WatchOtaku : Watches

These pages document the watches I've had. As noted, they are separated by keepers, freebies, sold, etc. You can click on a tag and view all of the entries in that category. Browse, enjoy, and don't be shy about leaving comments - there's a form at the bottom of every page, and you can also rate pages or posts.

Keepers

These are ones that I don't plan to sell any time soon:

Disclosure

All items that are donated or discounted are labelled with the tag 'freebie'. Here's a list, so you can decide for yourself how that factored into my review:

Sold, donated and given away

I keep these listed for my own reasons, but perusing other people's collections always amused me, so here you go:

Broken

Not saleable, or otherwise broken

Plain alphabetical list with excerpts

• Alpha Explorer GMT — The dial fogged, overall low quality, still kind of fun and quite the deal.
• Alpha jump hour — As with the Alpha Explorer GMT, cheap but fun. Looks like an expensive watch, runs well, unusual complication.
• Armida A2 — A lovely 42mm mil sub with lumed bezel and date window, keeps superb time and Just Plain Works. The reviews at ABR really didn't agree, but I think this is a very good watch and very unpretentious.
• Armida A8 —  A lot to love about this one, and the price is amazing. In the end, it was just a little too large and heavy, so I wasn't wearing it much. Fantastic watch.
• Bianci H262LWS — Nice watch. Coworker bought if for his wife, who adores it and wears it every day. Good stuff.
• Bianci Red Burn Out — Massive, but well made and not blingy. Interesting design, very functional.
• Bulbul Pebble —  There aren't many minimal quartz watches I'd recommend. This one makes the grade. Subtle, well made, legible, wearable and just a bit of notice-me detail in the shape and strap keeper. A cool watch where they didn't cheap out on the materials or movement. Like the Marvin M125, this went to a wedding and never came back; the co-workers wife quite loved the design.
• Casio G-Shock GA-100 — Big, bold and cheap! A bit harder to read the digital displays, balanced by excellent analog visibility. A sweep second hand would be nice too.
• Casio G-Shock Gravity Defier — Nice, but not me somehow. Which was a complete surprise; I had greatly anticipated this one.
• Casio G-Shock GS-1200 — Unusual-as-hell analog-only g-shock, 'tough movement', very minimal yet bulletproof. One of the ones that I miss and sorta regret selling. It's got a good life as a surfers' watch now.
• Casio Pathfinder PAG-240 — Great watch, good for ultimate. Less fiddly without the atomic time, in my opinion.
• Casio Pathfinder PAG40-7V — Nice watch, but I needed funds for the Stowa and James Stacey wanted it, so sold it to him for $100 inclusive.
• Casio Pathfinder PRW-5000 — Supercool analog-digital Pathfinder. Does it all, looks great doing so. Really should have kept this one, but I needed the funds and they're wildly popular. My favorite Pathfinder.
• Casio Pathfinder PRW-5000Y-10R — Casio took last years' Pathfinder and blacked it out. The result is classier, sexier and more versatile. I've regretted selling the last one, so I'm definitely keeping this one around.
• Certina Bristol 230 — Nice style, pitted case, hell of a deal. Classic vintage look, often mistaken for a 1940's Omega.
• Christopher Ward C11 Automatic — A big step up for Christopher Ward. Anti-reflective coating, amazing casework, spare dial, just really really nice.
• Christopher Ward C20 Lido — Really really nice watch, killer value as usual from CW. Dressy, well detailed, classy.
• Christopher Ward C8 Pilot — Decent watch, a few odd notes, don't miss it surprisingly.
• Christopher Ward Malvern Aviator — Still a wonderful watch, and a great value. Later on, CW moved from 'swiss movement' to 'swiss made' and had to cut some corners. The later models have white date wheels, so you can spot the era. A classy and versatile watch.
• Citizen Blue Angels AT8020 — A super example of does-it-all. Sapphire, eco-drive, radio-set = zero hassle. 
