Buying Russian..

OREGATO

So for the past few days I've been wearing my Hamilton. (will get pics up later in the other thread soon!)

I've been browsing through these forums quite a bit and see people talking about Vostok watches.. Now, looking at the prices of these, they seem to be great value, I mean, €25 - €75 for an automatic watch that has what I'd call, a bit of character seems like a good idea.

I'm looking at getting one, just cause. It would be good to alternate and compare it to the Hamilton I got last week.

So good people of the watch forum, please give me some recommendations (sub €100) of what Russian watches you would purchase.

I'm thinking that I'll probably just go to Zenitar on eBay and order there.. they seem to have a good reputation there so I guess it's a good idea.

Any tips/hints etc would be great

Thanks in advance.

Wibbs

Peasant, calling Peasant to aisle three. He's the real expert in these O. I agree, they're fantastically good value and there are some nice designs and unique solutions to things like waterproofing.

peasant

If you're only ever going to buy one Vostok watch, my recommendation would be the following:

Amphibian, not Komandirskie ...because the 'fibby is all stainless steel (not brass) and 200 m waterproof (not just 20) and the all-round better watch
...with one exception: The factory bracelet is pure shoyte on all of them so DO factor in a replacment strap/bracelet with your purchase.

Out of the available Amphibian case shapes (see here, top of the page: http://www.meranom.com/amphibian-classic-46) my personal recommendation is the 710 or "ministry" case.
That sits nicely on the wrist, has a balanced width to height ratio and takes 22 mm straps (instead of 18 on all the others) which gives great choice.

The classic round 420 is next choice down. That one rides a bit high on the wrist and looks a bit off on a 18 mm strap. A notched 20 mm strap makes it look better.

The 060 case I personally just don't like and the 960 or "Neptune" needs to be avoided really because of its non-standard lugs that make it difficult to get different straps for it (pity ...because it has some of the nicest dials)


As for dials ...some are nice, some are so-so, some are just downright horrid. Also not every dial is always available and certainly not in every case.

But for your only ever Vostok there is only one choice IMO ...the classic blue "Scuba Dude". It's a classic design that has been around for 30 or so years, the dial is a lovely shade of blue that changes with the light and the indices are nice and shiny, but simple.
So basically, what I'd recommend you'd buy is this:




PS: HERE 's the Dude in the round case, on 20 mm notched rubber

OREGATO

Peasant, thank you for the information! I'm taking a look now.

I have a feeling that this won't be my only Vostok, so I'm probably going to start off with a cheap one to test the waters and see if I upgrade in the future.

As for purchasing one, I'm taking a look here: http://stores.ebay.com/zenitar-store

He comes highly recommended from some websites so I'm hoping that this will be an easy and quick purchase.

I also want to get a clear back, I'm fascinated by the movements and like to see them moving around (is this sad??) Do these watches come with the clear backs or can I get them after?

As for the actual watches, I'm interested in these:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/RUSSIAN-VOSTOK-AUTO-AMPHIBIAN-WATCH-10059bs-NEW-/190663971617?pt=Wristwatches&hash=item2c64755321#ht_2941wt_1302

And this one..

http://www.ebay.com/itm/RUSSIAN-VOSTOK-AUTO-AMPHIBIAN-WATCH-0115b-NEW-/120677338618?pt=Wristwatches&hash=item1c18ee0dfa#ht_2941wt_1302

And this one..

http://www.ebay.com/itm/VOSTOK-RUSSIAN-AUTO-AMPHIBIAN-DIVER-WATCH-0640f-NEW-/120788286419?pt=Wristwatches&hash=item1c1f8afbd3#ht_2057wt_1302

And this one too!!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/RUSSIAN-MILITARY-VOSTOK-KOMANDIRSKIE-WATCH-0433-NEW-/120698205459?pt=Wristwatches&hash=item1c1a2c7513#ht_2044wt_1302

Decisions decisions! Please help me pick!

peasant

OREGATO wrote: »

Decisions decisions! Please help me pick!

