Relax...Just Watch.

Relax...Just Watch.
With no day and date complication, watching is perpetual.

(explorer @ villa park, kuala lumpur, malaysia)

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012

Hopefully it is not too late to wish you all a happy new year 2012.

I think it's gonna be a casual season for my Explorer this year.

SEIKO 7S26-0020 vs ROLEX 3130 Re Test

ROLEX EXPLORER and SEIKO DIVER'S RE TESTED AND COMPARED AFTER 9 MONTHS OF HEAVY USAGE.

Conclusion:
With the price tag,
with all the day-date complication,
with the age circa 1996 2001 Production date 1D (same age as the Explorer K series)
SEIKO 7S26(A)-0020 functions accordingly as expected.(including the SKX013)

With the price tag,
without day-date complication,
with COSC standard,
with the age circa 2001 (K series),
ROLEX 3130 function accordingly as expected.

I'm happy with both watches, plus the Pro Trek as well.

I'm returning the 7S26 gold plated to my dad. Hopefully he will be happy with the performance of the overhauled watch too.

If God willing, perhaps the next test will be a high end Seiko Movement vs Rolex Movement. I'm hoping to get a sample for the test, (I mean if I got extra cash to purchase the next watch and to do the testing, not to purchase just for testing :-)). The bulky Marine Master perhaps...?aaaa...just wait.

Japanese's high end mechanical movement is known for it consistency and reliability, can wait for the next purchase...no problem, not in hurry.

SOMEBODY NEED TO TEST THIS :-) ( as I couldn't find it in youtube).

(A3) ACCURACY AND RELIABILITY
My Marine Master is almost on par with my Submariner Date. Both watches are running at +5 to +7 seconds per month. For the Seiko Marine Master priced at 1/3 the cost of a Rolex Submariner, I would say that it is good value for the money. However, we have yet to see a Marine Master perform accurately for a 10 to 20 year period for they have not been around that long. Rolex Submariners from the 1980s can run very accurately for their age. Some owners claim accuracy of about +/- 10 to 15 seconds per month.

Both watches have been tested in the open ocean and not in some machine isolated a watch laboratory. Rolex had officially issued COMEX and US Navy SEALS professional divers with Submariners and Sea Dwellers for their jobs. Likewise, Seiko had issued Japanese Marine Biologists with their watches as well. Not to mention the countless testimonials from deep sea divers, their trust on Rolex and Seiko. Thus, I would say that they are “battle” proven over the years.

The down side to the Marine Master is that it must be sent back to Japan for maintenance. The regional Seiko service centers do not conduct servicing of the 8L35 movement. Warranty is only valid in Japan. On the other hand, Rolex service centers are around the world. This also makes the Marine Master a much rarer watch outside Japan when compared to the Submariner or Sea Dweller. Warranty is international.
source :

Seiko Marine Master vs Rolex Submariner Date (Version 3)

Exploring Vientiane - 2.00 am in the morning.

I couldn't sleep. So I packed up my gear and went a walk by myself looking for an interesting subject at 2:00 am.

Patuxai Monument
"It's already late, no entry sir," says the guard
"Just gimme 10 minutes ... please ... big dogs you have there..."

Patuxai - literally meaning Victory Gate or Gate of Triumph, formerly the Anousavary or Anosavari Monument known by the French as Monument Aux Morts) is a war monument in the centre of Vientiane, Laos, which was built between 1957 and 1968. Patuxai is dedicated to those who fought in the struggle for independence from France. In romanising the name from the Laotian language, it is variously transliterated as Patuxai, Patuxay, Patousai and Patusai. It is also given the name of Patuxai Arch or the Asian version of Arc de Triomphe of Vientiane as it has general resemblance to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris; however, it is typically Laotian in design, decorated with many Buddhist mythological figurines such as of kinnari (half-female, half-bird figures) - Uncle Wiki

Finally, I got the Peace Gong.

Gong Perdamaian Dunia - World Peace Gong (History)

Where is Vientiane?

From a distance, at night, the street and the monument reminds me slightly of Paris too, but of course here with extremely peace. And for sure I couldn't get this shot during office hour.

 Have you ever watched that movie... American Werewolf in London?

What a Crazy Night!

Vientiane Laos , 8th June

2:36 am

Points to ponder:

Just imagine, if you are in the middle of nowhere at 2:00 am, with your cameras on, handphone (off course), and you get stopped by strangers, what will you do? What will be the first thing they will search for?

It's nothing to be proud of, and I'm just sharing my experience. But as usual, if you need to get the shot, then you need to get the picture - at the right time.

Anyway, never do this at home friends.

Maggie MeeXplorers

Explorer 114270 in the middle of nowhere...

Instant noodles is the best way to ease your growling stomach perhaps just about 10 minutes before it really screaming for heavy meals.

Traveling is fun, but sometime it is not easy for some of us, especially the food; for those who are abide by religion they can't simply consume any foods. Therefore the best way is to get ready with snacks and have it anywhere and hold to it before you reach the intended destination and seriously unpack the 'halalun' Brahim Instant Nasi Beriani rations ...:-) and balun.

