Scurfa Diver One 2.0 | Hands on Watch Review

Scurfa Diver One 2.0

The dive watch. We all love them. Well, at least I do. What is better than a really well built, classic looking dive watch? An affordable one. Yes, the Scurfa Diver One 2.0 is using a quartz movement, but it is also $234 shipped and it has all the bells and whistles we look for, including a custom made rubber strap. An evolution to the Rolex Comex divers, and an evolution to itself, as this latest version improves upon its predecessor with better finishing, better components and yet basically the same price. The man behind Scurfa, Paul, never settles and is always trying to produce the best watch he can for the best price.

Scurfa Diver One 2.0 Spefications:

• Case size 40 mm by 47.7 by 14mm, 20mm strap size
• 316L Surgical grade Stainless Steel
• 7mm screw down crown with D1 logo
• 120 Click unidirectional bezel
• Aluminium bezel insert with Luminous pearl
• Blue Super Luminova SL-BGW9 on the dial, hands and bezel pearl
• Domed sapphire crystal with blue Anti Reflective coating on the underside
• Ronda 515SM Swiss Made Quartz movement
• 300m ~ 1000ft
• Drilled through lugs with strong single shoulder spring bars 20mm X 2mm X 1.2mm
• 12 Months warranty
• Scurfa Watches rubber strap based on the Italian leather straps seen on lots of vintage Diving watches today

Price $234 USD with Shipping 

http://scurfawatches.com/diverone2017

Similar to the Bell Diver that Scurfa released in 2016, the Diver One 2.0 is definitely upgraded from previous models. Just taking a look around the case you can see the differences. The lines of the case are sharper, the vertical brushing, the drilled lug holes for easy strap removal, the stamped case back, even the dial indices and hands are cleaner and more precise. While quartz for some reason can be a bad word to watch geeks, I personally have no problem with a great grab and go, especially at such an affordable price point. Even the dial is upgraded, no matte or gloss dial here, rather a slightly pebbled texture that is subtle but appreciated.

                                                                                                                               

I will say that one odd choice for the Scurfa Diver 2.0 was the limited hand color option. Only blue or black dials are offered and they both come with yellow hands. A black PVD variant is offered with orange hands as well. I know there was a numbered limited edition as well, (now sold out), that had white hands but I wish there was maybe black outline hands or maybe even metal hands just to give another option. Granted, this is not intended to be a dress watch or even an office watch, it is a rugged diver watch for actual use or those days when you are wearing the t-shirt and jeans. I personally do not have an issue with the yellow hands but I do think another option should have been available.

I have to say, when looking around the case, it is honestly hard to believe the cost of the Scurfa Diver One 2.0. The fact that with shipping it can be had for under $250 even with the quartz movement is surprising. Crown action is good, as is the bezel. The bezel insert this time is aluminum, and while I know many these days clamor for ceramic or sapphire bezels, I still like the look of a matte aluminum bezel. It is classic and just works.  The bezel markings are precise and clean, as is the luminous bezel pearl.

Speaking of lume, check out the pics below to see how the Scurfa Diver One 2.0 looks in the dark. You can definitely see this almost all night long.

On the wrist the Scurfa Diver One 2.0 is a dream. The 40mm case is substantial but not overly heavy, it curves right to the wrist and the accompanying custom made rubber strap may just be the best damn rubber strap I have ever put on. I have had so many types of rubber straps, the Isofrane, the Isofrane knockoffs, Hirsch Straps, even the Everest Rolex rubber straps, and this strap may just top them all. It is not overly thick, feels great on the wrist and looks great as well. As I said in the video, Paul, you need to start making these available on the site for a separate purchase, and in other sizes as well. It is perfect.               

Drilled lugs are used this time as well, and also single shoulder spring bars to make the Scurfa Diver One 2.0 even more rugged and secure. I am sure this watch would look great on a multitude of straps, possibly even a nice bracelet, but as I said above, I doubt I would ever take it off the rubber strap. Yeah, if you haven’t figured it out, I love that strap. It is like that great pair of jeans or those favorite pair of boots, you just hate when you are not wearing them.

There truly is not one negative thing I can say about the Scurfa Diver One 2.0. I know that is rare for me, but when a watch is built this well, looks this good, and is this affordable, there is nothing bad I can say about it. All the right components are in use here, the fit and finish is of a watch costing much more and to be honest, Paul, the man behind Scurfa is just a good dude. He is not jumping on the bandwagon just because like so many others, he honestly wants to create the best product he can. And it definitely shows. I gladly wear 40mm pieces such as this these days but will say a 42mm piece would be great as well, or maybe stick with the 40mm case size and keep everything else the same, but do an auto version as well. I think it would sell like hotcakes. Or a Kardashian book. Or Justin Bieber tickets. Or whatever the kids are into these days.

