Customer Reviews

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

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

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.

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.