Black Magic Woman

Black Magic Woman :-)

(Explorer 114270 on black leather strap... another prototype of mine)

The Rugged Modern Vintages.

The black crackled Zippo was a present from my friends in 1996.

Rugged Modern Retro looks of the discontinued Rolex 114270

Peace No War :-)

Rolex Explorer Wrist Shot @ Laos - Viet Nam Border

Rolex Explorer Wrist Shot @ Laos - Viet Nam Border

Explorer Engine 3130 - Robust Simple Elegance?

K series Explorer 114270

The Engine 3130 - Robust Simple Elegance?

28800 bph / 8 herzt

The same engine that powered the Submariner No Date.

Something about K.

Montgomerie's original sketch in which he applied the notation K2

Although the summit of Everest is at a higher altitude, K2 is a much more difficult and dangerous climb, due in part to its more inclement weather and comparatively greater height from base to peak. The mountain is believed by many to be the world's most difficult and dangerous climb, hence its nickname "the Savage Mountain."
The name K2 is derived from the notation used by the Great Trigonometric Survey. In 1856, Thomas Montgomerie made the first survey of the Karakoram from Mount Haramukh, some 210 km (130 miles) to the south, and sketched the two most prominent peaks, labelling them K1 and K2.
Thomas Montgomerie was the member of the team who designated it "K2" for being the second peak of the Karakoram range. The other peaks were originally named K1, K3, K4 and K5, but were eventually renamed Masherbrum, Broad Peak, Gasherbrum II and Gasherbrum I respectively.

Bermadu kasih - Sharing Love

Dua yang bermadu kasih.

I have no intention of purchasing others. Stop here and both are definitely keepers.

Diver's - bigger and heavier.

Look fierceful. Tend to feel its present on the wrist after wearing it for sometimes. What is this big chunky thing doing on my hand....?

I had met a law enforcer with a Diver's (rubber strap), when asked about the watch he commented enthusiastically "I go swimming and used to get caught in hostile environment with my Diver's on. This watch is tough, many have tasted it"

Explorer - Slimmer and lighter.

Look harmless but lethal only when people realised it.Very comfortable and it grows on you after sometimes.

People will take a glance and maybe stare at it for couple of seconds (this is where you will start feeling uncomfortable) and still, they can't figure it out.

"Yes, it is a stealthy Rolex and it is super low profile without the bracelet. I would say that it has the ability to give you that 'safe-feeling' that you really need when exploring new unknown places, in which even a fake Submariner is unsafe still."

Rolex Explorer 1 in action

My humble photos of the Explorer 1.

Hmong people hut on the hill side on the road to/from Luang Prabang

It is dark...looking thru the cockpit. The GPS shows the condition of the road.

Taking turn for a rest in a restless journey. Got nothing to do at the back...nearly 8 o'clock, China is still long way to go...as co-pilot I'm gonna take turn driving really soon.

The Streets of the Seven Countries.

An expedition participated by a group of youngs Malaysian explorers whom had travelled to the seven countries of Indo China. And the countries include Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, Luang Prabang, China and Burma.

It took them 22 days of heaven and hell, night and day, bone cracking, nerve wrecking journey (with 4x4 vehicles) through the hellish traffic of Cambodia, dusty roads of Laos, beaches of Viet Nam, hilly-holish roads of Luang Prabang, magnificent tunnels of China, that all together stretched up to approximately 10,000 km of snakey overland-journey dated back in May 2011 before safely making the home-run in June 2011.

Some of the still photos for the project above were taken using Rollei 35.

Time by Rolex Explorer 1.

Stealthiness of the Explorer

Seriously, you'll only appreciate the stealthiness of the Explorer if you were all alone as a stranger in the street of Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Burma, China and Thailand, esp at night.

And not forget to mention that, it is also usefull if you are trying to bargain for the lowest price of a shirt at the night market at Luang Prabang. If they don't notice the spot on your wrist, you'll get a good reasonable price for or a nice handmade craft by local.

Rgds.

Rolex Explorer Vs Seiko Diver's Movement Comparison

Rolex Explorer Ref 114270

Rolex Explorer Ref 114270

A watch doesn’t look like other Rolex watches, it is a Rolex watch that rarely inherits Rolex’s traditional features, but it is being sold at a high price.

Mercedes-Benz hands, it’s dial design is similar to Submariner’s, Arabic numeral luminous markers at 3, 6 and 9 o’clock, smooth bezel, similar to Ref 16200, low key, but good looking.

Rolex Ref 114270 is equipped with Cal 3130 movement, but is the only one Cal 3130 that has been certified by COSC.

In fact, we can get the actual quality of the Cal 3130 movement from one side, the reason why a lot of 3130 movements had not done the COSC testing is Rolex has taken the commercial factors into account – pull the grade of product lines and price gap.

There is also a story about Ref 114270 – everyone thought that 114270 was specially designed for the explorers to climbing Mount Everest. In fact, Ref 114270 was produced after Everest.

The most worthy steel Rolex watches are Ref 114270, or Ref 14060M.

text source :http://www.rolex-chat.com/category/rolex-explorer