Reply With QuoteGreat watch and great review.
Congrats and enjoy.
Roll back to 2013 and I went to the cinema to see the Fast and The Furious 6. I know, not everybody's cup of tea but I've grown up with the series. Anyway, that's another story, but they key fact here is that, in the movie, the late Paul Walker was wearing a chronograph watch. Occasionally you'd catch a glimpse on the screen but it wasn't easy to tell which watch it was as I hadn't seen it before. I knew I liked the look of it though so, once home, I had a look on t'interweb and soon found what it was.
It was the Jaeger Le-Coultre Deep Sea Chronograph. Not exactly a name that rolls off the tongue, but after seeing the photos, I wanted to see one in the metal. I liked the layout of the dial and sub-dials, the vintage-looking bezel and the lack of too much writing on the dial. The polished lugs are also a nice feature as most of my other watches have brushed lugs, so this would make a nice change I thought.
The specs enticed me more, with a 65 hour power reserve from the in-house JLC 758 column wheel chronograph movement and, strangely for a "diver", a 100M WR rating. The rating of 200M is normally applied to dive watches of course, but after researching more, the watch does appear to be genuinely dive-certified and the chronograph pushers can apparently be used under water, although I don't know if I'd have the guts myself! Also against the dive theme, the watch has a leather Tropic-style strap setup. More on that later.
The main thing putting me off was the RRP of over £7k and the fact I hadn't tried it on. Of course, in that price range, there's a lot of decent Chrono choices from most brands, with the Daytona being the obvious alternative. They both have similar specifications but I've "been there and done that" with Daytonas, and although I still fancy another at some point, it would be a white dial and could quite easily sit alongside something like this anyhow.
In January 2014, whilst in London, I finally got to try the JLC on, and I really liked it. REALLY liked it. It wore very nicely indeed and was extremely comfortable. It felt like it was worth every bit of its RRP, but I couldn't stretch to the price so I decided to hunt for a good used example. I tried WTBs on here and kept an eye out everywhere but nothing turned up from the WTBs, or a seller I would trust outside of TZ.
Finally, as of today, in May 2015, I have one! It arrived in the post this morning and I still really like it. REALLY like it
First impressions were created by the packaging. It's a dark green box with an inner dark green box. Both have gold detailing and it really carries on the vintage theme. The outer white card with the watch details is present, as is the tag etc. I'll try and get some pics up at some point.
After finally getting to the watch, the thoughts of "I hope I've done the right thing by buying this" instantly disappeared. It looked so lovely inside the case. What a relief.
The leather strap was a concern. However it's probably THE best quality leather strap I've ever had on a watch. It's really very well made with a good thickness and a clever integration of the pin holes which go all the way along so it would fit any size of wrist; even my tiny one (I'm talking about my wrist remember!!).
The watch itself is 42mm and actually wears a little larger. Any smaller and the dial could have ended up cluttered.. Any larger and it probably wouldn't have appealed. The height is also nominal for this type of watch so you wouldn't have any shirt cuff issues here.
The profile is stunning with a bezel that tapers down to the brushed case sides, and then tapers back out at the bottom to the underside of the watch.
The lugs are shaped even right at their ends, so they don't just simply drop straight down to your wrist like the new Omega cases.
The dial is textured with a matte finish, with the branding and text printed directly on it. The lume at the markers is thick and similar to something like a Sword-hand seamaster. The word "automatic" looks really in your face on photos, but in reality it's barely noticeable. Again, it uses a vintage-themed font. The hands are very nice and make reading the time a glance easy. They're well lumped as well.
You may have noticed a disc cut out under the brand logo. This shows when the Chronograph is running or not. For me, this is actually pretty handy. My obsession with Chronographs has substance as I use them for work, so being able to quickly glance if it's running is handy, as I try to look at my watch as little as possible when with clients. It can look pretty rude! Of course it could be useful for diving as well I suppose :-D
The disc is white when the chronograph isn't running:
...red and white when it is running...
...and red when the chronograph has stopped...
The bezel is something that put me off the watch at one point as, like the Daytona I guess, it's not ceramic. A year or so ago, I didn't buy anything other than ceramic bezel watches, but as time went on, this has changed. It's very nice to have ceramic as it doesn't scratch, but we all had watches without it for a long time at the end of the day. The JLC bezel reminds me of 70s Heuers and the like; it has a very, very thick PVD\paint coating with a matte finish. I doubt this will suffer from normal wear at all, plus the slightly domed crystal will no doubt protect it pretty well. You wouldn't achieve this type of finish with ceramic, so it's a really nice aesthetic. The bezel turns with very solid clicks and locks in to place at each marker perfectly, with no backwards movement. The "pip" as well as the dots between 0 and 15 are all luminous.
