Code RED -- Aragon Superjet

2manywatches

Tyme Machine
Joined
Jul 23, 2019
Messages
2,749
Well, first things first, I can’t count, ahaha! :palm:

For some deluded reason, likely the result of a mind unbalanced by this hobby, I thought I had purchased seven Wing masterpieces, in total, since first finding the brand here, which I voiced in a comment to Mister Jingles. Wrong! I am well deserving of a slap. Then again, I just am coming off of a fevered state of fighting some stupid flu for the past week, so maybe some allowance can be granted.

Somewhere in posting about what I had, and had incoming, my wretched math skills, which have failed me since senior high school days, came back to haunt me. :think::think::think:

So, correction, this is my fifth Aragon! I think I was also mentally adding in the one I first bought for my brother that kicked off this mini-addiction-within-an-addiction spell. But, that would only make six, since even my numerically challenged un-skills can’t say that five plus a fictitious one is seven!

:banghead:

So, it seems I owe myself two more, at some point (how's THAT for math skills!), right?! All of this is quite odd, frankly, given that I am a whiz with numbers in business, when needed, haha. But, on to the post….

As I’d mentioned with the yellow Divemaster, inspired by BigBass posting up his yellow Superjet, months back, the red Superjet he also bought stuck with me. I have few red dial watches. Seemed appropriate to post up here on Christmas Day, given the jolly crimson color associated with the holiday.

Granted, I have few red shirts, and exactly zero red pants, but, with the watch dials I have, of blacks and greens and oranges and blues and yellows and whites (and even a purplish one), it seemed that not adding a bit more red might be a dire horological oversight! And, I still wanted a Superjet! I love my yellow Divemaster, but the pics of the Superjets were enticing, and, with a price drop, Wing had me!

Wing also helped with a bit of clutter. Turns out there is an option NOT to get yet another watch box, for us nutters with too many time keepers, and I felt like I exercised champion level restraint to JUST get the watch, and opt not for the box. Always nice to feel better about that trigger pull!

And, on the no-box side, hats off to Aragon, for the watch arriving, sans box, so wonderfully and safely packaged! Triple bubble wrap and double cardboard boxing, and my Superjet arrived, super fast, and super safe.

Now, we all know photos can be deceiving, and, at first, the red was a bit….misleading, I guess, in person. Not sure what I envisioned, maybe a kind of a fire truck red I suppose, but in certain lighting it’s almost a tomato soup kind of thing (plus the red seconds hand can disappear onto the red dial, at a glance, although the “logo” counterbalance does stand out – and is lumed!).

But, the red quickly grew on me, given that, in other light, the hue is much more pronounced, so, it’s one of those aspects of the metallic finishing, I suppose, where play of light plays a big hand.


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Anyway, my possible musing of, “hmm, do I like this?” lasted, I’d say, a scant few minutes at the most, once it was sized and on the wrist and looking amazing, particularly with that black and red (Coke?) bezel, which is my first one, I believe, of that ilk. Always something new to add, even with a lot of watches already in the fold.

And, I was very easily and very much won over too by what I liked in the photo presentation BigBass first gave, when sharing his buys, which is that this model has a LOT of unique elements to it.

I mean, just look at all that’s going on here….


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With a kind of stacking effect, we have the bezel itself, sloping up to a raised inner stainless ring, punctuated by lumed hour indices, capped off by the raised crystal. Bezel markings are both atop the bezel, and then engraved on the bezel side, at alternating five minute marks, so, 10 on the bezel top, 15 on the bezel side, 20 back at the top, etc.

This complimenting mimicry is augmented by hexed hollows between numerals up top, and rounded holes between those on the side, with the top ones even having mixed finishing, a polished hex outline with a matte and textured silver bottom.


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No, the finishing is not perfect, but, wow, it’s a lot of creative effort here, yes?? Not just slapping on a bezel and calling it a watch, that’s for sure.

And, then we have the stepped up design evident on the case as well, on the side where the helium release resides, and mirrored on the crown side as well. I love the toothy “geared” look of the screw down crown itself, and let’s talk about that bracelet!


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I just loved the look of it, when I saw first saw pics, but, in person, it’s an even more pleasing adornment of functional art. Extremely flexy, so it’s super comfortable, the “barrel” looking end pieces are screws, so, the actual hardware of the link adjoinment is part of the bracelet itself. One side is a “post” piece, passing through the link itself as well as through the center of the link above it to join them together, and it is threaded, so the “screw” sided piece then screws into it, and, presto, links are adjoined!

