My wrist is on the smaller size, about 7-1/4 in. At around 200 grams, the Ocean Star with link bracelet is just not my weight range preference, so while it is quite nicely done for the price, I knew I would be wearing it on a black HNS Double Thick Ballistic Nylon strap, taking it down to about 96 grams total, and allowing quick adjustment to accommodate wrist swelling during the day if necessary. For those who prefer the bracelet, you will find this one very satisfactory, w/solid end links, a heavy deployant clasp with mico-adjusts and smooth easy to remove & replace friction pins. The links narrow to 20mm at the clasp, giving it a nice trim appearance. For the price VERY nice, but again, just too heavy for my preference.
LIKES:
1. Bezel - Nice black matte finish, not too shiny, crisp numerals printed on, I assume, an aluminum insert. Lumed convex Pip insert at 60 on early version has been replaced by a lumed inset triangle with the lume now flush with the bezel surface. Big improvement over a Pip IMO assuming the lume holds up w/o getting scratched. Bezel motion tight & snappy enough, though might be difficult to grasp with gloves if actually used for diving. 120 click would have been nicer than the 60, but not a big deal. As well protected as is possible with a slightly beveled positioning, adjacent to a beveled cystal edge raised maybe 1/2 mm over it, giving decent scratch protection on both edges.
2. Crystal - What can you say - Sapphire is the gold standard, unless you maybe dive for a living. For desk-divers, it's the way to go for avoiding those awful scratches mineral crystals can get. The Cyclops window over the date at 3 o’clock is, I know, the subject of wide disagreement in the watch community - all I can say is it's nicely done, and for me, whose eyes have got some miles on them, it's working beautifully. Crystal is flat, not domed at all.
3. Face - My Black face model is just the right matte finish to appear dark, and not shiny. Not quite as deep black as my Orient Mako, but still deep enough. It provides the perfect background for the crisp, raised chrome hour markers, chrome date window frame, integrated chapter ring markings (to 1/5 second - very cool), and somewhat understated (& therefore businesslike) greyish-white logo, model & depth rating printing. The hand-set choice is one of my favorites - a modified sword shape with narrow tip pointers. Hour & Minute are beveled polished chrome to match the hour markers, and lume-filled. Second hand is counter-weighted with an double arrowhead shape, and has a red, lume-filled tip that reaches the full depth of the chapter ring markings right to the edge of the face (Minute hand pointer just touches the inner edge of the full second markings - very nice). As the Hour hand reaches the date window, only the narrow pointer reaches across the numerals, and does not block the date from being read. Nice. The simple, precision-crafted dimensional gold star applied below the handset and above the Ocean Star script logo is a marvel of detail that adds immensely to the classiness of this watch, IMO.
4. Case - Everyone has a favorite case size, I suppose, and I find the Ocean Star's Stainless Steel 44mm spot-on for me, especially since the screw-down back is a nearly full circumference, flat design. With no domed bulge it rides perfectly on my wrist, and the 50mm Lug-To-Lug measurement works well, without an overhang. The 13mm thickness is also well within my sweet spot range of 13-15mm. I was a bit worried about the brushed SS sides looking too heavily done - I needn't have - the brushing is a very fine, almost warm looking finish, which is set off beautifully by the precisely polished lug shoulders and tips, and the crown guard top surfaces. The case back is also nicely polished, with the embossed and enamel-filled Ocean Star logo & script featured inside a sand-blasted circular band on the screw-down back.
5. Crown - The Ocean Star's crown is a signed, heavily knurled, polished screw-down version, approx. 7mm in diameter, situated between two built-in case-molded crown guards. It is easy to grasp and turn, and here is one of my unexpected surprises - it has the most buttery-smooth crown action I've ever had in a watch (though I've obviously not owned any >$1000 models). What a pleasure to find I didn't have to try engaging the threads 3-4 times to get a correct match-up. Time and date changes are smooth and precise.
6. Movement - I was not familiar with either the Sea-Gull brand or in-house movements before buying this watch. I have to say that, so far, I'm impressed. It has a high-beat 28,800 BPH action that makes the second hand motion very smooth, comparable to other similarly rated Japanese movements I've seen. I timed it out of the box after hand winding using the Kello App, and it was running +4-6 seconds per day. It is still there after two weeks of normal wear, so I am thrilled - exactly where I would want it to be.
OPPORTUNITIES:
1. Lume - If I could wave my magic wand, I'd give the Ocean Star about 30% more lume, and fill the hour markers and hands with the same lume material (they are a slightly different color lume). The lume is acceptable (easily readable at night, with lume lasting at least 8 hours), but not that Wow factor Lumaholics crave.
2. Bracelet - I might actually use the bracelet occasionally if it had a well-made ratcheting diver's extension clasp. Something for Sea-Gull to think about.
3. Bezel - if a Sapphire, Lumed Bezel had been available for this model, I would have found the extra money for it. That would be an amazing feature set, and I'll bet I'm not the only watch nut to be thinking that. And as I said above, a 120 click bezel would be a nice to have feature
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