No way, Jose ...you have to dig your own little hole (where you sink your money into) :D:D

The first three are fine examples of Amphibias ...just a matter of personal taste which one to pick.

The last one is the cheaper brother, the Komandirskie (chrome plated brass, thinner acrylic crystal, water resistant but no rating)

Glass backs unfortunately are not available for either of them ex factory.

I have seen some modified backs with glass on ebay every now and then ...couldn't comment though if they are any good. (They'd certainly mess with the design and negate the water resistance rating)

Deep Thought

Hi Peasant

Where is the best place to buy Diver Dude

DT

peasant

As OREGATO says, Zenitar (on the bay) is a good seller.

I can also recommend the official factore re-seller meranom http://www.meranom.com/

And these guys aren't bad either:
http://stores.ebay.ie/chistopolcity-store?_rdc=1
http://stores.ebay.ie/Leon-photocameras-watches?_rdc=1

All of the above ship from Russia, postage can take up to 3 weeks. Theoretically you could also get cought by customs ...hasn't happened to me yet.

Sellers from within the EU (that bit dearer)
http://www.m-watches.com/catalog/
http://www.vostok-watches.com/

Deep Thought

Hi Peasant

Bought one of the diver dudes

Meranom have an ebay store so got it there

€60.44 delivered...not bad for an automatic

peasant

good choice ...careful though ...they are addictive

OREGATO

Bit the bullet last night

Thanks for the help Peasant.

I'll post up pics when it arrives.

peasant

When you (finally) get it, don't forget that the crown operation is a little bit different than on other watches.

The crown screws over the stem (not into the case like on most other watches) and the seal sits inside at the top end of the crown, It is therefore very important to always screw down the crown completely (before exposing it to water)

When you unscrew the crown, it feels a bit wobbly. That is perfectly normal.
Once unscrewed, you can wind the watch like you would any other watch (once you get over the wobbly feel).

Pull it out another bit and this is where you set the time and date, there is no third pull-out stage, so don't pull too hard.

There is no quick date set function by pulling on the crown ...you have to move the hands over 12/24 to move the date forward.
Once the date has jumped forward you can "quick set" the date by turning the hands backwards (!) to 8 and then forward over 12 again until the date goes foward again and then repeat the process until you reach the desired date. (rather than going forward for the full 24 hours)

Turning the watch backwards will do no harm, in fact this is what Vostok recommend in their instructions. I would however recommend not to do the date quickset once the watch is fully wound as it is a bit painful to watch the second hand trying to struggle forward while the other hands are moving backwards

(if you have to move forward for almost a full month, I usually set the last two days or so by going forward only ...Imo that sort of unstresses the mechanism after having been forced backwards ...but I could just be imagining that)

Another point to note is that you can not push the crown back from the time set stage to the winding stage. You have to screw it down fully to settle back and then unscrew it again to wind it.

blindsider

peasant wrote: »

As OREGATO says, Zenitar (on the bay) is a good seller.

I can also recommend the official factore re-seller meranom http://www.meranom.com/

And these guys aren't bad either:
http://stores.ebay.ie/chistopolcity-store?_rdc=1
http://stores.ebay.ie/Leon-photocameras-watches?_rdc=1

All of the above ship from Russia, postage can take up to 3 weeks. Theoretically you could also get cought by customs ...hasn't happened to me yet.

Sellers from within the EU (that bit dearer)
http://www.m-watches.com/catalog/
http://www.vostok-watches.com/

In Leon's Photocamera store, there is an image on the top of the page, beside his name. Nice looking Pilot/chrono (?) any idea what it is?

peasant

That's a Maktime chronograph.
Maktime is on of the follow-up companies that came out of the bankruptcy of Poljot. They mostly made movements but also dabbled in a few watches. The one pictured is one of their better attempts. Not many of them come up for sale.

Maktime has stopped making movements this year and I think the company as such is also gone.

Deep Thought

hey...

Whats the lug width on the diver dude?

As you said the strap is bad..am looking at getting a NATO

peasant

22 mm