Okean 3133 "Not Quite" the Final Edition

Saw this beauty in a store here in Moscow about a month back and "report from the scene of the disturbance".

It is in fact a new version of the Okean (Okeah) 3133 Final Edition chronograph watch and I think it will confuse matters even further. Slightly.

To understand, I recommend consulting my two previous entries on the subject on this blog.

• Okean Final Edition 3133 from my collection; and

• List of Okean Final Edition  owners

Looking at the face you can see it differs both from both the original and the previous known duplicate version (such as mine - which are identical in everything but the box and paperwork):

• different stopwatch hand - barbed or winged like on Shturmanskies;
• different small register hands;
• different hour and minute hands with different lume - white -- also. 

The rest seems as before.

 Compare with my watch (duplicate):

 However when you see the back...

...you realize that the back is identical to the final edition, also the same strap.

Here's mine again for comparison.

There are two possible explanations. 

One is that it is a duplicate edition, or second run, watch but with those differences in front because either (i) Volmax has run out of original Final Edition parts; or (ii) has started using different hands etc. to differentiate from the Final Edition after much criticism. The other explanation is that it is something from the third run of watches (triplicates).

I feel the former is closer to the truth, as I was warned in the store that, if I wanted to buy it, I should do it now as they were running out of them. And in the store itself there was, like, only one this watch, I think.

More photos after the jump.

Photo Gallery: Antique Watch Movements

A website with pictures of antique watch movements

Photo Gallery: Antique Watch Movements

Some handwind movements, automatic movements, chronograph movements, pocket watch movements, etc.

I am adding a link to it in my links collection on the sidebar.

First New Raketa Automatic Bought!

 Not by me though.

A forumer on WRU (watch.ru Russian watch forum) has just bought one of the first Raketas Automatique -- Raketa Avtomat. Could even be a pre-production piece?

Here is the link to the forum post [in Russian], registration may be required to view pictures (not sure about this).

Picture courtesy DenisDevyatkin

I think the movement is the new Raketa 2615 movement, decorated

Russ/Russian Watches: Early Volna Precision Cal;2809 [Illustrated Dial].

Russ/Russian Watches: Early Volna Precision Cal;2809 [Illustrated Dial].

Nice Volna! 

BBC - Capital - Is that watch on your dresser valuable?

Britain's government-run official (biased) news and entertainment provider, the BBC, on watch collecting.

BBC - Capital - Is that watch on your dresser valuable?

Some pearls of wisdom:

Eric Fleming, a residential real estate broker in New York City, got turned on to watch-collecting six years ago when a client gave him some timeless advice. The client, who worked for jeweler Harry Winston, told Fleming he would never be able to sell a $4m apartment wearing a cheap watch.

Fleming, who was wearing a $400 Tissot sports watch back then, listened — and then some. The 37-year-old has since amassed a collection of 11 watches, ranging from a $250 Luminox sports watch to an $11,000 Rolex Yacht-Master Platinum. 

On the history of watch collecting

Vintage watch-collecting — which began in earnest in the 1980’s in Italy and Germany — is now a global phenomenon, 

I have a feeling that it started much earlier than that.

This is more or less true:

You don’t have to be a jet-setter to buy a watch worth collecting. Watch enthusiasts can go to a neighborhood flea market or local dealer to scoop up an early Swatch that is now highly collectible, such as limited-edition models designed by artists like Keith Haring, which can go for as much as $1,000 at auction. Other reasonably-priced models to look for are mechanical Omega and Heuer watches from the 1960s and 1970s. They could be purchased for as little as $200 only five years ago, and now go for $2,000 on eBay.

Yes, prices have gone up across the board. 

So called “complicated” watches, or those that display more than hours and minutes, are among the most collectible. That is because collectors, who are predominantly male and often in their mid-20s to 40s, are drawn to the watch’s mechanism. “It’s similar to car collecting, there’s a strong technical appeal, with over 400 parts put into something the size of a postage stamp,” said Joe Thompson, editor-in-chief of WatchTime, a US-based watch enthusiasts’ magazine. “Guys find it fascinating to know what’s going on under the hood.”

