Reply With QuoteI'd be surprised if there is such a thing as steel carbide.Originally Posted by Daddelvirks
And why a fireman diver?
The second one (Fireman NECC) has a steel carbide case, maybe someone can enlighten about the qualities of this material.
The first is the new skindiver.
Not bad efforts I'd say.
Daddel.
Got a new watch, divers watch it is, had to drown the bastard to get it!
I'd be surprised if there is such a thing as steel carbide.
And why a fireman diver?
Diver looks ok to me, 43mm is big but not ott.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1sR7E8cBEY
My question is this: Do they have signed crowns?
A moronic question.
Carbide...
Carbides are particles (actually areas/zones of particles) that exist within steels (especially hardened steels). I suspect they mean they case is made from hardened steel.
But I would easily stand corrected.
Two good looking watches and they will be well built as always. It goes nicely with another favourite of mine in their current range, the Magneto S.
That would be a good thing.
Ceramic bezel, hardened case, and who knows, even a signed crown...............
Daddel.
Got a new watch, divers watch it is, had to drown the bastard to get it!
Both nice, but if I could only have one it would be the second one.
It is good for avoiding scratches but it does tend to make things brittle so cracks might be the order of the day.That would be a good thing.
Ceramic bezel, hardened case, and who knows, even a signed crown...............
Daddel.
That coming from you of all people! That just proves you are trolling me. I remember clearly that you attach great importance to whether or not a watch has a signed crown. Suddenly you don't care, just because I happened to be the one who asked the question? Pathetic.
Nope, Dia-Shield or Tegiment, never had a crack anywhere, and my watches are used everywhere.
Daddel.
Got a new watch, divers watch it is, had to drown the bastard to get it!
There is a fundamental difference between a surface treatment and hardened steel.
The former is resistant to scratches where those would appear but it has no effect on the case itself.
The latter makes the case hard and stiff throughout. How much of a problem that is remains to be seen and it sure goes well with the brand name!
Blah blah. You are the problem.
I can't ask whether the crown is signed or not without being a "problem"?
Let's just say that there will be very few watches out there costing more than £1k that will not have a signed crown in some shape or form, that from take what you will.
Last edited by Captainhowdy; 23rd March 2015 at 20:48.
Niiice. The 1st one would get my vote.
never much of a fan of Ball watches but the new Volcano (jokes about balls erupting aside) looks pretty interesting with the Mumetal case. like the skindiver but the 4:30 date doesn't work for me and the 2nd one looks very busy, I think its the concentric centre butting against the radiating outer. the one that did grab my attention was the Ball Engineer Hydrocarbon AeroGMT (catchy) good looking watch and rather well executed to my mind.
Last edited by deerworrier; 23rd March 2015 at 00:45.
Ball has always struck me as a brand with a bit of an image problem. 'American' and 'trains' only goes so far (far be it from me to question the marketing caché of US horology) and some of their diver models are quite nice but the bulk of the range just feels a bit 'meh' to me. Am I being a bit unfair?
SGR
SGR,
They definitely are a bit marmite.
Sure their claim to fame is the train watches
But their range goes far beyond that.
Easy to make fun of the name but in singular the word 'Ball' to me seems neither that strange nor does it evoke visions of testicles.
When someone mentions the word Ball, first thing it makes me think of is Sports. The word
Balls is a totally different matter. Personally jokes on its name are unfunny and a bit lame,IMO
It's diver watches have two issues- not everyone likes the T tubes and the crown guard which may not be everyone's cuppa.
I don't mind either. Their cases are fantastically finished and quality in my experience is top notch. After owning several
Ball watches ( and not Balls ) , only criticism is the bezel on the Deep Quest turns a bit too easily. The Skin Diver IMO is a fantastic reissue. Their Trieste chronograph ( bit hard to find one these days ) is another fine watch.
In fairness, I haven't owned one so it's easy to be pass-remarkable with no first-hand-experience. I'm sure the quality is good but I'm guessing the innards are ETA rather than in-house?
As far as the name is concerned, it doesn't bother me and I didn't make a joke about it - I've always assumed (correctly or otherwise) that there was a Mr. Ball and that's the origin.
SGR
Yes, the innards are ETA. Nothing special there.
I quite like the first one but for me the counterbalance on the seconds hand spoils the dial and makes it look messy.
Yes, it looks out of place.
Just like most of your remarks.
Daddel.
Got a new watch, divers watch it is, had to drown the bastard to get it!
Perhaps they are pandering to the Chinese market.
Yes, that particular part of Asia is known to have a passion for unbalanced second hands.
Had you said 'panda-ing' it could have been funny. But you didn't, because you aren't.
Oh, and I quite fancy a Ball with the trit tubes. Useful for when I'm working away and get woken up in the middle of the night.
I spent ages staring at the old lume on a watch recently only to wake up enough to realise I didn't care what time it was, it was still dark.
I fancy another one, it's been around two years since my last one. I've found the designs over the last while a little uninspiring and there's little touches they could make here and there that would a difference. Saying that I will look at the new Skin diver when my AD gets it and I do like the new BMW sports watch, even though I don't care for the BMW logo.
I sold my skindiver about a year ago when I decided that watches were a waste of time. It was a stupid idea and a stupid move. The build quality is brilliant and the tritium is so useful that I now really miss it on my other watches. The movements are unrefined ETA, bit mine ran to +2 secs a day so I can't complain.
Steve
Wonderful...
Last edited by GrandS; 23rd March 2015 at 21:08.
Thankfully you appear to be running out of things to say. Since you turned up on this fine forum you have contributed precisely nothing and are now the forum equivalent of a bad case of thrush.
Wonderful..
At least with the new Skindiver they've got rid of that ridiculous extra Day/Date window:
I like it. The crown looks more 'technical', signed or unsigned. And they've got rid of the SM300 retro bezel. The new dial has a touch of the Pelagos about it. It looks like a more rounded modern watch.
Does anyone know how much Ball are asking for this? I imagine with a chronometer movement it'll be £1500+
Not bad - like the strap on the first one
Na AD's in the Netherlands I'm afraid, but I'll wait for real life pics of the Fireman NECC, and some info on the case material.
Daddel.
Got a new watch, divers watch it is, had to drown the bastard to get it!
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