Sapphire for under £200 and a bezel that embarrasses the SKX: the little emerald barracuda that bites
Pushed back in by the surgeons
Gethin Christian, back again after a short hiatus, pushed back in by the surgeons. Tonight, the Orient Kamasu, RA-AA0004E19B, lent in for review by my friend Grizzy. It's fashioned after the Japanese barracuda, and the indices and hands are supposed to resemble the teeth of this predatory fish. I'm not so sure. But all in all it's quite complete and satisfying at 180 to 190 pounds sterling. You won't find a much better watch at this price.
Specs, because you love specs
41.8 mm case, 46.8 lug to lug, quite acceptable, will fit any wrist. 12.8 to 13 mm thick, 22 mm lugs. Comparable to a Seiko SKX. The new Seiko 5 version is comparable too, and is not saluted by me. Orient's recently upgraded F6922, 22 jewels, 21,600 an hour, three hertz, rated plus 25 to minus 15. This one's running plus five to plus six, and I think most of yours will follow suit.
And Orient have taken the wise decision to upgrade from mineral glass to sapphire. You are getting a sapphire crystal for less than 200 pounds. Absolutely saluted by me. Absolutely proper. All Orient fans will be extremely pleased.
Little show-off with a shimmering dial
This one's the deep emerald dial, and what a wonderful dial it is. What a great little wizard she is, a little show-off with a shimmering dial. Look at the way the seconds hand, with its red arrow tip, extends right into the minute track, right up to the rehaul, and so does the minute hand. Wonderful. Generously applied loom on all the hands and the applied indices, a lovely framed date, and an etched crown with the two lions hugging the crest. You won't find that on similar models in the price range.
And the bezel is excellent. It turns very nicely and feels a far higher quality than the watch's price would suggest. The SKX's bezel? Nowhere even close.
Where it's let down
The bracelet. Pins, no collars, and hollow end links, which is extremely bad and not saluted in any way by me. Stamped fold-over double deployant: get rid of it immediately. No diver's extension, but non-ratcheting ones are pointless anyway. Upgrading your bracelet is the first thing you'll do. Strapcode don't have anything for it yet, but their Kevlar-style Zulus look insane on it.
The case is high-polished flanks with circular concentric brushing on the lug tips. Great job. Nitpicking, but there should be a little chamfer between lugs and flanks, and there isn't. Even the humble SKX has one. And the loom: quite bright, not bad, quite long lasting, but next to my SKX it's a bit lackluster. Anyone who knows Seiko knows Lumibrite lasts all night.
Verdict
Next to the SKX it's almost 100% the size, but considerably thinner. A very slim profile that slides under your cuffs with no problem. It's discontinued now, so you're looking at 250 pounds minimum. Buy one before they get very difficult to get. It's superb, and the Kamasu will strike fear in the hearts of your enemies. We are for the beeeech.
