Jeep99dad
3T WIS
|
I’ve really been a slacker the past several months with regards to posting my new arrivals and sharing my first impressions. Some come and go so fast, I don’t even time to do a new arrival write up J but I’ve had a few that I actually kept long enough but been too busy to write up. I was asked by a few members of 3 forums to post my first impressions in new arrivals… I received this Bathys 100 Fathoms brand new from John at Bathys Monday evening. It has been on my wrist since I unboxed it and I am very pleased with it overall. I predict it’ll be around for a while J John was also great to deal with, a good guy, he answered all my questions and even threw in Caramack candy in the package! J
I had been looking at Bathys’ watches for some time, admiring wrist shots from WIS who own the Auto 100F or Benthic. There are several variations I liked, but honestly never pulled the trigger mostly due to the prices, which I thought they were too high for me. I almost pulled the trigger on a gently used one last year. Anyway, when I read Bathys’ new strategy and pricing thread on a forum, I thought it was the right time and the opportunity to grab a brand new one at a good price direct from John. I wanted a Bathys Benthic automatic with the ETA 2892 as my first choice or a 100Fathoms PVD auto close second… so I started PM’ing Bathys. Communication with John was great, I was able to snatch a Ruthenium grey dial PVD 100F but the auto Benthic were sold out, the Quartz Benthic is just too big for me. Ordering process was fine, shipping was timely and watch was packed up pretty good.
The watch came in a nice and right size Black Pelican 1030 waterproof micro case, including the watch on a nice leather waterproof strap on matching PVD deployant clasp, a rubber diver strap with matching PVD buckle, 2-yr warranty card and booklet. I think the packaging and extras are just enough, it was perfect for me. I like having the rubber strap and the smaller more usable Pelican case and no other extras which could add to cost and would likely not use.
The 200M WR watch case is fairly classic in design/style, no crazy lines or crown guard or other eccentric design cues, and the size is perfect at 41mm for this watch which is almost all dial. It wears larger, probably like a 43-44mm, just like my old Ball used too. But it certainly is not a big or overwhelming watch, it really is the sweet spot for me actually especially with the well proportioned 12.1mm height. I suspect it’d be spot on for most with wrist in the 6 ¾ to 7 ½”. For reference, my wrist is 7” and I love how it wears, it is also very comfortable with a fairly flat caseback and slightly curved lugs. It sits perfectly on the wrist, which can’t be said of many other watches out there. Lugs are 22mm and help make the case look a bit larger/wider I think vs. an Omega SMP 41mm case with 20mm lugs. The case on my particular watch is PVD coated with TiCN at 2 microns with a 3200 Vickers hardness rating. Finally the screw down case back is engraved with a map of the Hawaii islands, which is a nice touch. We all like a cool caseback J . I can’t really speak to the PVD finish much especially about its durability & resistance to scratch as it is new but it looks great, uniform and smooth as of now.
Next is what most recognize Bathys watches for and what attracts WIS to them I believe… the dial. I think it is what makes the watch, what makes it instantly recognizable as a Bathys timepiece and what draws people’s attention when they see pics of the 100Fathoms or Benthic. The dial finish especially when choosing something more unique like Ruthenium is awesome, mesmerizing and the large lumed numerals add contrast and a touch of fun to the otherwise classic case. The hour/minute hands are also really cool I think, not the typical hands seen on many divers, they are fully lumed and another touch of fun, a good match for the numeral. The dial is pretty clean and open with limited writing on it and subtle minute markers on the outer chapter (rehaut?). Finally I like that the second hand is mostly red with a white tip as opposed to the more popular red tip on white/silver hand. It ties into the red font of “AUTOMATIC” on the dial. The use of red in a controlled fashion is something I always like and suit this watch well. Another fun factor. All these characteristics of the dial are enough to differentiate the watch and give it that cool, fun, relaxed/laidback feel one would expect of an Hawaiian productJ I did not think of checking the lume yet, my bad!
The crystal is slightly domed, which is great for me as I am not a fan of the exaggerated domed crystals (they look great and cool but I worry about wearing them), this one allows great visibility at most angles and but offers the coolness of domed crystal! It also has AR coating. The 100F is equipped with a screw down crown engraved with the B of Bathys on it, which is the first of the only two CONs I found on the watch for my taste. I would have preferred a larger crown, nothing huge, but a bit bigger. It seems lost on the case side and is not the easiest to operate with adult-sized fingers J
I have not tried the stock rubber strap on the watch yet but it seems nice and soft, and its PVD buckle matches the watch case finish so I like that. The watch came on the Bathys waterproof leather, equipped with a PVD deployant clasp with Bathys engraved on it. This strap is my second CON for this otherwise really cool Bathys timepiece. It is too short. My wrist is just 7” and once adjusted to my wrist, there is just enough strap length left to go thru the first fixed keeper, leaving the second lose and useless. I know I can remove it and will but it is a bit odd on the wrist and just seems like it limits its use to those with smaller wrists. The strap leather is otherwise pretty nice, soft enough and a good match for the watch IMHO. I am wondering if John has longer straps though? Today I am wearing it on my black isofrane, and it rocks!
To sum it up, here are my thoughts… I like the fact it is an American company based in Hawaii where it also designs the watches [I like to give my $ to US businesses] and that the watches are made in Switzerland. The new price makes it very competitive for an ETA based Auto watch made in Switzerland IMHO as I see HK manufactured watches (Nothing wrong with that, I own them) in that price range with the same mvt or even the Myota. The watch design and looks is a winner overall, different enough but with some traditional styling as well so it is flexible and fun to wear at the same time. It looks fun and is inviting to wear. One can wear it by the beach with an Hawaiian shirt sipping on a cocktail or with jeans and short, even at the office on leather as I did yesterday! [It is by no means a dress watch, but it won’t clash]. The watch is great, but can it be improved… yes of course… a long strap, larger crown and drilled-thru lugs would be my suggestions
I have not had time to take lots of pics of the watch at various angles and the packaging so I can post more later on, but I did take a few cell Q&D’s of the caseback and side… I hope you found the review helpful especially if you were on the fence about ordering.
Thank you for reading,
Brice
|
JK Pal
Looks great!!!
(love the second hand) asap!