Business tips

For those who simply want to invest in the trend, there is a watch fund, Precious Time, which buys the best vintage watches, in the rarest configurations, from top brands such as Patek Philippe, Rolex, Audemars Piguet, Cartier and Breguet. The fund — started by a Milan-based collector, Alfredo Paramico, who has amassed what some experts consider one of the finest collections in the world — holds the watches, then sells them at an appropriate time to collectors for a profit.

Then it goes into some really expensive (and overpriced) stuff.

 

Another Russian Dashcam Video :)

Another Russian dashcam video? Watch to the end...

TechHive: How Casio Torture-Tests its Watches

How Casio Torture-Tests its G-Shocks

TechHive on Casio's testing methods.

British Pathé: 85,000 Archived Newsreels Online

British Pathé has put some 85,000 archived newsreels online.

British Pathé on youtube.

The archive is searchable.

For example, I found some videos on Russia's Moskvich 408 car, no sound.

And another one -- Russian cars - Moskvich 402 x 2 and then Volga GAZ 21, I think, no sound though

Even some on watches and clocks, though not many

WUS Thread: New LUCH Ice Hockey Worlds Watch

New stainless steel LUCH watch first photos!!!

New LUCH watch to mark (unofficially) the upcoming Ice Hockey Worlds 2014 in Belarus.

Case: stainless steel and chrome-plated brass versions. 

Movement: Miyota 8205 (?)

Pictures Nikolaevich

Montre du Jour April 21, 2014

Here is meine Armbanduhr des Tages heute - my watch of the day today the twenty-first day of the month of April in the year 2014.

Poljot President 2940

It's sunny in Moscow today (or was as of this writing) and + 23 Celsius but feels a lot hotter -- especially in the car.

It is an automatic chronograph (self-winding) powered by the Chinese ST1940 (TY2940) movement with roots going all the way to the famed Venus 175.

You can read more about this movement here -- Chinese ST19xx chronos.

My blog entry on the Poljot-President 2940 is here (link).

DF: Pocket Watches are Fun Collectibles

An article on pocket watches by Dr. Lori.

Let's face it: articles (or posts) on pocket watches are rare these days that's why I am sharing it.

Daily Freeman - Dr. Lori: Pocket watches are fun collectibles

Also there is some useful information in the article.

On the history of pocket watches -- they are much older than wristwatches:

Pocket watches were introduced prior to the introduction of the wrist watch. The wrist watch was a World War I era invention (circa 1914) used to aid soldiers on the front lines. Pocket watches were widespread in the 1800s and continue to be of interest today. 

Tips

If your pocket watch does not open easily, don’t force it open. Use a piece of dental floss to pry your pocket watch open or ask a professional jeweler to open your pocket watch for you. Never use a pocket knife or other sharp instrument to open your pocket watch.

Pocket watches should be cleaned regularly. The internal mechanism which is made up of various gears of your pocket watch require regular maintenance by a professional. If the gears get gummy or dirty, then the watch will not tell time accurately.

Don’t overwind your pocket watch. Be gentle. 

Using dental floss to open watches seems like a good idea. I am definitely going to give it a try. I think it should work on snap-on backs.

The number of jewels debate:

The number of jewels refers to the accuracy of the mechanism and the more accurate the watch, the more valuable it is. The greater the number of jewels in your watch (the number of jewels is typically marked on the watch), the more accurate your watch. 

 I have quite a few pocket watches myself (though they are likely not ones Dr. Lori had in mind).

Mine are Molnijas. 

Vanity Fair: Five Best Watches from Baselworld

Vanity Fair: Photos: The Five Best Watches From Basel World


With photos.

Shinola, Rolex Cellini, Hublot, etc.

