Orient M-Force 200M Air Diver SEL03002M Orange

[Samanator]

So I decided to give the Orient M-Force Diver a try in lieu of the new SBDC023 Orange Monster (JDM). I have had over 45 Monsters during my moding years so I'm pretty familiar with those. I've also had two of the older Orient Bullet 200 divers and a Orient 300 Saturation diver. I see this as an update to the Bullet with 40N5A Automatic with hacking and hand-winding movement. We'll give it 30 days before I put it on a timing machine to see how accurate it is. I took all of these pictures with my iphone including the lume shot, but will add better pictures in a day or so.



Setup:

After pulling the protective plastic off the bracelet I gave it a size check and determined 3 links needed to be removed. I popped the one spring pin on the clasp to remove the two tags and set to size with a pin tool, being mindful of a standard Seiko/Orient pin and collar set up. I've seen some comments on others sites about the pins coming loose within minutes, but I'm pretty sure they did not reinstall the collars. I ran about 3 miles after resizing it, and no lost pins so their operator error appears to be the reason for this reported issue. When I reinstalled the spring pin in the clasp I slipped it into the third innermost hole to fit my 7.25" wrist. Unscrewing the crown it had the ruff threading feel that many Seiko divers seem to have. A quick cleanup with some dental floss has it smooth now. Like some ETA movements it feels like the crown is still winding the movement when you thread it in. Each crown position has a very solid click so setting time and date was very easy.



Finish

I don't believe in statements like "for it's price" that some use to explain actual shortcomings in a watch. The case, bezel and bracelet center areas lack hard sharp lines, and the brushing is shallow on the case and bracelet surfaces. The plus to the more rounded lines will probably fare better against dents then sharper lines do. The down side is the transitions between brush and polished surfaces are not as defined as they could be. The bracelet is a straight 22mm that has a stamped steel clasp that lacks the Monsters dive extension. The security clasp is currently rather tight to press into place. The endlinks are stamped and inset with the lugs. They do not fully follow the lines of the lugs, but do fill the gap and have no wobble. The Orange on the dial is very bright and vibrant. It makes the orange Monster look pale. All the indexes and hands are framed in black with deep pale yellow lume filling. All other dial and chapter ring markings are in black except the Orient logo. The date window at the 9 is on the small side. The power reserve meter centered at the 1 is done better than most. Its very unobtrusive and fades into the background well when you are not looking for it. 120 click bezel is a mix of brushed outer elements and black painted indented areas. The brushing is much deeper and uniform than the other case and bracelet elements. The indent at the 12 has a lumed pip dot framed in a white triangle. The other black indent areas have white ten minute increments. The signed crown has a gear groove pattern that is easy to grip and aided by the red o-ring in the middle. The case features cross drilled lugs to aid in bracelet and strap changes. The sapphire crystal is not AR coated and is flat with no beveling on the edge. It is set flush to the inside edge of the bezel. The big surprise is Orient choose to put the sharp edges and lines all on the bottom edge of the case and lugs. The flat case back has a very shallow laser etched logo in the brushed surface.





Fit

The 46mm case width dimension is offset with a 49mm lug-to-lug measurement so it will even fit smaller wrist sizes. The 13mm thickness keeps the weight lower on the wrist which aids the balance of the watch. It has substantial weight at 205 grams unsized. The previously mentioned sharp edges are raised off the wrist by the smooth case back so there are no comfort issues even when sized on the tight side. Comfort is very good and the watch stays in place on the the wrist. The is no pinching or hair pulling even on my hairy wrists.




Summary

Since I was shopping this against the SBDC023 Orange Monster I'm going to use it for comparison. Currently the Orient can be had for $300 where the Monster is almost 50% more. Many may be drawn to the Monsters smaller case size, but on the wrist the extra 4 mm are not apparent. Some may prefer the wider 22mm non-tapering bracelet, but I actually prefer the 20mm Monster bracelet that tapers slightly. Many will prefer the sapphire crystal of the Orient over the Monster Hardlex. Personally the Orient needs the cyclops more than the Monster given the date window size, but it would look strange at the 9. Both watches have very readable dial and hand setups that glow bright and long at night. The Orient's hands and indexes look more refined than the Monster and better sized. Also the Orients dial color is much more orange than the Monster. Neither watch is going to set any standard for fit and finish, but are well suited to their toolish intentions. Styling of the Monster is a little wilder versus the more traditional look of the Orient. Pretty much everything else is equal. It's too soon to make a call as to which I like better so that is for a later date.