Review of Momo Design Pilot GMT Automatic Limited Edition

Model # MD095-DIVMB-01BK

Brand/Model:  Momo Design Pilot GMT Automatic Limited Edition
Movement:  Swiss automatic
Material:  titanium case and bracelet
Complications:  date display, independently adjustable GMT hand
Price:  MSRP:  about $3,495 USD; street price as low as $800 USD

Plenty of photos follow the review.  Click on the pictures to enlarge.
 
This is the third Momo Design watch I have purchased and I still own two of them.  I have found them to be well constructed, great looking designs with reliable Swiss engines and when purchased at a discount, to represent strong value.

This Momo Pilot GMT is about the largest size watch I can safely wear for my approximately 6-3/4 inch wrist without looking like a clown or street performer trying to get attention.  Even though this watch has a rotating bezel, it is an internal rotating bezel, so the watch does wear as large as it is, with a rather large expanse of sapphire crystal covering the dial. 

Luckily, the thickness of the watch and the thinness of the bracelet links help to minimize its bulk, which is also dimished because the entire watch is crafted of lightweight titanium. A black PVD fixed bezel adds a bit of contrast to the case.

The Momo Pilot GMT starts with a beautifully finished totally satinized titanium case that measures 46mm without the signed screwdown crown.  With the crown, the case is 50.2mm across.  Substantial to say the least.  Thickness is a rather trim 12.4mm, lugs are 24mm. 

From lug tip to lug tip vertically, this watch comes in at 57mm and while the lugs are not overly long, they don’t curve down too much, so keep this 57mm dimension in mind if you are considering this watch and have a smaller wrist like I do.

The display caseback is also satinized titanium and screws down, showing the ETA Swiss automatic movement.  The display back’s crystal is countersunk a bit from the rest of the caseback, perhaps for more comfort while wearing the watch.

The movement is largely unfinished except for a few blued screws and the striped and Momo-signed rotor.  A more highly finished movement would be nice, given the absurdly high retail price of this watch, but since they can be had at a discount, the movement is fine as-is.

The Momo Pilot GMT is rated for 10 atm of water resistance.

Where this watch really shines is in the dial department.  Given its large overall dimensions, the dial is relatively uncluttered and easy to read, combining good looks with functionality.  The dial is black, with an internal rotating timing bezel on the outer side of the dial, performing the function of a chapter ring.  The bezel is controlled by the black, unsigned and non-screwdown crown located at the 10 position on the case.

I was concerned about the dreaded ‘bezel creep’ that sometimes occurs with watches than have an internal rotating bezel and a non-locking crown that controls the bezel.  I had this problem with my Seiko 5 Sports, where there was no resistance on the bezel crown, so the bezel would creep slightly around the dial as the watch was worn.

I am happy to report that bezel creep is not a problem with the Momo Pilot GMT due to two factors, the location of the bezel crown and the internal resistance of the crown.  Having the bezel crown at 10 largely keeps it off the wrist, so arm movement cannot rotate the crown.  There is also sufficient resistance built into the crown, so the crown does not rotate freely.  There’s just enough resistance to keep the bezel from creeping.  The crown is easy to operate and moves the bezel in either direction with no detents.

Just inside the timing bezel is the 24-hour GMT chapter ring.  This ring is fixed, so this watch can track only one extra timezone.  The hands are satin silver with red tips and inset lume, the seconds hand is red and the GMT hand is silver with a red arrow tip with inset lume.  This design makes time reading and GMT functions easy to see and use.

The hour and minute hands and the GMT hand tip are luminous, along with the arabics on the timing bezel and the five minute markers on the dial.  Lume quality is good on the hands and average on the markers.

The dial has a fair amount of printing on it, but the font size is small, so it doesn’t intrude that much on the legibility of the dial.  Under the 12 position, ‘Momo Design’ and ‘Made in Italy’ are printed.  Above the six, ‘Swiss Automatic,’ ‘GMT’ and ‘Limited Edition,’ along with the limited edtion number are printed.  I don’t know how many watches comprise this ‘Limited Edition’ but it is probably less than 1000.

