Timex Solar Shock Ironman 50 Lap

This watch is a Timex Solar Shock Ironman 50 Lap. Since the timex website does such a poor job of listing its features, I will cover them here:

1. Three separate time/date zones are accessible. These are cycled through by pressing the start/split button right underneath the dial of the watch. Each time zone is settable individually and completely arbitrarily. The helps in accommodating time zones such India or certain regions in Australia. The date also displays correctly such that if it is 18PM in CA, and GMT is programmed, it will show the correct date as well.
2. The main dial displays day, date, month as well as the time. Both AM (A) and PM (P) are indicated as well so there is no confusion.
3. The watch features a countdown timer with repeat or stop feature. This makes it easy to get an alarm set at a regular interval since it will keep repeating the countdown.
4. The watch features a 50 lap chronograph with recall feature. On the last lap, you have to hit start/split button after finishing the lap otherwise you do not get the final lap time.
5. There are three individually settable alarms. The best feature of the alarms is the ability to set them weekdays only, weekends only, or everyday. This is very cool indeed.
6. Timex says it is shock resistant to the same standard as the G-shocks (ISO standard). I did not verify this.
7. It has Indiglo which IMHO is not as good as the EL backlight of my Casio Pathfinders. It does the job however. This watch does not have automatic light activation which is the equivalent of AutoEL (which timex calls FLIX).
8. The bezel is made out of steel and appears to be very sturdy. The buttons are rubberized plastic. The paint on the START/SPLIT button is already starting to wear off.
9. The rubber strap is not replaceable by the user. The watch has to go in to Timex to get the strap replaced. The cost is $10.00.
10. Solar charge function seems to work well. I have never seen it drop past FULL since the first time I charged it.
11. There is an annoying delay when one changes the mode of the watch. It takes the watch about a second before it accepts a command (such as START timing).
12. Accuracy: The watch has lost 2 seconds in 22 days.
    

The verdict: At a price (from a nearby clothing store) of $70, this watch is a good buy. I have two picks with it: the strap should be user replaceable and the annoying delay between modes should be done away with.

Skyhawk AT Software Update Performed

I received my watch back from Citizen of America about 10 days after I sent it.
Watch looks as good as new and the only mark indicating that the service is performed is a dot on the case back (engraved) before the serial number.

Kudos to Citizen of America for taking a proactive stance in fixing this problem.

Skyhawk AT Software Update

It looks like there is a service action for the Skyhawk AT both in US and Japan. The problem is that the perpetual calendar will not update correctly after the year 2010.

Citizen is performing a software update to fix the problem. I sent my watch in after contacting them and verifying that it is indeed affect by this recall.

You can find more details at:

1) http://forums.watchuseek.com/showthread.php?t=128979
2) http://forums.watchuseek.com/showthread.php?t=128476
3) http://seiyajapan.com
4) http://static.zoovy.com/img/kseiya/-/sozai/rfn_new

If your watch serial number starts with 8xxxx or it has an RFN stamped next to the 7xxxx serial number then your watch is not affected.

In Japan, you can email citizen using this link.

In the US, I email them using CustomerService_US !at! citizenwatch !dot! com

Skyhawk AT Update

Quick update on the Skyhawk AT.

1) The watch had difficulty adjusting to the daylight savings time change. It took another 24hrs after the change for the watch to automatically update the SMT setting.
2) I managed to put a minor scratch on the mineral glass crystal right on top of 9PM. Barely visible, but I am still wondering why Chase-Durer can put a sapphire crystal on a similarly priced watch and Citizen can't.
3) Watch fits fine on my 7 inch wrist. No issues.
4) I was sorely tempted by a Breitling Emergency for sale at an online dealer this week.

Another Skyhawk Review

Another nice review posted about the Skyhawk here.

Citizen Skyhawk AT Review: The Ultimate Pilot Watch or is it THE ULTIMATE WATCH?

After selling my Omega X-33 Gen 2, I immediately started missing it. The following monologue is my story of how I found, in my opinion of course, the ultimate pilot/traveller's watch.

As every methodical watch collector does, I first started putting together a list of functions that I needed to have on my new timepiece:

1. Chronograph: This comes in handy for lots of functions including time traveled, or who can hold their breath under water the longest. I own three mechanical chronographs including a Speedmaster Professional Moon to Mars edition, but frankly, I prefer reading a digital readout for precise measurements.
2. Countdown Timer: Countdown timer is one of the most useful functions in a watch. You can precisely time how long the marshmallows have over the campfire before they are roasted beyond recognition, or alternately, the time that you have before you should look for more fuel.
3. Quartz Movement: I can almost hear people cringe over this one (although if you read my X-33 report before, you are probably not surprised). As much as I love the fine art of watchmaking, and own more mechanical watches than I can count, for an every day, tool watch, I don't think anything can beat quartz. No watch winder necessary, no resetting the date (if you have a perpetual calendar) and no fuss.
4. High Accuracy: Again, in an everyday watch, it is very nice to be able to set it once and forget it. Even better is an atomic receiver.
5. Large Dial with Large Luminous Hands: I like being able to read time quickly and even in the dark. The dial has to be a dark color and the hands have to be a light color for better contrast.
   