Speaking of lume, here's how it looks in the dark...
Finally, a shot of the case-back (sticker still in place hence the marks)...
...and the obligatory wrist shot (6.75" wrists). Sorry I look yellow; I'd already spent a fair while taking the other photos and I'm pretty sure it would wear fine on anybody's wrist, so there wasn't any point making the effort :-D...
So I'm sorry for the LONG thread but I'm just really very pleased with this watch. I've got peace of mind with it being under warranty, and I just love how it looks and wears.
I hope this doesn't come across as a self-absorbing thread in any way. I'm genuinely just excited to have finally picked up something I've struggled to find and worked very hard to afford
Last edited by W44NNE; 9th May 2015 at 18:32.
Great watch and great review.
Congrats and enjoy.
Great review and a truly lovely watch. Nice one Wayne
Great watch! Lovely photos!
Thanks for sharing.
That looks fantastic. I'm not personally in to multidialed watches but that is just so well balanced. Congrats!
That's a lovely chrono - very classy.
Congratulations.
Fantastic great watch congratulations
It's a fantastic watch, wear it in good health
Stunning, love it
Thanks for the book! :D
going to read the thread for breakfast tomorrow.
In the meantime, here is a pic on mine. I've only had it for a few weeks.
The dial is very very nice IRL and changes appearance depending on the light.
Last edited by yonsson; 8th May 2015 at 05:54.
Stunning watch bud.
I see this very much as a speedy pro step up if that makes sense. Similar looks, just even more gorgeous!
Great watch - congrats!!
Nice addition.
I've had one a couple of years now, and agree with a lot of what you said about it.
Personally, I tend to wear it with the red dot on display, just adds a little colour but that's just my preference
Malc
W44NNE i just opened one thread today (on some other watch forum and NO it's not WUS) and the point of the thread was to pick up one and only watch to be worn...ever. So one watch for everything, flying, diving, opera, corporate takeover, golf and gala dinner. ONE! And the one that i picked was that same very JLC Deep Sea Chrono. I think i will have to try it. Maybe not yet, there are lot of stuff going on so i don't wanna try my pick too soon, but it will happen! Such a fantastic piece of engineering.
Congratulations!
Thanks for all the nice comments. Glad I'm not alone in liking it :-)
The hands not being at 0 would just get at my OCD Malc :-D I like the white disc tbh but each to their own.Originally Posted by Malcolm68
Good timingW44NNE i just opened one thread today (on some other watch forum and NO it's not WUS
Congratulations!
A superb looking chrono Wayne. Sometimes miss mine. I probably didn't keep it long enough
Great watch! Enjoy!
A great all rounder from a quality stable with heritage to boot. Congratulations.
Gray
That is just lovely. Some stunning incoming pieces on the forum right now! Enjoy and wear in good health!
Congratulations. Truly a lovely watch.
Beautiful watch, one of my favorite chronographs. Enjoy!
Stunning watch, loving the lume.
Thought would do my head in but just press the pusher twice very quickly and you hardly notice it.
Malc
Glad you got it, and glad you love it!
The finish and detail on the JLC Deep Seas is sublime.
"Mine says hi" ;0P
Congrats Wayne, an absolute peach of a watch. :Looking forward to the wrist shot as ours are about the same size (oo-er).
Can you link to the info above; I would be absolutely intrigued to know about this because I have always assumed it would just be cased like a Master Contol Chrono and not actually be capable of a being a sports watch.
It'd be a fabulous replacement for my departed Fifty Fathoms chrono, which I've considered getting back into, but would be a little large for my tastes now...
Excellent choice, I really love this model. The red/white disc is an excellent gimmick, it would probably make me run the chrono all the time.
Enjoy it!
Absolutely lovely. I'm yet to own an Alarm watch but if I do go down that route, I reckon it'll be a JLC now.
Thanks Lewis. I'll get a wrist shot asap but re the underwater pushers, I read it in the following review, and also on another site. I'm going to email JLC directly though to confirm as this review could be wrong, and the other site could have just read it here as well: http://professionalwatches.com/2013/...re-deep-s.html It'll be safer hearing it from JLC.
lol yes I can't deny I've used the chrono more on this than I've probably needed to. Having the extra timing bezel is great for cooking I always find, so it's a great watch for timing things.
these are lovley watches in the flesh and a great choice from a Daytona. Thanks for write up and pics too. Enjoy
I'm at JLC function next Tuesday, if there is anyone technical I ll have a word. I must admit, I am looking at this watch completely differently now.
