The Luxury Watch Blog

Valjoux 7750 chronograph, I got a rather prestigious watch with a top shelf Ebel 137 movement. Based on the rare Lemania 1351, it is used in only a few other brands; Brequet being the only one I can think of.

Functionally, this is the perfect chronograph. Collecting many, I never thought I’d actually see one. Everything functions perfectly. No rotational eccentricity of the minute hand, i.e. the position of the constant seconds hand is coordinated with the movement of the main minute hand, for ALL 60 minute chapters. Same is true of all the chronograph hands, including perfect coordination positioning of the elapsed minute/hour hands; very rare. Also, on reset, all go to straight up 12. This is not your typical mechanical chronograph. A certified chronometer, its at -1.4 s/d when worn 23+ hours per day over a 30 consecutive day period.

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The Seiko Sumo is one of those watches that is so impressive any complaints or design preferences are just minor wishes. I wish it looked more like this, etc. Considering the cost of the watch I can honestly say you will not find another watch as well made with as much bang for the buck as this watch has. This is one of those rare cases where you ask how can they do it? I will try to give a brief review of the Sumo and it differences and similarities to its $1200 more expensive brother. If you like dive watches and yu do not own it yet all I can say is why?

The Sumo has many style similarities to the MM and also many diferences. The styling differences I mostly like better on the MM. For example the dial is the same except for the hands and markers. The dial is the same. The markers are silver and luminous is painted perfectly on top which resembles the large filled or encased MM markers. I prefer the MM markers but the Sumo does have a very nice look. The hands of the MM are simply awesome and unique. The hands on the Sumo are very big and I think larger than the MM which makes reading the watch very easy. Also the luminous fill on the hands is perfect. I have had many watches (Seiko’s included) where the fill is not even and there are dark spots or lines. This is not so with the Sumo. The Lume is awesome. The flat black dial is very nice and again akin to the MM with less writing which I prefer.

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Initial Impressions

When the watch first arrived from Debaufre in their usual priority mail box. The watch was very well packaged and shipped. They include the customary Debaufre Red/Black presentation box, warranty card and paperwork. The presentation box is very nice and one to hang on to.

When I took it out, the first thing I said was “WOW, This thing is BIG!”. The reason they call it the Magnum 44 is that its 44mm across the case, not including the crown.

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I wanted a dive watch that, first and foremost, looked like a dive
watch. Also one with a name brand and with a nicely finished,
regulated, and COSC’s movement. Since I could not afford a Rolex, this
one was my most obvious second choice.

I typically like to gripe and moan over my watches; there is always
something obviously wrong with them–but I don’t have much to bitch
about with my Super Ocean

I have won it over the last 6 consecutive months, 23+/7.

CASE: Since I will only take my watch down to water droplet depth, the
case seems more than adequate. The helium release valve is overkill,
but it comes standard with the watch. It’s 42mm diameter is miniscule
by today’s standards but perfect for me. Its finished with the typical
“Breitling shiney”, but that finish obviously adds a considerable
amount of case hardening because it is highly resistant to scratches
and dings. The bezel, while certainly not the most visually attractive
one in the world, indexes perfectly; I use it frequently timing a
myriad of activities.

DIAL: My absolute favorite part of the watch. The more I see the bold,
shadowed arabics, the more I like it; I didn’t think I would appreciate
that as much as I do. There is practically no rotational eccentricity
of the hands; the minute hand is in sych with the second hand. The date
changes @ 2.5 minutes (+/- 15 seconds) prior to midnight EVERY night
that I’ve stayed up to watch.

BRACELET: I’ve got the Professional II one and think it gives the watch
a much more sleeker presentation than the Pro I; that’s because each of
the 3 link rows are of the same height (thickness). The bracelet is
very comfortable so I haven’t had the gumption to try changing to a
Zulu or Breitling rubber strap. However, its standard friction clasp is
archaic. A push piece version, the same found on any $300 Orient watch,
should have been an obvious choice. But, its 4 rows of holes, allowing
for that many micro adjustments is without peer in the bracelet world.
In any case, the bracelet does not have a wet suit extension, so
Breitling probably meant for you to use it with an alternative strap.

ACCURACY: Fair but with exceptional stability. I’ve taken monthly
readings (for convenience, 1 month = 28 days) over the entire 28 day
period. Here are its 6 respective month readings:

+6.6 s/d / +5.8 / +5.8 / +5.7 / +5.7 / +6.0. It’s obvious that the ETA
2824 movement is not the standard, off-the-shelf variety.

When we will get one  from Movado

Introduction.

I recently obtained a Sea Dweller (model number 16600). As the name implies and as most of you will know, this is the deep sea diver of the Rolex line. It uses Rolex movement 3135, and is COSC certified. I was looking for a rugged tool watch in this line. I like a date feature in a watch, and found that I did not like the Cyclops. I know many are fans of that feature, but–and this is a personal opinion–I found the Cyclops overwhelmed the crystal and was distracting to me. So, I chose the Sea Dweller; it is rugged, heavily built, meant to last, is beautiful in a low-key fashion and has the features I want in a tool watch.

Overall.

