Well, its been about a week since I received my Sea Wolf and I'll still getting used to it. The first thing I thought when I opened the box and saw it was "Is this the right watch? . . . Its so small." I could not believe how small the watch was and still can't to some degree. I normally wear between 38 to 42mm watches, so I'm accustom to larger watches. I was wondering if any one else had this reaction to the size their watch, and if so did you get used to it? Pictures coming soon. Thanks
Quote from: TheSweetScience on January 18, 2011, 11:30:53 PM
Well, its been about a week since I received my Sea Wolf and I'll still getting used to it. The first thing I thought when I opened the box and saw it was "Is this the right watch? . . . Its so small." I could not believe how small the watch was and still can't to some degree. I normally wear between 38 to 42mm watches, so I'm accustom to larger watches. I was wondering if any one else had this reaction to the size their watch, and if so did you get used to it? Pictures coming soon. Thanks
Back in the day (1971) when I bought by Sea Wolf SST it was huge by comparison to most watches of the era. I was surprised, trying it on decades later, how much smaller it looked. I recently had it restored and it feels normal or slightly smaller compared to my other watches.
;D when the original sea wolfs were new--60s-70s-- they WERE big. not by todays standards!!my 2 sws, gmt ,and jet 24hour ALL look really small at 35-36mm. i think they are a pleasure to wear, i also like big watche such as my 8000 series luminox and a sector 200m dive watch but sometimes they just get too heavy. jon p
One way I thought I could combat the size discrepancy was to put a black NATO strap on it. First the band it currently has is not the original JB Champion so I figured I'm not going to hurt anyone's feeling's by taking it off. Also the black strap will draw attention to the orange details on the face as well as match the black on the face. Any thoughts?
8) should be a cool look and make it seem bigger. you WILL 100% get used to it with some quality wrist time. i am wearing a black dial GMT now, and it does look smaller, but fantastic and sure gets a lot of attenion even from non watch collector types!! everyone seems to recognize fine vintage watches, and want to look at them.
When I found a champion zodiac band for my Sea Wolf, it finally felt complete and sat well on my larger wrist.
I wear it all the time now. You just need an original band.
8) sea wolf, i agree, there is something about the original bracelet that just makes it complete. i think part of it is the fact that it has been reunited with the original equipment ! i am looking for an orig jubilee champion for my white dial now, as you know not easy to find and not inexpensive. there is one on the bay now for 195.00, it has been there with no takers for a long time, just not worth that price. oh well, some day maybe.
:-[ does anyone know what was the factory length of the champion zodiac jubilee bracelet is?? i guess 7", then add a SW for about 8.5". help. JON P
I think that is a good guess, maybe even greater than 7". I had a NOS one once, on the card too! I am thinking there was 3 removable links on either side of the clasp...
I agree the best case scenario would be an original JB Champion band, however I can't find one in the budget. So the NATO strap is the next best option, which brings me to my next question: What is the lug size of a Black and Orange SeaWolf? Also has anyone else tried it? Thanks
Most all 60's and 70's SWs and GMTs are the 17.5 MM lug.
TheSweetScience show us some pics. I just put my SW on and going out for an Italian dinner.
SEA WOLF--what is the length of your champion bracelet?? you said you had a large wrist, did you have any trouble with length with watch attached?? JON P
Quote from: jon p on January 20, 2011, 10:38:49 PM
SEA WOLF--what is the length of your champion bracelet?? you said you had a large wrist, did you have any trouble with length with watch attached?? JON P
I wear the champion band at 7 inches in length. I have to adjust the clasp into the 4th hole, so I have almost 2 links in the clasp. I have not measured the entire length but it is 7 inches of used band with 2 links in the clasp.
ETA: that length does not include the watch.
I finally got around to taking some pictures of the new time piece, so here they are. There were taken with a Blackberry so they are not the best. How does it compare to other Black and Orange SeaWolf's?
Looks pretty clean, Sweetscience! Thats a nice watch you got there! Your wrist shots look good. I personally like a smaller watch. Those big watches on my wrist seem so obtrusive and heavy. My wrist is about 8.5 so its big enough already w/o another pound or two of watch strapped on. Enjoy that watch, and keep it out of the water. Its old and deserves kind treatment. That band looks pretty nice to me, but a nato strap is cool, too. It is fairly easy to switch out bands for a different look whenever you like. I do that alot w/ different watches. You sir have a winner!! Welcome to the club!!
