Originally posted by tjcj:
Jhe888 Grandma probably had something to do with the two watches on the left. The Masterpiece is a presentation watch engraved, "Great Lakes Carbon Corporation, Lawrence R Beadle, Twenty Five years of service 1967. The Brown banded is a non-Swiss mechanical movement, so same era. The two on the right are Swiss Automatics, so not Grandmas but same era. I for certain had some Hamiltons that Grandma had a hand in. Thanks Grandma.

Those are cool. We (my family) have many old Hamiltons, too, and I like to see them. I have one of the Swiss-movement autos that is very similar to the one on the black lizard strap, and a much older tank style manual wind.

You are probably be right that my grandmother could have worked on the older two of yours.

I also know that she worked on artillery fuses during WWII. Hamilton made anti-aircraft shell fuses, which were timers that detonated the shell after some interval of time passed after they were fired. She had a hand in killing some Nazi and Japanese aircrew.

Review: Vaer DS4 Meridian 42mm vs. D4 Meridian 42mm

I had picked up a Vaer DS4 Meridian 42mm a bit ago, and liked it so much that I decided to upgrade to Vaer's fancier version, the D4 Meridian 42mm. If the entry-level DS4 was that good, the more premium D4 was bound to be better, right?

It arrived today, and I have to admit... I'm a bit underwhelmed by the D4.

There are certainly things that the D4 does better than the DS4, but there are actually other areas in which the D4 falls short of its budget brother. Some of which isn't the fault of the watch itself, specifically. (I'll get into that later.)

To start with, both the DS4 and D4 are 42mm solar quartz dive watches. Water resistance is the same for both at 200m. Both have a gorgeous black sunburst dial (which is tough to capture on camera, but looks awesome in person.) Case size is the same in all dimensions for both. They both come with a standard black tropic strap and your choice of a second strap. But after that is where they start to diverge.

The DS4 is priced at $259. It's made in China. It has an aluminum bezel that is not fully lumed, with only the 12:00 pip being lumed. It has a flat sapphire crystal. On my DS4, the second strap was the "standard" stainless bracelet, a $50 upcharge.

DS4 photos:



The D4 is priced at $419 (though it's currently on sale for $375). It's assembled in the USA from imported parts. It has a ceramic bezel with lumed markings. It has a domed sapphire crystal. On my D4, the second strap was the "premium" stainless bracelet, a $100 upcharge.

D4 photos:



Where the D4 shines:
-Date window, which isn't available on the DS4.
-More attractive and better lumed bezel.

Where the DS4 shines:
-Noticeably better bezel action. Much smoother and quieter, without being any "looser". (*Granted, this is anectdotal comparison of two single examples.)
-Better crown action. Again, much smoother. (*See above caveat.)
-Much less reflective, so easier to read in sunlight or bright indoor light
-Nearly half the price!

So we have the D4 which - on paper - is the better watch. And the lumed ceramic bezel looks a bit better, for sure. But in the hand, the "fancier" D4 doesn't feel quite as good as the "budget" DS4, and they're nearly the same in day-to-day overall appearance. Plus the DS4 with its flat crystal is actually easier to read, since the D4's rounded sapphire crystal plays havoc with reflections in bright light.

Lume comparison (DS4 left; D4 right)



Most confusing was the noticeable difference between the $100 "premium" bracelet and the $50 "standard" bracelet. The cheaper bracelet is actually better!

The premium bracelet has a more aggressive taper from 20mm to 16mm at the clasp, while the standard bracelet tapers from 20mm to just 18mm. That standard's 20/18 actually works better on a relatively large 42mm watch. The 20/16 looks and feels awkward and unbalanced, especially on my large wrist. (And my large wrist is why I went with the 42mm anyway, instead of the 38mm version.)

Importantly, the premium bracelet feels noticeably cheaper. It rattles more. Its edges aren't as rounded or well-finished, with some areas that are downright sharp and scratchy out of the box.

About the only place where the "premium" bracelet wins is the clasp. Both bracelets have milled clasps with a secondary locking bar, but the standard clasp uses a friction-fit that clicks into place, while the premium clasp uses a double side button and post setup to lock in.

And the premium bracelet does use screw links for adjustment, while the "standard" bracelet has split pins. While screws are certainly slightly fancier, it's not really any faster or easier than split pins. And once it's sized initially, how often are you messing with the links? I don't count this point as a clear win for the premium.

Premium Bracelet:



Standard Bracelet:



Altogether, the premium bracelet is definitely not worth the extra $50 over the supposedly non-premium bracelet, in my opinion. Quite frankly, I'm going to just wear either watch with the "standard" bracelet. If I could swap the premium's clasp onto the standard's links I would, but unfortunately, the aforementioned taper discrepancy results in the premium having a 16mm clasp that won't work with the standard 18mm links. (I might source a non-Vaer-marked milled 18mm clasp with push buttons to install, as I'm sure the friction-fit prongs will wear out over time.)


So while the D4 has some nicer features compared to the DS4, it's 2x the price, and doesn't seem to be anywhere near 2x better. If you don't absolutely need the date window or lumed bezel, and aren't dead-set on getting an American assembled watch, save yourself $180 and just get the DS4.

And either way, skip the premium bracelet. If you want a bracelet for either model, the standard one is the way to go.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: RogueJSK,

Here's one for the watch-nerdy photographers:



Link