From Omega Forums :
There's been some discussion about homages over entire period I've been on this board - I've 'ummed' and 'aahed' for a year, but finally ordered one, and thought I'd try to write up a considered discussion of the result. Ashley, Trev, if you don't want this on the board, I understand completely, but I'm trying to present a balanced view.
Steinhart are a german company who use swiss movements and apparently swiss watchmakers for watches that are mostly homages of various other well known brands. although they do appear to be trying to move in their own direction I suspect it's the well known designs that are the most popular. Many of their watches have been unavailable for some time due to the ETA supply disruptions, and resale values appear to hold up very well indeed.
I ordered the Ocean One Green, a 42mm homage to the submariner 16610 anniversary (a 40mm limited edition watch which I believe has been unavailable new since approximately 2009) with an 'elabore' grade ETA 2824-2 movement, sapphire crystal and C1 Superluminova. It's water resistant to 300m and comes with a 22mm stainless steel brushed finish bracelet. I ordered this particular model as while I may well wind up with a genuine black bezeled submariner or a coke dialled GMT I can absolutely guarantee I will never ever spend £5k+ on a sub with a green bezel, even though I like the quirky colour choice.
I ordered the watch and paid on paypal - a total of £297 including VAT and delivery - and as part of the EU, no further import duty, which is always helpful. 2 days later I received an email confirmation, explaining an 8-12 day dispatch period and a 2 day shipping service. 8 days later, I received my shipping notice and 2 days later the FedEx package arrived.
I'd seen many reviews mentioning damaged outer white boxes - my package was well wrapped and I didn't think this was likely to be an issue. Indeed, when I opened the packing, a clean white outer box was revealed
When I looked closely at the outer box however, as well as a transit inflicted dent, a split could be seen up the entire height of one of the corner seams. The lid isn't particularly tight fitting, so I can only assume this was due to careless packing for this box. This didn't particularly bother me, but I appreciate this would irritate some people and is worth being aware of.
Inside the outer box is a leather (look?) inner box - it looks nice, and the hinges work well and feel solid, but the latch (a simple eye and hook) feels cheap relative to the rest of the packaging.
At the end of the day, the wrapping is just that, I was keen to get to the watch inside. I was ready for the worst - I'd read of occasional poorly anodised bezels, dial dust or incorrectly plated hands.
In the box, the watch (complete with hang tag) had protective plastic on the dial, caseback, both sides of the bracelet and most parts of the clasp. It took several careful minutes to remove them all. After a careful inspection I came to the conclusion the watch was correct - the lume pearl was central, hands, dial and bezel looked good (Dust in the photos is on the glass, not the dial, I was taking photos as I removed plastic and paying all the attention I should have). The sides of the watch and bracelet are highly polished, all the other aspects of the watch are brushed except for the locking part of the clasp.
I quite like the font for 'Ocean One', although it's a shame the Steinhart logo appears to be drunkenly falling over backwards (the design, not the implementation). Hands and markers are well finished, the bezel is an even colouring and the rehaut has a slant to it that adds some interest. The luminova appears disappointingly dim compared to my 10 year old Seamasters - but it did only have a couple of hours to charge up so I may have to update this point later; hands, dial and pearl all have a matching hue.
The thing that surprised me most initially was the sheer size and relative solidity of the bracelet - 22mm at the lugs AND the clasp, with screwed links (that made sizing the bracelet later relatively simple and straightforward. There are microadjustment holes on both ends of the clasp so a good fit should be easy for everyone. Its not as good quality as a modern Omega bracelet and clasp, but it certainly seems to be acceptable for this watch. I suspect the edges on a genuine new sub are considerably sharper, but the machining on the bezel knurling was pleasingly well defined. The bezel is unidirectional, but there's a mm or so of slack in the other direction.
Setting the time and the date was simple enough, with quick date set in position 2, and time set in position 1; the movement hacks which makes setting accurate time much simpler than most of my other dive watches - I will add timekeeping observations in a couple of days. I was surprised that screwing the crown in and out didn't have an undefinable quality feel that my Seamaster pros have, but there's nothing that poses a real problem here. By the time I'd got the watch out of the box, the movement was ticking away happily.
There's a perfectly acceptable etched logo on the back; I know it's only an ETA (and not in the spirit of a submariner) but I would have happily paid extra for a display back, even if that cut back the depth rating.
Finally, the watch looks good on the wrist and immediately feels comfortable with no noticeable hair pulling. In fact, I think it looks great on the wrist, and at the end of the day, it was the design, the size, and the colour I was buying this for - and I am delighted with the look and the feel. I don't like the Cyclops, but that's not an issue limited to the Steinhart, and I think this is going to be a great piece to wear with a suit, t-shirt, and just about anything in between.
I will admit, I did feel an initial wave of 'Well, it's not a real Rolex' which actually surprised me a lot, but as the evening has worn on, the design and feel of the actual piece rather than any heritage (however indirect) has increasingly won me over. I think it has firmed up to a surprising degree the thought that if I buy a black bezelled sub or a GMT then I will be choosing to go for a vintage Rolex. I don't in any way feel like I'm wearing a fake, and I will be happily making sure anyone who cares knows what it is, but I am aware that something to do with the weight of history is missing. This is hard to put into words correctly, but hopefully you get the idea.
Despite all that, this gives me a cool looking watch at a time where the alternatives are far out of reach. Its got a good depth rating, a new and freshly lubricated, well regarded swiss movement and should pose no problems for the next few years. I would imagine, in that heady future day when I have a black sub and gmt, I would keep this watch for the days when I just fancy wearing solid quality diver with a green bezel, and may have discovered the watch that allows my Speedy Broad Arrow reissue to be retired gracefully from rough duties after seven years in the front lines.
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