Yema Navygraf Phantom

The Yema Navygraf Phantom is a limited edition of 200 pieces, which takes the standard Navygraf and gives it a stealth look with an all-black IP case and bracelet, a vertical brushed dial, a black matte ceramic bezel insert, and the Yema Manufacture Movement CMM.10, which can be seen through a tinted sapphire exhibition case back. It retains the iconic yellow hands that the Navygraf has become known for, and this is a more straightforward, and some would say sleeker, dive watch than the Superman Diver. With the Yema movement and only 200 pieces being made, it’s not exactly cheap, and it brings up $1000 more than the standard Navygraf at $2,099.

Specifications

38.5mm Case IP Black Plated

46mm Lug to Lug

19mm Lug Width

11..05mm Thick (excluding crystal)

2.5mm Double Dome Sapphire

132.5 Grams

Matte Ceramic Bezel Insert

300m Water Resistant

CMM.10 Manufacture Movement

H- Link Black IP Bracelet

Price $2.099 USD

https://yema.us/products/yema-navygraf-phantom-cmm-10-limited-edition-21-26-10-66-snl-m6

I have always had a fondness for the Yema Navygraf, as I love the vintage aesthetic to it, which is, of course, intentional, as it’s a recreation and redesign of the Navgraf model from the 70s, and this modern collection serves as an official partner for the French Navy. While the Superman diver is unique in its own right, I have always liked the classic and slim lines of the Navygraf and just always found the case and dial to be a very pleasing design, a design that can easily be worn daily, while also being 300 meters water resistant and ready for the sea or ocean, if one chooses to do so.

This Yema Navygraf Phantom takes it up a few notches, more so than I originally thought, and there are more differences from the Heritage model than I realized, which I guess justifies the $1000 price difference between the two models. The Heritage has a date window, an SW200-1 movement, a Hesalite domed crystal, and the bezel inset is enamel, and has a pretty standard flat painted dial.

This Phantom model, beyond the all-black case and bracelet, has no date due to the CMM.10 movement, for more dial symmetry, a vertical brushed black dial similar to the Superman Skin Diver I reviewed a few months ago, a double dome sapphire crystal, and a matte black ceramic insert.

I really admire the overall look of the case; it has a very industrial look about it, sharply defined lines, an all brushed case, vertical brushing on top with horizontal brushing on the case sides, and just a hint of high polish with a thin chamfer running down the top edge of the case. I also love the integrated crown guards and the taper from the lugs to create said crown guards, and the fact that this case is just a touch over 11mm, especially for a watch that is rated 300m. Despite this only being a 38.5mm case (more on that in a bit), the crown is still large enough and easy to grasp with my medium to large-sized hands, and has a great feel about it.

Same with the bezel. This is a steel bezel with the matte black ceramic insert, and while there are numbers and hash markers engraved on the bezel, Yema chose to stay with the phantom theme and only lumed or colored in the triangle 60 mark. This bezel, unlike the Superman divers, does not lock, so it’s your standard 120 click bezel, and yet I find it to be a great bezel with great action, easy to turn but not loose, and very crisp and precise.

The dial of the Yema Navygraf Phantom retains the now iconic yellow hour and minute hand, and has a tapered stick second hand, as well as the exclamation point marks, which are not exactly old radium lume paint colored, but more of a pale yellow. No date window here, which I personally like because it does not interrupt those markers, and I am just a sucker for no-date dials anyway. The big upgrade with this dial is vertical brushing, which I could just stare at all day, and looks great with that 2.5mm thick double dome sapphire above it. The dial is a definite upgrade over the standard Navygraf.

Turning the watch over, though, things start to get a little wierd. Yema chose to show off their CMM.10 movement here, which I understand as they are proud of their movement, and with great accuracy and a 70 power reserve,  they should be. That said, for some reason, they chose to do a black-tinted crystal, which I show in the above video, just how much this blacks out everything, unless you get just the right light and angle to see the movement. It’s called an exhibition case back for a reason, so this had me scratching my head.

