REVIEW: "Eating Iridescent Crow" - Invicta Pro-Diver Ghost Mechanical Bracelet Watch

[repOman]

May be my faulty memory here but didn't Stuhrling use the Bridge engines prior and I always loved the concept. I gotta say that the Bridge got my attention, and so cool Mr. Jingles that you bought into this design. Your pics and lengthy prose are so appropriate here. I'm still on the fence bout the iridescent but the Bridge
design helps here.

Corum uses the "bridge"...in many different concepts...if only I could afford them...

 

[ScottyB]

hail to the mouse copping the brooklyn bridge on the cheap... still a thrill

 

[mcemt]

Great review with good pictures on and off the wrist.

 

[grego]

The first time I had seen this iridescent treatment on a watch was in Disney World at the Boardwalk.
It was in a boutique store and it was a Zodiac brand watch for right around $800 and I really liked it and my wife told me to buy it. Well I didn't. I told my wife I could get the same watch off the internet for $500. Needless to say I still do not own a iridescent treated watch yet.

 

[misterjingles]

Well, you just never know when one might sneak up on you and pounce, just like THIS one did! Keep looking and stay well... ; )

 

[jimz]

REVIEW: “Eating Iridescent Crow” - Invicta Men's 47mm Pro Diver Ghost Mechanical Skeletonized Iridescent Stainless Steel Bracelet Watch (or simply, “Invicta Pro Diver Mens Mechanical 47mm Iridescent Case Black Dial - Model 26602,” from the Invicta website)

Quite a mouthful, in either case, no? Well, as much as I am loath to admit a mistake, it’s quite a watch, and it has certainly earned these grand names! But before I describe all of that, I do have to “eat a bit of crow,” as they say.

In the beginning, I never cared much for what Invicta referred to as its “iridescent” models. Perhaps I hadn’t been around jewelry circles all that much, as I’d never seen this rather odd finish anywhere other than in an industrial application, where the anodizing (from which the colors came) actually served to help prevent corrosion, or so I was told. Whatever its origin or purpose, I just didn’t like the looks of it when applied to a watch. Period. End of story. I took my horological ball and went home, smug in the knowledge that, once again, I was right, and no other opines needed to apply. (Membership at certain ‘other’ sites will do that to you, I’m afraid…But I digress.)

And then I happened to come across this very self-same watch in one of the local TJMAXX stores, up in Smell-A, where – as much as I hate to admit it – I’m originally from. I did a double-take. And then a long stare. And then I asked to see the doggoned thing. And – behold!! – it was really cool-looking, up close like that! And then came the kicker: a price tag of only $79 Smacks, USD! 79 clams! 79 bones! Boo-YAH!! And then, making that final mistake we’re always so prone to making, I slipped it on. ‘DANG it to Pete’ I thought. ‘That don’t look too bad a’tall!’ (Okay, so sometimes my inner voice takes on a bit of a Canadian lilt; what can I say, ay?) I had my missus pick it up for me while I hid behind the UCLA sweatshirts. (Oh, jeez, the indignity of THAT!)

I brought it home, sized it up and took some snaps. I then fed it into the WIT ‘Look What I Got’ page. Man, I was really getting into this danged watch! It made its way into the ‘ol regular rotation, and the rest became histoi’, as they say. And before we go on, I suppose now would be a good time to post this fine watch’s particulars…

WATCH PARTICULARS

Item model number: 26602
Model Year: 2018
Watch Country of Origin: China
Movement Country of Origin: China (Note 1)
Movement Type: Mechanical (“Bridge” configuration), 20 Jewels, 2-Hand
Movement Caliber: JQ-R005 (Nickel)
Case Measurements: 47mm
Thickness: 14mm
Case Material: Stainless steel (With “iridescent finish,” see Note 2)
Bezel: Unidirectional rotating
Crystal: Mineral (With “Flame Fusion” process, see Note 3)
Luminescence: Tritnite™ by Invicta (See Note 4)
Crown: Screw down
Bracelet: Stainless steel (With “iridescent finish”)
Bracelet Measurements: 8-1/4" L x 22mm W
Clasp: Fold-over diver’s with safety clasp
Water Resistance: 10 ATM - 100 meters - 330 feet
Reviewer’s Notes:

Note 1 – There is some disagreement among the major watch-sellers as to exactly which country the JQ-R005 movement is from; about half say China, while the remaining half list it as being from Japan. I ultimately went with China, as it is the country of origin listed on Invicta’s own website.