6. Backlight: Backlight is crucial especially when the luminous hands are not charged enough to glow through the night.
   
7. Solar-Powered: My apologies to Seiko. If I wanted a inertia-wound movement, I would be wearing my Explorer II. For a quartz watch, the best self-powered option is solar.
8. E6B Slide Rule: A slide rule bezel always comes handy when trying to figure currency conversion or figuring out how much to tip the waiter at the local restaurant.

After putting together this list, there was really only watch that fit the bill. I considered the Breitling B-1 and would have probably bought one if I were not happy with my Skyhawk AT.

After deciding on the watch I wanted to buy, I went to the Princeton Watches website to checkout the models for the Skyhawk AT. I am a previous happy customer, so I did not think about looking elsewhere to get a better price. Not being a huge fan of rubber straps, I ended up ordering Citizen Skyhawk model JY0000-53E.

The order was placed on a Saturday afternoon. On Monday morning (8:40AM), they called me to confirm that I really wanted the order shipped to an address different from my billing address, my package was on its way. UPS delivered the watch to my work on Wednesday morning. As any WIS would attest to, it was very hard to not even open the package and wait until I got home that evening.

The watch was shipped in the following box:




The box from citizen was presentable (but not as good for example as a box from Tissot for a similarly priced watch):



Opening the box reveals the nice but not impressive inner package:

'

I was impressed with the manual and the CD that Citizen included with the watch:



And finally, I opened the box and came face to face with my Skyhawk AT:



This was very very good. It looked much better in person than what I have been able to find on the web. Specifically, I was worried about the orange accents on the dial, but they do not distract at all from the look of the watch. On the contrary, they complement the cockpit instrument look of the dial.

Taking the watch out of the case, I was impressed with the quality of the bracelet and glad to see that Citizen includes two half-links as well as lots of full length links as well. My guess is that this watch would easily fit an 8 inch wrist.



Finally, this is what the back of the case looks like:



Now that we covered the basics, let's get to my impressions of this watch.

1. Weight: The watch feels heavy but well balanced on my roughly 7 inch wrist. Due to inclusion of the half links in the bracelet, it is easy to get the watch to sit level on the wrist and not wobble around. Overall, I can feel the weight of the watch, but not in any uncomfortable way.
2. Bracelet: No complaints at all with the bracelet. I think I still prefer the bracelet on my Omega Speedmaster Pro, but overall very good for a watch in this price range.
3. Dial: This was the biggest surprise to me. In the pictures, the dial looks so busy, but in person, unless one is looking for one of the subdials, the attention is directed automatically to main watch hands. I find it easy to read the UTC clock in the center and the 24H display right next to it.
4. Crown: Crown is nicely textured. This makes it very easy to pull out even when the watch is on the wrist. As one turns the crown to change the function, for each function, there is a nice solid click as it is selected. This is much better than the Breitling Aerospace where the speed at which the crown is turned decides whether the correct function is selected.
5. Backlight: It is nicely done in orange to go with the flight theme and does not ruin my night vision.
6. Hands: The main watch hands are large, and coated with a generous amount of Superluminova. They glow through the night without a problem. The seconds hand lines up perfectly with the hash marks on the dial.
   
7. Functionality: Two alarms that include the timezone as part of the alarm setting. Chronograph, Countdown timer and an atomic clock receiver complete the watch. The E6B slide rule bezel is very legible and has a nice feel when turning it. The metallic knobs on the bezel make it easy to grab and turn the bezel.

Overall, this watch is much better than I expected and is a worthy replacement for my X-33. I have a few gripes: the crystal should be sapphire and not mineral glass, the bracelet and case should be coated with duratec coating like the Campanola line and finally, I think the second (smaller) digital display could be used for more functions than just to display the name of the home city.

Update. I got several queries on how to obtain the Japan only version of this watch. There are few vendors that specialize in this:

http://seiyajapan.com/
http://www.higuchi-inc.com/

Omega Speedmaster Professional X-33 Prices on the rise

Omega Speedmaster Professional X-33 is an enigmatic Omega. There are several very good articles on this watch on the web:

• BSODMIKE's X-33 Review
• A Pilot's Perspective on the X-33
• And even the user manual for the X-33 is on-line thanks to Chuck Maddox.