Thanks for the compliments, and I've really enjoyed the watch so far. A quick question though, does anyone know what movement was put into this watch. I was told it was a 17 Jewel movement and at this time Zodiac used all in house movements. Can anyone confirm or deny this? Thanks
:o WOW--that IS BEAUTIFUL!!!! it is weird how in your pics the different lighting makes the dial look like different colors.
sea wolf, i just lucked up on an original jb/zodiac jubilee full length bracelet for my white dial SW BWG restored for me a couple of months ago!!! it was a friend of a friend who had it. it is in pristine condition and it wasnt cheap BUT it WAS VERY MUCH less expensive than what is one e-bay. i have been looking for a long time and it finally happened. i have it on the watch--HOW SWEET! nothing feels like the original equipment, maybe just my imagination but i swear it DOES! has anyone noticed what looks like a date code stamped inside the clasp right by the hinge pin? i have 2 different ones with this, my newest one is"1-70". it may NOT be a mfg date but i havent noticed it before. i have it adjustd in 5 holes and it STILL is very loose, i cant stand to wear a tight bracelet.
Quote from: jon p on January 23, 2011, 11:29:39 AM
sea wolf, i just lucked up on an original jb/zodiac jubilee full length bracelet for my white dial SW BWG restored for me a couple of months ago!!! it was a friend of a friend who had it. it is in pristine condition and it wasnt cheap BUT it WAS VERY MUCH less expensive than what is one e-bay. i have been looking for a long time and it finally happened. i have it on the watch--HOW SWEET! nothing feels like the original equipment, maybe just my imagination but i swear it DOES! has anyone noticed what looks like a date code stamped inside the clasp right by the hinge pin? i have 2 different ones with this, my newest one is"1-70". it may NOT be a mfg date but i havent noticed it before. i have it adjustd in 5 holes and it STILL is very loose, i cant stand to wear a tight bracelet.
Nice job reuniting the watch and band, it just works.
My GMT says B-70 on the clasp by the hinge. I do not know what those numbers mean.
maybe mine is "I" 70 instead of "1",cant make it out. butch and ultra, any idea about these codes on champion bracelets!? aw-- the quest for knowledge!
Nice SW! Congratulations! I think the aesthetics of the 1950s and 60 allowed males to use a size today called "mixed" or even "feminine", i.e. clocks with approximately 35 mm. By the late 1960s and 1970s I remember adult men using miniature clocks sometimes, sometimes enormous. Big watches certainly existed in the 1960's, like that Omega Speedmaster used in the space travels, but socially the men preferred watches were smaller, better to use with suits and long-sleeved shirts (I remember my father and others talking that way back then), and the big ones were used in professional or sportive activities. Getting famous (like Speedmaster), probably influenced aesthetics later. Before, the pocket watches also varied between large and small. In the photos, to exemplify: two Zodiacs circa 1960, a Moonphase and a SW (this one Butch know well), compared to a relative new Zodiac Sea Dragon (ok, ok, guilty...); after, a Rolex of 1970 's (late 70's, probably); an Omega Speedmaster, the same model used in space travel, originally in the 1960's; a Baume & Mercier, circa 1970 (masculine, believe me); and a Seiko, also circa 1970 (and also masculine, I know it's hard to believe); finally, a James Poole Liverpool and a Levis (pocket watches). On the next photo, with the Sea Wolf model 1960 and the Rolex model 1970, we can't see difference in size, practically. The last photo shows all the watches. If you continue to use your SW, certainly you get used to a light but strong watch, to all occasions. And not too small, after all. Welcome to the club.
It all depends on what you are accustomed to. Once upon a time, a 40mm watch was considered fairly large. Even the earlier models of Submariners were in the 36mm range, check out the one that Bond wears in Thunderball. But though the Subs moved up to 39.5mm, the Sea Wolf stayed at 35.5mm up into the early '70s (though they also sold the 43mm Super Sea Wolf at that time).
Early on, I occasionally would look at one of my Sea Wolves and think, "Dang, that's small." But I also had a bit of a problem adjusting to a 45mm watch, believe it or not. However, lately I've found I can switch from a 45.5mm Planet Ocean to a 35.5mm Sea Wolf in the same day, with no problem.
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That last photo has a good range of case sizes, but all seem comfortable on my wrist these days (note, the RGM is NOT mine, it was just on loan at the time).
One other thought though, the orange minute track on your Sea Wolf probably makes the dial appear smaller to you than if it was only one color all the way out to the chapter ring. Dial size probably has more to do with how large the watch appears anyway. Note that the 35.5mm Sea Wolf of the '60s actually had a full 28mm dial, the same size as most 40mm dive watches. They accomplished that by being very efficient with the real estate - the bezel is not very wide for one thing.
Whew, a long post, especially considering I've not had many chances to visit this site lately. In fact, the enamel bezel was added to the wolf pack since the last time I was able to swing by.
John