Citizen AT0-660 Eco-Drive Titanium Chronograph Review

Ahh.. Titanium, the space age wonder material. Its super strong, high temperature resistance and yet super lightweight. I was bedazzled by how light a titanium watch was when I first got my hands on a Seiko Titanium chrono SNA139P watch. After using for more than 4 years I decided to let it go because I worried about the battery running out. (replacing batteries meant that I the case had to be opened and thus affecting the water resistance). Realizing the problems of quartz battery powered watches I knew that my next titanium chrono must not have this same problem.

My old Seiko Military Titanium Chrono 200m

Searching for my next Titanium watch it had to have the following criteria :

- Case made from Titanium. Preferred a rubber or leather strap as titanium bracelets tend to scratch too easily
- 200m water resist as I ride my bike in all weather conditions
- Solar powered as this would solve the battery replacement issue. (and appeal to my environmentalist side)
- Chronograph, as long as it was solar powered, why have some extra features right?
- Simple military chrono design with arabic numerals

Searching all over the net I stumbled across the Citizen AT0-660. Design wise it looked similar to my old seiko Ti chrono and of course it was an Eco-Drive :). Searching high and low around town in Pertama, Money River, and other places in KL I was dissapointed to find out that this model was never made for the SEA region. Arrrghhh!!!! No other choice but had to resort to ebay. After ordering and mailing it to my sister who was in Dublin en route back to KL. My watch was on its way...thanx sis :)

Unboxing...
The watch came is a minimalistic box and printed on the bottom of the box read "made from recycled materials" Way to go Citizen...doing its little part is saving the earth. The watch came with a black nylon strap. I opted for this strap option instead of the titanium braclet becasue in my past experience titanium braclets scratched far too easily and I would swap out the nylon strap for a leather on later anyways. After inspecting the watch I noticed that the second hand was moving in 2 second intervals indication low power reserve. So off it sat beside my window to charge it up.

 "Eco" Friendly box

The watch...
First of all the watch is big... but not too ridiculously big. At 44mm (not including crown) its just a tad bigger than my Seiko "SPORK". Thickness is just nice. The crystal is a flat surface mineral type and is about half a milimeter higher than the bezel. No rotating bezel or markings like "tachymeter" on the bezel just clean matte titanium finish. The crown is screw down type and well protected. The chronograph pushers nice and big. The lug size is 22m so its very nice to change straps with a variety of rubber, nato, zulu and leather straps. Please dont use a steel bracelet on this watch as it would defeat the purpose, people choose titanium for its lightweight properties.

 The watch beside the window with its black nylon strap Big dial, easy to read. 

The dial, hands and lume...
The dial is nice classic and a no nonsense design. Big hour markers with arabic numerals on 12,3,6 and 9 with silver linings give it an elegant touch. I guess my only beef with the design is that second sub dial actually cuts the number "6" making it look a bit deformed. The date window is rather small and I wished it was lined with silver instead of white. The chrono minutes sub dial, 24 hr sub dial are nicely placed and do not interfere with reading of the time thank to the big hour and minute hands. Lume for this watch is excellent nice and bright initially and lasts all through the night until it was time to wake up. One thing that I really liked is that the lume is Blue/Cyan in colour which is a frech change from the usual luminous green.

 Nice blue lume for a change.

Modifications...
 There were two main things that made me worry when I got the watch, the nylon strap and its large mineral glass area with no sort of protection.

1) The glass problem was fixed by applying a "screen protector" now I dont have to worry about scrating the face.

2) The nylon strap has been reported to become stinky after a short duration of use. So instead wearing it with the nylon strap. I replaced the strap with a nice tough looking leather strap a la "timex" expedition type strap. I further modified this strap by replacing the standard buckle with a "butterfly" deployment clasp...Perfect!!!

 Thick rugged leather strap with butterfly deployment clasp.

Conclusion..
I love this watch, the big size, the light weight, and combined with the leather strap, this watch will follow me to my jamming sessions (im a drummer so its either this watch or my G-shock, bracelets are a no-no for drummers). Also suitable for casual outings and the office it doesn't seem out of place anywhere I go. The fact that this watch is not available in the S.E.A. region makes me love it even more because of the unique factor. Lastly this watch also for the "environmentalist" in me and doing my small part in "going green"!!!!!

Rugged look.

Big but not too big on the wrist.

Size comparison to the Seiko 10 Bar...

The Orient Mako "Pepsi" Classic Review

This was the time when my watch crazy hobby just started to take off. I already had a Seiko Orange Monster but the monster was like all tool and tough watch, so its not very dressy and suitable for formal occasions. I was in the market for diver watch (not that I go diving anyways just wanted the assurance of a 200m rated watch :P). I wanted something that was classic and elegant but would not burn a hole too deep in my pocket. I heard about the Orient Mako and apparently there are three variants, The classic Mako, The Mako Ray, and the Mako XL. Initially I was interested in the Mako XL for its size but the very poor lume deterred me. The Mako Ray is newer but didn't have arabic numerals (6,9,12). The Mako classic was the one for me but apparently its getting harder to find.

The Orient Mako Pepsi

On a business trip down south to Johor, I finally saw a Mako Classic "Pepsi" sitting nicely in the display cabinet of a watch shop. At first I was actually looking for a Blue Mako since many have commended how nice and mesmerizing the blue dial is. The Pepsi one had the same nice blue dial only with a different bezel. Putting it on my wrist and looking at it I was immediatley under its spell with the blue dial glowing in my eyes and just like that I told the shop keeper...."I'll take it"

I like the idea of being unique (not having the same watch as the other guy), so when I realized that the Pepsi Mako usually came on rubber starp and not on bracelet I just had to have it. (some other guy must have bought a black or other color mako previously but wanted it on rubber)

The watch...