In a nutshell, the X-33 was designed as an addition to the venerable Omega Speedmaster Professional line with help and feedback from pilots and NASA astronauts. I knew about the X-33, but never paid any particular attention to it until this year. I was a mechanical watch man through and through and really could not care less about the quartz watches. This all changed when I got to play with a Breitling Aerospace at the Tourneau store in Santana Row.

While I was researching a Breitling Aerospace purchase, a post on Timezone caught my eye and after a couple web searches, I decided that the watch to have was not a Breitling Aerospace but an X-33. A couple days later, I bought a new old stock watch from a used watch dealer in Boston and it was delivered the next day.

Here you can see a few pictures of my X-33.










So far, I love this watch. The functionality is great, the fit and finish is above any quartz watch that I have ever owned. The backlight is like a torch and the alarm is loud, although, I don't think mine generates the 80 dB alarm listed on the owner's manual.

As you probably guessed by now, this week's post is about the X-33 prices. Omega stopped selling the X-33 to the public about a year ago. The dealer stock,based on my informal checks to most of the dealers in the Bay Area and a few across the US, is all sold out. The factory stock also seems to be depleted. While, there are no published figures on the sales of the X-33, it is easy to make an educated guess based on the list price (over $2900 at launch) and the limited water resistance of this tool watch that this watch never sold in large numbers. This all indicates a very scarce supply of these watches in the used market.

There are two versions of the Omega X-33 even though it had a very short time span. The first generation watches (commonly referrred to as X-33 Gen 1) are identified by a shiny bezel, a regular crown and polished pushers for the additional functions. A first generation X-33 is pictured below:



(This image is provided by rakuten.co.jp. Thank you for allowing us to use it)


My X-33 is a second generation, with the improved crown (much easier to pull), satin-finished bezel and pushers.

The market seems to prefer the Gen 2 X-33, but due to the scarcity of the supply, I could not detect a more than $100-200 difference in the price of the two generations on the used market. The scarcity is such that as I write this article, there is only one X-33 on ebay listed for sale and it is from Germany. Taking a look at the completed auctions reveals that average selling price of the X-33 was approximately $1325 over the last three weeks. One of these was at $931 and it was a watch that I bought and returned to the seller. It was a heavily used example that needed significant cosmetic work but it was in good working condition. Taking the outliers out of the average, you end up with a less biased number of $1400.00. This number includes watches with the Kevlar strap (which was the preferred option for astronauts) and titanium bracelet.

Searching the listings at the watch forums, I find that you can find a new old stock watch from the far east listed at $1700 but with no boxes. At the time of this writing, there are no used watches listed on my favorite forums which is a clear indication of scarcity.

Here is my 30-second summary on the X-33 pricing as of July 22, 2007.

For a Gen 2 X-33 with a titanium bracelet in excellent condition, with full documentation and boxes etc, expect to pay between $1500-1900 whether it is new old stock or is a gently used example. I expect a Gen 1 X-33 with a titanium bracelet in a similar condition with all of its accessories to fetch between $1300 - 1700.

For a Gen 1 X-33 with a titanium bracelet in good condition (minor scratches that can be easily buffed out, no dings on the crystal and AR coating intact), with full documentation and accessories, expect to pay between $1000-$1300. A Gen 2 X-33 in a similar condition should fetch about $200 more.

Finally, for a Gen1 X-33 with a titanium bracelet that is in "heavily used" condition with deep scratches on the case and the bracelet, possible dings to the crystal and AR coating in less than perfect condition, expect to pay between $650 and $950. Due to the scarcity and the relative newness of the Gen 2 X-33 (introduced in 03, widely available in 04) , I don't expect to see a beat-up Gen 2 X-33 until 2009 at the very least, but of course, I take care of my watches religiously.

For all the prices above, at the high end, deduct a $300, for a watch without the titanium bracelet. The titanium bracelet is available at a price of $895 from several sources on-line. At the bottom end for heavily used watches, expect a $50-75 discount if they only come with a kevlar strap.

As of this writing, the X-33 is only available to NASA and military as a special order item with an insignia in the back. Omega dictates that watches acquired through this program must not be resold for a period of 5 years.

In conclusion, the Omega Speedmaster Professional X-33 in either of its incarnations is an excellent tool watch. With its scarcity and its status as a NASA mission-qualified watch, I expect the prices to go up moderately. If you have one, enjoy it carefully. If you don't own one but want one, I recommend going for a Gen 2 X-33 with the titanium bracelet.

See you next month.

(c) Copyright July 22, 2007. All rights except linking to the article are reserved.