The Murphy Vostok Bezel Review

I don't believe I've ever done a review for a watch part before (bracelets aside) but it had to happen sooner or later I suppose so here goes.

If you are a fan of Russian watches and Vostok Amphibias in particular, you are probably already aware of one of the more irritating characteristics of the watch. That would be the stock bezel. In almost all respects, Vostok did a splendid job on the Amphibia. It has a stainless steel case, a rugged automatic movement that can hand wind, an acrylic crystal that can be polished free of scratches very easily and, best of all, a very low price. One of the few details that is sub-par on the Amphibia is the stock bezel (the other being the lume which is awful). The standard Vostok bezel is a piece of chrome plated brass with painted accents. It looks pretty good and functions acceptably but, like anything made of brass, it scratches very easily. Until recently, the only option for us Vostok fans with damaged bezels was to procure a factory replacement part. That's not the case anymore.

Murphy Manufacturing, run by Dave Murphy, has come up with a terrific replacement bezel for the Amphibia. Unlike the original, Murphy's bezel is a beautifully solid piece of stainless steel that fits the Amphibia's case flawlessly. The machine work on this part is really very well done. Its so good, in fact, that I wish Vostok would just subcontract the bezel part of their business to Murphy. He really does a significantly better job.

The Murphy bezel does not ship with a bezel insert (the black part in the images above). That can be obtained from a variety of sources that sell Seiko 007 diver bezel inserts (I got mine here) The bezel fits on the Amphibia (or Komandirskie I suppose) using the same bezel wire that the stock unit is secured with. In terms of dimensions, the Murphy bezel sits a little higher than the stock unit. In the side by side shot above (the original bezel equipped model is on the right), you can see the difference between the stock bezel and the Murphy replacement. The increased height is needed to accommodate a bezel insert.

Overall, the Murphy bezel is a real home run. It addresses one of the big weaknesses in Vostok's design in a very elegant way. The whole character of the Amphibia is remarkably enhanced by this seemingly small change. The Murphy bezel can be obtained by contacting Dave Murphy at Murphy Manufacturing Co. . If you collect Vostoks, treat yourself to one of these.

Poljot Kirova Chronograph Reissue Review

It is with a bittersweet feeling that I find myself writing this review. Word is now trickling out that Maktime, the successor entity to Poljot that manufactured the 3133chronograph movement, has gone bankrupt. Unless some white knight arrives to either bail them out or buy the tooling for the movement, the 3133 is no more. While there is an apparently ample supply of 3133 chronographs on the world wide tag sale, once that supply is gone, that's it.

Ah well (sniff...), on to the watch. The Kirova chronograph in this review is one of several different reissue models of the original First Moscow Watch Factory Kirova chronograph. This particular example is one of the largest cased models of the Kirova reissues. It measures 42 mm in width (45 mm including the crown), 14 mm in height, 50 mm lug to lug and has a 20 mm band lug width. Most of the other Kirova reissues I've seen are typically 40mm in width.

Visually, this watch seems to combine the face design of the 1940's vintage one button chronograph with the two button control layout of the 1950's vintage Urofa powered chronographs. Despite appearances, only the hands on this model are lumed. The numbers, while colored as if painted with radium, do not glow in the dark. The case is matt finished stainless steel and the crystal is mineral glass. The case back and crown screw down and the watch is rated at 5 atm water resistance (which I would take with a grain of salt frankly). The original leather band was of indifferent quality so I replaced it with a padded Hirsch model.

Internally, this Kirova is powered by the venerable 3133 23 jewel hand-wound chronograph movement. The 3133 is a Russian made version of the earlier Swiss Valjoux 7734. The Russians bought the rights to the movement from the Swiss, raised the jewel count from 17 to 23 and increased the beat rate. It has served as the standard Russian chronograph movement for roughly the last 35 years. The 3133 is generally regarded as a fairly rugged movement (as mechanical chronos go) and it is known for it long 50+ hour power reserve.

I personally find this watch to be very attractive. The face and hands exhibit an old style charm that I don't encounter often these days. I think I would have preferred it if the designers had left off the date window but I can certainly live with it. I picked this example up a few years ago (when Russian chronographs were absurdly affordable) but I still see this model new on eBay from time to time. I think it's a keeper.

Leather Nato

I've been trying to find a strap that I liked for this Adi for a few years now. I think I've hit on a winner. The leather Nato above was procured from Nilsen's ebay watch band store (Randy passed away a few years ago but his wife now runs the place). Nice to see that the selection is still good and that the prices remain very reasonable. I think I paid about $26 shipped. Not bad at all.

Uzi Ballistic Long Term

The Uzi Ballistic has been my designated beater for about two years now. I have really made no effort to baby this watch. It's been dropped, banged around, immersed and generally worn with complete disregard for niceties very regularly. Except for a small scuff on one of the lugs, it looks very good and runs perfectly. I recently learned from one of my readers that the Ballistic has a ten year lithium ion battery in it. Given how tough it seems to be, that bodes well for the next eight or so years.

Test post

Trying out Google's iPhone blogger app.

TW Steel Icon Review

Its been a while since I bought a watch based on looks alone. In fact, I can safely say I had not done so since I began seriously collecting watches ten or so years ago. Well, there has to be an exception to every rule and that exception is the TW Steel model you see above. Fair warning, this review may read a bit like a travel gazetteer.