WUS: Vostok Komandirskie Instruction Leaflet

Vostok Komandirskie Instruction Leaflet



A WUS forum thread.. what it says in the title... a Vostok Komandirskie instruction booklet in English, dating from the late 1980s, I think.

Seen on ebay: Amphibia Vostok

Found on ebay.com -- this Amphibia(n) Vostok wristwatch apparently commemorating the pull out of the limited contingent of Soviet troops from the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (DRA) in 1989. Seller's pictures.

Bracelet with a clasp doubling as a tag or something.

I think it is rare.. whether or not it is original is another matter though.
Here.

Watchismo Times: A Bumper Crop of New Ingersoll Watches Have Arrived

Watchismo Times: A Bumper Crop of New Ingersoll Watches Have Arrived

Koutouzoff's soviet watches: A rare 31659 added...

Koutouzoff's soviet watches: A rare 31659 added...: Here is a relatively rare variant of the 31659: grey and grey dial, military issued stamped mechanism, but above all: green lume and black h...

WatchPro: Vostok-Europe Brings Extreme Watches to UK and Russian Airforce Watches Fly Towards UK

WatchPro says Vostok Europe to bring extreme watches to the UK (link).

It says that Vostok Europe is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, and that the Russian-themed watches brand plans to celebrate with an aggressive expansion into Western Europe.

According to WatchPro, Vostok Europe describes itself as an extreme watch brand for extreme customers.

Its timepieces have been worn by the world’s greatest free diver and several national rally champions. In 2012 the company’s N1 Rocket Tritium watches were tested on a two week expedition into the 2km deep Krubera-Voronia cave, the deepest cave in the world.

The article claims Vostok Europe makes its own movements in a factory in Russia, and also offers Japanese-made Seiko units in some of its newer models, including its 10th Anniversary Expedition watches.

The part about a factory in Russia is not quite correct. Vostok-Europe has no factory in Russia but continues to use movements made by the other Vostok - Chistopol Watch Factory.

Other watches in Vostok Europe’s 2014 line up, all given names drawn from Russia’s rich history, include Lunokhod 2 (a 1973 unmanned lunar rover), Rocket N-1 (the rocket that launched soviet astronauts into space); Mriya (a large Russian cargo plane), and GAZ – 14 (the official limousine of Soviet leaders in the 1970s and 80s)

Vostok Europe has been active in the UK market for a year, working with its agent Kevin Reynolds of Arbro Limited. The brand has already featured in a trial on a TV shopping channel, but Alekniene admits that the company is in the very early stages of establishing itself and wants to push forward this year.

WatchPro also says Russian Airforce watches are flying towards the UK(link).

Turns out by "Russian Airforce" watches it means Nesterov which it calls the favored watch brand of the Russian Airforce.

It says Nesterov was at Baselworld, alongside RFS watches, both of which are owned by a large Russian retail group.

Nesterov produces around 20,000 watches per year, while it's more fashion-led stablemate, RFS, has an output of 50,000 pieces.

The company hopes Basel will give it a springboard into Western Europe, including the UK, WatchPro was told. Nesterov is already at an advanced stage with plans to go on sale in Italy this year. 

The country will join the USA and Japan, which already have Nesterov distributors.

Luch 2609 Wristwatch

Mechanical wristwatch LUCH (read: Looch) 2609, made by Minsk Watch Factory in 2001.

Bluish-greenish face.

 

And

 

Hands with what appears to be a Luch emblem also looks somewhat like Mercedes' three-legged "star".

 

 

 

 

Back and a strap which says Eurotex and Genuine leather which may be true.

129

 Here it is Luch' own 2609 caliber movement, marked: BY 2609 and the Luch emblem. 

 

It is a rare (-ish) movement as it went into production late and wasn't produced for a long time. It was subsequently replaced by the Chinese standard movement (2650) for some time, which incidentally was also designated 2609. And now the Luch factory has no 26 mm caliber movement in its watches, the only mechanical caliber it still has is the small cal. 1801. 

