Geckota K1 V29 review

[Chicolabronse]

I recently got speaking to Tim from Watchgecko and during our chat he asked me if I would like to review one of their K1 pilot range, Well as a fan of pilot watches and the K1 i jumped at the chance.

The watch Tim sent me was the K1 V29 with the ip antique gold finish, it comes with a black leatherette pouch and is supplied head only giving you the option of choosing your own strap, The strap that came with it was the golden brown flat croco 406 with ip gold pre-v buckle, I’m not really a fan of the pre-v and even less of a fan of mismatching hardware, It would be nice to see them adding the option of a matching buckle. Each colour (A/RG, PVD, SS) is limited to 40 pieces.







Specs for the watch are,
CASE DIAMETER - 44mm
LUG WIDTH - 22mm
CASE THICKNESS - 14mm
CASE BACK - 316L Stainless Steel
LUG TO LUG LENGTH - 49mm
CASE MATERIAL - 316L Stainless Steel
CASE FINISH - Ion plated Antique Rose Gold
WATER RESISTANT - 100 Mtrs (10ATM)
DIAL - matt black dial with C3 Super-LumiNova indexes
GLASS - Scratch-resistant sapphire crystal with bevelled edge
LUMINESCENCE - SuperLuminova C3 Hands and Dial
MOVEMENT - Miyota 8215
CROWN - 9 mm ‘Zwiebelförmig’ crown for easy adjustment
WARRANTY - 12 Months Warranty
Price
Head - £149.99
Strap - £28.00

The watch arrived on the day of my birthday so it was really good timing and when I opened the package I was really impressed by the overall look & feel of the watch, As a fan of 44mm pilot watches I have often looked at the K1 range with this model being my favourite of the bunch, Although the pvd black version would be my personal choice of finish.







The case is finished in an antique gold ion-plating which gives it a great looking “patina” but has a lovely smooth finish to the touch, A really nice bevelled flat Sapphire crystal adds to the “Flieger” look, the case is finished really well with no sharp edges and is very user-friendly.









comparing it to my other pilots (pvd Parnis, titanium plated Alpha & SS Ticino) I would say the K1 comes out on top with the most refined case finish, it’s the tallest of the 4 but has the shortest lug 2 lug making it a bit more wearable than the others.







The dial has the look of the Bell & Ross 123 heritage range with it’s highly legible 12,3,6,9 layout on a matte black dial with vintage coloured markings, The printing on the dial is flat and looks to be well done and there is no text on the dial which is something I like in my pilots, All 3 hands have the matching colour of the markings and they look good.









the lume on the K1 is pretty good and super bright when charged,




But like the others it fades quite fast, although once your eyes have adjusted to the dark it is easy to see through the night.

@@@@@EDIT@@@@@

After discovering that the 8215 does not handwind, my original thoughts below need to be amended as these were based on me thinking i was winding the watch!!

The movement is the Miyota 8215, “solid and reliable” but to be honest I found it to be a bit…….rough, it’s not so much the stutter but the operation through the crown felt a bit agricultural, I need to add this is my first experience with the 8215 so this may be normal, the Chinese clones in my other pilots (all handwinders) feel so much more solid, I’m not saying the movement is bad as it’s been running around +7 secs a day out the box, it just feels basic.

we all know about the 8215 so i won't go into much detail but the time setting part works fine, there is the stutter which a bit strange at first but i stopped noticing it after 10 mins, No handwinding or hacking features and is running around +7 secs per day.

The caseback has an aircraft stamped within a mottled effect central circle which looks pretty cool, with some light engraved text around the outer edge









The strap wouldn’t be something I would normally choose but it really goes well with the watch (minus the big gold buckle) It is a handmade Italian leather with a textured croco design topped off with a subtle gloss finish, it has 1 large keeper and white stitching, It looks like it will age nicely giving that vintage look.







You wouldn’t think taking 1mm off the length of the lugs would make a difference but it wears a little smaller than my other pilots which makes it that bit more comfortable, some people might find the height a bit much but personally it’s fine with me,

Overall I have been really impressed with the V29, I love the look of it, so easy to read at a glance, It is definitely the best built out of my 4 pilots with a solid substantial feel about it (minus the movement) On the wrist it is very comfortable and when my new zulu arrives it should be even better.
Would I buy it with my own money? in PVD black, yeah definitely and after a week of wearing it I’m really digging the antique gold finish as well, overall It’s a great addition to my affordable pilot collection.





Thanks to Tim for the chance to get a hands on look at the K1

cheers

[DJW GB]

Great honest review Chico .Thanks for sharing.

Billy Super Duper

[Chicolabronse]

I feel i have to make an amendment to my original review, i wrongly assumed (schoolboy error) that the 8215 had the handwinding function and it was during my "handwinding" that i felt the roughness, well as this is not the case i will correct my review based on using the crown for time setting only.

sorry!

[Richmondmike]

Look great on that strap but I hate stuttery Miyota 8215 movements.

[Chicolabronse]

Look great on that strap but I hate stuttery Miyota 8215 movements.

Yeah it's a bit weird but i think i can live with it, a switch to the nh35 would be good.