Post by mamas on Sept 28, 2007 7:52:26 GMT -6
Background
I have for a long time admired flieger watches because of their simplicity, their legibility and their tool like character and no frills like approach for timekeeping. They are designed for a purpose and serve the purpose well, with no redundant functions.
Originally Flieger "Beobachtungsuhren" or "B-Uhren" (observation watches) were produced by 5 brands (IWC, Stowa, Wempe, Laco and Lange & Söhne) and were unmarked on the dial. They had a number of common features including a case diameter of 55mm which often pilots could strap to their thighs, manual wind with a central seconds hand and a large crown for winding whilst wearing leather gloves. The earlier type of Flieger B-Uhren watch dial consisted of numerals 1 to 11 and the triangle with two dots at 12 .
It was this design that drew me to this type of watch and recently the popularity of these watches has markedly increased with several companies offering B-Uhren homages such as IWC (Big Pilot), Azimuth (Bombardier), Archimedes, Glashutte Original, Titoni and Steinhart amongst others.
I decided to buy a Steinhart which i purchased from www.steinhartwatches.de/ for $415 usd + shipping.
Case
The case is made from 316 L stainless steel which is brushed consistent with the tool nature of the watch. It is a`large 47mm in diameter and 14mm thickness. The inter lug distance is around 55 mm and lug width is 22mm.
The case is very well machined and finished with edges which are very precise. The lugs are not sharp and curve gently downards making the watch appear not as massive as it could do. The case is made from one piece of stainless steel and the 'bezel' part of the watch is one with the rest of the watchcase:
The crystal is a gently curved saphire crystal with anti reflection coating on the inside of the crystal. The caseback of the watch is a see through caseback with again saphire crystal with the inscription on caseback of 'swiss made-stainless steel- Nav B-uhr - 17 jewels' aswell as the calibre of the movement.
Crown
The crown width is 10mm and the height is around 5 mm. It is machined with grooves along its length which allow easy manipulation. It is well made and solid as is the rest of the watch, although this is the only part of the watch were the stainless steel is shiny.
Dial
The dial is a matt black colour with superluminova indices from 1-7 and 11, with the upright triangle with two dots at 12 o'clock. Unlike the original B-Uhrens where the seconds had was central, because this piece utilises the Unitas 6497 movement the subsecond dial is located at 9 o'clock.
The manufacturers name, Steinhart is placed just below the 12 O'clock triangle but does not overpower the dial and is fairly subtle unlike some manufacturers such as Zeno where the name is rather too prominent for my tastes. The dial is incredibly legible and well balanced and does not appear at all cluttered. The dagger shaped hands are blued steel and have a generous layer of superluminova. Again i feel that the watch hands are just the right size, as there is a temptation to make them too large for a dial of this size by some manufacturers.
The luminosity of the hands is excellent and lasts all though the night and is a bright white colour. The dial is fairly luminous although it has a green hew to it. It is not as luminous as the hands and is slightly less luminous than i had expected. I certainly think this could be improved by adding a thicker coating of superluminova to the dial or using a higher grade / similar grade to that used in the hands.
Movement
The movement is a Unitas 6497 manual wind 17 jewelled movement. Thw movement is decorated with cotes de geneve waves and stainless steeled blued screws. The movement although fairly basic is attractive and can be seen through the saphire caseback.
The winding of the movement is smooth and mine has a power reserve of around 48 hours. It keeps to within chronometer tolerances at around -4 seconds per day which is more than accurate. Unfortunately it does not have a hacking function although this does not retract from the owners experience of the watch.
Strap
The strap is an antique brown colour with contrasting white stitching. It s around 5mm thick and very soft leather indeed. Often with watches of this price range straps are often an afterthought and they tend to be very 'cheap' although this is certainly not the case here. I am very impressed with the quality of the strap and i would have no hesitation in ordering further similar straps from Steinhart. There are 2 stainless steel steel tacks at the proximal end ofthe strap, although these ar eadded for decoration and do not pass through the strap as in other Flieger type straps.
The buckle is a stainless steel brushed pre V type buckle with a screw allowing ease for strap changes and the name Steinhert etched into it.
Final thoughts
I think that for the price of $415 usd this is an incredibly made watch whose manufacture quality does not reflect the price. The case finish is as good as many watches at least 3 times the price. Obviously in watches such as the IWC a lot of money goes into the well finished inhouse movement rather than a rather plane Unitas movement and clearly companies such as IWC have a very long and esteemed horlogical history in comparison to Steinhart. Does this Justify the 20 fold difference in price? in a word, no. This does not feel like a $400 watch and i feel that if you are unhappy with the quality of this product, you will need to spend several thousand dollars to find something better.
In terms of design, this is a classic B-Uhren homage design which fits in well with the clarity and tool like ethos which these watches were originally designed
My guess is that many will be stopped from buying such a piece from the size of 47mm which is a large watch. Certainly this was an issue for me before i decided to bite the bullet. Of note my wrist size is 6.75 inches and so i include some wrist shots for you to judge whether this type of watch would be suitable for you.