Basically it's like a Speedy that can actually go underwater and be used like a FF Chrono, but without the 45mm diameter. I'm liking it a lot and some good prices in Europe...
Thanks for the review, and the stunning photos.
Strangely enough i was looking at these again this morning before i saw this thread.
The deep sea chrono has been on my must have list for a fair while, for me the size, thickness etc fits like it was meant to be :)
Think it'll be some man math tonight, and chosing what needs to go in place of one of these.
Very nice watch but it is not a diver. JLC themselves explicitly state that the watch should not be used for diving.
Now that I have had the time to read your post I thought I'd give my input as an owner.
I agree that it's a fantastic watch. It is very well finished, but also very stealthily compared to for example the Daytona, which I think is a great "feature".
The dial as I said in my previous post is fantastic and is pretty much what makes the watch interesting instead of just boring or too clean. The texture and color varies from black and gloss looking, to grey and coarse looking. The hight doesn't bother me either. I wouldn't say the crystal is slightly domed, more like very domed, but that helps light play on the dial.
What I don't agree about is the size. I think it actually wears smaller than 42mm because of the thin lugs and the polished upper.
I wrote a review a month ago, but it's in Swedish so it wouldn't be of use to most of you.
http://klocksnack.se/threads/recensi...nograph.37772/
Here are a few pics from my review:
Congrats on a fantastic watch which I hope you will enjoy for a long time!
Last edited by yonsson; 8th May 2015 at 11:21.
Cracker.
First refusal please.
Andy
Wanted - Damasko DC57
Too late ;)
Congratz on your purchase Wayne,
Wayne, have you posted any recent pics of your collection so far?
Best regards
Are you two suggesting that I flip things or something? :-D
I tend not to do this but may do at some point.
Last edited by W44NNE; 8th May 2015 at 15:02.
Possibly the only chrono that trumps the looks of a Speedmaster Pro.
Beautiful understated class!
First time I've ever seen that model and very lovely it is too - congratulations.
Thats a great looking watch.
There seems to be a lot and ever increasing love for JLC on here at the mo and its good to see. I can see me adding another.
Enjoy
Paul
Sweet Jesus! You got it wet!
Seriously though, lovely watches.
Congrats. You will treasure it more when there's a bit of a journey getting there.
What should not be omitted, Jaeger's moder chronograph 751/758 movements are top notch, stable, reliable and precise, thanks to its modern construction (vertical clutch - allows to keep the chrono second hand running, variable inertia balance). The 65 hours winding autonomy is also a useful bonus.
The only negative I could find is the perhaps rather lower efficiency of the winding system.
Stunning watch Wayne.
Tri-compax dial..............check.
Vintage styled lugs.........check.
One of the best looking watches available today. Love it.
I've updated the thread with new pics, including a wrist shot. It helps to fill the review out a bit more I hope.
I'm personally standing by both of my comments here so I hope you don't mind. A large dome on a crystal to me is something like a Speedmaster Moon, 5513 superdome, Panerai 275 etc. The crystal on this JLC is perhaps a couple of mm higher than the top edge of the bezel and barely distorts the dial as a result.
I've added a wrist shot to show how the watch fills my wrist but doesn't protrude either side and the strap has great curvature. So again, I don't think it wears small, but it's not a large watch either by any means.
Congrats. Those pictures are something else. Great shots.
W44NNE
There are as many opinions as persons, so as long as you are happy with it and I'm happy with mine, it's all good.
W44NNE
There are as many opinions as persons, so as long as you are happy with it and I'm happy with mine, it's all good.
He's already sold it to me!!
The vintage watch hunt is on remember Tony. The JLC came along at the wrong point in time really, but even so, the plan was to keep it for a while until I found a vintage Sub. However, during convo with Lewis, he asked if I'd let him know when I come to sell. The more I thought about it, it's better to have the funds available should something vintage come along.
I'm still enjoying my SDc which is my main watch for now.
Darn - that is one seriously cool looking dive-chrono. I don't have a JLC in my collection right now - but I can see this would be my first choice if it ever became available.
Hey - first dibs on the re-sale please!!!!
(I can't beleive you sold it Waynne)
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