**This made adjustment a cinch, although I’d pause here, to ask BigBassHunter if I should Loctite all of these?? I’ve had zero screw movement, since doing the sizing, but perhaps I’m just wise to be proactive. Or, anyone else with this bracelet design, please weigh in on any concerns about the screws working themselves out, over time…


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I think it looks fantastic, makes for a supple bracelet with a stand-out design, and, again, Wing just gets huge points here for being a creative watch dude. Watches as jewelry is greatly enhanced when turning the bracelet into an item with stand-alone attraction.


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Came with a scissored, machined clasp, although mine has some slight issue, in that I need to be quite firm in making sure it engages and locks. Doesn’t ever come loose, just doesn’t click closed readily like most button clasps. I may have it swapped out, if it becomes annoying. Thus far, it’s not worrisome.


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120 click bezel works beautifully, as has been the case on all Aragons I’ve bought, although I’d say here, with the smooth finishing, the firmness of the ratcheting is a tad counter-functional on a bezel with very little grip. But, again, a minor point, and I consider that this cost not much over a hundred bucks, which leaves me nearly zero room to gripe about expecting perfection in every attribute (I know, so I should stop whining, right?!).

Given that I opted for the 50mm size, it is a handsomely girthy brute, but the downturned lugs and beefy bracelet really tame it on the wrist, despite the satisfying bit of weight it carries.

The dial itself is another top attraction. The applied, large index marks have the lume sitting atop a bevel ended polished piece, and the day/date window (black on white background) is also beveled. Sitting inside a properly deep case, the view behind the K1 crystal gives a feeling of room suitable for stadium seating in there. The hands themselves are also not the run of the mill, bearing split openings.


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Reliable accuracy is provided by Seiko’s NH36, although I note there is an ETA 2824 version of this model which, currently on sale for just over six hundred bucks, is a sweet proposition, with the added upgrades of sapphire crystal and lumed bezel. Unfortunately, the only dial option is a Damascus design, of which I’m not a fan. Would be interesting to compare overall finish quality on that model, though, to this one.

Given Wing's excellence in turning functional aspects like a bracelet into high art, I remain hopeful that he'll re-work the rotor at some point beyond it's plain appearance. Yes, a lot to ask, I know, on an affordable movement, but hey, it's Christmas!


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My index alignment is not perfect, but only at perfectionist standards. Again, this is not a Patek, haha. But, geez, if Wing ever let loose on a high end design, the Swiss should be put on notice. Wing’s got mad watch skills!!! Seriously, even though more on budget tool standards, perhaps, just for fit and finish, the design here is superlative and, despite owning a fair lot of watches, personally, this presents a new and fresh take.

Lume is plentiful – and does more profoundly reveal the misalignment of the markers, which is not as evident in casual daylight glances. But, you can see where they don’t match to that fixed inner bezel ring. Not a deal breaker, for me, but, as with any brand, a reminder for mindfulness in detail, especially with a $500 MSRP. Granted, I didn't pay that, thanks to the sale, but still, no need to skip over details of quality control.


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I like the lumed second hand, as well as the lumed insignia on the crown, and there is that added inner bezel ring with the lumed dots, as well as a lumed triangular pip, so, lots of lumey goodness!

In my final blathering thoughts here, I'll just say it's always interesting, what watches “retail” for, and the price at which they can be bought. Even my Oris, if I’d gone the AD route, I likely would not have felt it worth it, but, at a grand less than AD’s prices, (while still coming with a 3 year, jeweler based warranty), it was a ton of watch. Chris Ward, the same – send me a coupon and put a model on sale, and it’s a steal, but, full price, not as much appeal and this follows with many brands.

With Aragon, the “regular” prices do seem high for what one gets, but the sale prices are no-brainers, at least for me, versus what else is on the market. Seems variants of the Invicta MSRP game are very often in play, across a lot of brands.

Not sure where that puts watches in terms of “value” but that’s another question entirely. I don’t flip mine, so, for me, it always comes down to just how little I can pay for how much watch I can get, and I’m sure enjoying these Aragon buys, from that perspective.

So, Wing and his engineering once again finds a happy home with me, on my wrist. I feel quite confident it won’t be the last one I buy, even though it will be, for this year.

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It’s been rewarding to have found a brand that seems to be in a state of constant creative push, with plenty of fresh ideas mixed in with traditional tropes. I’m quite certain exciting designs will continue from the mind of Wing, and, for me, especially when these come at near give-away sale pricing, it’s easy to assume I will be back again for future buys.

Thus, I’ll likely hit my errant claim of seven, or even more, as time goes by…

Thanks all for reading! I hope everyone has a fantastic Christmas and New Year. Be safe and share lots of love!

Thanks for this great community! :up::up::up:
 
Thanks! And, yuppers, definitely grew on me, by the second, haha, and I was quickly very pleased with the color.
 
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