Molnija Virgo the Maiden Pocket Watch

My Zodiac Signs-themed pocket watch -- a Molnija (read: MOL-nee-yah) with Virgo the Maiden on the dial.

There was a whole series -- 12 pocket watches but this is the only one I have.

Looks like the dial was tastefully hand-painted.

 

Was somebody doing a bit of nude modelling at the factory?

This watch is early 2000s. It is powered by a Molnija 3602 mechanical movement -- a large pocket watch movement 36 mm in diameter. I opened the back (which opens and closes without problem) and looked at the movement though made no photos this time. However the movement is a later 2000 version movement -- all yellow, minimal markings, reduced jewels, simplifications -- in fact exactly like the movement on this my Molnija pocket watch that I did a post earlier on (link). 

G-Shocks Website

A large website on G-Shocks -- g-shock.jp -- looks like an official Casio website.

Lots of data, pictures, links, functions, models, series, everything  

Home page of g-shock.jp (link).

You can select your region in the lower right corner, including, say, Europe in English, but you can also stay on the Japanese website which has a lot more information while all models and navigation buttons are still in English so no problem navigating the site. 

Products page, including new models, model search, etc. (link)

G-Shock catalogs - downloadable G-Shock catalogs (link)

G-Shock Perfect Search - a power search engine for all models in all series.

And also other information for G-Shock lovers.

Pita Greek @ McDonald's

My restaurants.

Today in our restaurant (maybe it was yesterday... or even farther back than that) is this Pita Greek (Greek Pita?) sandwich taken from something that is known as McAvto here in Moscow, Russia.

Above photo borrowed from the Russian McDonald's site.

Below are my photos.

It says something like "snacks and refreshments" or literally "to snack and refresh (oneself)".

"Awaken your taste".

 

"Small pleasures" - they really look small.

Okean 3133 Final Edition

My chronograph Okean Final Edition by Volmax using the cal. Poljot / MakTime 3133.

I mentioned it in a previous post on this blog where you can also read a bit on the history of this watch.

 Okean 3133 Final Edition and The Serpents Coil by Farley Mowat (Ballantine Books first edition I believe).

The watch is a chronograph using the Poljot (/MakTime) 3133 movement. It has a center stopwatch hand, a small seconds hand at 9 o'clock and a 30-minute counter at 3 o'clock and also a date at 6 o'clock. 

The power reserve is very good almost up to 70 hours on full winding. And it is very pleasant and easy to wind even if the winding crown is not very grippy (maybe it's a defense against overwinding).

Number 020/300

As I said it is not the HdR forum original but a "duplicate" by Volmax. But it is exactly the same, there is not telling it is not one of them. The only difference is it doesn't have the HdR edition box and paperwork.

Sorry for the smudge 

Issues:

It was not completely trouble-free however. It has what may be a common problem with (somewhat ill-adjusted) 3133s -- the stopwatch hand sometimes refuses to zero properly at first try. I use a one-minute method -- start the stopwatch again, let the stopwatch hand go a full circle then stop and zero again. Usually it zeros correctly on the second try. I know there are specific solutions to these problems which involve some adjusting and/or oiling certain parts. However I will not even open most of my watches and I certainly won't attempt to adjust a 3133 movement. While going to the watchmaker is impractical (and likely expensive). This problem may have gone away though. I don't even remember when I last observed it. 

I have had this chronograph since October 2012. Other than the above issue everything is okay. Not very well adjusted at the factory (or may be it's the fact that it spends most of its time lying on its back rather than being worn on wrist -- too many watches), it goes at + 20 something seconds per 24 hours... which is still within the movement specs though. 

 Make the jump to see some more pictures below.

On wrist

Okean 3133 and a sailor's jersey 

 The Serpent's Coil by Farley Mowat

Video

ETA: February 28, 2019

BBC News - A Watch for Blind People

A BBC website item on watches for the blind that sighted people are also buying apparently (link).

It is mainly about a wristwatch called The Bradley Timepiece.

But other watches for the blind are also mentioned.

