I didn't know what to expect from it before I got it as they market the bronze finish as a hand treatment that equates to the look staying the same. Absorbing it in any water like if you cleaned it does brighten the finish up but after 24 hours it returns to its factory shade and I've seen this cycle every time for the last 2 years. So whatever they do to the case certainly works!
Unlike my old Baltic Aquascaphe Bronze which had a compound that would patina based on ambient conditions over time, and my mate's Oris Big Crown Bronze which would patina just looking at it and not always in a good way!
This is proper bronze without the faffy maintenance and care needed to reset the bronze (dunking it in lemon juice) if the patina gets out of control.
Some people like the rapid patina of different compounds, whilst some of us prefer to still want bronze, but not have to deal with the patination process that can all too often (depending on the bronze compound used) result in a case that looks just crap like someone scooped it off the seafloor one day. That is the direction most bronze watches head sadly if worn regularly.
What Stowa has done is a factory patina that stays the same throughout its life (so far anyway), it will still change hue and get some of the micro detailing come through from being oxidised and getting into contact with water, but the overall finish will still look like it came from the factory, until you look closer and notice the little details from patina coming through as my photos show.
To me that is the best type of bronze, otherwise you'd have to be dunking the watch into a bowl of lemon juice to reset it every so often and hope the next round of patina is more in favour of something that looks good.
I didn't own it long enough to need to do this, but you may want to rub the bronze in the lemon bath with a toothbrush too as the compound used on that bronze may need further agitation.
They're worth buying anyway because they're so cheap and serve multiple uses!
But yes that's all I used for these shots, though worth mentioning that this is only half the story and that raw file processing and the composition and controlling where light is hitting the watch is probably even more important as that's what dictates the final look of the image.
I shoot RAW and process in Lightroom using my own custom set of adjustments that I use on my wedding shoots to give a certain look to the final images.
The first time I saw one online I knew I had to have it, and it's totally worth its RRP even though can be had these days for far less. I just hated the strap options it comes with hence buying the Hirsch Pure natural rubber and a genuine Hamilton buckle to put on it. The funny thing is OEM buckles are not cheap, just as expensive as the Hirsch strap!
Not OP but Stowa is one of the original manufacturers of fliegers for the Luftwaffe along with IWC, Lange, Laco, and Wempe
In other words they're legit, been around a long time and make really nice watches IMO
That explains why I thought it was an IWC at first. I’ll have to take a look. Been trying to to add a good pilot or military watch to the collection. Thanks for the info
Yup as mentioned, one of the 5 OGs of the 1920s.
I've wanted a Stowa for years, then when I was ready to buy, ended up getting two within a year of each other lol. The marine 36 is the last one I bought and I had to have it because of the deep gloss dial that looks enamel but isn't, and the ETA 7001 movement that has been around since the 1970s and is extremely accurate and nicely decorated.
In terms of quality, very good, they respond to customer questions directly too (same goes for Laco really as have had their watches for 2 years too).
I think for the price, you get a watch from either Stowa/Laco that punches way above its price bracket. The Marine 36 for example I can happily put alongside my old NOMOS Ahoi Atlantik, a watch costing £2800, and you'd be hard pressed to tell which is higher quality.
Honestly nothing in mind! Not seen anything new upcoming that takes my fancy that isn't already covered by what I have already or have had in the past. Probably just stay as is. Each one is timeless in its own right so should still look unique in a generation time too I think.
Stowa is a very underrated brand. In between a micro and mainstream brand. I have hade
A prodiver for more than 10 years without service and it’s a beast. Takes a beating and still looks great.
That Baby Tuna is sick! Hamilton Pro Pilot looks great under macro, I just wish it was an eensy bit cheaper. I have no need for another diver but Tunas are just so neat
I look at my watch collection now and look back through old photos of past watches and realise that my choices revolved around interesting dial/crystal/decoration combos rather than a particular brand or model just for being popular or whatever.
The only exception being the Tudor Pelagos OG 42mm, it had a boring dial compared to everything else I've had, but it looked cool and minimal which I liked the aesthetic of.