 

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William L. 1985 Vintage Diver | Hands on Watch Review

William L.1985 Vintage Diver

Vintage. It is a word that is said a lot these days. I cannot even begin to count how many watches I see or review that are vintage or retro inspired. It is the trend these days, for how long; who knows, but many brands will ride the train until we are on to the next trend. Many brands are coming out with vintage designs these days but not many are doing vintage sizing. That is where this William L. 1985 Vintage Diver comes in. Not only does it have the retro look, but it measures in at 38.5mm, a size that would have been very normal back in the 60’s and 70’s. If you have been craving for a dive watch under 40mm, keep reading to see if the William L. is something you would wear with your vintage jeans and vintage shirt.

William L. 1985 Vintage Diver Specifications:

• 38.5mm Stainless Steel Case
• 44mm Lug to Lug
• 13.5mm Thick
• 18mm Lug Width
• Sapphire Crystal
• 100 Meters Water Resitant
• Seiko NH35 Automatic Movement

Price: Around $400 USD

https://www.williaml1985.com/en/diver/59-automatic-vintage-diver-70-s-style-3760256221846.html

With so many brands these days, naming a new one must be difficult. A friend and fellow brand owner was bouncing names off me recently for a new venture he is working on and I flat out told him, I don’t have the time to help as coming up with a brand name takes a lot of time and research. Or so one would think. I have no idea where William L. 1985 came up with their name. Guillaume is the name of the man behind the brand and taking a look at their story on the website did not give me an answer either. No matter how great a product is, the brand name can make or break the company. I do not know if that is the case here, but it is an interesting brand name. Dan Henry Watches seems to do very well though, so I guess it is all in the marketing. Fortunately, the William L. 1985 Vintage Diver is a pretty decent watch, so I will look past the name for now.

The 38.5mm case is definitely small by today’s standards and I admit when I first took it out of the box and put it on, It was an adjustment. I have stated many times my sweet spot is 40-44mm these days, down from the days where I wore 48mm watches or larger on the regular. I don’t know if I can rock 38mm to be honest, but I was willing to give it a ride on the wrist for  a few days, which I am not sure was enough. I think after a few weeks on the wrist I would have adjusted to it, but with so many watches to review, I am not able to do that. I think the biggest issue I had was the 18mm strap, which just seems so thin to me.

Okay, we have established I am not the target demographic for this size watch, at least not yet anyways. Who knows where I will be in a few years. I am wearing a 40mm watch as I type this, which is something I never thought would happen. Anything is possible. What about the quality and design on the William L. 1985 Vintage Diver? The design I love; I am a sucker for this case style with the hooded lugs and I am glad they kept the polished areas to an absolute minimum. The dial is clean with no unneeded text and I am always glad to see a standard 3 o’clock date placement as opposed to that wonky 4:30 atrocity.

Black and orange seem to be the only colors offered with the William L. 1985 Vintage Diver, and I for one am okay with that. I love black and orange, and while it might sound cliche, they are manly colors. It reminds me of Harley Davidson and gruff bikers. If those colors are not your first choice, well, you are out of luck for now. I have no idea if William L. plans to release any other colorways, but like anything else, if the sales are good and there is demand, they probably will. I like how they went as far as an orange outline around the date window and orange stitching on the rally style leather strap.

The bezel action is pretty good but the crown action leaves a little something to be desired, at least on my example. It has a slight grittiness to it-check out the video to see what I mean. The case back shows off the Seiko NH35 automatic movement, and I know some people love to see the movement, regardless of what caliber, but I would have preferred if this gentleman kept his clothes on and the William L. 1985 Vintage Diver had a nice etched or stamped case back.

William L. 1985 Vintage Dive Lume-Good, not great.

If I take a look at the whole package, considering the price of around $400 USD, the William L. 1985 Vintage Diver does have a lot of appeal. I will always opt for a better movement, but putting that aside, the case finishing is on par with other watches in this price range, the leather strap is attractive and comfortable and fits my 7 1/2 inch wrist with ease. The domed sapphire crystal does not cause crazy amounts of distortion or glare because they didn’t go overboard with a massive crystal. The dome is subtle, the way it shouldn’t be in my opinion. The big deal here is the small size. While the guys who love bigger watches might wish for a 44mm version, I know their are many guys out there with smaller wrists or guys that just like to wear a smaller watch that will be very excited to see a nicely designed diver that comes in under 40mm. William L., please take note that a 42 or 44mm version would probably be well received as well. Something to consider for next year possibly. In the meantime, if you want a vintage style watch in a vintage size, this is one of the few on the market, especially in the microbrand segment.

