This years Summer Side-by-Side begins with my growing antipathy towards the unnecessary technological distractions in life. My patience for cellphones, social media, and other superfluous technological devices has regressed to the point of nonexistence and I have been trying everything in my power to get away from them (I am writing this on a computer. Hence the use of the word superfluous. Some technology is necessary and aids in living a good life). I am making a forceful effort to reduce the amount of technology I use and the time I spend connected to the digital landscape. My mechanical watches have taken on a far more integral role in my life as I push digital technology away. Things like tracking pace count and distances on hikes I used to do on my phone. Now I use my chronograph. The same goes with finding my way. I used to use ONX Maps to do it, now I use a map, a compass, and sometimes even my watch to find my location and shoot my azimuth. Doing so has led me to see how enjoyable life can be without the silicone Apple distraction constantly taking me away from being in the world.
In concurrence with this, it also is a reflection of the bad taste I have in my mouth as it concerns the Rolex/Patek/AP bullshit and what the status seeking herd has done to watches in general. I couldn’t escape the frenzy around these brands for a time; I was more concerned with dollar value and the opportunity of being given the chance to join a waiting lists than I was with just wearing a watch. IWC and Omega, however, have broken this ridiculous spell, and have injected me with a new appreciation for watches for their own sake. I feel like another one of the Rolex lemmings now that I see I was lost in the hype machine…
So, this summer I decided to try two entirely different watches with a few things in common: they could not have cases made of steel, they should not come on bracelets, and they could not be from Rolex, Tudor, Patek, or AP. I wanted them to have closed case backs and they could not be polished or blingy. But more than this, I wanted them to be controversial in some respect. I did not want the darlings of the watch community, but those watches which people were quick to decry and criticize. After some looking around, I decided the IWC Top Gun Chrono in black ceramic and the Omega Seamaster 300 “No Time to Die” were the perfect choices. Each has received their fair share of criticism from the trolls in the comment sections of HODINKEE and other sites, and leave most people on one side of the “I hate it” or”I love it” fence. Both watches serve a specific purpose and are capable of living an active life.
I was able to purchase the Omega earlier than the IWC and have already written a cursory review on it. I will go into more depth on this piece during the summer and review some different straps which work for it as well.
I picked up the IWC just over a week ago, and I am still learning what it can do and what makes it special. In this article I will outline what drew me to the IWC and what my initial feelings are after my short time owning it. I will discuss things such as the “TOP GUN” branding and the association many people have with it, and I will finish up by outlining what makes it a great watch and worth considering for anyone.
My first real introduction to IWC was at the Tourneau Royal Hawaiian store in Honolulu in 2015. Though I had seen the watch Tom Cruise wore in “Vanilla Sky” a few years before and liked it, I had never had the chance to examine one in the metal and had no solid reference for what IWC watches were like. I was extremely poor at the time and couldn’t afford anything in the store. Even so, the staff where helpful and showed me all the IWC watches I wanted to look at, even though I told them up front that I couldn’t afford anything. The pilot’s watches were the most intriguing pieces they had. I never forgot about these IWCs nor the experience of working with the people at Tourneau. I put them on the back burner as I worked my way up to being able to afford watches again and got sidetracked with brands like Rolex. Now that Rolex has become non-existent I have been forced to find other brands, and I am thankful for it. I would never have considered this watch if I could have bought a Submariner. What a loss this would have been.
I was re-introduced to IWC while I was watching the “Grand Tour” a few months ago. In one of the specials Jeremey Clarkson has an IWC on his wrist when they are exploring the Columbian countryside, and I was immediately struck with how perfect it would be for an Idaho watch. The watch was so legible I could read the time on Clarkson’s wrist as they were going about the episode. I did some research and found out it was a discontinued model but that there was a newer model which was currently offered by IWC.
I pulled it up in the IWC website and was dismayed. The size and thickness threw me off: 44.5mmx15.7mm is a big watch. It was a watch which went in the opposite direction from where I thought I needed to go: smaller, thinner, and lighter. But the bait was set, and when I went to my AD to see about a Rolex (three years wait. No thanks.) and saw it sitting in the case, I had to try it on. I fell in love with it.
The watch was exactly what I was looking for: contrarian, lightweight, scratch resistant, and legible. It had the day and date which is helpful since I forget both regularly. The chronograph function was something I had never had before on a watch, and I was interested to try it. It came home with me a week later.
On the wrist it is big even if it is light. There is no way around the fact that 15.7mm is thick. But the ceramic case reduces the weight substantially, and it weighs only a few more ounces than my OP 36 does.
