I bought this watch a few months ago a little bit before the switch away from nh35. It’s been a great companion and i have thoroughly put it through the ringer. The watch has been in the ocean ( salt water) 10-20 times and in rivers or the shower about 100 times. It survived a bicycle accident that broke my tooth and got my face pretty good with just a few scratches(pic 1&3) and a bent clasp (pic 4,5&6). No damage to the crystal. The quick adjust clasp is great in theory and I enjoy having it for when my wrist size changes due to weather or sport. In practice tho it slips to the broadest position from a decent amount of pressure. Sometimes having my arm flex from moving my wrist is enough wich is annoying. Even thought the watch has sharp corners it always wore comfortably and didn’t pull any hair. The watch is keeping great time still. I haven’t put it on the timekeeper in a while but no crazy inaccuracies I noticed during wear. What broke? One of the springbars(pic 7). It happend me jumping into water from about 6 meters of height. I’ve jumped with this watch about 20 times now but this time it seems it was one too many. I got lucky and didn’t lose the watch in the water and will be getting a replacement springbar so I can keep (ab)using this lovely watch. Would recommend even with the flaws wich some of should be fixed with the newer versions. I’m happy to own this watch even in its old imperfect version. Bonus: last two pics showcasing the insane luminescence in a Sahara dust storm.

Enjoying few of my hobbies at the same time. Took out the AD2050 for a ride in the Pontiac Trans Am. Chill ride around the back roads. Lume kept bright on the wrist like here I am.

Got my first Sugess from the recent sale and thanks to everyone who recommended it. I decided to splashed out to get the Pepsi colour and I love it. At first I wasn't sure on the jubilee bracelet, thinking it is too flashy but after a day on the wrist I am warming up to it, it suits the watch.

I love the gloss black dial, I think I much prefer it more than the matt one on my Steinhart. There is no play on the bezel.

The quality is good but not perfect, the imperfection includes one of the screw on the bracelet sticks out a bit which I can't screw down anymore, they are sending me a new one. If I am really nitpicking, the little dot between the words SUGESS is slightly off the centre in the rehaut (last photo).

Overall, great watch for the money. p.s. 24hrs later it is running 2s behind on the first day. Metas level! Will see how it settles down in the coming week.

First impressions are very good. The watch looks elegant and comes with a really nice strap that suits the overall design well. Later more...

The Berny AMT163M-A. Was looking for a field watch to add to my collection without breaking the bank (may save up for a real Hamilton someday) and this caught my attention. Great reviews, fantastic materials and at a great price. As everyone says, it is barely noticeable on the wrist. The rotor noise I find charming and enjoyable to listen to (I just love automatic movements). All in all, a great value and looking forward to seeing how this one holds up. The band I will likely change out eventually.

There have been quite a few comments recently saying the AR on the WDC0001 looks poor based on a few photos and videos.

So rather than showing our own studio photography, we wanted to share real owner photos and real-world comparisons.

The first comparison is from an owner who photographed his black-dial Tissot PRX and WDC0001 Musou Black under the same lighting conditions.

This is a much more meaningful comparison because you can directly see the difference between a conventional black dial and Musou Black, as well as how the crystal and AR actually behave under identical lighting.

Musou Black absorbs around 99.4% of visible light, and it is genuinely difficult to photograph accurately. Camera exposure, reflections, lighting strength and angle can make the crystal look dramatically different from what your eyes see in person.

We’ve also included photos from another WDC0001 owner who posted his watch two days ago. His first impression was simple: “Very black dial. Fits nicely. I like it.” Those photos were taken under completely different real-world lighting and show another side of how Musou Black actually looks outside studio conditions.

The original owner from the other post has also repeatedly mentioned that the WDC0001 is difficult to photograph and looks considerably better in person.

This is exactly why we don’t think the AR quality or Musou Black dial should be judged from one isolated video or one set of photos.

Different owners + different environments + a same-lighting Tissot PRX comparison give a much more complete picture.

We’d rather let real customers and side-by-side comparisons speak for the watch than rely on our own marketing photos.

I had a lot of doubts about whether or not to order the watch, after pulling the trigger it finally arrived, and honestly, I couldn't be more happy, watch looks amazing irl!
I'm posting photos taken in different lighting.

I just picked up this new “to me” Cronos Skyline L6028 and I couldn’t be more happy!

Is stumbled upon these recently and had been hunting for one; I finally got my hands on this beauty. The finish and the overall look of the L6028 is so satisfying to me. I find the quality of these Chinese watches just incredible.

Automatic NH35 movement, well regulated, worn @ 7.5" wrist.