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Spinnaker Fleuss | Hands on Watch Review

Spinnaker Fleuss

Spinnaker has released two new diver watches into their ever growing model lineup and sent me two variations. The case on all Spinnaker Fleuss models is the same across the board, but as you can see, these two have different bezels, dials and crown. Both are vintage style divers, most notably taking inspiration from the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms. Other colors of each are available as well, so check out the Spinnaker Website to take a look at those if the two I have for review don’t do it for you. Spinnaker has again offered a discount code for our readers/viewers, which is DON20, entered at checkout, which will save you 20%.

Spinnaker Fleuss Specifications:

• 43mm Stainless Steel Case
• 50mm Lug to Lug
• 22mm Lug Width
• 13mm Thick
• Sapphire Crystal
• Acrlyic Bezel
• 500 Feet Water Resistant
• Leather Strap

Price $285 Retail, Use Code DON20 at checkout for 20% off

http://bit.ly/SP-5055_Watchreport

All of the Spinnaker Fleuss Models have a gravel or sand type of dial texture, some are going to love this and some are going to hate it. I actually like it, Spinnaker has done this with a few other models and it breaks up the usual matte, sunray, enamel dials, etc. Both examples have applied markers or numerals and the dials are clean and uncluttered and weirdly, neither of them have the model name printed on the dial. As a matter of fact, I do not remember a Spinnaker model off hand that prints the model name on them, maybe they do this for cleaner aesthetics or maybe the watches are produced before a model name is appointed to it.

I have been saying forever that Spinnaker needs to upgrade the crystals with sapphire. They finally listened to me (and many others) and did so with the Fleuss lineup. I hope this a decision that will continue with future releases. Both crystals could probably use a better AR coating, but as you can see, I did not catch a ton of glare while doing the photography, and overall when wearing them I never had an issue looking down to see the time. On the other hand, they went with an acrylic bezel, which was a weird choice of material. Acrylic or a Bakelite bezel would have been used back in the day, but if you are going with sapphire on the dial it would only make sense to do the same for the bezel. I’m assuming that would have jumped the cost up a little more, and they chose to go another direction.

The Spinnaker Fleuss lineup all use the Seiko NH35 automatic movement, which seems like the go to automatic for Spinnaker. It has never been my favorite movement but at this price point, it is suitable. Speaking of price, it seems someone at Spinnaker realized their past pricing structure was a little off, as they retailed more in the $400 range. The prices have lowered, at least for this model and upgraded with better crystals, lume and dial/hand work.

On the wrist the Spinnaker Fleuss fits like most diver watches with similar specs, but one important thing to note is the straps. Both come with suede style leather straps and are decent quality. The standout to me is the length of the strap and hole placement.  A lot of times similar brands have straps that are way too small and hole placement that makes wearing it odd and harder for someone with large or small wrists to wear. While it is impossible to make a strap that is one size fits all, Spinnaker did a good job here. On my 7 1/2 inch wrist the buckle sits right in the middle and there is a good amount of holes on either side left. If I could take a guess I would say it should fit a range of 6 1/2 inches up to 8 inches comfortably.

Lume on both examples of the Spinnaker Fleuss is pretty good. Keep in mind, both these watches are fully charged before the shots are taken and while they look pretty, check out the video to get a more realistic sense of the lume. The lume on the grey dial lasts longer than the blue, but expect both to fade out completely after 2 hours.

Spinnaker has definitely upped their game with the Fleuss. The upgrade of materials is welcomed and the adjusted pricing structure helps me give them a better overall rating. At a $400 price point, I would probably have some complaints. Under $300 MSRP and this is a good beater or an inexpensive diver to have in the rotation. One thing I did not notice till after I had taken the photos was the bezel lume on the blue example is not all there at the 45 minute mark. It could be a one off example but as always, if you purchase, inspect it well upon arrival. Other than that, the watch is pretty solid. I still don’t know if I would run out into the Ocean with one as I do not believe these are really tested to withstand 500 feet of water resistance and if I were going into the water I would want a rubber strap, but I’m sure they will probably hold up to a day at the beach without issue.

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