• Citizen JP3050-55WT — Nice watch, no backlight, hard to read in the dark. Excellent build quality, nice buttons, auto-start dive mode. A lot to like about it, but I wanted something I could use to time swim laps and the auto-dive-mode broke the stopwatch. It was also hard as hell to read in the dark. (Weird lume shapes)
• Citizen Navihawk Blue Angels — Did a ton of travelling and wearing with this one - basically 100% for all of Argonne, also my own flights. Great watch, had to replace the bezel at one point. Still the easiest for changing timezones. Really needs a backlight!
• Citizen Promaster PMT56-2711 — Still one of my favorites - 40mm, surface-hardened titanium & sapphire, perpetual calendar, easy 1-hour increments for jet travel, and a deep dial in stunning blue. Understated, durable and functional.
• Damasko DA44 — My new favorite after selling the IWC 3536. One of the finest sport watches made.
• De Rieter —  An inexpensive labor of love, the interesting product of one man's vision. Good value, quirky design, keeps good time. I don't wear it much and have loaned it out Jari Kubika as part of a complicated deal.
• Getat Panerai homage — A nicely made homage to the Panerai Luminor, with a decent clone of the ETA 6497 movement. Sapphire crystal, decent lume, fun to wear.
• Girard-Perragaux Gyromatic — Sent it to Jose Sotto for a service and promptly sold it. Mixed feelings on this one, not fun to realize you got scammed. My bad luck watch; glad to have sold it.
• Glashutte Original Sport Evolution GMT —  It's gorgeous. It's got the best travel complication ever made. A nice 3-timezone feature for those long-distance collaborations I do every day. A big date for my aging eyes. I may have finally admitted to myself that dress divers are more my thing than pure tool watches like the Pelagos.
• Halios Holotype — An awesome watch, manly and somehow perfectly proportioned. Inexpensive in some details, rich in others, it is a singular design and quite beautiful in its own way. I miss it tremendously.
• Helbros pocketwatch — Cheap and cheerful, i.e. crap.
• Helix Typhoon — Bought on impulse via http://watchdoddy.com/ http://watchdoddy.com/, turned out to be a great watch, best analog-digital since the X33.
• Helson Blackbeard — Just a fantastic watch. Anna adores it and asks to wear it every night. Super fun on the red strap.
• Helson Shark Diver 40 grey —  This one was a surprise. I asked to review it, but once it arrived I was just delighted and after the review came out I asked Peter if I could keep it. It's "just right" in a lot of ways, the size is very wearable, the brushed dial is a delight and the hands are superbly legible at all times. Just enough weight, and a bold design that I really enjoy wearing. It's been my favorite daily wearer for months now. Also loaned to the TimeBum for a review http://www.thetimebum.com/2014/08/helson-shark-
• Immersion Prowler — Almost forgot this one. Not much to say, cool dive computer.
• IWC 3536 Aquatimer —  Thought it was The Grail... I was wrong. Poor vis, expensive parts, see the IWC 3536 postmortem.
• IWC Aquatimer 2000 ref 3568 — I went long on my grail, and got lucky with a local deal.
• Lord Elgin handwind — A classic American handwind, with the innovative Durabalance system, box and manual, even the original strap. Just too small for me at ~32mm.
• Luminox 2002 GMT
• Luminox 6402 Blackout — Ultra-cool at night. Better build quality than the Luminox 2002 GMT and sapphire to boot. Red/green/blue lights, unlike the released version, so unique.
• Luminox LWAC-B travel alarm — Other than the odd battery and loud-ish tick, a perfect alarm clock. And I do mean perfect.
• Lum-Tec 300M-1 —  After selling the IWC 3568, it's nice to have a sapphire-bezel diver in the collection, and the 40mm size of this one is much more wearable. Might send it to MCWW to have them paint the hands white someday.
• Lum-Tec C1 — Just 'not quite right'. Cool watch, though.
