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I was lucky enough to get two chances to handle one of these Typsim 200m retro-dive watches. The first was a prototype, which had been handled many times before it got to me. Unfortunately, as a result, it was slightly damaged and the bracelet did not have enough links to fit my 7.5" wrist.
The second one that was a final production model, which had a few improvement tweaks and a bracelet that could fit a proper Canadian Sasquatch. I think I removed a total of 6 links to make it fit, which was not easy. As much as I adore how supple the bracelet is, this suppleness made it extremely difficult to size the twin screw head links. Mind you I managed without scratching anything.
Once on wrist, this one really shines. It just melts on there and it is the perfect size for me. Anyway, I did not get a chance to properly review it, but I did take a bunch of pictures. So here they are for your viewing pleasure.
For more about these super cool watches follow the link below.
Nodus began in 2017 and in its short 6 years of existence they have made quite the splash, pun intended. Also, in this time they have established themselves among the “good guys” within the micro-brand space in our community and rightfully so. Their models range from field / sports watches to full on divers. Earlier this year they released the Sector Deep, which is their version of a hyper-focused tool dive watch. I was smitten the minute I saw it and it was only a matter of time before I got my grubby mitts on one to review. If you are a dive watch fan, as I am, there is a lot to unpack with this one, so suit up and let’s Backward Roll into it.
CASE:
The media-blasted stainless-steel case measures 38mm in diameter and a swelt 13.6mm thick, which is quite reasonable considering it is water-resistant to 500m. The most important and requested measurement these days is the lug to lug and this one is 47mm. The latter should make it easily wearable for most wrists, though the end-links do add a little girth, more on this later.
The case is finely sculpted, with chamfers along the edges on both the top and bottom. This modest detail helps slim it out considerably. Tudor uses this on their Black Bay GMT, with a chamfer on the bottom of the case. If you compare it to the standard non-GMT model, you can immediately see the difference. Nodus’ execution of these chamfers creates a greater illusion than Tudor, especially since the case back sits nestled into the wrist.
Speaking of case back, this one is quite the whopper, which is expected for a dive watch rated to this depth. At its center, there is a nicely engraved quadruple Venn diagram (4 intertwined circles), which represents the 4 styles of watch the collection launched with: Sport, Dive, Field, and Pilot. The entire collection uses the same mid-case and can be adapted to suit a variety of needs by changing dials, bezels, hands, and movements. Surrounding the logo are the watch’s attributes, including the serial number.
The left sided screw-down crown has some of the grippiest knurling I have ever felt. It is fully DLC coated and has a red circular arrow and the word lock on it, to show the user which directly to screw it in. Neat touch, however, when unscrewed the stem feels rather wobbly, but when screwed in it is extremely secure and reassuring. The left side crown is something I have always liked. Especially with one that has this much bite. I prefer it away from the back of my hand and it really works on this model.
The first watch I ever had with a left sided crown was a Citizen Promaster from the mid-90s. I remember purchasing it because it was so different and kept it because it was so comfortable. More watches should be made available this way. In fact, I wish my Titoni Seascoper was left sided, I still have the scar on the back of my hand, and it has been a year since I moved that watch. Left sided crowns are not just for left-handed people. (fight me)
BEZEL, CRYSTAL & DIAL:
The precise 120-click, DLC coated, fully lumed bezel on the Deep is something quite special. I have seen other watches with bezels that overlap the case, but none that do it like this one. It is a full 4mm wider than the case, which means there is a 2mm lip that provides a ton of purchase. Forget dive gloves, you could easily manipulate this one with full-on Arctic exploration mittens! It is also 5mm broad, beveled and features a 12hr scale, along with a traditional dive counter. While I do appreciate the 2 scales, it might get tricky if you are travelling to a different time zone to go diving. Mind you, that would be a cool problem to have.
The flat sapphire crystal measures 31mm in diameter (can you tell I got new calipers?) and sits just below the apex of the bezel. There is blue anti-reflective coating underneath, which provides an incredible view of the dial and at certain angles it disappears completely. There is even a bezel on the edge that creates a reflection of the indices, making them look longer than they really are. Very cool effect.
The deep black dial and hands are very distinct and seem to combine the best elements from a Tudor Pelagos and a Seiko Diver. Like the Pelagos, there is an angled rehaut with cut-outs for the applied square and rectangular markers. The hands are very similar to the ones used by brands like Seiko and Citizen, but not quite. Rarely do you see this style of hands outside of these Japanese companies. The result is quite original and the word “extreme” barely describes its legibility. You could likely read this one from across the room, especially in the dark due to the copious amount of Swiss Super-Luminova® BGW9 Grade A.