I also have an issue with the size of the case in proportion to the bracelet. This Yema Navygraf Phantom is listed at a compact, refined 38.5mm case, yet I measured it with my calipers at 39.3 from 10-4, and since my calipers were correct in measuring the lug width and bracelet, I am not sure how they came to that measurement.

And that brings me to the bracelet, which has a few issues. The lugs are 19mm, and the bracelet starts out at 19mm and then tapers immediately to 18 and then 16mm towards the clasp. My preference for larger watches aside, I just feel the bracelet is much too thin for the size of the case and feels really off balance.

My issues with the bracelet, unfortunately, do not stop there. This is a sample piece from Yema, and as such, I am not sure if it was not finished to the same standard as the production models. The coating is listed as black IP, not DLC, which I do find disconcerting, but the coating and finish do look good until you get to the inner links, which were clearly not coated separately; they were coated with the bracelet assembled, as you can see the rainbow mark between the links. This is not something I would expect to be on a $2000 watch.

It doesn’t end there, though, as this is a very basic clasp, functional with an old school dive extension, yes, but again, considering the price, and that it is limited, I expected the new Yema quick adjustment clasp, which is available on the Pearl Navygraf, which retails for $2500.

And because it was a sample piece, it did not come with any extra links, and was extremely tight on my 7 1/2 inch (19.05cm) wrist, and with issues I described above, along with not really being able to wear this Yema Navygraf Phantom for more than 5-10 minutes, I really did not enjoy how this Yema Navygraf Phantom looked on my wrist. I really like this design, but the thin bracelet width, coupled with the short bracelet, made it awkward-looking on my wrist. While this is a smaller watch, I do hope that production models come with more links; it would only fit up to a 7 1/4 inch (18.42cm) wrist.

On a brighter note, pun intended, the Super-LumiNova is pretty good on this Phantom model, especially considering these are painted markers instead of applied, and the thin area where it is applied to the hands. The second hand does not glow well at all, but it looks great in the dark with a nice bluish-green hue and lasts for around 4-5 hours.

The Yema Navygraph Phantom does have a lot going for it, and it has a lot of upgrades over the Heritage edition, more than I initially realized. I love all black cases and think the blackout theme works well for the Navygraf model, and I love the touch of color and contrast with the yellow hands and markers. The vertical brushed dial looks fantastic, and while I would prefer a bigger case for my wrist, this may be perfect for others. Everything is subjective at the end of the day. I do hope the bracelet links are evenly coated on production models, though, as I would be disappointed with an $800 watch with links like that, let alone $2100.

Yema 

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Canopy Field One

The Canopy Field One is the second watch from the young watch company, their first being a dive watch. Their take on a field watch is familiar but with some modern touches, such as a 1200 Vickers hard coating and Lumicast 3D numerals and indices. The design is similar to say a Hamilton Khaki field, but at $599 its much more affordable, and it is availbe in 4 colors, the green I have for review, as well as standard black, a blue, and a vibrant orange. The matching titanium bracelet has a tool-less on-the-fly adjustable clasp, and at 39mm, it’s a very wearable piece, and let’s be real, 39mm is a very popular watch size these days, so a smart move by the Texas-based company.

Specifications

Canopy Field One
Grade 2 Titanium case and bracelet
Clear DLC coating for hardness (1200 HV)
39mm case diameter
10mm case thickness
46mm lug-to-lug 
20mm bracelet width (lugs) tapering to 18mm (clasp)
99.6 Grams in Weight
100m water resistance
Miyota 9015 automatic movement
Double domed sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating
Forged carbon case back
Tool-less micro adjust clasp
SuperLuminova LumiCast C3 X2 numerals and indices

Price $599 
https://www.canopywatchco.com/collections/field-one

I think many will agree with me that in the watch world,  at the top of the food chain is dive watches, and then right below it are field watches. Now I neither dive nor have ever been in the “field”,  and I am betting neither are 90% of the population of watch buyers, but field watches are extremely popular for a reason. For the most part, they are timeless in appearance, simple and clean, and they are watches that can be worn in almost any situation, a perfect GADA watch. I would say that this Canopy Field One fits the bill, though with the bead blasted case and bracelet, it’s a little too rugged for a stand-in dress watch, but otherwise, this is a great piece to wear every day.