Rolex has been a name most of has have know since we were quite young. I recall the excellent advertisments that Rolex ran in the National Geogprahic magazines of the 1970’s, portaying their watches as the quintessential tool for explorers and adventurers far and wide. It was a watch that looked rugged, the first I’d seen with protective shoulders around the crown, indicative of the risks of adventure that the wearer accepted by taking on such an iconic watch. It certainly wasn’t the plain flat disc that my father and uncles wore. Since I’m a firm believer that a tool watch is to be used, not locked away, I have been wearing the Sea Dweller at work and at home, and have not been suprised to find it is a beautiful, accurate and rugged timepiece that is a pleasure to use.

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INTRODUCTION
Since I own both of the latest versions of Omega dive watches, I thought it would be a worthwhile Endeavour to do a comparison between the two. The first is the latest and greatest from Omega; the Planet Ocean 2201.50.00 - 42mm black on black on bracelet. The other is the Omega Seamaster Professional: Electric Blue 2255.80.00 - 41mm blue face with polished bezel on bracelet. Ideally, I would have liked to compare my PO to the black on black SMP (2254.80.00) as it would have been a more of an “apples to apples” type of review, but sometimes you just have to work with what you got.

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First of all, the technical specifications, taken from the Plazeon web site:

Specification:

Crystal: Sapphire crystal on both front and display case back
Case: 42mm Special cut 316L Stainless Steel brushed finishing
Movement: Manual wind Column Wheel Chronograph with specially designed Power Reserve Indicator
Water resistance: 30m
Straps: Carbon strap with orange stitching and Brown Genuine Alligator strap with white stitching
Buckle: Etching PLAZEON logo deployment buckle
Box: Big Teak Wood box manufactured by the factory that also produces boxes for top SWISS brands
Accessories: Screw driver for strap changing, micro-fiber cloth for polishing

Plazeon is a Thai company that has, as of this date, three models out on the market. The one under review here is the Chrono Power Reserve model. So, let’s take a brief look at the watch itself:

I think that the first thing that really stands out is, of course, the design of the watch. This is also what differentiates Plazeon from all other watches out there: this is not your generic Asian watch.

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I wanted a dive watch that, first and foremost, looked like a dive watch. Also one with a name brand and with a nicely finished, regulated, and COSC’s movement. Since I could not afford a Rolex, this one was my most obvious second choice.

I typically like to gripe and moan over my watches; there is always something obviously wrong with them–but I don’t have much to bitch about with my Super Ocean

I have won it over the last 6 consecutive months, 23+/7.

CASE: Since I will only take my watch down to water droplet depth, the case seems more than adequate. The helium release valve is overkill, but it comes standard with the watch. It’s 42mm diameter is miniscule by today’s standards but perfect for me. Its finished with the typical “Breitling shiney”, but that finish obviously adds a considerable amount of case hardening because it is highly resistant to scratches and dings. The bezel, while certainly not the most visually attractive one in the world, indexes perfectly; I use it frequently timing a myriad of activities.

DIAL: My absolute favorite part of the watch. The more I see the bold, shadowed arabics, the more I like it; I didn’t think I would appreciate that as much as I do. There is practically no rotational eccentricity of the hands; the minute hand is in sych with the second hand. The date changes @ 2.5 minutes (+/- 15 seconds) prior to midnight EVERY night that I’ve stayed up to watch.

BRACELET: I’ve got the Professional II one and think it gives the watch a much more sleeker presentation than the Pro I; that’s because each of the 3 link rows are of the same height (thickness). The bracelet is very comfortable so I haven’t had the gumption to try changing to a Zulu or Breitling rubber strap. However, its standard friction clasp is archaic. A push piece version, the same found on any $300 Orient watch, should have been an obvious choice. But, its 4 rows of holes, allowing for that many micro adjustments is without peer in the bracelet world. In any case, the bracelet does not have a wet suit extension, so Breitling probably meant for you to use it with an alternative strap.

ACCURACY: Fair but with exceptional stability. I’ve taken monthly readings (for convenience, 1 month = 28 days) over the entire 28 day period. Here are its 6 respective month readings:

+6.6 s/d / +5.8 / +5.8 / +5.7 / +5.7 / +6.0. It’s obvious that the ETA 2824 movement is not the standard, off-the-shelf variety.

I have always liked sports watches and after so many years of wearing so many different brands, one that I have always looked at but never bought was Breitling. There was a time when I thought that the in house movement was everything and in a sports watch that only meant Rolexes, which I bought, 2 of them actually. Which I then sold after keeping them for some time. The good thing about it was that I did not lose money and I enjoyed them while it lasted.

However in the past few months, I have been surfing more and more to the Breitling sites and was impressed by the sheer presence of the watches in the Breitling line. I thought they provided a lot of bang for the buck and proceeded to look at them closely at the retailers. I was torn between the CA and the B1 but the water resistance of the CA won the day. I was able to land one unit at a decent price at the AD and am now on the slippery slope to having more Breitlings.

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Over the past 6 months I’ve had ample opportunity to think about this watch and study its technical details. Now I would like to share my observations and a second opinion in retrospect.

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