Victorinox Swiss Army

Victorinox Swiss Army Men's 241356 Dive Master Black Dial Watch

• Mechanical-Hand-Wind movement
• Antireflective-sapphire crystal
• Case diameter: 43 mm

Product Description

The Victorinox Swiss Army Story

In 1884, Karl Elsener opened a cutlery workshop in Ibach-Schwyz, Switzerland with the support of his mother Victoria. Just like that, Victorinox Swiss Army was born.

In 1891, Elsener and his coworkers deliver knives for soldiers in the Swiss Army for the first time. Six years later, the company legally protected the names Swiss "Officer's" and "Sport Knife." The model later became known as the Original Swiss Army Knife.

Following Elsener's mother's death in 1909, the company incorporated her name into the brand and unveiled its well-known cross and shield emblem. Elsener arrived at the name Victorinox by combining the name Victoria with "inox," an abbreviation of the French word for rust-resistant steel, "inoxydable."

In 1989, Victorinox officially entered the timepiece business in the United States under the brand name Swiss Army. In 1999, Victorinox partners with the American TRG Group in St. Louis and enters into the international travel gear market. In 2001, the company launched a fashion line in the U.S. with a collection that delivers technical and tailored styling capturing the brand’s essence of practical luxury. If that wasn't enough, in 2007 Victorinox sets up Victorinox Swiss Army Fragrance AG, and in 2009 Victorinox Swiss Unlimited was launched.

Victorinox Swiss Army treasures its heritage, the future is equally inspiring. Innovation is at the heart of each Victorinox product it introduces, with exciting technical advancement throughout all its product categories.

Product Description

Stainless steel case with a stainless steel bracelet. Unidirectional rotating black ion-plated bezel. Black dial with luminous hands and dot hour markers. Minute markers around the outer rim. GMT scale. Date display at the 3 o'clock positioned. Self winding mechanical movement. Scratch resistant sapphire crystal. Screw in skeletal case back. Case diameter: 43 mm. Case thickness: 12 mm. Fold-over-clasp-with-safety. Water resistant at 500 meters / 1650 feet. Victorinox Swiss Army Professional Dive Master 500 Mecha Men's Watch 241356.

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B002DQV9CW
• Item model number: VICT241356
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #31,089 in Watches (See Top 100 in Watches)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very solid dive watch-- Competes with the best of them, July 8, 2010

By 

Geeky Tom (Atlanta) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Victorinox Swiss Army Men's 241356 Dive Master Black Dial Watch (Watch)

I am a long time Swiss watch fanatic. I've owned over 20 Breitlings, over 20 Omegas, etc., etc. For me, Victorinox is not usually thought of as the height of horological craftsmanship. But this watch is pretty decently done.

The case is high quality, on par with mid-level swiss watches (Oris, Tissot, etc.). The crown is nice and large. The movement is a lower-grade ETA movement. The finish is workmanlike. But who cares. It runs well.

The bracelet has solid links, which is a plus. The links are held together with split pins, about two notches below screwed links and one notch below collared friction pins. That is the low point. But the bracelet clasp is decent and has a diver's extension. The clasp has three holes for micro adjustment via springbar. In addition, there are two half links on the bracelet. Getting the perfect fit should not be hard to do.

A sapphire crystal on the front is nice to have. It is nicely recessed into the case (no chipping problems like Rolexes suffer-- but let's not go there, ok?) The display back is a mineral crystal, but very thick. The 500m depth rating is really impressive.

The dial is very legible and the lume is bright, although the lume on the hands is significantly brighter than that on the hour markers.

The bezel has a very solid click, much more high end than I expected to find. Interestingly, there is lume on the bezel too.

I have a 7" wrist and this watch is not too big, at least by today's standards and styles.

The gunmetal finish on the SS case and bracelet is really attractive. We'll have to see how it holds up.

Why five stars? For the price, this is one heck of a watch. Others to consider in this category are Oris TT divers, Doxa subs and Marathon.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Testosterone Overload, August 24, 2010

By 

James S. Leseke "lesekejames" (San Diego CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Victorinox Swiss Army Men's 241356 Dive Master Black Dial Watch (Watch)

This beautiful watch just drips of manliness. Strap it on and you will have to fight the urge to take on a great white shark or perhaps consume steel wool for breakfast. The watch just bristles with attitude.

Once on the wrist you will notice the shear heft of the piece. You feel every once of the nearly two pounds this watch weighs. Most of the heft is in the watch proper, with the metal wrist strap adding in the rest of the weight.

The housing is very thick, beefy is the best way to describe it. It is impressive slab of metal that ensures the wearer that the 500 meter designation is not mere advertising copy. It also supports the mineral glass display back for the watch.

And there is another thing that sets this watch apart from almost every other dive watch out there. It is that display back. Just adding that one feature alone is an expression of how ruggedly made this watch is. Keeping that display back water tight to 500 meters is no trivial act. I know of no other watch manufacturer so bold to do this. That Victorinox does this at a list price of just north of one thousand dollars is amazing.

If there is a weak spot for the watch, it is the pedestrian ETA / Valjoux movement. Nothing to see here, move along, move along. It is hard to get too excited by a three hand movement with a calendar "complication." In the defense of the movement, it is a tried-and-true workhorse that gets the job done with little drama. Some Chinese parts have probably found their way into this "Swiss" movement but that is the way of the world for "moderately priced" Swiss made watches these days.

The Amazon image does little to no justice to actual look of the watch. In person, the EVP treatment makes the black face and black band stand out. It really enhances the masculine feel of the watch. As with every other Victorinox watch out there, the face is clear, crisp and super readable. The hands continue in the utilitarian mode, they have a good layering of lume and a no-nonsense but elegant form. The secondary GMT / 24 hour markers are also very crisp and readable.

If your husband, brother, cousin, boyfriend is a police officer or a fire-fighter this would be a great gift for him. It would also be appreciated by a diver or outdoorsman. As automatic watches do require care and feeding it is not a good choice for someone who is absent minded or unwilling to wind the watch on a daily basis. It is also not a good watch for someone who is careless or brutal with his equipment. This is not a beater watch. A good beater watch in the same vein would be Seiko's "Orange Monster," if only because you can get almost four Orange Monsters for the price of this Victorinox. Still, if you are pondering what to get your "manly man" and if you can live with the price tag, this could be the answer to your question.