Pilots watch?

F

farminpilot

Filing Flight Plan
Joined
Oct 24, 2014
Messages
11
Display Name
Display name:
Willie
So right now I have a digital watch from walmart that works well. but it isn't what I would call pleasing to the eyes. I am looking for a watch that does the job of telling the time without having 15 different dials on the face, something simple. It needs to look good enough to be worn in any situation. But here is the kicker I am not looking to spend $500 on a watch. So quality but cheap (if such a thing exists). Let the suggestions begin.
 
Until I started going crazy on watches I loved my G shock as well. Atomic and solar. It was always dead nuts on time and it hasn't died in 4+ years. 260 bucks when I bought it. Now I wear a Bell and Ross or a Breitling.
 
NJP_MAN said:
Until I started going crazy on watches I loved my G shock as well. Atomic and solar. It was always dead nuts on time and it hasn't died in 4+ years. 260 bucks when I bought it. Now I wear a Bell and Ross or a Breitling.
Click to expand...

Ya mines about 4 years old and still works perfectly. $120 new so it wasn't even that expensive. Pretty much indestructible too
 
oregonboy109 said:
I love my G shock. They have many different styles aviation and not to chose from.

http://www.gshock.com/watches
Click to expand...

+1 on the Casio G-shock.

I have the solar one that is 200m water resistant and syncs itself to WWV (atomic clock station in Boulder CO) every night. It has been the perfect watch for me since I also SCUBA dive. I have had it so long that I don't even remember when I bought it. No batteries to change and you never have to set it. I think it was around $80 when I bought it.
----------------------
PS: I went and looked at the website and these watches have gone up a bit since I bought mine. The one in this link is the closest to mine and it is now $140. Still an awesome watch.
http://www.gshock.com/watches/Others/GR8900-1
 
Last edited:
^ Pretty sure those dirty hippies in Boulder don't have the clock. That clock is a little further north in Fort Collins / Wellington.
 
I've never spent over $70, but for flying I want a normal dial and one window of digital. I have the local time on the analog dial, and Zulu time in the digital. That way I never have to hesitate for a flight plan. Is it daylight savings time or is the city I'm in is eastern or central?

I wouldn't mind a vibrating alarm for changing fuel tanks, but haven't tried that yet.
 
Pebble time steel is pretty cool.

It can do all of that and has a vibrating alarm.
 
MickYoumans said:
You are right. My error.
Click to expand...

No problem. I actually looked it up after to make sure (I lived in Fort Collins for 10 years) and I found info on the different frequencies and things I had no idea about. So I'm glad you piqued my interest, I learned some new things too.
 
I like automatics, I've had a O&W (Valjoux 7750) for about 7 years, quite happy with it.

Another good manufacture is Maratac, they make some great time pieces, good prices and very much straight business watches, all function little fluff.
 
G-Shock guy as well. Like it cause it syncs up every night. Never a second off.
 
Butler GMT Pilots Watch....separate hand for GMT...40mm case size....principal of company is a pilot....got mine for under $350 as I recall (? AOPA discount)
 
farminpilot said:
...I am looking for a watch that does the job of telling the time....
Click to expand...

you say 'pilots watch' but only list 'telling time' as a requirement. maybe narrow down the functionality you are looking for and that might point you in the right direction. if it's just a watch you're looking for, maybe a hamilton or tissot? my movado (a gift) gets quite a lot of comments from the ladies.
 
You can get a nice looking Swiss Army for under $500. Its aint no Bell and Ross, but it tells time and has a stop watch function.
 
My G-Shock solar/nuclear/atomic is 10 +/- years old. I did have to replace the battery about a year ago when it stopped holding a charge. In the winter, with short days and long sleeves, it wouldn't get enough daylight to stay charged and would go into sleep mode about once a week unless I took it off and let it sit under a high intensity desk lamp for several hours.

This looks like the one, but I think I paid about half that list price at Penney's a decade ago:

http://www.shopcasio.com/product/g-shock-gwm500f-1-black
 
MIFlyer said:
Is the Garmin D2 worth anything? Is it just a gimmick, or actually useful?
Click to expand...

I have a D2. I wear it ~50% of the time I fly. My friends kid me about the number of GPS's I fly with (4), but I've never gotten lost.

Fashion-wise I would never wear it in public. That's what Movado is for.
 
I have a $7.95 Timex. Strapped to my purse and use it only when the tablet is too cumbersome to use
(Takes a licking and keeps on ticking)
 
LOL I was in the exact same situation a few months ago. Needed a watch that would tell me local time, Zulu time and date (and possibly day of week).

If you search for "pilot watch", you get a lot of $800 results. Cuz, you know, piloting is expensive, right?
If you search for "Zulu watch", you get a lot of $500 results. Cuz, you know, army is expensive, right?
If you search for "Dual time watch", you get a LOT of $50 results. Cuz, you know, you're smarter than Google now. :)

So after a few hours of looking, I settled on Casio 4396. It tells me day, date, time plus Zulu time, it has alarms and fluorescent hands. Also, it is NOT one of the big watches that all the freaks wear nowadays. It is about 3/8" thick but the edges are well angled so they don't catch on my clothing. The band is SS with a clasp that I easily adjusted to my wrist in 5 minutes using basic tools.