And because it’s grade 2 titanium, its extremely ligihtweight at just a tick under 100 grams, the case and bracelet weight combined, and with a clear DLC hard coating, its one that you won’t have to worry about too much as that clear hard coating should keep it looking new for longer, and this is especially great for blasted titanium watches such as this, as they aren’t so easy to remove scratches from, as most any home remedy would damage the blasted finish further.

The case of the Canopy Field One has classic lines, an ever-so-slightly curved case but with straight lugs,  and this is also a very thin case at just 10mm, so very easy to fit under a shirt or coat cuff, and it won’t get in your way either when you’re out in the field or on a hike, etc. The crown does screw down, a decent size for this 39mm case, and it has a cabochon of sorts, with a forged carbon piece on the inside. Not sure if this is sapphire or clear resin coated, but it’s a nice touch with the metallic Canopy logo.

The dial has a light gravel texture, and again, this is classic field watch design here. It’s a well-laid-out dial, with a date at the 6 o’clock position, a 24-hour scale on the inner part of the dial, a tapered index-style hour and minute hand, and a thin second hand with a red arrow tip, giving it the only other pop of color, besides the white date wheel. The big deal here on this dial is the Lumicast 3D lume numerals and dots. This is something we are starting to see more and more of on affordable watches, and I’m all for it. One thing of note, the color of the dial is more of an olive or moss green than what is depicted on their website, but I do quite like the shade of this dial.

The back of the Canopy Field One has a cool suprise and that is a disc of forged carbon fiber, looks like a marlbed carbon fiber to my eye, but maybe its just a standard forged CF, but either way, its a solid disc, and on top is a sapphire crstyal, and attached to the underside of the crystal is metaliic foil for the logo and the specs, making it appear like they are floating. It’s a nice look, something different to see with a case back, and it seems that Canopy is quite fond of carbon fiber, as their first watch, the Wake one, had a forged carbon bezel insert as well. Inside is a Miyota 9015, which I will say, the rotor is not as noisy as I thought it would be, especially with a slim titanium case. I thought it would be really loud, but it’s not that noticeable to my ear.

Of course, with Lumicast X2 C3 Super-LumiNova, I was expecting this lume to be amazing, and for the most part, it is. It will glow, at least from what I tested, pretty strongly for about 5 hours before fading out. Initially, I was hoping this would glow pretty much all through an 8-hour night, but the reality is the dial is on the smaller side, and those little dots and numerals are just that, small, so I needed to adjust my expectations. It looks amazing in the dark, though, especially if it has a lot of light throughout the day.

On my 7 1/2 inch (19.05cm) wrist, this is an extremely comfortable watch. With the Canopy Field One being just under 100 grams and at 39mm, it really is a joy to wear, and for the most part, I forget I am even wearing a watch. While this watch only comes on a bracelet, putting it on a rubber, leather, or nylon strap would really make it feel like you are wearing nothing. The bracelet is an angled 3-link, has that more aggressive look, similar to bracelets we have seen from Helm watches and others, and it uses one-piece screws for the links, and has the on the fly adjustbable clasp, something that has pretty much become standard these days, at least with microbrands, and I’m all for it. I only needed one link out, though, so keep that in mind if you have a wrist larger than mine.

I said in the video review that I am quite fond of this Canopy Field One, and that is absolutely true. I love the texture of the dial, the Lumicast indices, and being a lightweight titanium watch with a hard coating, means I can wear this watch and not have to worry about babying it, and while the shade of green does not match the website, I actually much prefer this one, I wear a lot of olive or military green, a lot of camo etc, and this shade of green is one of my favorite colors. I think the black would be great as well, and blue is always a great dial color. The orange for this watch may be a little too much for me, but it’s nice that they have some color options to choose from.

It’s also hard to complain about the price. I’m sure some will, but at least from my perspective, this is a lot of watch for the money, and on par with what other microbrands would charge, if not a little under these days. I also get a Boldr and RZE vibe from this watch, especially with the Lumicast lume and the titanium with hard coating, but this model has a pretty classic field watch case, and I think that’s what I like most about this watch, how it manages to blend classic and modern, while still being a very attractive and functional field watch.