• LunaTik Blackout — A new way to use a Nano as a watch, and beautifully made for the purpose.
• Marvin M125 — Classic, attractive, slim, well-detailed, just a great watch. Finally let it go, albeit reluctantly, when a co-worker needed a dress watch for a family wedding. His wife approved.
• MIH watch —  A grail is won; and the delight is profound. I consider Oechslin a genius, and to own one of his signature works a great honor.
• Momentum Cobalt V — A great watch, light for the size, extremely functional and unprepossessing. It's just a nice little watch, great lume too.
• Momentum Format 4 — Nice titanium analog-digital, with backlight and lume. Good stuff.
• Momentum M50 Mark II — A great quartz watch, but for that I've already got the Citizen Promaster PMT56-2711, and for heavy divers I've got the IWC, so off it goes.
• Momentum Pathfinder II — Titanium and sapphire, nice at 37mm, amazing lume, simple alarm. A lot to like for the price.
• Momentum Vortech GMT — Nice GMT and alarm complications in a lightweight titanium watch. A bit bigger than I like at 44mm.
• Morpheus Culinary — Supercool watch. I miss it already. However, I had to raise funds for the Stowa, and Larry is giving this one the wear it deserves.
• O.D.M. 3-touch — Funky cool digital.
• Ocean7 LM-2 — $175 for a titanium-cased 300m diver? When James offered me the deal I had to take it. Heck, the bracelet http://www.ocean7watchco.com/cs2/index.php?dispatch=products.view&product_id=84 costs more than that! Full review pending.
• Ocean7 LM2-AD —  Larger than my usual preference at 44mm, its somehow fantastic anyway. Titanium, with a superclear sapphire crystal, super light and a delight to wear. I also bought (full list price) the matching LM2 titanium bracelet.
• Omega cal 9000A stopwatch —  Utterly pointless to buy a mechanical stopwatch in 2013, but I was very struck by the dial design and excellent condition. Simple. Functional. Unfussy and in beautiful condition, all for just over a hundred bucks.
• Omega X-33 — Overpriced. Gen-1 is crap. But still the most advanced watch of its type: best backlight, loudest alarm, only curved display, mission timer, killer low-profile design, excellent lume, etc.
• Orient CVZ00002J — Other than the lack of backlight and stiff bezel, an excellent analog-digital, really clean face and very nice bracelet.
• Orient Pilot power reserve — Decent watch, just not good enough to keep.
• Orient pocketwatch — An awesome watch, gorgeous to the hand and eye. Alas, I just don't wear it, so out it went. Might regret this one.
• Oris Big Crown Diver — This is an early 2000s (2002 by one estimate) model that sold poorly and is now quite unusual. It anticipated several modern trends: 3/6/9/12 dials, curved text, smaller sizes, highlight colors and arrow hands. I got a movement service and re-lume from MCWW and since then I wear it quite a lot.
• OWC MS-5517 — Read the review - awesome watch! Finally, a Rolex style that has a full bezel, no cyclops and at a price real people can afford.
• OWC MS-5517 mid 2012 — The latest 5517 from Dan. This one was in the works for over a year, due to his vendor struggles and my request for dual-sided AR coatings on the crystal. Soprod A-10, Oyster bracelet with screwed and threaded links, solid end links, ceramic bezel with lume, 300m case, just a spectacular watch. Reviews and comparisons pending!
• Pebble — The Kickstarter darling, useful right now as a small display and attention getter. Maybe more useful once activity monitoring added as promised. Perhaps the first really good smartwatch. 
• Phosphor P-0201 — e-ink is cool.
• Phosphor P-0302 — Cool, neat display, not my style overall.
• Praesto GMT — A very nice GMT, Shanghai B movement, excellent lume and COSC timekeeping, all for $180. Highly recommended.
• Praesto Modern Fliegeruhr — An interesting mix of styles and first-class materials. Not quite a dress watch, not quite a flieger, yet 200m waterproof and well-lumed. Quite striking and very functional.