The black dial itself just screams dive with me, reminds me of a wet neoprene wetsuit, the effect just screams dive with me. The lack of an abundance of text is also welcome, with the brand name at 12 o’clock, the line name in smaller print beneath it and under the pinion is the model is printed in red, with 500 designating the depth rating beneath that. The color matched date is at 6 o’clock, thus creating perfect visual symmetry. Despite having an affinity for color matched date wheels, I feel that the reverse would have worked, as the large 12 o’clock marker would have offset the white at 6 o’clock. Not that I am complaining.
MOVEMENT:
The movement in the Deep is the Seiko NH35. This movement is
not known to be very accurate, with an out of the box rating of -20 to + 40
seconds per day. However, Nodus regulates every one of them and manages to trim
that down to +/- 10 seconds per day, which is quite an improvement. The loaner
I have on hand, which has travelled all over the place and been fondled by many
a reviewer, is keeping +2 sec per day when worn 24/7 and according to my Accuracy
Meter app, it is keeping -2 sec/day dial up. These figures are remarkable and
far better than I was anticipating.
What this movement lacks in accuracy anecdotes, it sure
makes up in ruggedness. I have known people with watches with this caliber
going decades without service and still running strong. I do not know why more
companies using this movement do not bother regulating them like Nodus does. It
is obviously capable of better performance and its cost is relatively low,
which helps keep the overall price of the watch very reasonable.
Specs are as follows:
Manufacturer: Seiko (Seiko
Instruments Inc. aka SII, Time Module Inc. aka TMI)
Functions: Central hours; central
minutes; central sweeping seconds; date calendar at 3:00 (sometimes other
locations depending on the dial design)
Hacking Seconds: Yes
BRACELET:
The stainless-steel bracelet is completely media-blasted, just like the case. It articulates very well and is sized by one sided screws, which is by far the easiest way to size a bracelet. It is 20mm at the lugs and tapers down to 18mm, jumping back up to 20mm at the clasp. The links are 3mm thick and sized for me, the watch on bracelet weighs 159g. Funny enough, the bracelet alone (again sized for me) weighs 79g, so you can see how well balanced it is.
I was able to easily weigh them separately because the bracelet has quick-release pins built in. Mind you, I could have easily removed the bracelet anyway, as the lugs are drilled through. You can tell the designer had enthusiasts in mind when putting this one together and this watch has strap monster written all over it. On thing I am a little confused about is the end-links. They are solid and female, but the male parts of the bracelet do not fully articulate, therefore making them just like solid male end-links. So, the effective length of the watch jumps from 47 to 50mm, which is not that big a deal, as it wraps very well over the wrist.
The twin-trigger clasp suits the watch very well and has a built-in extension, which ratchets out to 4 positions. Two of them covered by the clasp shell and 2 that extend beyond, which in my opinion does not look too good and seems to have some side-to-side play. Luckily, sized for me, I have the extension system completely pushed in and it fits perfectly on my 7” wrist. The only thing I would change is the curvature of the clasp, it is a little too flat for my liking. I also think there may be something wrong with one of the triggers. It seems to stick when pressed in and easily pops open if the second one is pushed. I believe this may be the result of this piece having passed through so many hands over the last year.
CONCLUSION
I have owned and reviewed many, many contemporary styled dive watches and for 599$ USD, I cannot think of another that packs in as much dive watch goodness. Sure, there are deeper rated ones, there are more dive specific ones, but there is no other that straddles the line between pure diving tool and everyday sports watch better than this Nodus. If you have ever dreamt of a Tudor Pelagos and/or wanted a Seiko Tuna but did not have the funds or the wrist to pull off the latter. This Nodus may just be the watch for you!
Another benefit of attempting to build the Canada Watch
Guild was the connection I made with Adam from Héron Watches, a Montreal based micro-brand.
Seeing as they were local, I did my best
to promote the launch of their first watch on Instagram, the Gladiateur. A somewhat
dressy sports watch with 12-hour bezel embossed with Roman Numerals. It was a very
impressive watch for its price point, but what was even more impressive was
their advert on YouTube:
It is no secret that I am a fan of good advertising and that
video, in my opinion, is a masterclass in good marketing. So, when Adam reached
out a couple of months ago to discuss their next watch, I was quite excited to
get involved. However, how do you top the first one? Would there be a sophomore
slump? Adam went on to list off the specs and I got excited. He then sent me
pic after pic of all variations and then I started to get a little worried.
Then a few weeks ago, he sent me a message and said, “would you
like a week, hands-on with this one?” The minute I pulled it out of its box, my
worries vanished. I still think there are too many color and finish options (21
of them), but most are only offered at the initial launch. I just hope it does
not keep anyone from deciding on the one they want, because if you thought their
first offering was great value, you are in for a real treat!