Note 2 – Usually referred to as “Rainbow Metal” in both jewelry and manufacturing circles, Invicta’s “iridescent finish” can be accomplished either by applying heat directly to the surface of metal (usually stainless steel), or by immersing it in electrolyte fluid, to which an electrical current is applied. The former is referred to as “heat anodizing,” and is normally accomplished with a high-temp gas torch, with the technique typically being used in larger, more industrial applications. The latter technique is called “electrolytic anodizing,” and is normally used in smaller applications, such as the making of jewelry, to include watch components. “Heat anodizing” produces colors that depend on the overall temperature of the metal, while “electrolytic anodizing” produces specific colors as the result of how much current is applied over a certain timeframe. The “rainbow effect” is achieved by varying the amount of heat or current over the surface of a single piece or component. (Easy-peasy, lemon-squeezy!)

Note 3 – The Invicta “Flame-Fusion” process, whereby mineral glass and sapphire crystal are somehow combined to create an ideal watch crystal that is both scratch and shatter-resistant. Claiming it’s a proprietary process, Invicta will discuss neither the process itself nor any compounds used in its creation.

Note 4 – Invicta’s compound that provides luminous elements in its watches, usually hour markers and bezel highlights. Like the Flame Fusion process in Note 3 above, Invicta closely guards its ingredients and processes used in the creation of “Tritnite.” Many collectors consider Tritnite to be less effective than other commercial luminescent compounds, such as Superluminova.™

APPEARANCE

Now that I’ve owned the watch for a few months, I have to say that I’ve really come to like it a lot. Its 47mm case size is reminiscent in both appearance and feel to my much-loved “Grand Divers,” and I’ve long been a fan of the “bridge” movement configuration. But the greater truth of the matter, at least in my case, is that I really do like its iridescent finish, especially for the way it draws all of the elements – size, appearance and color – together to make a watch that is very attractive, comfortable and functional.

Granted, this isn’t a timepiece (Oooh, he said that evil WORD!!) that everyone’s going to be able to wear, but it is one of those watches that’s going to have a very loyal following. There may not be tens of thousands of us out there who really like the watch enough to buy and wear it, but there are certainly enough fans to make it profitable for Invicta to keep making them. In many ways, it reminds me of the divided opinion over white watches as a man’s accessory; some really liked it, some didn’t; some will wear it and enjoy it, others won’t give it a second look. It’s all a matter of taste and preference.

What’s that old bromide? “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder?” Yeah, it’s old and bromidic, but that doesn’t make it any less true, or even wise. I know a lot of watch aficionados won’t like this offering simply because that “iridescent thingy” is just too, well, unusual, or even weird for their tastes. I get it, and I respect their feelings for all of that. I just hope that that respect will be both honored and reciprocated. Sadly, this isn’t always the case, but one tries to remain optimistic and see that danged iridescent glass as being half full.

ENGINEERING

I’m sure that someone will disagree with me when I express the opine that probably no one buys this watch for its cutting-edge engineering and operational accuracy. Sure, it’s fun to look into that [almost] all-glass case and see the unusual movement grinding away; I just don’t think you should be expecting to see a COSC version of this watch anytime soon. (Unless, of course, a spiteful Eyal reads this and says, “Oh YEAH, mister smarty-pants rodent-boy, wheel just haff to see about DAT!”) Still, unusual engineering is cool engineering, so there ARE a lot of us Horological nerds out there who love to look at and enjoy the unique functioning and layout of a mechanical “power plant” like this one. However, I don’t think there will be many – if any! – who will try and interpolate how many seconds fast or slow it runs. It’s just not THAT kind of a watch…

‘But what about the lume?’ you ask, with bated breath. Well, if you want lume, then you shall have lume, by gum!

FIT, FEEL & COMFORT

I hear a lot of my fellow armchair Horologists say that they have a “sweet spot” when it comes to their preferred case size in watches. Go too much above or below that spot, and discomfort increases, until, well, we do the horological equivalent of saying “uncle!” and return that ‘Grande Ginormos-Subaqua ABDA Project NOMA 73mm automatic dress dive watch’ back to where you got it! Sweet spots are a good thing, and I like to use them to help discuss the highly-subjective concepts of Fit, Feel & Comfort. These concepts are SO subjective, in fact, that we often contradict ourselves when describing how each watch fits.

Ferinstance, Yours Truly has a typical “sweet spot” of 40-42mm. Yet, I can easily – and quite comfortably, I might add – go about my day with a Grand Diver of 47mm strapped on the old wristaroo. I can tolerate 48 and even 49mm, but I wouldn’t describe these sizes as comfortable. Yet, despite this set of informal Family Jingles guidelines, there are certain 50mm watches that I have no trouble with wearing, namely my small contingent of automatic SAN III’s and a SAN I re-release. They’re “Big’uns,” as Larry Megan would say, but they’re very comfortable, else I wouldn’t keep them.