I appreciate the black ceramic case because it reduces the flash on my wrist when I am out in town. I have said this before, but flashy watches in rural America are not the best, and the flat black ceramic does not scream to be looked at. This is helped by the black textile strap and brushed stainless steel deployant, chronograph pushers, and crown. The watch does not reflect at all in the sunlight which is nice while hiking. The hands are very large and very white. It is very legible and there is no doubt as to the time when I look at it. The numbers on the dial are crisp and easy to read with even just a quick glance. The size of the watch and the dial really aids in reading the time quickly. It makes the Omega seem weak in this regard.
I have been wearing it on both the OEM textile strap and an ARTEM 20mm sail cloth strap with the IWC deployant installed, even though it leaves a little gap between the strap and lugs. I like the OEM better; it looks really good and is very comfortable, but I wonder how it will stand up to sweat and water over time as the underside is lined with leather.
Like all straps, the holes in it do not allow for it to be as comfortable as I would like so I punched a new hole in it to allow me to get a better fit. I did apply waterproofing to it as well, and have worn it in the water with no apparent ill effects. Time will tell if it lasts in this environment.
The ARTEM strap seems to suffer from none of these problems, other than I had to punch a hole in it too. It is comfortable and good looking. I will order a 21mm version to wear in order to spare the OEM strap some abuse. The deployant is awesome and I like how on the OEM strap it sits farther over on my wrist. It is really helpful for shooting without the buckle digging into my wrist; I like how it has the end of the strap pointing towards my thumb instead of to the outside of my wrist as well. It is comfortable for writing and it does not get stuck on my gear.
Despite its thickness, the watch does not get in the way when I shoot, nor does it stop my hand from fully articulating in anyway. It is comfortable to shoot with a rifle or a pistol; it is comfortable when I climb up rocks or scramble down hillsides. It does not bind and the crown does not dig into the back of my hand.
The watch is currently running three seconds fast a day when left propped up like a desk clock at night. This is better than the Omega’s 4 seconds fast a day. The chronograph has been really useful, and I wonder how I made it this far without owning a chronograph watch. It has a thirty-minute counter at the 12 and an hour counter at 9 which has thirty-minute increments up to twelve hours. I use it to time my hikes and track my pace count and estimated distance. Since I stopped using my phone to track the distance of my hikes, I have found the chronograph to be very helpful with estimating distance as well as elapsed time. I find it is more accurate than using the diving bezel to track my progress.
The fit and finish are as close to flawless as I can tell with my limited capabilities. The chronograph secondhand lines up perfectly at 12 when it is not in use. The day and date flip over perfectly every night. The hands on the sub-dials line up perfectly and the minute hand advances smartly with every 60 seconds elapsed on the chronograph seconds’ hand. There are no apparent imperfections on the dial or any of the hands. The lume is bright and easy to see at night. The chronograph pushers require a decent amount of pressure to activate, and everything resets perfectly when needed. The ceramic case can take a beating, I have already had it drag across my rifle with zero scratches or marks; last night I slammed it into a stainless steel ice cooler when I tripped on a broken board on a deck outside of a convince store in Stanley. There wasn’t a single mark on the case. Impressive.
The TOPGUN branding does not bother me. It is on the case back and no one needs to see it other than me. As someone who dislikes marketing in general, I see why people would be frustrated with this, but it doesn’t take away from the watch and frankly I have not thought about it once since I bought it.
Does it seem corny? Yes. But for some reason brands feel they need to have a gimmick to sell their products. I really do wish companies could advance past the marketing gimmicks and rely on the fact a product is made well in order to sell it. It doesn’t appear this will happen anytime soon. At least it seems a tad legitimate since IWC does work with the Navy on these pieces. Is it a blatant cash grab? Yeah, but isn’t all business a blatant cash grab? Does it make me feel like a pilot? Hell no. I hate flying. Furthermore, it doesn’t appear to take away from the fact the watch is good looking, accurate, and useful. I believe the TOPGUN stuff isn’t worth worrying about if you are on the fence with this piece. And if someone does say something about, tell them to get a life.
Complaints? The watch is thick, and I have to imagine they could shave some thickness off this somehow. I also wish the strap was rubber lined instead of leather lined so it could get wet without worry. The people at ARTEM, Blancpain, and Grand Seiko have shown this is possible to do with textile straps, and I hope IWC can integrate this onto their textile straps in the future. The price is high as well. There is no doubt that $7,800 is a lot of money.
As of right now, this IWC is my most favorite watch in my small collection. It is also the most compelling and useful watch I have ever owned, and I think it is my all-time favorite watch. This may change, and I am open to that, but for now I really love it and plan on keeping it for life. It offers everything I need in an outdoor watch that isn’t a G-Shock. I believe it would be perfect for anyone who isn’t worried about wearing a big and thick watch. The ceramic case is really well done and can take a beating. It is legible and not flashy. It is conformable to wear. And anyone could walk into a store or log on to the IWC website and buy one today.
I am genuinely interested to see how it holds up over time. I hope to love it even more.
EscapementSV 