See more at Canopy Watches.

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Vaer G2 Apocalypse GMT

There are quite a few iconic watches from film. James Bond’s Rolex, the TAG Heuer Monaco worn by Steve McQueen in Le Mans, the Seiko 6105 Captain Willard from Apocalypse Now, and even Marty McFly’s Casio Calculator watch from Back to the Future. Another would be Marlon Brando’s Rolex 1675 GMT Master from Apocalypse Now (yes, two famous watches from the same film), and that’s what this Vaer G2 Apocalypse GMT was inspired by.

Marlon Brando with his bezel-less Rolex GMT Master

The GMT Master was Brando’s personal watch, and production was not sure it was appropriate for the film. They wanted him to take it off, but he removed the red and blue GMT bezel as a compromise, thinking it would be less recognizable with no bezel and on a leather strap. The opposite happened, and while the watch was thought to have been lost, it went up for Auction in 2019. Now, Vaer chose to do their version of this watch, but they made it their own. It’s a 39mm case with lyre lugs, crown guards, and a quartz movement, and it starts at $399.

Specifications

15ATM (150m) water-resistance rating

Locking screw-down crown

316L stainless steel

Single domed sapphire w/ AR coating

20mm lug width

39mm case diameter

Case thickness with crystal: 10.8mm

Lug-to-lug distance: 46mm

Weight: 75 grams

Swiss Ronda quartz GMT movement

40-month battery

FKM Ocean Strap

Multiple optional strap choices

Starting Price $399

https://www.vaerwatches.com/products/g2-apocalypse-gmt-39mm-usa

What’s fun and unique about this Vaer G2 Apocalypse GMT is that they didn’t go the standard homage route. I’ve talked about how the word homage, especially when it comes to watches, has just become a word that means copy these days,  and this Vaer is more of what homage actually means: it’s a tribute, inspired by, but you really wouldn’t confuse the original and this for the same watch.

Vaer has been using the lyre style case for years now, on their dive watches and GMT watches, but now they have added crown guards, the first watch of theirs to have crown guards, believe it or not. These crown guards mimic the round crown guards on the original 1675, but aren’t as stout or blocky, matching better to the twisted lug case. The crown is ibber though at 6.3mm, and it does crew down, and along with the 150m of water resistance, this is a watch that you don’t have to baby, and can be worn daily or in almost any situation.

The other area Vaer needs to tackle is the lack of a bezel. In the film, it was just a Rolex with the bezel removed, which was not an astecihc choice. Vaer chose to go with a radial brushed fixed steel bezel, with a slim polished edge. While a GMT without a bezel is a little odd, it’s not completely uncommon, and I like how they made this area wider and made sure to finish it in a way that would catch your eye. When you look at it, it doesn’t look out of place or like something is missing. It’s intentional, even if it really doesn’t serve a purpose.

The rest of the case is similar to other Vaer models using this case, brushed sides, a thick polished chafer running the top side of the case, and a polished crown as well.

The dial of the Vaer G2 Apocalypse GMT only comes in one dial color, matte black with old radioum or vintage color lume on the indices and hands. For the most part, this is pretty standard Vaer here; date at 6, sword hour and minute hands, a lollipop second hand, and of course, this one has a GMT hand. The GMT hand is orange and distinguishable from the second hand, though I do wish it were an arrow instead of just a rectangle.

Speaking of rectangles, you’ll see around the regular indices on the dial that there are small rectangle indices. These are the 24-hour indicators. Vaer chose to go this route instead of numbers, not sure I love it, but it is funky to say the least. I feel that at certain angles or in certain lighting, this is distorted because of the domed sapphire, and while it may keep the dial less cluttered, they could have just done the standard 24-hour numerals on the inner part of the dial, which, for me, would have been more functional. I think they wanted to have the GMT function, unlike the Rolex from the film, so this would be an actual GMT that can track two time zones, while still retaining the look of that bezel-less 1675.

