Alessandro Staffetta (Our very own Alex) piece has arrived.......

sota0003

Tyme Master
Founding Member
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Jul 15, 2014
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So as you guys know we have a watchmaker on the forum...one of many. He is from Italy and has the handle alex693 here. As you know i have been selling off and consolidating and getting fewer but nicer pieces. I knew alex was just starting his brand and I, as many here, loved his designs. I emailed him back and forth and we can up with a game plan and he let this baby fly. Here are some initial thoughts on it as I just got it out of the box. It is worth mentioning that before he sent it he sent me a short vid of him timing it and it was +13 s/d. I guess that's good for and eta 2824?????? Anyway he did UPS and it was on my door in 2 days from Italy!!!!

So the box was gigantic and I couldn't figure out what it was at first. Once I saw it was his I figured he had a box of some kind or waaaayyy over packaged. His wrapped the thing like a tank. It literally took me about 5 min to get the box opened and then unbubblewrapped. He did a superb job of safely packaging it. The large wooden box was nice but noting to write home about. I think as his brand grows he will need to sand the box down more, stain it and brand his logo on it. Inside was a nice laser etched then clear coated plaque from him. Inside the foam was the watch and a screwdriver. Nice screwdriver but again as the brand grows an AS version will add to the presentation. Bag has gaskets in it.

Initial Impression...large watch with massive wrist presence without being Gauge big. I think this one is 48mm east west and 53mm NS. I really really love the finish on this. It is electropolished (I could explain but look it up to save reading here:)) so it has kind of a bead blasted look about it yet shinier. It almost sparkles yet it's a dull sparkle that isn't glittery if that makes any sense. Good weight but not too long luge to lug. It fits better than a Gauge maybe due to the shrouded lugs. About those...I really like it better than I thought I would. I think mesh would work on this piece but don't think a bracelet would...just FYI. Good solid machining throughout. There is one small imperfection in the finish around the 11:00 part of the bezel but it looks more like a smudge than a marr but it's there. I'd like to see a tad better finishing at the price point he is asking ($1500 if i remember right). The crown guard speaks for itself and really defines the piece IMHO. The crown is quite still to pull out and since I bite my nails I resorted to the edge of a credit card. ETA 2824 movement...nuff said there. The lines on the case sides are crisp and clean with no caffeine. The large flat surface on the case sides are perfect and as we all know large open spaces have to be perfect or the flaw really stands out. Super comfy caseback. Slides easy and the screws are recessed so you don't feel any of them. Great all around

The strap is made by him I believe. 24mm. Good quality but again at this price point I'd like to see a tad better quality strap on there. It is soft and supple and great thickness...guessing 4mm. It suits the piece. Well made with solid stitching. I especially love the green/white/red accent stitching!! I guess maybe I'm making it sound like it is subpar. It is a great strap but at the price point the small things matter and this one could use 5lbs more ommph to put the strap over the top if that makes any sense. The Pre-V buckle with his logo is absolutely dynamite!!!! Great thickness and awesome finishing. At 24mm the strap game is endless and by brown skull embossed strap will most certainly make a visit to this watch.

The dial is amazing as well. I don;t know if he does these or has them done but they are every bit as good as any other amazing dial I've seen. Nothing but A++++++++++ on the craftsmanship on the dial. Crisp lines and flawless finishing as far as the eye can see. Cali dial hotness...hadn't heard "The Hotness" in a while.... I like the hand shape and boldness of the hands. Glace test is spot on. Great lume too. It was much better than I thought it may be. Nice uniform glow that lasts long.

The crystal. Kind of peeved here. It's plexi. Now, I understand why he may do it. He does machining and races karts so I see the advantage to plexi there. But again at the price point I want sapphire or something comperable. Mine arrived with hairline scratches that will have to be buffed out. I'm guessing from the rougher foam. Wrap in saran is my mantra. He made it right so I'm square there. Not happy but I can get them out. I'll need info on the best way guys thx.

So whats the take away from all this. The pros: overall look, dial, movement, electropolishing finish. The cons: crystal, one mark on bezel and A- strap. Overall I say that this is one H-E-Double hockey sticks of a watch. I do think people may be scared off by the price tag initially but hopefully as the brand grows and people hear about him it will work. Would I buy the watch again? Yes most definitely I would 10X over. Would I spend $1500? For a few tweaks as mentioned above, yes for sure. The pros far outweigh the cons here and I think most are due to being new to the game. We all got better at our craft the more we did, heard, saw and were told. Give Alex a holler. His english is pretty good and we had no trouble communicating at all. Stand up dude that did what he said when he said he'd do it. Trusted seller. I'd buy from him again. Thanks for reading this far if you did. Onto the pics!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

OVERALL GRADE: A-

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With little effort the plexiglass can always be pristine. Your watch crowns are all over the places :)
Pretty cool :up: I like it !
 
Congrats Brad. That is a beast of a watch there. Looks pretty dang good though. Enjoy it sir.
 
Very unique, congrats.

nice review no stinkin' cheer leader u Brad... california cool dial i read is to orient frogmen straight out of the water who might be dazed and confused... nice custom piece there Brad and kudos for Alex from Italy intro
 
An excellent, honest write-up that's unafraid to call a flaw a flaw. I'm very impressed with this kind of honesty, as it is so often eschewed when it comes to dealing with a watchmaker as a member of a particular site. So good ON you, mon ami. As to the watch itself, the 'hidden lug' look was never my thing, and I pretty much got over it with the premier of the Xetum brand, which made the look their own for a number of years. On this watch, it looks pretty danged good, especially with the rather "industrial" appearances of the bezel and buckle, along with the interesting use of screws on the case back and 'hex-bolts' on the bezel. MY favorite thing, though, is that wonderful leather strap and the way it uses the Italian tri-colored thread in the stitching to tie watch and strap together. (I love details like that...)

I concur that the box is a bit less-than-exciting in its appearance, as it reminds me of the packaging we used to see over in Yokosuka containing all those Noritake knock-offs the less-than-reputable street venders were always trying to pass off as real to unsuspecting U. S. Sailors. But I digress...

Overall, I like the watch, though at $1500 smacks, I think I might've passed and picked up something else. Still, YOU have to be the one who's pleased with this buy, and none of us really matter, a lesson I learned not all that long ago as I made my transition to WIT as my online Horological home base. Whatever you decide to do, I hope you will enjoy it and be glad you made "the leap," or be glad that you exercised 'your 51%' as the buyer.
 
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