Zelos Mako 500m dive watch ABTW review

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roadwarrior

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ZELOS MAKO 500M DIVE WATCH REVIEW https://www.ablogtowatch.com/zelos-mako-500m-dive-watch-review/

APR 13, 2018 — BY AARON SHAPIRO

Zelos-Mako-Dive-Watch-01.jpg


The sudden and prolific onslaught of microbrands in the watch world is a product of the ingenuity of independent designers that want to do their own thing. Utilizing platforms like Kickstarter and Gofundme, they gain the capital needed to create a product of impressive quality and reasonable price while appealing to a very wide audience. Zelos is a great example and they're a Singapore-based watch company captained by Elshan Tang that focuses their design on utilizing special and unusual materials like Bronze, Carbon Fiber, and Meteorite. One of their recent releases – the Zelos Mako 500M Diver – is a perfect example of what a microbrand can produce when they really put their minds to it.

Zelos-Mako-Dive-Watch-06.jpg


The bezel caps off this really impressive package. It's a 120-click ceramic bezel that is fully lumed. That's bananas to me. At the time of this review the Mako costs around $749 (more on the pricing later), and it includes a fully lumed ceramic bezel. I can't think of a competitive option to that off the top of my head. Value aside, the bezel is a good one albeit a bit on the stiff side. It has a coarse styled coin edge that grips pretty well, although I find myself gripping it at 12 and 6 to turn it.

Zelos-Mako-Dive-Watch-05.jpg


Lastly, the crown. This is the Achilles' heel of the watch. The crown is roughly 5.4mm wide and a little difficult to grip. That can be problematic on a screw down crown because if you screw it down too tight, then it's a pain to get it loose again. Another gripe about the crown is that after you've adjusted the time and you are screwing it back in, the winding mechanism does not disengage, so you are turning the crown with resistance as you tighten it down. I don't know if that's true of all Sellita movements, but it can make the crown a little unnecessarily "fidgety" and hard to deal with. Although in reality, you won't be messing with the crown a lot. You'll get it set and leave it set for the few days that you wear it before rotating it out. One last little footnote regarding the crown that I did not notice till the writing of this article: the brand logo engraving in the crown is filled with lume, kind of a cool little touch.

Zelos-Mako-Dive-Watch-20.jpg


CONCLUSION

Before I summarize my thoughts on the Zelos in general, I wanted to touch on their pricing model. When this watch started out it could be had for $399 and then with each successive batch sell-out, the price went up, topping out at $749. I think that $399 is decidedly too cheap for a watch of this quality, and $749 a bit too high. I also think that the scaling price adds some confusion/pressure to the buying process that is unnecessary. This is a good product. I believe it should be priced at what it's worth, and it will perform as it should.
 
luv the eye candy ...adds a new dimension to oldie wave dial--lumed ceramic bezel...saweet...hail the miracle of asian production-
 
I gotta agree with Scotty, 100%!
 
Thanks Mike. I really like the look of this watch. Not a huge fan of the price point now, but what a deal at 399 if you were able to get it.
 
I learned the hard way with a few of ET's designs, now I check the crown specs before buying. Everything I've read about this model except for the crown has been very positive. I'm glad I did not jump because of it, the small crowns are a real PIA.

Lastly, the crown. This is the Achilles' heel of the watch. The crown is roughly 5.4mm wide and a little difficult to grip. That can be problematic on a screw down crown because if you screw it down too tight, then it's a pain to get it loose again. Another gripe about the crown is that after you've adjusted the time and you are screwing it back in, the winding mechanism does not disengage, so you are turning the crown with resistance as you tighten it down.
 
I learned the hard way with a few of ET's designs, now I check the crown specs before buying. Everything I've read about this model except for the crown has been very positive. I'm glad I did not jump because of it, the small crowns are a real PIA.

Ordered the Batman version at $399, a great watch, excellent fit and finish, and true deal at that price. The Lume is outstanding, the Bezel alignment and action is excellent, the Selitta auto movement has been running at (+2Sec/24 Hrs.), the dial and ceramic Bezel look great together, even the vintage rubber strap is quite nice and comfortable on the wrist. I hate the crown, the size is way too small, and very difficult for my average fingers to manipulate. Reminds me of the undersize crown that Elshan used on my Bronze V2 Meteorite Watch. Definitely the only weak link of this timepiece, IMHO.
I will not purchase another Zelos with this undersized crown.
 
As I told Mike when asked the crown wind on my Bronze Meteorite design is a royal pain in the
bumkus . Just difficult to grip and wind.
 
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