I have for a long time admired flieger watches because of their simplicity, their legibility and their tool like character and no frills like approach for timekeeping. They are designed for a purpose and serve the purpose well, with no redundant functions.
Originally Flieger "Beobachtungsuhren" or "B-Uhren" (observation watches) were produced by 5 brands (IWC, Stowa, Wempe, Laco and Lange & Söhne) and were unmarked on the dial. They had a number of common features including a case diameter of 55mm which often pilots could strap to their thighs, manual wind with a central seconds hand and a large crown for winding whilst wearing leather gloves. The earlier type of Flieger B-Uhren watch dial consisted of numerals 1 to 11 and the triangle with two dots at 12 .
It was this design that drew me to this type of watch and recently the popularity of these watches has markedly increased with several companies offering B-Uhren homages such as IWC (Big Pilot), Azimuth (Bombardier), Archimedes, Glashutte Original, Titoni and Steinhart amongst others.
I decided to buy a Steinhart which i purchased from www.steinhartwatches.de/ for $415 usd + shipping.
Case
The case is made from 316 L stainless steel which is brushed consistent with the tool nature of the watch. It is a`large 47mm in diameter and 14mm thickness. The inter lug distance is around 55 mm and lug width is 22mm.
The case is very well machined and finished with edges which are very precise. The lugs are not sharp and curve gently downards making the watch appear not as massive as it could do. The case is made from one piece of stainless steel and the 'bezel' part of the watch is one with the rest of the watchcase:
The crystal is a gently curved saphire crystal with anti reflection coating on the inside of the crystal. The caseback of the watch is a see through caseback with again saphire crystal with the inscription on caseback of 'swiss made-stainless steel- Nav B-uhr - 17 jewels' aswell as the calibre of the movement.
Crown
The crown width is 10mm and the height is around 5 mm. It is machined with grooves along its length which allow easy manipulation. It is well made and solid as is the rest of the watch, although this is the only part of the watch were the stainless steel is shiny.
Dial
The dial is a matt black colour with superluminova indices from 1-7 and 11, with the upright triangle with two dots at 12 o'clock. Unlike the original B-Uhrens where the seconds had was central, because this piece utilises the Unitas 6497 movement the subsecond dial is located at 9 o'clock.
The manufacturers name, Steinhart is placed just below the 12 O'clock triangle but does not overpower the dial and is fairly subtle unlike some manufacturers such as Zeno where the name is rather too prominent for my tastes. The dial is incredibly legible and well balanced and does not appear at all cluttered. The dagger shaped hands are blued steel and have a generous layer of superluminova. Again i feel that the watch hands are just the right size, as there is a temptation to make them too large for a dial of this size by some manufacturers.
The luminosity of the hands is excellent and lasts all though the night and is a bright white colour. The dial is fairly luminous although it has a green hew to it. It is not as luminous as the hands and is slightly less luminous than i had expected. I certainly think this could be improved by adding a thicker coating of superluminova to the dial or using a higher grade / similar grade to that used in the hands.
Movement
The movement is a Unitas 6497 manual wind 17 jewelled movement. Thw movement is decorated with cotes de geneve waves and stainless steeled blued screws. The movement although fairly basic is attractive and can be seen through the saphire caseback.
The winding of the movement is smooth and mine has a power reserve of around 48 hours. It keeps to within chronometer tolerances at around -4 seconds per day which is more than accurate. Unfortunately it does not have a hacking function although this does not retract from the owners experience of the watch.
Strap
The strap is an antique brown colour with contrasting white stitching. It s around 5mm thick and very soft leather indeed. Often with watches of this price range straps are often an afterthought and they tend to be very 'cheap' although this is certainly not the case here. I am very impressed with the quality of the strap and i would have no hesitation in ordering further similar straps from Steinhart. There are 2 stainless steel steel tacks at the proximal end ofthe strap, although these ar eadded for decoration and do not pass through the strap as in other Flieger type straps.
The buckle is a stainless steel brushed pre V type buckle with a screw allowing ease for strap changes and the name Steinhert etched into it.
Final thoughts
I think that for the price of $415 usd this is an incredibly made watch whose manufacture quality does not reflect the price. The case finish is as good as many watches at least 3 times the price. Obviously in watches such as the IWC a lot of money goes into the well finished inhouse movement rather than a rather plane Unitas movement and clearly companies such as IWC have a very long and esteemed horlogical history in comparison to Steinhart. Does this Justify the 20 fold difference in price? in a word, no. This does not feel like a $400 watch and i feel that if you are unhappy with the quality of this product, you will need to spend several thousand dollars to find something better.
In terms of design, this is a classic B-Uhren homage design which fits in well with the clarity and tool like ethos which these watches were originally designed
My guess is that many will be stopped from buying such a piece from the size of 47mm which is a large watch. Certainly this was an issue for me before i decided to bite the bullet. Of note my wrist size is 6.75 inches and so i include some wrist shots for you to judge whether this type of watch would be suitable for you.