A little background first. For our twentieth wedding anniversary, my wife and I decided to travel to Montreal. Neither of us had ever been to Canada before and, since we weren't traveling with the kids for the first time (Yippie!!), it seemed prudent to stay close enough that we could get back to NYC quickly if need be. Montreal, if you haven't been there, is a fascinating city. There is a lot of very interesting history there. The scenery around the city in the Laurentian Hills is very beautiful, the underground city is genuinely remarkable, you can rent bicycles all over the place, and, despite the prevalence of French as a language, everyone was friendly and spoke English as well. ( I can speak a little French which was helpful at times but was by no means necessary) . The city has a very European character in many ways. There are brands and signage that we Americans don't usually see. Restaurants are both varied in national cuisines and plentiful. Lots of good shopping can be found. There are apparently more churches here than in Rome. All in all, Montreal struck us as a friendly and prosperous place with a lot to offer. We are already planning our return, this time with the kids.

What I didn't know is that Montreal seems to have a nice watch shop every few blocks. Even the small towns in the Laurentian Hills had some very nice stores. For a watch collector, this place is very nice indeed. In addition to the usual Tissots and Omegas and the like, there were brands available that I was aware of but don't really see in the States all that often. One store I stumbled on to carried a nice selection of Briel watches, while two others carried the Netherlands brand TW Steel.

TW Steel (The Watch in Steel) is a relatively new brand dating from 2005. They are located in Amsterdam and specialize in big to very big watches. Styles are very interesting ranging from conventional chronographs to aviators like the one above to huge 50mm models with canteen crowns. Movements run the gamut from quartz to ETA 2836-2 automatics. All of their models seem to feature a heavy, nicely machined stainless steel case in one of several finishes. Their leather bands are all very well done. The leather is in the 3-4mm thick range and the buckles are both solid and engraved. Bracelets appear to be all solid link and well made too. Crystals are mineral, some with sapphire coating. Many of their models have an auto racing theme and the company is apparently working with the Renault racing team.

The TW Steel Icon model you see above is sort of their entry level model. Visually, the Icon is a strikingly attractive watch to my eye. It is an aviator style watch with a 45mm stainless steel case (not including the big crown btw), a 22mm band lug width and a beveled mineral glass crystal. The Icon's caseback is nicely decorated and screws down. The movement is a Miyota 2415 3 hand quartz with a date function, a solid and reliable engine if not an exotic one. Water resistance is rated at 50 meters which is fine as this isn't a diver watch. The crown does not screw down (which actually doesn't bother me that much anymore as I've had the pleasure of stripping a screw-down crown recently) and the dial has no lume (Which I prefer to crappy lume anyway. If it ain't Seiko style superluminova or tritium tubes, don't bother).

I like this watch because it has that classic aviator watch look without the huge price tag. (Yes, I know that there are Chinese aviator watches with mechanical movements available for less than the $200 that this one cost me but their quality and overall feel aren't even close to the TW Steel's). I'm not prepared to drop $800+ dollars for a mechanical aviator and, frankly, I'm a little gun-shy about wearing one of those anyway as I've already had one spit blood on me (That's a story for another day). The Icon's rugged quartz movement should have no such issues. The watch has a nice heft to it and the overall quality feel is enhanced by the thickness of the leather band. The dial is very simple and easy to read and the dark hands offer excellent visual contrast. The date window is clear and easy to read despite the lack of a cyclops magnifier (which I think would detract from the look of the watch anyway).

If you are a fan of the Laco/IWC Fleiger watch look but want a more practical and affordable variant that is still solidly built, the TW Steel Icon deserves a good look. For what it's worth, it is one of the few watches I own (and I own just a few you know) that my wife really likes.

P.S.-I picked up this example at Poussiere de Diamants, a jewelry and watch store in St. Sauveur in the Laurentian Hills. Very nice folks with a good selection of both TW Steel watches as well as other brands. TW Steel watches include a 2 year warranty.

Rubber Bands

An Uzi Protector on a stock rubber band



A Seiko Tuna Can on its stock Seiko rubber band



A Debaufre Ocean 1 on a Modena band



A Debaufre Aircraft 8 on a Modena band



An Adi mil-watch with an integrated rubber band



An Uzi Ballistic on its stock rubber band



A modern Amphibia on a Modena band



A late eighties vintage Vostok Amphibia on an unusual stock Vostok rubber band with integral compass



A Seiko Landmonster on a stock Seiko rubber band



An Adi ana-digi diver on a Modena rubber band


As much as I like a well made leather watch band, there is no getting aound the sticky reality that they don't wear very well in hot or humid climates. For those of us who live in places with regularly changing seasons, this reality has created a little ritual every spring where the leather bands that held our watches so nicely during the fall and winter are removed an replaced with hot weather alternatives.

Now, if you want to spend some money and you have a watch that would appropriately benefit from an investment, get a nice solid link stainless steel bracelet. I've written several reviews where the benefits of a good bracelet are discussed. However, as the name of this review above suggests, there is another alternative for hot weather that works really well too. This is, of course the rubber (or silicon) band. This style of watchband is commonly offered as a standard accessory with many diver watches but, thanks to a variety of new designs, rubber bands can be retro fitted to just about anything these days. It doesn't hurt that the price of admission is also, generally speaking, very low.

In the photos above, there are a number of watches that either came stock with rubber bands or were fitted with them by me for hot weather wear. A well made rubber watch band is completely waterproof, light in weight and pretty durable. Sweat, water and grime should have no effect on them at all.

My favorite supplier of aftermarket rubber watchbands is Modena Watch Company (I have no connection to them if you are wondering). They have a wide variety of different bands available, and their prices are usually under $20. If one of your favorite watches is regularly sidelined for fear of ruining its leather band, an inexpensive rubber alternative is a no-brainer.