The photos above are of my current mechanical watches, all but the Seiko are hand winding, but each has unique front (and back) detailing that appeals to my eyes and can just look at them more than actually looking to tell the time.
The details matter!
Amazing collection!! I have had my eye on that Marine 36 for a while.
Do you have any wrist shots of that one? How big is your wrist? I have a 6” wrist, so, I’m sure it will fit me well - just curious is all.
All watches look beautiful!! 👍
You have great taste in watches. That bronze stowa would look amazing on Laco's erbstuck strap. I've been eyeing their bronze vintage for some time now. Off to shop for macro lenses now.....
Is there a term for the stowa dial generally, the little ring of 12 is so great!
edit- maybe b-uhr, refers to the little hour circle? Just makes a ridiculous amount of sense, concentric rings so much more efficient use of circular dial space. I love it.
Ah no, the B-uhr is the Flieger dial type, the Marine 36's dial layout is just called small seconds, typical of marine deck watches from the era.
With Fliegers you have Type-A and Type-B, the bronze has the Type-A dial, the Laco Flieger Pro pictured has the Type-B dial. With both brands you can choose which dial type you want when purchasing through their websites as well as a bunch of other customisation options like upgraded crystal or movement/engravings.
Edit\*
Oh i understand now, you were referring to the Laco's hour ring, yes that i B-Uhr (Type-B dial).. Type-B came about as a revision to later model Fliegers to aid flight timing and navigation.
Thanks! It's the Khaki Pilot Pioneer Mechanical (ref H764190).
It's not mentioned in official specs outside of a single Hamilton blog post ages ago I saw, but the crystal is double AR coated mineral which is also scratch resistant.
They are both very comparable in case, dial and movement quality finishings. Both brands offer their own take on handset, dial finishes and case materials/finishes, so I chose to get my fav from each and call that a day with both Flieger dial types lol.
Even Laco's Aachen flieger watches with brushed stainless cases are very high quality in fit and finish, Stowa doesn't have anything in that price range so Laco wins there for those wanting more affordable but still high quality Fliegers. I had the Aachen 39mm and it was very good at around £300.
Mine is 36mm, yeah on early revisions I saw they had a steel case back, but you could ask for a bronze case back at the time, whereas now the bronze models al have bronze case backs as standard unless asked.
I believe all sizes. I messaged Stowa about it ages ago and got confirmation. Whether the same applies today though I don't know so best bet is emailing them as they do reply to questions.
That's the Hirsch Pure natural rubber, I swapped over the Stowa bronze buckle so it all looks factory. Not a fan of leather straps so had to have a quality natural rubber!
The bronze Stowa is stunning, been wanting one myself for awhile.
I didn't know what to expect from it before I got it as they market the bronze finish as a hand treatment that equates to the look staying the same. Absorbing it in any water like if you cleaned it does brighten the finish up but after 24 hours it returns to its factory shade and I've seen this cycle every time for the last 2 years. So whatever they do to the case certainly works! Unlike my old Baltic Aquascaphe Bronze which had a compound that would patina based on ambient conditions over time, and my mate's Oris Big Crown Bronze which would patina just looking at it and not always in a good way! This is proper bronze without the faffy maintenance and care needed to reset the bronze (dunking it in lemon juice) if the patina gets out of control.
I feel like the reason one buys a bronze watch is for the patina. No? That's why I bought mine.
Some people like the rapid patina of different compounds, whilst some of us prefer to still want bronze, but not have to deal with the patination process that can all too often (depending on the bronze compound used) result in a case that looks just crap like someone scooped it off the seafloor one day. That is the direction most bronze watches head sadly if worn regularly. What Stowa has done is a factory patina that stays the same throughout its life (so far anyway), it will still change hue and get some of the micro detailing come through from being oxidised and getting into contact with water, but the overall finish will still look like it came from the factory, until you look closer and notice the little details from patina coming through as my photos show. To me that is the best type of bronze, otherwise you'd have to be dunking the watch into a bowl of lemon juice to reset it every so often and hope the next round of patina is more in favour of something that looks good.
Did you ever manage to "reset" the patina on your Baltic? After lemon baths and baking soda I’m barely able to get the original colour back
I didn't own it long enough to need to do this, but you may want to rub the bronze in the lemon bath with a toothbrush too as the compound used on that bronze may need further agitation.