Vaer is known for offering a lot of value, and as such, this G2 Apocalypse GMT comes with 2 straps. The catch is that there are only a few options that will keep it at that $399 price point. The default strap that comes with this watch is the FKM Ocean strap. There are other FKM options, as well as nylon Nato straps, leather straps, alligator straps, and bracelets. All will vary in cost, though, up to $200 more if you go alligator. So if you want to keep it at $399, pick one of the Nato strap options.

Vaer sent me the khaki single pass as the second strap, and well, that’s what it is called on the website, but this is a two-piece NATO-type strap, so they need to fix the description. The leather strap shown below is not from Vaer, but I put it on as Brando’s Rolex was on a leather strap, so I just wanted to show what it looks like. I like the look of the tan nylon NATO-style strap; it looks great with the old radium lume, but I would prefer a two-piece nylon strap, as I generally don’t care for nato straps. All options looked good on my 7 1/2 inch or 19.05cm wrist.

The old radium Super-LumiNova does look good with the black dial, and in the dark does glow well, but I still would have preferred X1 C2 lume, but I guess going old radium was a nod to this being modeled after a very vintage watch. The lume is not what I would have a 9/10 as the website does, but more of a 7/10, and should last about 4 hours or so in the dark.

This is a fun watch for sure, and I like how Vaer didn’t go the standard homage route like so many other brands would have, and made something more distinct. I also like how this Vaer G2 Apocalypse GMT is the first Vaer to have crown guards, and I hope we see this case being used in other models eventually, especially in the 42mm range.

Unlike many watch enthusiasts, I never fanwed over the movie or the original watch, which is why I dint really comment on it here in this article, but obviously if you are a fan of the movie and/or the watch, this is a pretty cool and unique tribute and taking the movie inspiration out of it, its still a solid GADA watch, and pretty affordable at that $399 price point, which is why at the time of publishing this article, it is currently sold out and slated for restock in July 2026. While I don’t have the connection to the movie, I do appreciate what Vaer did with this model; it’s a solid watch that mimics the original while also not taking itself too seriously.

VAER

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Luminox Pacific Diver

As soon as I saw this model, the Luminox Pacific Diver, I knew I wanted to review it. The Pacific Diver line is unique for Luminox, as it’s not only stainless steel and an automatic, but it also has a lumed ceramic bezel insert, and Super-LumiNova on the dial, and this one, the Midnight Mariner, does so with a full lume dial. Tritium tubes are still used as well, on the hands and with tubes around the chapter ring, so this has the most lume of any Luminox so far. The dial has a wave pattern, sapphire front and back, and 200m water resistance, as it is a dive watch. There are 3 automatic Pacifid Diver models, the others being blue or black dial, and both of those lack the lumed ceramic bezel. A bracelet version is available as well (blue dial), but this one comes on a cut-to-fit rubber strap, and pricing starts at $1745.

Specifications

42mm Stainless Steel Case

47.3mm 9-3 (including crown)

48mm Lug to Lug

13.2mm Thick

24mm Lug Width

123.5 Grams

Sapphire Crystal 

Lumed Ceramic Bezel

Full Lume Dial 

200m Water Resistant

Screw Down Crown

Sellita SW2001-1 Automatic Movement

Cut to fit Black Rubber strap with clasp 

MSRP $1825 
https://luminox.com/products/pacific-diver-automatic-midnight-mariner

Recently, I reviewed another Luminox, the Navy Seals 3001 Heritage, a very different watch than this one, and if nothing else, it does show the range of models from Luminox these days. The 3001 Heritage was a 43mm Carbonox case, and while it does contain a piece of carbon, most would refer to it as a plastic case, and I still think that’s what many think of when they think of Luminox watches, even though they have been making stainless steel watches for probably over 20 years now. This Pacific Diver is not only stainless steel, but it’s an automatic, and coupled with the ceramic bezel and this dial, it somewhat gives me Ball vibes, as this is not what I think of when I think Luminox.

Now Ball is very well known for Trititum tubes, as is Ball, but it’s the higher-end materials here, the sculpted case design, this is an upscale Luminox, no other way to put it. This is not your typical tactical piece, and there’s no plastic bezel, no Carbonox in sight, and unlike many, this is an SW200-1 automatic, not a quartz, which a quick look on the Luminox website shows that the quartz is mainly what Luminox makes, and automatics are used in only a few pieces, 3 models to be exact. This one is shown off through the sapphire case back, and if you’ve seen an SW200-1, you’ve seen them all. I am disappointed, though, that it doesn’t have a black rotor as depicted on the Luminox website.