A quickset date is located at the 3 position, with a simple black on white date wheel.  Alignment within the window could be a tad better, but really is nothing to fret about.  The timesetting crown is black PVD and sets the time, date and moves the GMT hand in one-hour increments.

The dial is capped by a very slight domed sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating.  The crystal exhibits no distortion, something to consider with a watch dial this large.

The Momo Pilot GMT is powered by the venerable and highly-regarded Swiss-Made ETA 2893-2 automatic movement, with 21-jewels and handwind and hacking capability.  Sporting a ball-bearing rotor and beating at 28,800 vph, this movement is a reliable and consistent time keeper.  During testing in my atelier, the Momo Pilot GMT has run at +2/24 hours and at least a 42 hour power reserve.

One quality control note, when I received this watch, I inspected it, ran the hands through a 24 hour cycle, wound it fully and set it to atomic time as I do all my new watch acquisitions.  About five minutes later, I looked at the watch only to see the seconds hand had fallen off!  I had the hand reset by one of my watchmakers and all has been fine since.  Not a serious problem, but again, at the MSRP of this watch, unacceptable.  For the price I paid, I could live with this QC glitch.  The other two Momos I have owned have been fine in the QC department.

The bracelet on the Momo Pilot GMT is all titanium, with the same satinized finish as the rest of the watch.  The bracelet has solid end links and a pushbutton butterfly clasp with machined deployant, with one link on the clasp signed ‘Momo Design.’  The bracelet links, as previously mentioned, as rather thin, so they don’t add extra bulk to this watch.  The bracelet is 24mm at the lugs and tapers about 20.8mm at the clasp. 

No half links are included, but the links themselves, in addition to being thin, are rather short, so it’s a bit easier to achieve an acceptable fit despite the lack of microadjustments on the clasp.  Standard split link pins secure the bracelet links and adjustment was quick and uneventful.

Presentation was the same as my other two Momo Design purchases, a black cardboard outer box and black plastic inner box.  It looks rather impressive, but the inner box is sort of cheap in its construction, so don’t get too excited.

Overall, the Momo Design Pilot GMT is a clean looking, modern design, that while being quite large, looks great on the wrist and is easy to use.  The titanium construction makes it light and gives it an understated look of both elegance and functionality.

Pros: reliable Swiss movement with true GMT capability, beautiful satinized titanium case and bracelet, clean, easy to read dial

Cons:  watch is too large for some, butterfly clasp with no microadjustments may make a good fit difficult, slight QC problem out of the box, crazy MSRP

Verdict:  buy this one at a discount and enjoy Italian design and Swiss accuracy rolled into one

Thanks for reading and enjoy the pictures.

Excelsior!

-Marc

Review of Seiko Flight Master Automatic Chronograph

Model # SBDS001

Brand/Model:  Seiko Flight Master
Movement:  Japanese automatic
Material:  titanium case and bracelet
Complications:  date display, power reserve meter, chronograph timing in one second increments up to 12 hours
Price:  MSRP:  about $4,500 USD; street price around $3,500 USD

Plenty of photos follow the review.  Click on the pictures to enlarge.
 
Watch aficionados always enjoy something different, and many times that means acquiring a watch that is not sold in the market they live in.  In the U.S., it could be getting a Tudor, or some other Swiss brand that is not officially sold in the states.  Many times, getting a Japanese Domestic Market (JDM) watch fits the bill.  

Japanese watch companies like Seiko and Citizen make an entire range of very cool watches that are not officially sold outside of Japan proper, so getting a JDM watch can be a source of pride for many a WIS.  In my case, I wanted a Seiko Flight Master automatic chronograph ever since I first saw pictures of one many years ago and the stars finally aligned to enable me to purchase one.  Even though it’s not a Spring Drive or a Grand Seiko, I feel it’s one of Seiko’s finest pieces.

