Luminox watches

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Knifein

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My poor Casio G-Shock is in its last days after 6 solid years of hard use, so I need a new watch. I was looking into Luminox watches. Their designs and looks really caught my eye. However I have heard many bad things about the quality of their items. So I am kind of weary of buying one until I hear more opinions on them.
 
Knifein said:
My poor Casio G-Shock is in its last days after 6 solid years of hard use, so I need a new watch. I was looking into Luminox watches. Their designs and looks really caught my eye. However I have heard many bad things about the quality of their items. So I am kind of weary of buying one until I hear more opinions on them.
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I had this one: http://www.amazon.com/Luminox-Mens-Colormark-Watch-3059/dp/B000WY7JDU for a couple of weeks. The tritium is great.

It fell from my night table to my carpeted floor and the second hand fell off! That did it for me. Even before that, I was really disappointed with the build quality. Mine was $300 list and was built from flimsy plastic. Your Casio G-Shock is a much better-built watch. Citizen, Seiko, Tissot and a number of others blow Luminox away. I believe Traser is the same company as Luminox, so I've stayed away them, too.
 
lava_lamp said:
Your Casio G-Shock is a much better-built watch.
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Thanks man! Yeah, I have used my Casio Gshock as my edc/dive watch for 6 years. This thing has taken abuse! Unfortunately I'm going to have to replace it soon. I might stay away from Luminox then. I've heard similar things to what you described right now.
 
I haven't owned a Luminox so I can't comment on them.

If you want something with the H3 vials you can still find an older Stocker & Yale (SandY) which were issue watches. I believe they were the first to use the vials and the Luminox "Navy Seals" is a civilian version of the SandY 650. A SandY 490 or a 590 in good shape go for around $100-125; the 650 is harder to come by and they are more expensive. Marathon also made a "Navigator" with the vials and they typically run around $150-175 used.

Here's a pic of my 490 and 590. http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showpost.php?p=7997766&postcount=29
 
I own two Luminox watches and have really been happy with them. They keep terrific time and I have really put them through hell. I would certainly buy another one if and when they give up. I don't know if Casio is better or not, personally I just don't like the way they look, but that's just me.
 
The quality on the Luminox has been hit or miss over the years. I bought mine back in '98 and have been very happy with it. It's been abused pretty well between work and helping friends move. And no scratches on the crystal thus far which is one of the most frequent complaints I've heard about over the years. The nice thing is the 24/7 glows of the tritium tubes that need no external light to charge them. If you like the looks of the Luminox and the tritium tubes you may want to look into the Traser watch. Same thing which was putting them out before Luminox. Better quality and saphire crystal :thumbup:. Here is my Luminox and Traser watches.
b96c41b51fe44e68bc0a13c331e5c560

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If all else fails go with the G's, I have 25 of them :p
 
Wow, only 6 years? I have a Seiko that I bought in 1998 and wear daily. You may want to look at them if you are after a long-wearing watch.

TR Graham
The Glocksmith
 
I picked up a Luminox the other day at Cabela's Bargain Cave. I got the one with orange numbers. It's a pretty nice watch although I don't think I would have paid full price for it.

The Tritium vials on mine are nice. The ones indicating the hours are orange, the ones at 12 and the bezel are white and the one on the second hand is green.

The second hand comes close but doesn't hit the minute marker. I hear that this is common with the Luminox.

The case is plastic and while it's light weight it doesn't have much of a feel of longevity to it.

I paid less than half of the list price for it and while I like it I don't know if it was worth that price. If it would have been less than a hundred I think it would have been more accurately priced. At the list price of close to $300 (for mine) I think it's very overpriced.

Here is an image from Princeton Watches of the watch I got.

3059.jpg


Chad
 
I had a Traser P5900 and if I am correct this is the cheapest Traser, it costs about 99 EUR (132 USD) over here in the Netherlands. Although I really liked the tritium, I was a bit disappointed by the build quality. It didn't feel solid and it is only 30m water resistant. I expected a bit more quality for 99 EUR. I think the more expensive Trasers feel more solid and are better built, with stronger materials, but they are much more expensive than the basic P5900, at least here in the Netherlands.
 
Harayasu said:
I had a Traser P5900 and if I am correct this is the cheapest Traser, it costs about 99 EUR (132 USD) over here in the Netherlands. Although I really liked the tritium, I was a bit disappointed by the build quality. It didn't feel solid and it is only 30m water resistant. I expected a bit more quality for 99 EUR. I think the more expensive Trasers feel more solid and are better built, with stronger materials, but they are much more expensive than the basic P5900, at least here in the Netherlands.
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Very true about the price. Mine costs about $387 new but IIRC it is discontinued :(. I picked mine up used for $250 and is 200M wr.
 
Buy a Timex. I've been wearing them for quite a few years, and they won't die.
The last one I had got about 5 years on the battery, put a new battery in it and it is still going strong. Although it doesn't get much use because I bought a Timex diver watch that looks very similar to a Rolex SubMariner for 48 dollars.