• Precista PRS-3 — The PRS3 is a homage to the Omega Seamaster 300, with good materials and the excellent ETA 2824 movement. Bought as part of Looking for The One Watch.
• Prometheus Jellyfish — Built around the very nice Seiko 6R15 and tritium tubes, this is a solidly built and quite quite nice diver. A bit heavier than I prefer, so after I got the lighter IWC it never got worn.
• Prometheus Ocean Diver — One of the better review surprises I've had. I contacted Prometheus, and they offered a steep discount. It's been glued to my wrist since then! It was only displaced by the IWC, which also required more fundraising. A killer deal on an internal-bezel diver of supercool design.
• Prometheus Recon 5 — I had twittered this new model when I first saw it, and Prometheus contacted me and offered me one for review. I, of course, jumped at the chance. Review on WR, but overall a really nice, well-priced 6497-based watch with good lume and contstruction.
• Redux Courg —  Odd, odd. I had paid extra and eagerly awaited this one, and when I actually got it I was totally not in like with it, much less love. I think that the Oris Big Crown Diver stole its place in my collection. Ahh well, sold.
• RGM 151P — Finally found an affordable used RGM, from their Pilot line. ETA 2892 movement, nice white-on-black hands, no date (alas), 38mm of sporty dress watch on an alligator band.
• Sea-Gull M177s — Just not quite right. Proportions off, quality so-so. A good one for review but not a keeper.
• Seiko LordMatic 5606 — Classy and classic, though the gold-plated case looks like hell. Jose repaired the quickset and it works perfectly. Radial (sunburst) dial and gold markers, gorgeous.
• Seiko quartz chrono — Sibling Charles described it as "Kind of a 'city of lost children' vibe" and I have to agree. It took eleven elapsed years to get the degree, so this is of immense personal value to me and I'll never sell it. Worn all through grad school, first real job at Fermilab, masters exams, interviews... Many memories.
• Seiko Samurai SBDA003 — So close, but not quite. Sold to fund the Seiko SBDX001 'Marinemaster', and I have no regrets. The case, dial, hands and style are all excellent, but even after pricy regulation the 7s26 movement kept crappy time. Love the blue dial, though, and plan to get something else in that color someday.
• Seiko SBCM023 — Nearly perfect. See the review.
• Seiko SBDX001 'Marinemaster' — Still one of my all-time favorite watches. Wore it for the birth of my first daughter, and used it to measure delivery breathing for ten memorable hours.
• Seiko SKXA35 — This one really started my love of mechanical watches, and to this day I adore yellow dials. However, the visibility in low light is poor, the hands don't contrast well against the dial, and the poor timekeeping of the 7S26 movement drove me crazy.
• Stewal chronograph — My first and so-far-only mechanical chronograph, a decent copy of the 7750 though not aging well. Fun to have, and the price was right.
• Stolas Harbormaster Spinnaker — A dress diver, with strong hints of IWC and Ulysse Nardin in the design. Great lume, poor daytime legibility, good price, eye-catching design.
• Stowa Marine Original Limited edition II — She's a beauty. Minimal, clean and elegant.
• Stratosphere skeleton — Interesting history on this one. Sold it to co-worker Moji Soltani, bought it back when he didn't like it, gave it to my mom, and the stem/crown broke some time after that. Currently in the dead-watches box. A nice cheap skeleton.
• Suunto Core — As close to elegant and uncluttered as ABC watches get. Also has a cool 'snorkeling mode'.
• Tsovet SVT-AT76 — Large, wears even larger, nice detailing and well made. Fashion watch, but a nice one. I'd love to see the version they made with the ETA 2892.
• Tudor Pelagos — The One Watch, attempt #3... 
• Xezo Legionnaire — Nice curved sapphire crystal, but just Not Quite Perfect. Looked nice with a dress shirt, though:
• Yes Inca — Cool stuff, singular design and good materials. A great travel watch too.