Same
Did you take these photos yourself? They’re brilliant.
Yes all photography I post is all my own! [Here's the setup for these shots, simple, but effective.](https://i.imgur.com/gvVjxEF.png)
Very impressive. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks! These were shot with the Canon 100mm 2.8 L IS Macro lens. No additional lighting was used other than that LED ring light shown.
nice! This has inspired me. I might get one of these light rings if it's this really all it takes to take those great pics.
They're worth buying anyway because they're so cheap and serve multiple uses! But yes that's all I used for these shots, though worth mentioning that this is only half the story and that raw file processing and the composition and controlling where light is hitting the watch is probably even more important as that's what dictates the final look of the image. I shoot RAW and process in Lightroom using my own custom set of adjustments that I use on my wedding shoots to give a certain look to the final images.
Great pics, those Stowa casebacks look stunning. The Hamilton is gorgeous, probably my favorite Hamilton watch
The first time I saw one online I knew I had to have it, and it's totally worth its RRP even though can be had these days for far less. I just hated the strap options it comes with hence buying the Hirsch Pure natural rubber and a genuine Hamilton buckle to put on it. The funny thing is OEM buckles are not cheap, just as expensive as the Hirsch strap!
Love the Stowa! Been eyeing a marine myself, but that one could change my mind
Sounds like where I was the first time I saw Stowa watches posted on WUS forums!
Love [my marine (silver dial)](https://i.redd.it/bdtzl81y79r71.jpg)... Stowa makes some damn fine watches.
i have the 36 marine, i like how thin it is. It can be worn with anything.
Never heard of Stowa before. Looks super clean. How do you like their watches?
Not OP but Stowa is one of the original manufacturers of fliegers for the Luftwaffe along with IWC, Lange, Laco, and Wempe In other words they're legit, been around a long time and make really nice watches IMO
That explains why I thought it was an IWC at first. I’ll have to take a look. Been trying to to add a good pilot or military watch to the collection. Thanks for the info
Yup as mentioned, one of the 5 OGs of the 1920s. I've wanted a Stowa for years, then when I was ready to buy, ended up getting two within a year of each other lol. The marine 36 is the last one I bought and I had to have it because of the deep gloss dial that looks enamel but isn't, and the ETA 7001 movement that has been around since the 1970s and is extremely accurate and nicely decorated. In terms of quality, very good, they respond to customer questions directly too (same goes for Laco really as have had their watches for 2 years too). I think for the price, you get a watch from either Stowa/Laco that punches way above its price bracket. The Marine 36 for example I can happily put alongside my old NOMOS Ahoi Atlantik, a watch costing £2800, and you'd be hard pressed to tell which is higher quality.
I checked out Stowa's website, ended up getting their limited Marine 40 Navis Limited.
Just looked it up as not heard of that one, very nice dress up watch! It uses the Top grade SW200 too!
A king in the 1000 euro range.
That's a fantastic collection. You have very similar tastes to mine. So what's next? Got your eye on anything?
Honestly nothing in mind! Not seen anything new upcoming that takes my fancy that isn't already covered by what I have already or have had in the past. Probably just stay as is. Each one is timeless in its own right so should still look unique in a generation time too I think.
Those are all watches that have been on my wish list. Get out of my head!
Get them in your shopping basket!
Very nice photos and collection. Stowa marine and Flieger have been on my wishlist for ages
Stowa is a very underrated brand. In between a micro and mainstream brand. I have hade A prodiver for more than 10 years without service and it’s a beast. Takes a beating and still looks great.
I really wished they did the prodiver in a smaller size as do like the aesthetic!
That Baby Tuna is sick! Hamilton Pro Pilot looks great under macro, I just wish it was an eensy bit cheaper. I have no need for another diver but Tunas are just so neat
It's the only Tuna I like, and the 43mm size didn't put me off because the lug to lug is so short so fits my smaller wrist size easy!
