In
1953, Rolex introduced the Explorer to celebrate the ascent of Mt.
Everest.* It was a lovely watch with a 36mm case, domed crystal,
and a black dial with lumed numerals at 3/6/9 and an inverted triangle
at 12 o'clock. It was simple, cool, and embodied a spirit of adventure
in a way that a hideous blue/gold submariner could never achieve. The
original ref. 6610 Explorer was slightly revised and rechristened ref.
1016 in 1959, after which it remained in production through the 1980's
when Rolex, in its wisdom, completely ruined it. The 1016 Explorers
typically sell for around $7,000. The watch is on The Time Bum's
ever-expanding list of Grail watches, but it is not something I am
likely to pick up soon. The
Tudor Heritage Ranger strikes a similar chord for only $2,825. This is
comparatively cheap, but still slightly beyond my preferred price
range.
Wanting
a classic Explorer style watch that I could wear every day without
worry, and without stretching my budget, I did what any rational Bum
would do. I bought a $399 Armida A6. Hong Kong watchmaker Armida
is best known for producing quality affordable diver's watches, so at
first blush, the more buttoned-up A6 seems like a bit of a departure,
but as you will see, that assumption is incorrect. This
watch is in fact a tough little bastard that can weather the trials of
adventure and still look perfectly dapper with a suit.
The A6 wears the unmistakable Explorer dial. The markers are crisply printed in C3 SuperLuminova for an off-white appearance in
daylight, and a strong green glow at night. The "Mercedes" squelette
hands and lollipop second hand are polished brass and their gold color
is repeated in the chapter index and dial text. A brushed stainless
rehault rings the dial. The markers pop, but all else is just a subtle
glint against the black background. My watch has no date, but Armida
makes a variant with a 4:30 date window, color matched to the
gold-on-black dial. Pale orange lume is also an option. It is all rather
elegant, but the substance of the dial text tells the rest of the
story: Automatic, 200M / 660ft, Anti-magnetic.
The round case is 40mm wide and 50mm long, with drilled 22mm lugs, and a deeply grooved, 7mm screw-down crown. A tall, double domed acrylic crystal raises the height to 14.5mm. Its top surface and bezel are brushed, the slightly bowed sides are polished. As
mentioned above, it is rated for 20ATM/200M water resistance and
shielded against magnetic fields up to 70,000 A/m (amperes per meter).
This far exceeds the 4,800 A/m resistance required by ISO 6425 diver's
watch standards, but short of the 80,000 A/m of the Rolex Milgauss.
Automatic movements are highly susceptible to magnetism, so while it is unlikely that many of us will encounter strong fields in daily life, it is still a nice feature. On
the flip side, you will find an solid, screw down case back with a
decorative engraving of.... I have no idea. A buckyball, perhaps?
Whatever it is, it looks cool, but I cannot decipher its connection to the watch or the brand
The sturdy case protects a Miyota
9015 24 jewel automatic movement, a hacking, hand winding unit with a
smooth 28.8 bph sweep, and 40 hour power reserve. This high beat ETA
2824-2 alternative is becoming so common in independent and micro brand
watches that it is easy to take it for granted, but it is undeniably a high quality movement at a very attainable price.
Armida supplies the A6 with both a
bracelet and rubber strap. The bracelet is brushed with polished sides,
just like the case. Individual links are secured with screws, which
makes initial adjustment kind of a pain. I was more than happy to pay my
local jeweler to deal with it. It has solid end links and a signed,
flip lock diver's clasp. The rubber strap is very good quality, soft with a pleasant vanilla scent. With its angular buckle, broad tang, and rectangular holes, it resembles the
iconic ISOfrane dive strap. Both bracelet and strap are perfectly nice
on their own, but neither really did it for me on the watch. The
"Armida-frane" is a great strap, and will likely see service on one of
my other dive watches, but it was out of place when paired with the A6.
The bracelet fared much better, and makes for a rather handsome watch,
but it did not speak to me. I tried a selection of nylon and leather
NATOs, but the dial didn't really light up for me until I fitted a
leather strap. The light brown Crown & Buckle Habitue brought out the gold in the dial, and its matte finish had just the right weathered look for this "explorer's" timepiece.
I found I was able to wear the A6 quite comfortably. It
is on the tall side for a dress watch, but then again, this is not
strictly a dress watch. It straddles the line between dress and tool and
somehow manages to pull off both looks. The
widely spaced lugs, stout crown, brushed bezel, and matching rehault
give the watch a broad shouldered and distinctly masculine appearance.
The polish and curvature of the sides softens the case just enough to
prevent it from slipping too far into tool watch territory. It all adds up to wrist
presence that belies its mid-sized case. This is a 40mm watch that
wears like a 42mm while still occupying minimal real estate, a big bonus
for my 6.5" wrist. Despite its height, it fit under all but the
tightest shirt cuffs, and it looked damn sharp with a suit.
Finally, the watch's box deserves some attention. Regular readers know I almost never mention packaging unless it is something particularly cool. The Armida ships in an orange plastic tube, the watch and accessories securely nestled inside a dense foam cylinder.
When I unscrewed the top of the canister, I noticed a gasket. Could
this actually be water tight? After submerging it to the terrifying
depths of my kitchen sink, I determined that it was indeed. Kudos to
Armida for exceptionally clever and functional packaging.
I am truly enjoying
the A6. Is it a 1016 Explorer? No. Is it an Explorer homage? Sort of.
It is not an homage in the sense that we tend to use the word in the
watch hobby, which is to say a copy of another manufacturer's product in
every way but the (trademark protected) label. Rather, it is a homage
in the sense that it was inspired by another another watch from which it
borrows certain design cues. The A6 clearly wears an Explorer style
dial, but the watch is far too bulky to mimic the original, although
curiously, the Rolex's 36mm case would have been considered "mid-size"
back in its day, just as the 40mm A6 is today.
It is a satisfying watch with a classic design? Absolutely.
Pro: Versatile and handsome. Like George Clooney.**
Con: Requires some effort to find the right match. Like George Clooney.
Sum: An outstanding value. The Time Bum approves.
*
Interesting note: Sir Edmund Hillary actually wore a Smiths to the top
of Everest. Tenzing Norgay wore the Rolex. (For more Rolex Explorer
info, check out this excellent article, http://rolex.watchprosite.com/show-nblog.post/ti-558176/)
** Yes, I know he is an Omega brand ambassador. Sheesh...
Tra le grandi novità che esce giusto orologio SIHH di quest'anno è stato di Baume & Mercier lancio della collezione di un uomo completamente nuovo, The Clifton, ispirato da un modello 1950 da vasti archivi del marchio. La collezione si compone di automatico, un modello a tre-mano con piccoli secondi; il Clifton 1830, una versione in oro direttamente influenzata dai 1950 originali; e uno che particolarmente attirato la mia attenzione, il calendario completo con fasi lunari, qui con un quadrante blu soleil satinato.
vedere di piu 