The Flight Master packs a lot of features into a relatively compact watch.  Loaded with a 12-hour chronograph, 48-hour power reserve meter and date display, along with a timing bezel with compass function, about the only thing the Flight Master lacks is a GMT hand.  But I’m not complaining.

The Flight Master sports a nicely polished and brushed all titanium case (I love the look of polished Ti) that measures 42.4mm without the longish signed screwdown crown.  With the crown included, diameter is 48.3mm. 

Case thickness is 14.9mm, lug width is 20mm.  The caseback screws down and is a display type, showing the intricacies of the 40-jewel column wheel chronograph movement.  The movement really isn’t decorated, but the finish level is acceptable and the rotor is signed.

Since the Flight Master is crafted of titanium alloy, the entire watch is fairly lightweight, but not too light.  It’s a nice balance of svelte and presence combined.  It does tend to sit a bit high on the wrist, but not in an annoying way and being titanium, it is not top heavy.

The Flight Master is factory rated for 100 meters (10 bar) of water resistance.

The 120-click omnidirectional rotating bezel sports Breitling-esque rider tabs at the 12 and 6 positions, with six small screws on the side of the bezel at each 10 minute mark, again, very Breitling-like in design.  The bezel itself is finished in black ion plate and is fully marked in white with either hash marks or arabics.  A small compass track with degree markings is located on the inside of the bezel between the timing marks and the crystal.  These markings are very small and pretty hard to see, if you need reading glasses, better bring them! 

A small lume pip is located in the center of the rider tab at 12.  Bezel action is a bit disappointing, rather loud and gritty feeling, not nearly as smooth and crisp as I would expect at this price point.

As a design element, Seiko has two black ion plated tabs that fold down over the sides of the case, between the crown and chrono pushers and on the opposite side of the case, on either side of the 9 position.  This design gives the effect of the bezel sort of snapping over the top of the case, with each of the four tabs being secured by a small screw.  An interesting if questionable detail.

The dial on the Flight Master is all business and a great example of clarity and legibility, given all the functions of this watch.  The hour and minute hands are silver with inset lume, as are the applied markers at each five minute mark (there are no markers at the 12, 3, 6, and 9 positions).  The dial itself is a perfect matte black.

The subdial at 9 is the seconds hand for the watch.  The subdial at 12 is the chronograph minute totalizer and the subdial at 6 is the 12-hour chrono totalizer.  Both these subdials have yellow hands, to match the chronograph’s center second hand, which is in yellow as well and makes it easy at a glance to read chronograph timing.  Nicely done!

A quickset date window is located at 4:30, with a proper white on black date wheel that aligns perfectly in the window.  The 48-hour power reserve meter resides between the 2 and 3 position and is very easy to read as it sweeps through a roughly 60 degree arc. 

Lume quality is excellent, as Seiko’s Lumibrite is always expected to be.  Small tasteful lettering directly below the power reserve meter, with just the wording ‘Seiko,’ ‘Flight Master,’ and ‘Automatic’ appearing on the dial.

The Flight Master has a mildly domed sapphire crystal that is slightly recessed from the top of the bezel.  The crystal has a very effective anti-reflective coating on it, it’s one of those watches that looks at times to be missing its crystal.  This helps in making the dial very easy to read in most all lighting conditions.

The main time and date setting crown, as previously mentioned, is fairly long, so it’s easy to grip and is signed with an engraved ‘S’.  The chronograph pushers have a positive, smooth feel to them and one unique aspect is they lock in opposite of most screwdown pushers.  When the pushers are screwed in against the case, the chrono can be activated.  To lock the pushers, you have to unscrew them away from the case.  This is opposite of how my other watches with screwdown pushers operate.  Nothing wrong about it, but an interesting feature to note.