CASE:
The case for the Marinor is made of 316L stainless steel, measures 39mm in diameter, 47mm from lug to lug and is an impressively slim 12.9mm from the top of the box crystal to the back. It wears extremely svelte on wrist and definitely will not impede any cuffs. The case itself is nearly entirely brushed, except for a delicate chamfer on its edges, which is polished, which is not something you usually see at this price point.
The case back is screwed down and has a very cool engraving of an old-timey sailor. This particularly hits home for me, as my uncle was first mate on a trans-Atlantic grain ship. He would leave for his travels clean shaven, but when he arrived back home with a thick beard. He also wore a hat very similar to the one in the engraving and believe it or not, he smoked a pipe! Funny thing about my uncle is that he hated the food on the ship, so he would drench everything in ketchup. Unfortunately, this spilled over, or rather frustratingly poured over and smacked the bottom into his home life.
operations and despite the watch’s overall slender size, it is water-resistance rated to 300m. I have saved one of its more impressive party tricks for last. All the stainless steel used in this watch is coated and hardened to 1200HV. This is significantly harder than standard steel, which should help keep it looking factory fresh for a very long time.
BEZEL, CRYSTAL & DIAL:
The large, domed sapphire crystal has 3 layers of AR coating on the underside, which helps with glare and gives off those cool blue hues at angles. The 120 slick bezel is also topped with a sapphire crystal and gives off that Blancpain Fifty-Fathoms look. The action is quite clicky and precise, with barely any back play. One thing I do not like is the color of the lume paint on the bezel does not match the aged lume color on the dial and hands. If this bothers you too, fear not, as there are multiple other variants that do not have this issue.
The dials are mostly gradient style, very tasteful, with applied indices all around. I particularly like the north-star marker at twelve, lending itself well to the nautical theme, without being over the top. Despite looking familiar, the hands are quite original and faceted, yet another feature you do not see on watches at this price point. You can tell a lot of attention to detail has been put into this one. It is also evident in the lack of superfluous text on the dial. Just the logo, brand name, model name and 300m. Metric, as it should be from Montreal.
MOVEMENT:
The movement in the Marinor is the Miyota 9039, which is the same as the venerable 9015 sans date feature. I have owned multiple watches with these movements and of all the Japanese movements, the 9 series Miyotas are my favorite. In my experience, they always overachieve, are robust and for some reason, I have found them easier to line up the hands than any other movement. I am unsure why that is, but it definitely is the case.
This movement features 24 jewels, 28,800 beats per hour, 42 hours of power-reserve and it is only 3.9mm thick, which is why the Marinor can achieve its thinness. The specifications from Miyota say that the accuracy standards are -10~+30 sec/day. However, this one kept +3 sec/day the entire time I wore it, which is well within COSC standards.
Way too many people are hung-up over the use of SWISS movements and that is very unfortunate. It does not help that some of them, like the NH series from Seiko and 8 series from Miyota perform very poorly, though they cannot be faulted for toughness. These 9 series can stand toe to toe with anything from ETA or Sellita on performance and help keep the micro-brand prices reasonable.
BRACELET:
Another place where the Marinor shines is the bracelet. Just like the case, the bracelet is made of 316L stainless steel, which is hardened to 1200HV. It tapers from 20mm between the lugs, down to 16mm at the clasp and also features quick release lug pins for easy strap changes. Though I wonder why anyone would want to remove this bracelet. It is very comfortable, easy to size with traditional one-sided screw pins and it features a very nifty micro-adjust system, which is similar to the one Christopher Ward uses.
The flat linked bracelet is fully brushed, though the clasp has polished chamfers on its sides, to mimic the ones on the case. What a wonderful design touch, along with a tasteful Héron logo. The twin triggers engage fully, and it feels very secure when shut. That said, there is a bit of a larger gap than I would have liked between the clasp shell and the bracelet protruding the back. This is a very minor knit I just had to pick, but nothing too egregious.
The overall comfort could not be any better. They have totally nailed the proportions, the tapering and the weight. It is easy to wear, you almost forget it is there, which is rare for a full steel dive watch, never mind one that is water-resistant to 300m.
CONCLUSION:
The terms “great value proposition” and “bang for your buck” are synonymous in the micro-brand watch world, but if there has ever been a better value proposition, I cannot think of one. You get everything I have mentioned above for the retail price of 620$, but wait there’s more! I just sounded like one of those infomercial TV guys, however I am serious! If you get in on the early bird Kickstarter special, you can pick one up for as little as 435$. The next Kickstarter special is 465$, which is still an outstanding value.
So, if you are in the market for a vintage inspired dive watch, with all the goodies of a modern piece, you have to seriously consider the Héron Marinor. And with all of the options available, you should be able to find one that works for you. I just hope the multiple options do not make it too difficult to decide. Mind you, at this price, you can easily get more than one!
To take part of their Kickstarter, follow the link below – all the fun starts on October 24th, 2023.