The case is a familiar bumper case, or at least that’s what I call it, as the 9 o’clock side of the case has a bump similar to the crown guards at 3 o’clock, so it’s a very symmetrical case, and it’s a very sculpted-looking case as well. To create those bumpers, Luminox has these large cutouts on the side of the case, and these are pretty deep cutouts, and the design reminds me of a bottle opener. Again, this is not the type of case when you think of Luminox; even the top of the case has a polished chamfer, and the bezel edge is polished as well, to break up the sea of brushed steel. The crown is not massive at 6.9mm, but I still found it easy to use the screw-down crown, even with those large crown guards.

Moving back around to the dial, and all of the Luminox Pacific Diver models have a wave pattern on the dial, and if you look closely, you’ll see this wave pattern does go through the date window surround, odd, but it doesn’t impede your reading of the date. All colorways have applied indices and numerals; this Midnight Mariner full lume version has them filled with a black paint or enamel instead of the Super-LumiNova, as the dial itself is lume-coated. The dial text is kept to a minimum, and the Luminox logo looks good, applied as well, and all around the chapter ring, you find those tritium tubes.

The hour, minute, and second hands are brushed steel or nickel, and I really don’t love the look here. I feel they should have just gone with black-coated hands against this white dial, and the brushed finish contrasts too much with the polished surrounds of the applied indices.

The bezel and bezel inset are beautiful. The bezel has a great coin-edge grip, easy to grasp even with medium to large-sized hands, and it’s a 120 click bezel, and it’s just one of those bezels that are very satisfying to turn, with a good ratcheting feel. The insert is polished black ceramic, and possibly for the first time, the bezel is lumed, all the numbers and lines are filled with Super-Luminova, and the 12 o’clock space is occupied by a tritium tube in a round chamber.

And yes, the dial of this Luminox Pacific Diver Midnight Mariner has a lot of lume, possibly the most lume ever produced by Luminox, but there are a few things to note here. These are smaller tubes, and like all tritium tubes, they glow best in full darkness. Super-LumiNova, on the other hand, if it’s been charged through the day or was just in a bright lit area, will glow in dim as well as complete darkness. So, if you are outside, for example, and walk into a dimly lit area of your house, you’ll see that full lume dial and that lumed bezel. 5 hours later, that lumed dial probably won’t be glowing, at least not anywhere near as strong, but those tubes will be. What you are getting here is the best of both worlds: a watch that will glow in both dim lighting and complete darkness.

There are 3 colors of the Luminox Pacific Diver, and as I said, this is the only one with the lumed dial and bezel, and there’s another big difference between the 3 as well; only the blue dial comes on a bracelet. This Midnight Mariner and the black dial are sold with a rubber strap, and it’s a candy bar style natural rubber strap, molded with the Luminox name and branded underneath as well, and has a simple stamped dive clasp, though the deployment is milled. I quite like the look of the strap, but the big issue I have is that you need to size it, and that means get out that razor blade, measure twice, and cut once. It’s a large strap, much larger than my 7 1/2 inch or. 19.05cm wrist, but I wish they had gone with a standard hole strap and clasp, or possibly designed a new no-cut strap.

I do love how it looks on my wrist; it’s a 42mm case, and the lugs and strap width are 24mm, which is again, not normal for a 42mm watch, but at least to me, this does not feel like a very large or wide watch. I know that will be different for everyone, and the trend is smaller watches for a lot of brands and a lot of customers, but I love this 42mm case for my wrist. The case does have the faux end piece lugs though, which I don’t mind with a rubber strap, but the 24mm bracelet does not have solid fitted end links, and at least from the photos Ive seen, I’m not a fan. The bracelet also costs $216, as you can not get a bracelet or a strap.

