RichardWilkinsIII
3T WIS
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What should you expect from a $60 watch that you order off of ebay? I wasn’t expecting much. To be honest I wasn’t entirely convinced that the watch was going to arrive in working condition. I was pleasantly surprised. It’s a great watch, but there is one really big and fixable flaw. Here’s my review of the Apogaum Automatic Militaire GMT.
Shipping and packaging:
I’ve always been a big proponent of creative watch packaging. The presentation box is a direct representation of what’s inside. My Apogaum was shipped from Hong Kong and took just over a week to get shipped. It arrived in a soft, padded shipping bag. The watch box was shipped in side of a rigid cardboard box with the Apagaum name on the outside. In shipping, one of the box corners had been dented a little. I would have shipped it inside of a postal box to ensure that the box would arrive un-blemished.
Inside the rigid cardboard box was the actual presentation box wrapped in thin foam. I was pleasantly surprised that the presentation box was real wood, with a dark green felt bottom. I was half expecting that the rigid cardboard box was the presentation box.
After removing the thin foam wrapping. I opened the box to find an extra brown strap lying on top of the watch. I would have gladly paid more for the watch if it came with a proper presentation box that would house both the watch and the extra strap. The inside of the presentation box was fitted with the same dark green felt that was on the bottom of the box. The watch pillow was a little roughed up. Would have been a nice touch to have a soft, heavier padded pillow.
All in all, a surprisingly nice presentation box for the money spent. I give it a 6 out of 10.
First Impressions:
Boy, this watch looks just like a Panarai. There’s no getting around it. This watch is supposed to be taken as an “homage”, to the Panny. After pulling the watch off the pillow. I opened the deployant clasp and set the watch. The crown locking device is really only for show. The crown doesn’t seem to depress into the case any further after shutting the safety clasp. Not a big deal, the watch was $60 bucks. Looks like a heavy mineral crystal with a magnifier over the date. First thing that I noticed is that the magnifier is on the underside of the crystal. Nice touch. The watch isn’t as heavy as I would like, but has enough heft to it to be taken seriously.
Quick specs: Case size measured from 10 to 4 is 48mm, 51mm including the crown, and 16mm thick.
The case features a brushed finish on every thing but the screwed in case back and the bezel. The dial is done well. Very clean. I chose a black dial with green luminescent numbers and markers. I have yet to test the lume on this. I’m assuming it will come in as average.
The one glaring fault is the strap. The deployant clasp is extremely uncomfortable. I wore it for a few hours and it was really noticeable. I like big and heavy watches. After a while, I tend to forget that the watch is there. I get used to the weight of it. This watch was a lot of work to wear. Very noticeable. After about 6 hours, I swapped the padded leather strap (it takes a 24mm) with a 24mm cognac ostrich.
Now we’re in business. Much more comfortable to wear. My ostrich strap is real lived in, so it gave the watch a little more credibility with a well worn strap. Kind of like how a new shiny guitar is nice, but I’ll take that beat up ole Telecaster any day of the week. Plays great and has a lot of character. I give the watch a 7 out of 10.
Final thoughts:
I’m pleased with my purchase. $68 for the watch. $15 shipping and handling from Hong Kong. Delivered in just over a week after confirmation of payment. It’s defiantly worth the money spent. For those that can’t afford the Panny, than maybe this will tide you over until you get the funds for the real thing.
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I am glad to see a Concise opinion of a Watch Many of us have wondered about 
I still have a BMW/GMT which is on the same line as the Apogaum Price and Style and can say it is still running Strong ....Ty Buddy and Congrats on The new Watch 