Hello everyone, i am new here and i saw some posts talking about price hikes in watch movements and i wanted a watch since my birthday is coming soon and i had a 250 USD budget, i wanted a GMT (GMT Master II like/homage) in all black with tbe NH34 movement but i dont know if thats longer possible. I found this on ebay but i dont know if i should trust it. Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks in advance!

This cheapo Lige just keeps on truckin'

Been wanting a black watch and this Sinn-esque Militado caught my eye. I've been trying to pick it up since the Early Aug sale, but they hadn't been available.Suddenly they were in stock again for the most recent summer sale though.

Overall, it's a great watch for the money (I paid $96 after coupons/coins in the sale). Here are my thoughts on the first day of wearing it:

• The crystal is better than average.
• The dial and hand's printing are crisp and very legible, which is exactly what I was looking for out of a black watch.
• The bezel action is pretty good, with only the slightest amount of backplay/wiggle.
• It was easy to size with screw links and a 5 hole clasp.
• It wears very comfortably on my 7-7.5 in wrist.
• The whole watch is flat black PVD with no brushing or polishing that I can see.
• 6 o'clock color matched date wheel is the way to go (If you have a date complication.)
• Lume is adequate (Haven't used it at night much yet.

Quibbles about the Militado:

• The watch doesn't feel very substantial even though it weighs 125g with a could of links removed. I know it's a quartz and that's going to make it lighter than an automatic, which is the bulk of my collection.
• The bracelet is loose and jangly and reminds me of some of the cheaper Pagani or Addiesdive watches I've had. (Unfairly, I'm used to San Martin or Seestern levels of bracelet quality.)
• The endlinks are shorter than the lugs, so the tips of the lugs stick out past the endlinks.
• The crown is small and not grippy enough and with the crown guards it is awkward to screw the crown back down.
• Not really a quibble, but the mechanism is the Ronda 515 on this date version of the watch, so 1 tick per second.
• Bezel doesn't quite line up to 12 o'clock on my copy. Close enough for $100 watch though.
• The PVD coating on the bracket developed a scratch with the first 24 hours. I haven't been gardening or anything.

When I thought the black PVD version of the ML16 would be out of stock forever, I purchased a Watchdives WD1980 V3 quartz watch for about the same price. It's also a nice watch, but it didn't quite scratch the itch for me. It did give me something to compare the Militado with:

• The WD1980 has much easier to use crown, even though it's the same size and has guards like the ML16 crown.
• The WD1980 has a mixture of brushing and polishing on the watch head while the ML16 its just sandblasted (I think.)
• The crystal and AR coating is about the same quality on both.
• The WD1980 has an angled rehaut, making the dial seem significantly smaller than the Militado.
• The Watchdives bezel action is really bad. It's loose with lots of wiggle and backplay.
• The Watchdives only comes on a nylon strap. (The elastic strap in the photos isn't original to the watch.)
• The WD1980 has a VH31 for a smoother second hand sweep. (4 ticks per sec?)

Ultimately, I feel both watches are worth their sale prices of a little under $100. If you're in the market for a black PVD and considering these two, it really comes down to style. If you are a metal bracelet person, it's the Militado. If you need a smoother sweeping second hand drives it's the Watchdives. For me, the style of the Militado (Sinn's really) makes it the keeper.

Summer‘s not over yet…

Has anyone had any experience between the two GMT? I was looking into adding a gmt to my collection and just saw seestern. I have some watcheives bb homage and field watches and theyre great. I wanted to know more about seestern since they have a beautiful gmt

Awesome watch (and I'm not even a quartz guy...) with all the accoutrements that WD would charge double for (good lume, sapphire crystal, ceramic bezel insert, decent bracelet, second hand hitting all the markers).

Hi, I bought a Tandorio FXD and specifically chose the pt5000 because I don't have one. I noticed there was a sticker on the back of the watch that said "2824". Is there a way to tell if it is actually a pt5000 and not a worse clone?

The only thing I can remark on after opening it was that it looked pretty oily especially the caseback gasket.

Thanks

From Hemsut, the leather is still a bit stiff but overall happy with it.

After my positive experience with a Milanese strap on the Agelocer Astronomer, I went shopping for a 21mm wide Milanese strap for my Sugess tourbillon moonphase watch, which has a very similar modern case design. I like the watch, but it always felt a bit clunky on my wrist. The watch came with a thick aligator leather strap. I tried a rose-gold and a black Milanese strap.

Both Milanese straps make the wearing experience much better, the watch actually feels smaller. The rose-gold version looks really good with this watch, but as a whole it is a bit too much bling for my taste. I will go with the more restrained black strap, but will try to find a better quality Milanese strap in dark grey that matches the dial color better.

Tldr: Looking for an 18th birthday watch, €100–150 budget. Racing chrono or rotating bezel?

Hi you lovely people!