Inside the Flight Master is Seiko’s Japan-made 40-jewel automatic column wheel chronograph movement.  It winds and sets well and all the chrono functions start, stop and reset as they should.  I was a bit disappointed in the daily accuracy of this movement at first, as it was running at +16/24 hours, although as time has passed, it has been getting better, currently at about +8/24 hours.  I would have expected more accuracy from the factory at this price point, but it could probably be regulated even tighter than it is now if need be.  Although the power reserve meter only goes to 48 hours, the Flight Master has returned a superb 53-1/2 hour power reserve, so no complaints there.

The bracelet on the Flight Master is solid link titanium that is polished and brushed.  End links are solid and the clasp is pretty much standard-issue Seiko, that is signed, with a pushbutton release and fold over safety clasp, although the deployant is a proper machined type.  There is no diver extension and five micro adjustment holes on the clasp. 

The bracelet measures 20mm at the lugs and tapers to 18.7mm at the clasp.  Sizing was straightforward and with the number of microadjustment holes provided, a good fit is all but assured.

Presentation for the Flight Master is typical Seiko Prospex series, a rather unexciting box emblazoned with the brand lettering in yellow.  I think a watch this special deserves a nicer box.

Overall, the Flight Master resonates with me because it is unique, hard-to-find and accomplishes so much in a well designed package that represents the capabilities of Seiko and their upper end series.  Ask most people on the street and they would scoff at spending several thousand dollars on a Seiko, but when you see the Flight Master in person and look at its craftsmanship, you know you have something special to justify the price.

Pros: lighter weight titanium design, super looking dial, excellent functionality, great in-house Seiko movement, added bonus of power reserve meter on a chronograph 

Cons:  fairly shallow water resistance rating, bezel action should be smoother, clasp could be higher grade to better match price point, uninspired packaging

Verdict:  a superb all-around chronograph with great quality and features, some could probably get by as having this be their only watch, an awesome high-end Seiko

Thanks for reading and enjoy the pictures.

Excelsior!

-Marc

Review of Glycine Airman Base 22 Purist

Model # 3887.18/66

Brand/Model:  Glycine Airman Base 22 Purist
Movement:  Swiss automatic
Material:  stainless steel case and bracelet (watch shown here on aftermarket crocodile strap)
Complications:  date display
Price:  MSRP:  $1,995; street price around $1,200 USD

Plenty of photos follow the review.  Click on the pictures to enlarge.
 
I tend to write about a lot of watches that I consider to be ‘iconic.’  Maybe because objects that I consider to be classics appeal to me.  The Glycine Airman is no exception to both the iconic and classic camps.  Glycine introduced the Airman in 1953 and this model (and variations thereof) has been in continuous production ever since.  There’s plenty more history on the Airman at Glycine’s web site.  I just wanted to give the briefest of overviews before getting to the meat of this review.

Although most people (like me) have no practical use for a 24-hour watch (a watch whose hands make only one revolution around the dial in a 24-hour period), I do think this style of watch is unique and I wanted to have an example for my collection, so what other choice than an Airman?

Glycine makes quite a range of Airman models these days, but I opted for the most classic and the simplest design, the Airman Base 22 Purist.  This model is a three hand (hour, minute, seconds) layout in a 24-hour format, with a rotating and lockable 24-hour bezel to track a second time zone.  A date display completes the features list.

Glycine watches are not the easiest to find in the U.S., but you can find a good selection on ebay or from European sellers.

The Base 22 Purist starts with a finely finished polished and brushed stainless steel case which measures 41.1mm without either of the two crowns; 45mm with the main winding and setting crown included.  The main setting crown is rather small, but it is signed and has enough knurls on it to give you a good grip when setting or winding the watch.  Even though the Base 22 Purist is an automatic, I still like to fully wind my automatics prior to wearing them, so a good, functional crown is a must for me. 

The larger crown at the four o’clock position is the locking crown for the 24-hour rotating bezel.  It’s an elegantly simple design, with a toothed locking tab that mates to the toothed edge of the bezel.  It meshes perfectly and just looks cool in its locked position.  This locking crown also has a nifty cross hatch pattern engraved into it, which is another nice touch.