Simple Packaging

This watch is all is all quality...quality you can see and feel. Orient really got it right with this one. With its under 200 dollar (USD) tag and quality finish you really get a bang for your buck. The automatic movement is quite accurate and very easy to start up and wind thanks to its quarter-circle rotor disc. Orient uses in-house movement not borrowed movements like some swiss brands using ETA movements.

The dial and lume

 

Two toned Blue dial. Lume shot in total darkness.

Gorgeous blue metallic dial that reflects a two tone blue colour depending on how the light hits it. Aviator style arabic numerals with silver linings. Nice no nonsense hour and minute hands sword like with silver linings. The second hand has a nice red tip (too bad its not lumed). The day/date display is white with silver borders (nice). Lume is bright enough(not radioactive bright) and lasts while I sleep so that I can tell the time at 6:30 a.m.

Bezel, Crown and Pushers...

Signed Crown...elegant

The bezel is uni-directional with 60 clicks and aligns properly at 12 o'clock and every other miniute marker. Some complain that the numbers on the bezel should be bigger. Orient addressed this by making the Orient Ray bezel having bigger numbers. The pusher that you see on top of the crown is for quick day change.(I really wished that it was a quick date change since that can be useful for 30th to 1st day of the month changes) It has a screw down lock so that you wont accidentally change the day. The Mako XL does not have a lock. The crown is a screw down type, well guarded and SIGNED!!! with the orient lions logo. This very nice and elegant since even some other more expensive brands only have plain crowns.

The bracelet...

I like the bracelet. No nonsense, oyster style with brushed finish, polished sides and solid links. The only downside is that the end links are folded. (Solid end links would have been perfect). The clasp has a safety and machined with the Orient logo.

Solid links and machined clasp

Conclusion.

This is 'The' watch that put orient on the map. Classic looks and I like the fact that even with the "Submariner" ish looks its a completely different watch with quick day pushers, arabic numerals and nice hands. If you wish to grab one, the Classic Makos are getting more and more rare replaced by the Mako ray. The Mako Ray has rectangular hour markers, large numbered bezel, fancier bracelet and some say brighter lume. If you happen to find a classic Mako do take the time and try it on your wrist.

A nice watch at the office breakfast table

Choosing the best watch for you - Part 2 : Watch Materials

What is you watch made of? Stainless steel? Plastic? Resin? Here I will share the pros and cons of all watch materials and which ones wil suit you best.

Stainless Steel - I think this is the most common type of material used on watches nowadays for its durability and ease of production and costs. Steel watches can come in two types of finish which is either polished chrome like finish for those who like the shiny "bling" and a brushed or matte finish for those who like the more suttle industrial "tough" look. Steel watches are usually heavy so the nigger the watch, the heavier the heft on your wrists. On a plus side, polished finish steel watches can be re-polished if some scratches appear after a long period of use.

A polished finish(see how shiny it is) and a brushed finish

PVD Coated Stainless Steel - This type of watches are one that give the "Gun Metal" look. These watches look very nice and rugged and usually in dark colours like black, dark gery, or dark brown. Its basically a stainless steel watch which is coated with the coloured material. Although they might look good eventually the coating will give way and if you scratch your PVD watch... there is no way of polishing it up again.

A brand new PVD watch and a used PVD watch

Gold - Oooooh the expensive gold. At one point of time gold watches were all the rage but not anymore as gold watches now just seem to look cheesey (but thats my personal opinion). Expensive to make, high cost and difficulty in maintanence probrably brought its downfall. Anyways any gold watch user would never have peace of mind wearing it as it attracts many would be robbers. Just as in jewelry it cannot be made of 100% gold anyways because if it did it would be easily dented.

A famous gold watch brand back in the 80's

Resin - Usually in black, Casio watches have a lot of models that use resin's for their watch cases. Tough and less prone to scratches it has proven to be a popular choice for sport watches. The toughest resin made watches are of course the Casio G-shocks. Resin watches are tough but it also depens on the humidity of the country that you live in. Where I come from (Malaysia) the humidity is high so resin and rubber watches do not last as long. (althouth its still quite long). Resin watches usually have a stainless steel caseback.

A mud resistant resin watch

Plastic - Plastic cased watches were made popular by Swatch watches and was usually design in frech funky designs and one ca also see the watch mechnism. The advantage is of course the watches were relatively in-expensive. Plactics watches are also really light weight, suitable for those who need to tell time but dont like the feeling of anything heavy around their wrists. Swatch watches also use plexi-glass on the dial making it easy to polish off any scratches on the face.

Plastic cased watch

Titanium - Ahhh the metal used on spacecraft and highspeed aeroplanes. This space age material has the durability of steel without the weight. Get this type of watch material if you like steel watches but do not like the heft of heavy watches. The lightweight often makes users forget that they are wearing a watch. One downside to titanium is that it scratches mush easier than stainless steel and only comes in matte finish. Best to use a nato or rubber strap with titanium watches if you have a rugged lifestyle.

Titanium. Although it looks big..its light!!

And there you have it, the many types of watch materials to help you choose the best watch for you. Anything I missed? Lets not mention exotic materials like white gold and platinum as its quite rare on a watch.