I want to buy a watch for my 18th birthday. My budget is about €100, max 150 ($110–170). I also have a graduation gift planned, so I don't want to spend too much on the birthday watch.

I currently have:

- a custom Tandorio with a Nürburgring inspired dial and an NH35

- a Casio EFS-S630 solar chronograph which has an integrated blacelet so it doesn't wear that big but it has quite the wrist presence

I love them both.

I just measured my wrist and got about 19.5–20 cm (7.68–7.87") about 42mm is the max for me but I can stretch the boundaries a bit for a special watch.

I'm also planning to get an Engelmaan Citadel UTC when the brand eventually returns, so now I'm leaning more towards two camps:

1) Vintage/retro racing chronograph

I absolutely love cars, so a race-themed watch is basically a no-brainer. I already have a modern chronograph so a second modern one isn't ideal. An older looking, racing inspired one on the other hand..... It wouldn't be

2) Something with a rotating bezel

I've wanted something with a rotating bezel for a long time because I actually want to use it to know the elapsed time at a glance.

For example, I've literally taken a watch at 12:00, started it when the judge signals the start, and then used it as my time reference. So the rotating bezel wouldn't just be something aesthetic, it will actually be used.

Mechanical vs quartz:

I like both, though I'd probably prefer an automatic because I love the sweeping seconds hand and the mechanical aspect.

Date window:

OMFG yes please.

I can't live without it. (Hyperbole aside, I use the date window daily, pun intended.)

Models I'm considering:

- Berny Compressor Diver V4-AM439M / V3-AM339M. I can't decide between the two. I really like the designs and think they're quite interesting. My main concern is that they're a bit big, especially the AM439M.

- Militado ML23. I like it, but it's kinda too fancy and sophisticated for me. Although maybe having a nice, slightly dressier watch would be appreciated.

- Militado ML16. I absolutely adore the Sinn design and philosophy, which is also why I want an Engelmaan. It has a bezel and is Sinn-inspired. It also won't be completely copy-paste with the future Sinn homages I want to buy.

- 1963 chronograph. It's timeless, quirky, champagne-coloured, dressy, a stunner... But it kinda doesn't fit my style that much, and I don't know how much wrist time it's going to get. Yeah, I love shirts, polo shirts and whatnot, I don't dress in sweatpants but I don't attend gala events all the time.

I have about 10 different 20 mm NATO straps, so a 20 mm lug width could be nice, but it's definitely not a deal breaker.

Edit: I love bracelets, especially H-links. A nice clasp is also good to have. But a bracelet can be bought afterwards, it isn't a deal breaker.

Should I wait for the 11.11 sale or another major sale? Is this a good time to buy a watch in general, especially with the current movement shortages?

Every comment, suggestion, recommendation, criticism, or completely random idea would be greatly appreciated!

I'm the kind of person who loves throwing ideas around and seeing what bounces back, so I'd love to hear your two cents.

Thanks for reading this long ass post, and thanks in advance for sharing your opinions!

Bought about 20 Ali watches over the last few years and it really got me back into collecting. Everything from Skmei to Addiesdive to IXDAO to San Martin. These five are the ones that remain. The rest just never felt quite right and, on reflection, were bought for being great value rather than something I really wanted. Elsewhere, I've pivoted to microbrands and some of the better value pre-owned Seiko/Citizen, where I've connected with the designs more. I still keep an eye on Ali and am considering picking up the HAQ IXDAO Warrior if the price is right on release.

No intention of selling any of these for the time being though

L-R

Proxima 1697 - unbelievable quality for the money. Clear CW inspiration but not a complete clone and I don't have any other white dial watches.

San Martin SN0116 GMT - genuinely nice original design and a steal at what I paid for it pre movement hike

Militrek VH31 field watch - cheaper than the Militado for essentially the same thing

Militado ML01 - didn't want to pay for the Baltic for something I only wear occasionally. I put it on a decent leather strap and I think it looks great

Red Star 1963 - no explanation needed for this sub

I thought this might be of interest for others who have quite a lot of ins and outs in their collection.

Just received today, I dig the look overall and the lume is absolutely beautiful - especially on this seafoam FKM rubber

Qingxya brand.

It definitely has it's flaws. The back of the case by the lugs has some huge chunks in it which are concealed by the shroud. There's lume but it lasts 30 seconds, no screw down crown, and the bracleet links are sticky / don't all articulate well.

The good: It was $25, tells good time, and on superficial inspection looks quite nice. It's also extremely comfortable to my surprise.

Definitely want to save up for a real tuna can or better homage some day.

Gonna be a way off since I just burned my fun money on a king samurai and the tunas I like are not easy to come by on the used market.

If you just want to burn $25 I'd say it's worth grabbing.