Just make sure you don't search for "pilot watch" and you'll get to keep $760 in your pocked for more AvGas. I paid only $40 for my "pilot watch" on Amazon. :)
 
I use a moto 360 smart watch, I have 10 or 15 different faces I can use on it. I have aviation themed ones for flying and then I can switch the face to what ever for daily use, my favorite face is an replica of a breitling navitimer.
 
Br 0392
I love the new BR 123 Heritage with different world air forces design. Too expensive right now
 
My only issue with Bell and Ross (well, besides the price) and actually most other watches these days is the ENORMOUS face! I have girly wrists and those giant faced watches look goofy on me. About a 43mm face is all I can stand.
 
eman1200 said:
you say 'pilots watch' but only list 'telling time' as a requirement. maybe narrow down the functionality you are looking for and that might point you in the right direction. if it's just a watch you're looking for, maybe a hamilton or tissot? my movado (a gift) gets quite a lot of comments from the ladies.
Click to expand...

When I say "pilots watch" I mean something that is functional in the cockpit. So no it doesn't necessarily need to be a labeled as a pilots watch.
 
Last edited:
JCranford said:
My only issue with Bell and Ross (well, besides the price) and actually most other watches these days is the ENORMOUS face! I have girly wrists and those giant faced watches look goofy on me. About a 43mm face is all I can stand.
Click to expand...

Look at the BR123s. Or the BR 93s
 
I have a watch with an e6b bezel. Has anyone ever used that E6b in the cockpit? I have not. Nice looking though!
 
I have several from Tag Heuer, and from Seiko and Citizen. The one I usually use for flight is the citizen Skyhawks AT. It has multiple time zones with a click, atomic timekeeping, and solar powered. I think it was $4-500.
 
I'm a huge watch guy, got all sorts of stuff all over the spectrum. but for the price range you are looking at I would recommend the Suunto Core (I have the all black and its fantastic, fits well, easy to use, comfortable, plus has an altimeter and compass on which is neat), the Casio G-Shock Range Master (also has a compass and altimeter, plus adjusts to the atomic clock).......and some might kill me for saying this...the Apple Watch. Thats actually what I wear to work for a few reasons one it has alarms that will pulse rather than just make noise which is helpful over airplane noise, and most of all the auto time zone adjustment is perfect for me. In and out of multiple time zones multiple times a day at work this really helps me out.
 
Samsung Gear S2. There is simply nothing else like it on the market.

See my thread on replacing your smart phone with a smart watch.
 
farminpilot said:
When I say "pilots watch" I mean something that is functional in the cockpit. So no it doesn't necessarily need to be a labeled as a pilots watch.
Click to expand...

I use a Moto X android phone to tell time. The cockpit has a digital clock set to Zulu. Does that count?
 
Jay Honeck said:
Samsung Gear S2. There is simply nothing else like it on the market.

See my thread on replacing your smart phone with a smart watch.
Click to expand...
The gear 2 is neat looking, but the moto 360 still beats the pants of it in the performance department.
 
mkosmo said:
The gear 2 is neat looking, but the moto 360 still beats the pants of it in the performance department.
Click to expand...
The Motorola 360 (or any other smartwatch, for that matter, including the Apple Watch) isn't a stand-alone cell phone with its own data plan. The Gear S2 is. Huge difference.

The S2 is a game changer. It's also a fantastic pilots watch.
 
Jay Honeck said:
The Motorola 360 (or any other smartwatch, for that matter, including the Apple Watch) isn't a stand-alone cell phone with its own data plan. The Gear S2 is. Huge difference.

The S2 is a game changer. It's also a fantastic pilots watch.
Click to expand...

That is true, but the speed of the interface and function keeps me away. Do you still normally carry another phone with you? Since the watch is always paired, I haven't found a use case where standalone is a better fit for me yet. Maybe I'm just attached to Google now lol

On the other hand, when I first got the 360, I didn't expect to use it nearly as much as I do and it's completely changed my workflow.

That being said, I like what Samsung is doing and certainly have high hopes for the future!
 
mkosmo said:
That is true, but the speed of the interface and function keeps me away. Do you still normally carry another phone with you? Since the watch is always paired, I haven't found a use case where standalone is a better fit for me yet. Maybe I'm just attached to Google now lol

On the other hand, when I first got the 360, I didn't expect to use it nearly as much as I do and it's completely changed my workflow.

That being said, I like what Samsung is doing and certainly have high hopes for the future!
Click to expand...
Nope, I seldom carry my cell phone now. It's been about 2 weeks with the S2, and I'm slowly but surely leaving the phone home. :)

The interface on the S2 is amazing, BTW.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top