Watches for blind (or partially sighted) people are of different types utilizing different principles to allow blind people to tell the time:

• Talking electronic watches
• Tactile watches -- both with hands that look more like regular watches with flipping glass crystals allowing people to feel the hands and the watch face which has raised hour markers and without hands like said Bradley Watch which uses a metal ball -- nothing particularly new though.
• Other.

Hooniverse Post on Lada 2107

Hoonobituary: The Classic Lada 2107 Riva. 

The post (linked to above) is from some two years ago that I came across just now.

The link is worth clicking only to look at some attached pics of the Lada 2107.

The written commentary is frankly all predictable and cliched rubbish most likely produced by someone who has never driven one, let alone actually owned one, though it is understandable.

But I did drive it. In fact I learned to drive in it.

For a long time it was top of my car wish list. In fact, it remains there.

Unfortunately it's now two years since it went out of production.

Yes, it was the world's last compact and affordable rear wheel drive classic sedan.

Raketa Basel World Expo 2014 Presentation

A catalog/presentation by the Raketa Factory, Petrozavodsk, Russia, at Baselworld 2014.

Raketa was not an exhibitor at BaselWorld 2014. But they did make this presentation.

RAKETA BASELWORLD 2014 (link) -- at the Raketa site. In the public domain.

Contents

• Raketa's stars in Basel Marina Krylova and Yevgenia Maleva.

• New models: Raketa Avtomat (an automatic Raketa), Raketa Amphibia (a diver's Raketa), Raketa Zvezda (Star), and new Pobeda re-issues by Raketa.

• New movements: Raketa Avtomat, Raketa 2609 with some decoration, I expect (and hope) this movement will be in the new Pobedas, Raketa 2623.

Choosing a G-Shock

An excellent and very useful WUS forum thread on choosing G-Shocks, especially for first-time buyers or collectors wishing to expand into Casio G-Shock collecting -- START HERE -- Choosing your G-Shock (link).

Lots of useful information:

Explanation of lettered prefixes - the most important, such as: DW, GW, G, as well as all the others. 

Classification by series: 2300, 5000 (5600), 6900, 7000, 8900 and

Master of G

And the discontinued Masters of G.

Very handy... for me too as I am thinking of buying my first G-Shock, I need to have at least one. at the moment leaning to something out of the 30th anniversary edition.

New Pobedas by Raketa (pictures)

As was reported earlier - elsewhere and on this blog too, the Raketa factory, Petrodvorets, Russia, decided to re-launch the old USSR's famous Pobeda watch.

Recently first photos appeared on watch forums (borrowed pics). 

Pobeda Red Twelve, Pobeda Crimea (too soon?), Pobeda Victory Day.

 

Pobeda Crimea

The look: not as bad as it might have been. The question of the price remains as the original Pobeda was one of (if not the) the cheapest watches in the USSR and then Russia. And also the fact that there is no small seconds hand at 6 o'clock is almost... almost a fail which is only redeemed to a degree by the fact that there were original Pobedas with the central seconds hand using so-called tall movement. So its design is not entirely out of keeping with tradition... Unless, of course, these are going to be quartz watches -- that will certainly do it... The best one can hope for is that they are going to be using Raketa's 2609 movements (which are of the same size as Pobeda's 2602). 

 

The new poster. Says "Crimea 1944-2014 - 70 Years Without Fascism". No more no less.

Gérard Depardieu Launches Exclusive Watches

Gérard Depardieu launched recently a collection of exclusive watches, Proud to be Russian. He is.

He may have been undone a little by the timing... in light of recent events, but it is hardly his fault.  

The watch features the crest of Russia - a double-headed eagle made of pure gold. Three varieties are said to be offered -- chronograph, tourbillon and an automatic.

The watches will be made by Cvstos of Switzerland which has this photo on its Facebook page.

No word on the price yet.

Cvstos website (link), Dep's watches are not there (yet).

I also have in my collection a couple of watches with the double-headed bird Slava 2428 and Poljot President 2940.