The bezel itself is brushed finish stainless steel with all the even numbers indicated by a black arabic engraved into the bezel; the odd numbers are indicated by a black engraved pointer.

Case thickness is a rather slim 11.2mm, lugs are 22mm.  The lugs are drilled to make strap or bracelet swaps easy.  The caseback is a polished screwdown display type which shows off the ETA automatic movement with cool Airman engraved decorated rotor, which includes an airplane as part of the decoration. 

A flat sapphire crystal caps the dial on the Base 22 Purist.  The Base 22 Purist is water resistant to 200 meters.

This watch comes on a solid link stainless steel bracelet with hollow end links and a signed double locking clasp with a cheap stamped steel deployant.  The bracelet is just okay, I felt it was rather cheap and rattle-prone, so I installed a 22mm dark blue genuine crocodile strap with white contrast stitching.  This is the strap shown in the pictures for this review.

The dial on my Base 22 Purist is a darker blue to somewhat darker blue fade, with the darkest hue at the top, fading into the slightly lighter blue (but still dark) around the middle of the dial.  White printed arabics numbered 1 through 24 encircle the outer part of the dial, with the ‘24’ and ‘12’ printed in red.  A luminous triangle is above the red 24 and 12, with alternating luminous bar and circle markers running around the inside of the arabics.  Small arabics are printed just inside the luminous markers every five minutes.  The hour hand is arrow shaped with a fine pointed end tip in red, the minute hand is a stick style with a fine pointed end tip and the seconds hand is a stick style with ball end.  All of these hands are luminous.  Lume quality is rather good.

To make it easier to tell what time it is once the watch is into the afternoon or second half of the day (13 to 24 hours), the hour hand has a tail that extends partway into the opposite side of the dial, pointing to the corresponding time in 12-hour format.  For example, at 16:30 hours, the tail on the hour hand points between the ‘4’ and ‘5’ hour marks on the opposite side of the dial, letting the operator know that it’s 4:30 pm in 12-hour time.  Neat!

A quickset date window resides at the three position, the date wheel being black on white.  The window is large enough to clearly see the date and the alignment of the wheel inside the window is good.

Even with a dial that some may consider quite busy, with all the small arabics and markers, legibility of this watch is rather good and the overall look is fantastic.

Powering the Base 22 Purist is a tried and true Swiss Made ETA 2893-2 automatic movement.  With 21 jewels and beating at 28,800 vph, this workhorse engine should provide many years of consistent timekeeping.  The movement can be manually wound and also hacks to ensure accurate worldwide time synchronization.  Accuracy out of the box has been excellent, running at a consistent +5 seconds per day, with a long 48 hour power reserve.

As stated above, the standard stainless steel bracelet was rather disappointing to me, others may find its solid links and conventional end links and clasp to be satisfactory.  I just think a watch with this level of iconic status should be presented on a better quality bracelet, at least one with solid end links and a machined deployant.

Presentation is via a heavy black cardboard outer box with removable lid and a nice black inner box.  Glycine doesn’t include much in the way of documentation, but they do include instructions on how to best set the watch and 24-hour bezel for proper worldwide timekeeping.  A signed black polishing cloth is also part of the package, which is a thoughtful touch.

Overall, the Glycine Airman Base 22 Purist is, in the words of Glycine, ‘legendary.’  It’s a unique and highly useful watch with a true 24-hour display.  Good fit and finish, attractive looks and a cache that many other watches could only wish for, this watch does the job it’s been designed for and does so with class and style.  Bravo!

Pros:  iconic watch model, true 24-hour functionality, good fit and finish, dark blue fade dial looks cool 

Cons:  standard stainless steel bracelet could be better quality for price point, main crown could be a bit larger

Verdict:  even if you’re not a pilot, this is the 24-hour watch to have; just drop the name ‘Airman’ at your next business meeting and see how people react.  The Glycine Airman Base 22 Purist is just that, pure in every sense of the word.

Thanks for reading and enjoy the pictures.

Excelsior!

-Marc