I’m definitely glad I got to review this Luminox Pacific Diver, as this really is a departure for the brand, and for the most part, in a very good way. If you have always thought of quartz plastic case watches when you think of Luminox, this one shows you that’s not all the brand does these days. As I mentioned in my last review, Luminox prices have sure gone up, but so has everything else. At $1825, my only grip is that cut-to-fit strap; if this Midnight Mariner came with a bracelet for the $1825, it would be very much in line with any other watch at this price.

All of them combine Tritium with Super-LumiNova, which is not common for Luminox or any other brand, for that matter, and this one, having the full lume dial with the lumed ceramic bezel, does put it over the edge. It may not be the most tactical piece, but it is sure an attractive piece from Lumionx, and I hope to see more diversity in their model lineup in the future.

Luminox

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]]> https://www.watchreport.com/hands-on-with-the-luminox-pacific-diver/feed/ 1 https://www.watchreport.com/hands-on-with-the-nivada-grenchen-autochron-mecaquartz/ https://www.watchreport.com/hands-on-with-the-nivada-grenchen-autochron-mecaquartz/#respond Thu, 26 Mar 2026 04:05:32 +0000 https://www.watchreport.com/?p=40137

Nivada Grenchen Autochron MecaQuartz

Nivada Grenchen, since its rebirth, has been known for producing watches that are heavily inspired, if not a direct remake of the brand’s massive back catalog. This Nivada Grenchen Autochron MecaQuartz is a little different in that while it is based on an NG watch from the past, it’s a prototype from the late 70s that never hit full production (they say less than 20 were made). This version is also one that wouldn’t have existed in the 70s, a Mecaquartz version, which is a quartz chronograph that mimics an automatic with how it resets the chronograph. The big deal here, though, is really the price. The automatic versions are much more expensive at $2500 (on bracelet), while this version starts at $530 (on strap) or $730 on the bracelet. Both use the same 38mm unique cushion case shape, have 200m water resistance, a screw-down crown, and a sapphire crystal.

Specifications

Diameter -38mm 

Thickness-10.8 without crystal

Case Material-316L Stainless Steel 

Dial-Matt Black Small texture 

Movement-VK67 MecaQuartz with date

Glass-Double domed Sapphire Glass

Lug to lug-46.5mm

Lug Width-20mm (flares to 24mm)

Weight-166.3 grams

Water Resistance 20ATM

Battery Life-Approx. 3 years

Accuracy-± 20 seconds per month

Retail Price- Strap- $530  Bracelet-$730

  https://nivadagrenchenofficial.com/collections/automatic    

As mentioned above, the Nivada Grenchen Autochron is based on a prototype from the late 70s, but I think it needs to be pointed out that the Autochron name goes back further, at least to the beginning of the aforementioned decade, with the model name Taravana. I found a few examples of the Taravana models online, all chronographs, but more pilot style, especially the ones I saw, as the long second hand had an airplane as the counterbalance piece. Some of the case designs looked similar to the prototype and this recreation, but others had more of a Sinn-style case design.

The prototype and this new model have a very distinctive case, though, one I am very impressed by. Interesting side note, while this model is called the Autochron on the Nivada website, neither the automatic nor this MecaQuartz actually says Autochron anywhere on the watch; in fact, the case back says Chronosport.

The case shape of the Nivada Grenchen Autochron MecaQuartz is pretty unique. It definitely looks straight out of the 70s, and Nivada even has a pic of the original prototype on their website, and you can see how closely they recreated the case. It’s a square-ish cushion case that kind of barrels out towards the lugs and is all satin brushed with a large polished chamfer on top, showcasing the lines of the case. It measures in right at 38mm, but with adding in the screw-down crown and pushers, I measured just about 42mm in width. More about the sizing in a bit.

Another interesting thing about this case is how it sinks in below the bezel, and the bezel sits in this sunken area at 9 and 3. As I stated in the video review, I am not sure if it adds any functionality to the bezel. As a matter of fact, it makes it so you can really only grip the bezel at 12 and 6, as you really can’t grip it otherwise. It doesn’t matter much as it’s a bi-directional bezel, with seemingly no spring or any real feedback, but it doesn’t feel loose either. I do like the look of the bezel, though, both the edges, and it’s a matte black coated aluminum bezel, but it definitely has a vintage look about it.