I had a Seiko Aviators watch that was very nice too, and really wasn't that expensive.
 
Here's a photo of my Seiko Monster. It actually glows brighter than the Luminox while it is charged (i.e., if you have the Monster in bright sun all day it will last all night.) I know that from camping.

seiko2.jpg


The downside of the Monster is that it is self-winding and if you don't wear if for 48 hours or so, it will need to be reset. It also doesn't keep time as well as a quartz watch, which is common for an automatic watch (even a Rolex.) I've never tracked it, but you might lose a couple of minutes a month.
 
Just curious, how hard are you on watches, for a G-shock to just last 6 years (unless the battery just died or was a Solar model and the panel failed) I would make an assumption pretty rough, if this is the case I'd definately just buy another G-shock, it's been my experience that any plastic cased watch will fail EVENTUALLY, but a G-shock will take a harder blow and continue to work better than any watch I know of, I would definately take a G-shock over any other plastic cased watch. For my rough/beater watch I keep a $40-50 G-Shock that runs off a battery. If you are not rough on watches I'd recommend either a quality quartz watch or mechanical watch, stay away from Kientics or Solar movements as they fail and cost a lot to repair. Regular batteries are cheap and though they can be expensive repairs on quality mechanical watches are few and far between. Quartzes are more accurate and simpler, but a properly regulated mechanical can be just as accurate. I also think you can do much better for your money than Luminox.

If cost is not an Issue I'd look at Rolex esp the Sub or Seadweller, Breitling Colt or SuperOcean, Omega Seamaster or Speedmaster. You can't go wrong with any of those.

If you are trying to get the most watch for your money I'd get a Seiko 007 diver either in quartz or mechanical, maybe on a NATO strap.
 
I agree with Spydiefan04 that the G-Shocks are amongst the thoughest watches available. If you choose one without tough solar and atomic time, they are not very expensive too. Changing batteries is not very difficult too, you can find instruction videos and written information on that on the G-Shock-forum at Watchuseek.com. Note that there are also analog G-Shocks.

At Watchuseek.com there is also a forum on affordable watches. There are really nice watches that are not very expensive. I recommend looking at discussions over there to get some ideas. Especially take a look at the "wrist check" and "what are you wearing" threads.
 
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Knifein said:
Anymore replies?
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Casio Riseman is a good watch, many people here have it and swear by it.
http://www.amazon.com/Casio-G-Shock...r_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=watches&qid=1269999462&sr=1-1

Suunto Core all black is also a nice watch, it's not as monsterous as it looks. Some Suunto watches look line dinner plates strapped to the wrist, not a nice look IMO.
I've read a lot of bad things about Luminox, and unless you pay the full retail price through an authorized retailer they will not warranty the watch at all.
Seikos line of Monster watches looks awesome, but many complain the watches gain from 25seconds-5minutes per day. I do not own one, but this is what some reviews state. Shame because I really wanted to buy the Orange Monster. :(
Citizen is what I have and I absolutely love my watch. Eco-Drive is awesome, the sun or even bright indoor light charges your watch.
 
I USED to love eco-drives but I've had a couple and eventually the solar panel/internal battery goes bad or at least they did in mine shame because I loved the watches, as far as Seiko mechanical movements I have several and so do many other people I know, and I have never encountered the accuracy problems you mention, however I have heard the same rumor just seen no first hand proof of it. My experiences are with the 007s and Seiko 5s, I would assume the Monsters have the same movement but it's possible they may not. If it is a problem any watch repair shop can regulate the watch. If you are really concerned about accuracy you can always get a quartz.

Just so you guys will know what a 007 Seiko is (nothing to do with James Bond). It's the classic Seiko Diver model, the monsters are getting all the press now, but I prefer the 007 esp with a rubber or NATO strap.

http://www.chronograph.com/store/catalog/products/SKX007J-P.jpg
 
I have a Seiko 5 Aviator with the 7S26 movement and it runs about 30 seconds too fast per day. It is my least accurate mechanical watch, but I don't mind those 30 seconds very much, although I would be annoyed if it would run 1 minute or more per day faster or slower. If I wear it for multiple days, I check the time with a quartz in the morning and adjust it if needed.
 
I've had two luminox watches. The first one I wore every day and night for 5 years. The only reason I replaced it is the crystal non this model was mineral and has become fairly scratched up. The tritium is still blazing bright and the watch keeps perfect time. I still wear it occasionally if I am doing heavy grunt work and I don't want to risk marking up my new watch. My current Luminox is a series 8000 seal diver. I have had it about a year now and have been very pleased with it. The only thing I have to complain about is the bezzel is very stiff. Since I don't really use it very often this is a minor problem.
I have a couple of Seiko divers and although the lume is good I haven't had one last throughout the night. I like being able to look over and tell the time no matter what the light conditions.
Best of luck in your search. I say buy what you like.
 
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