Soooo, finally coming to the point – hopefully before you haul out those guy-who-has-faceplanted-on-his-laptop-out-of-sheer-boredom gifs – I find this watch to be exceptionally comfortable, even though its 47mm size is a bit high on the old ‘sweet spot chart.’ The standard, 22mm wide oyster-style bracelet is very comfy, does not pinch, and does not pull arm hair. Ditto the fold-over-clasp-with-safety-keeper. It has the standard “micro-adjustment” feature to ensure the bracelet is sized right down to the gnat’s derriere to ensure that you get max Fit, Feel & Comfort.

This Pro-Diver Iridescent Ghost watch is, in fact, even more comfortable than a standard Grand Diver, almost certainly because its innards are smaller – and hence weigh less – than the innards of a Grand Diver, which is larger and, of course, heavier. (And I apologize if I used too many technical terms in describing the weight delta phenomenon…)

CONCLUSION & SHAMELESS EDITORIALIZING

Bottom line, I have gone from a guy who used to say that the whole “iridescent thing” was the horological equivalent of putting a $15,000 pearlescent paint job on a Yugo and calling it the “next big thing” in the world of automobile development. But, all kidding aside, I slowly began to come around until the day I actually saw this watch in TJMAXX’s glassed-in jewelry counter. I decided – then and there – that I really liked the way the colors looked, from pink areas and small patches of dull gold, to the vast zones where the central color – sort of an aqua-teal – held sway. I thought, “Dang, that’s pretty doggoned cool! I kind of like that!”

And when I took note of the other cool features – the “bridge” movement and see-through/skeleton case, not to mention the extremely comfortable fit – I found out that this really IS a watch that I want in my rotation. Of course, when you admit to liking an Invicta, you open yourself up to ridicule from those who know from nothing about you or the watch you’ve had on your wrist, giving it a try because you liked the way it looked, and have an open mind to the idea that sometimes even lowly, often-bungling Invicta gets it right. This Pro-Diver Ghost mechanical watch got everything right, and I’m pleased to give it a solid across-the-board excellent review. It’s a fun watch, and I enjoy the H-E-Double-Hockey-Sticks out of it!!

And, to me, that’s what watch collecting should always be about, rather than belonging to a self-styled and smug little intelligentsia who think that watch collecting should be about crusading against a brand they hate, or castigating a person who thinks outside of their very carefully and meticulously-crafted little box, the existence of which they will deny at all costs, because to admit that it exists is to admit that they are the ones with the closed minds and unbending way at looking at the world.

I mean, seriously now, does anybody really think that they truly ENJOY their type of watch collecting? Heck, does anybody think that they’re all happy, energetic citizens over in North Korea? Really?


As always, many thanks for slogging through one of my ‘mousterpieces.’ And many, many thanks for allowing me to come and be a part of this “safe, warm and well-lighted place” in which to truly experience the joys of watch collecting among good friends. You guys rock.

M. Jingles, Haifa Israel, 1/19/19



Copyright ©2019, Mortuus Fakeuus Productions, a Division of Mortuus Aviation, LLC. All Rights Preserved with Formalin™ and myrr.

Very nice review, and well presented, kudos, and wear your new grail proudly...

 

[ScottyB]

Very nice review, and well presented, kudos, and wear your new grail proudly...

BUMP to the mouse... 2Many in the stretch by a nose... MOUSE & 2Many doing gr8 reviews loving their tools

 

[usclassic]

Congrats enjoy your new bridge to iridescent happiness

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[johnro6659]

I have one of these I bought a couple years ago after Christmas on clearance for $49.00. I love it! Actually they had a bunch of Invictas at $49 on clearance at that store and I bought a half dozen half iridescent. I read that they most likely used titanium nitride over the stainless by Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) to do the finish. When I first saw these watches I was concerned the finish would rub or wear off. I did some research and from what I read it's pretty long lasting. Later I was at a friends who has iridescent dinner ware and has has it for some time and over the years the dish washer and sanitizing cycle hasn't changed the finish at all.

 

[misterjingles]

I have one of these I bought a couple years ago after Christmas on clearance for $49.00. I love it! Actually they had a bunch of Invictas at $49 on clearance at that store and I bought a half dozen half iridescent. I read that they most likely used titanium nitride over the stainless by Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) to do the finish. When I first saw these watches I was concerned the finish would rub or wear off. I did some research and from what I read it's pretty long lasting. Later I was at a friends who has iridescent dinner ware and has has it for some time and over the years the dish washer and sanitizing cycle hasn't changed the finish at all.

Many, many thanks for this superb bit of info that adds to the true information value of this review as a whole. HIS is exactly what I'm talking about when I tell our new members that this is a place where someone always seems to have the accurate [and much-needed] answer to many of the myriad questions posed here, day-in & day-out. Again, John, many thanks for this invaluable info, and have yourself an awesome Thanksgiving holiday!!