The original prototype, I believe, used a Lemania movement, and the new automatic version of the Autochron uses the 7750, and both are two-eye or two-subdial chronos. This Nivada Grenchen Autochron MecaQuartz is a 3-eye chronograph, and it uses the Seiko VK67 movement, which is great in the sense that you do get a running seconds subdial, instead of a 24-hour one, and still get the 60-minute and 12-hour counters. And as many MecaQuartz do, the chronograph second hand will reset instantly, mimicking an automatic chronograph.

The dial is matte black with a micro pebble texture; it matches well with the matte black bezel, and looks good against the tan subdials. This is currently the only color available for the MecaQuartz. There was a salmon dial as well as a Panda dial version, but both were limited editions, I believe. The hour and minute hands are steel, with all white chronograph hands, and the hands have dual lume to match the indices and dots, which have different shades of lume as well, and the tan or old radium lume adds to the cohesive look of these dial colors. The date is simple, located at 3, and there is a tachymeter scale as well, but it’s pretty hard to read most of the time due to the distortion of the massive double-dome sapphire crystal.

The lume may be dual colors, but the lume is probably one of my only disappointments with this watch. It looks good for a few minutes, but don’t expect to be seeing this in the dark 4 hours later. Again, it looks good, and I like the way they lumed the hands, but either they needed more surface area or a stronger lume compound.

The Nivada Grenchen Autochron MecaQuartz has a bevy of options when it comes to straps, quite a few leather straps and a tropic rubber, and I show a brown leather they sent me in the video review above, but for me, this rectangle and square link bracelet is the way to go. Now the bracelet does add another $200 to the price, so it’s not as budget-friendly a watch anymore, but I feel it’s totally worth it, as it not only looks fantastic on the bracelet, but for someone like me who finds 38mm watches too small, the bracelet helps this watch look bigger. How, you ask? The bracelet lug width is 20mm, but it flares out underneath to almost 24mm. It does taper down to 18mm, but that initial flare in width, along with the chronograph pushers, just helps this watch look more like a 40mm on my wrist.

A few more notes about the bracelet. The face of the bracelet is all brushed, but the sides are highly polished, which admittedly is not my favorite, but it does match the polished chamfer on the case, and I admit it does look nice. The links are small, and sizing is very easy via screws, and the clasp is dual finished as well, with a nice polish and the NG logo.

Something I recently learned, though, is that at least the LE versions of the Nivada Grenchen Autochron MecaQuartz had a different clasp and an on-the-fly adjustment clasp. The version I have here is a more traditional clasp, and while it doesn’t have a sliding microadjustment, it does give quite a few sizing holes, and I know some will think this is the wrong take, but I like how it looks and feel it lends to the vintage styling, over a newer style clasp. Everything is subjective, of course.

On my 7 1/2 inch (19.05cm) wrist, it will come as no surprise to you that I find it very comfortable, and I love the look of it on this bracelet. The fat end links, the rectangle and square links, the beautiful clasp, not to mention the unique cushion case, make this just a very attractive watch. The bracelet is pretty large as well, rare for a 38mm, and it should easily fit an 8-inch (20.32cm) wrist. I still wish it were 40mm at least. I just have a hard time going below 40mm, with very few exceptions, but I will say the combo of this case, the chronograph pushers and crown, and this bracelet all unite to help this be the first 38mm watch I have enjoyed wearing.

I have read some of the comments from my video review, from overpriced to folks who think this looks great on my wrist, and just think I prefer “hockey puck” watches. Well, overpriced is subjective and as many should know by now, I am not here to convice anyone to buy a watch, but there is a crazy amount of detial to this watch and while the bracelet does not make it as affordable as the strap options, its still a lot less than $2500 and if you are soemone who doesnt need an automatic, this is a really beautiful watch with a lot of unique details.

As far as hockey puck, well, I do prefer 40-42mm watches, not sure if that’s now considered a hockey puck these days, but yes, I do not gravitate towards 38mm watches personally. That said, as mentioned above, it wears slightly larger than its stated specs, and while I think it looks great, I still would love a 40mm, and I make no apologies for that.

Nivada Grenchen 

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