Tracer Watch question

[Riverwarrior]

I've searched the forum and read several posts concerning various watches brand and models. I've got several watches, but I'm needing something easy to read and very illuminous (something that needs no buttons or held under a light).

I have to wear reading glasses now (I'm still trying to stretch out the denial phase...).

Anyway, I've been reading up on the Tracer Chronograph (Big Date/Pro Blue). Anyone on this forum have any experience with this particluar model?

I just don't want to waste hundreds of dollars on a watch that actually doesn't illuminate as advertised.

Thanks for any suggestions.

 

[Esav Benyamin]

Are you familiar with the Luminox watches? Traser is the actual manufacturer. Luminox just pays to have Traser put the Luminoxr name put on certain Traser models.

You do have to refresh the luminosity but it is bright and readibility lasts for hours.

 

[Haze]

Any of the tritium watches will glow good and bright. They're not as bright as a fully charged "luminus paint" watch but are still more than bright enough to read easily (and don't need charged). I don't have any experience with the particular watch you mention, but I do have a few Luminox, H3 and a Marathon watch that also use the tritium vials.

:thumbup:

 

[Planterz]

You do have to refresh the luminosity but it is bright and readibility lasts for hours.

Yeah, about 107,994.813 hours. At least, that's the radioactive half-life of tritium (12.32 years). And it doesn't need refreshing.

 

[Planterz]

Oh yeah...to answer the original question...

I have or had 2 Trasers and a Luminox. Brightness is pretty much the same for all. They're nowhere near as bright as the better luminous indicators that require charging when they're fully charged, but as the hours go by, those dim and eventually aren't as bright as the tritium trasers will be.

In practical terms, there's enough "overlap" between being able to read the watch by light or read it by the glowing indicators. Put another way, when it's dark enough that you can see the trasers glow, you can still read the watch by ambient light.

 

[SSonnentag]

I have a Luminox EVO F-117 Nighthawk 6402 and a Traser P6507 Commander 100 Pro. They're both great watches. The Traser ends up being worn due to the greatly reduced weight. Either one is easy enough to read in the dark.

 

[trevytrev]

I have a Traser and a Marathon, both have tritium and both are very bright and extremely easy to read in the dark. As others have stated the tritium is not as bright as freshly charged luminous paints but as the night goes on it's a steady bright light that does not fade, unlike the luminous paints. As for the model you are looking at, I have never seen that watch in person but I have read a few reviews about the blue tritiums being a bit harder to see than the green or orange, not sure of the validity of that claim but you might want to research it a bit. Happy Hunting, Trevor~

 

[Planterz]

I have a Traser and a Marathon, both have tritium and both are very bright and I have read a few reviews about the blue tritiums being a bit harder to see than the green or orange, not sure of the validity of that claim but you might want to research it a bit.

I don't know if green happens to be actually brighter than other colors when it comes to radioactive beta particle excited phosphors, but I do know that the human eye sees green the best. Same reason a green laser pointer will seem "brighter" than a red one of the same power.

 

[Riverwarrior]

Thanks so much for the information (and thanks for not blasting me for incorrectly spelling "Traser" in my original post.....

I will definitely check out the green tritiums vs. blue....that is an excellent point to research.

Thanks again.

 

[knivesandguns]

I heard of some problems with Traser / Luminox watches back when I was trying to find my next EDC watch. Too many people had issues that just weren't taken care of IIRC. I ended up going with a Seiko Orange Monster--just from a wimpy desk light I can read the hands and ten-minute-markers all night long. If I'm going to get something with Tritium, it's going to be a Ball (And that's going to be when I'm rich someday... lol)

 

[Quirt]

I like Trevor have a sterile Traser and TSAR Marathon. I have the same eyesight issue as you. When I'm out in the woods camping and seperate from my glasses I find thr Traser is easier to read/see because the illuminated lines are larger than tha TSAR.

 

[Harayasu]

I have a Traser P6500 with green markers and had a KHS Platoon with blue markers. Although the blue markers aren't bad, the green markers are brighter. Both aren't as bright as the illumination of my Seiko diver when fully charged, but the brightness of the Seiko gets weaker over the hours and tritium illumination is constant and will take probably a few decades to get noticeably weaker.

Especially in winter time, when days are short and your watch is probably hidden under the sleeves most of the day, the advantage of the Traser is that you don't have to worry about recharging the luminous marker.

Another option would be electronic illumination, which you'll find on most Casio's and Timex's for example. Press a button and your dial lights up.

 

[Haze]

Here are a couple of pics that will help show why tritium watches are defo. worth looking at. Obviously any
pictures taken in total darknes leave a bit to be desired but they show the difference in the two quite well.

The trituim watch is on the left and a fully charged luminus paint watch on the right.

This is the same two watches an hour later. The luminus paint watch was still readable by eye but had dimmed
conciderably in just one hour of being in darknes. like it would be under a jacket sleeve or out in the woods with
very little ambiant light etc.

The camera also shows the two watches at extreemes, the luminus paint isn't as bright as it looks in the pics
and the tritium watch is also brighter than it appears. :thumbup:

 

[Riverwarrior]

Haze,

Thank you for the side by side pictures!! I have a few watches that have luminous paint and I can't see anything in low light/no light conditions.

I will definitely be buying a watch with tritium vials.