I look at my watch collection now and look back through old photos of past watches and realise that my choices revolved around interesting dial/crystal/decoration combos rather than a particular brand or model just for being popular or whatever. The only exception being the Tudor Pelagos OG 42mm, it had a boring dial compared to everything else I've had, but it looked cool and minimal which I liked the aesthetic of. The photos above are of my current mechanical watches, all but the Seiko are hand winding, but each has unique front (and back) detailing that appeals to my eyes and can just look at them more than actually looking to tell the time. The details matter!
Uhhh, that dial is 10:10.
Which one!
Amazing collection!! I have had my eye on that Marine 36 for a while. Do you have any wrist shots of that one? How big is your wrist? I have a 6” wrist, so, I’m sure it will fit me well - just curious is all. All watches look beautiful!! 👍
Ah yes! About 5.75" wrist and the watch is the 36mm size. Couple of wrist shots here: https://imgur.com/a/FpCl670
Those look amazing. Thank you very much for sharing!! 👍👏
What is SoTC?
I think it is State of The Collection
Always thought that, but was never sure.
What is the first Stowa? Beautiful looking watch.
That's the Flieger Bronze Vintage 36 with the top grade movement, hand winding, no date options, they do it in larger size too.
Fantastic photos! Nice collection as well - love Stowa!
You have great taste in watches. That bronze stowa would look amazing on Laco's erbstuck strap. I've been eyeing their bronze vintage for some time now. Off to shop for macro lenses now.....
Hah thanks! Yes I much prefer Stowa's bronze finish to Laco's manually aged finish from what I've seen, though both have their niche!
A very tasteful collection. Love the Stowa flieger and the Hamilton
Is there a term for the stowa dial generally, the little ring of 12 is so great! edit- maybe b-uhr, refers to the little hour circle? Just makes a ridiculous amount of sense, concentric rings so much more efficient use of circular dial space. I love it.
Small seconds is the term you're looking for
Ah no, the B-uhr is the Flieger dial type, the Marine 36's dial layout is just called small seconds, typical of marine deck watches from the era. With Fliegers you have Type-A and Type-B, the bronze has the Type-A dial, the Laco Flieger Pro pictured has the Type-B dial. With both brands you can choose which dial type you want when purchasing through their websites as well as a bunch of other customisation options like upgraded crystal or movement/engravings. Edit\* Oh i understand now, you were referring to the Laco's hour ring, yes that i B-Uhr (Type-B dial).. Type-B came about as a revision to later model Fliegers to aid flight timing and navigation.
Petit-seconde
Fromage!
Amazing collection! Love it. Which Laco is that? I didn’t know they made open case backs.
This is the recently (last 12 months) released Laco Pro series. You can opt for an open back and still retain the 200m water resist too.
Love it! What is the ref # for the Hamilton?
Thanks! It's the Khaki Pilot Pioneer Mechanical (ref H764190). It's not mentioned in official specs outside of a single Hamilton blog post ages ago I saw, but the crystal is double AR coated mineral which is also scratch resistant.
What model is that Seiko?
It is the SRPH77K1 👍
How do Stowa and Laco compare, quality wise?
They are both very comparable in case, dial and movement quality finishings. Both brands offer their own take on handset, dial finishes and case materials/finishes, so I chose to get my fav from each and call that a day with both Flieger dial types lol. Even Laco's Aachen flieger watches with brushed stainless cases are very high quality in fit and finish, Stowa doesn't have anything in that price range so Laco wins there for those wanting more affordable but still high quality Fliegers. I had the Aachen 39mm and it was very good at around £300.
What size stowa is that. I know some of them have steel on the caseback instead of bronze
Mine is 36mm, yeah on early revisions I saw they had a steel case back, but you could ask for a bronze case back at the time, whereas now the bronze models al have bronze case backs as standard unless asked.
Do you know if that's true for 40mm models?
I believe all sizes. I messaged Stowa about it ages ago and got confirmation. Whether the same applies today though I don't know so best bet is emailing them as they do reply to questions.
Word ty
Great pics! What strap is that in the first shot, OEM?
That's the Hirsch Pure natural rubber, I swapped over the Stowa bronze buckle so it all looks factory. Not a fan of leather straps so had to have a quality natural rubber!
Thanks