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Watch Reviews

Davosa ‘Ternos’ Professional GMT Blue Black

ASRAR MERCHANT JULY 23, 2017

The Ternos has been a long-standing and successful lineup in the Davosa range. With the Ternos Professional, Davosa is branching out into a slightly larger size of 42mm

Davosa  is a brand well known and well received globally for their various style of watches at an exceedingly affordable price.

Davosa watches are known to bring trusted movements with trusted quality cased in fine construction and much loved designs.

The Ternos has been a long-standing and successful lineup in the Davosa range. With the Ternos Professional, Davosa is branching out into a slightly larger size of 42mm.

Then in Baselworld 2017, Davosa released the Ternos Professional GMT within the Ternos Professional lineup with similar dimensions as the former. Let’s see the official specs list first and then move into further points of observation.

 

Official Specs, Davosa ‘Ternos’ Professional GMT:

  • Swiss automatic winding movement ETA Cal. 2893  with second time zone function and date function.
  • water resistant to 200 meters depth
  • anti glare sapphire crystal
  • scratch resistant and two tone sapphire bezel ( single tone with the only black version )
  • hands and indices filled with Superluminova
  • measurements: case diameter excluding crown – 42MM, case height : 15.5MM
  • flat sapphire crystal with date magnifier
  • satined all Stainless Steel case and metal bracelet
  • screw down crown for water protection
  • Davosa branded box and outer box and warty booklet and instruction manual

 

Review as per my opinion:

Points of beauty:

  1. Classical and forever-acceptable design. Undeniably it’s a homage to the Rolex BLNR and in my opinion it’s a good homage. Has its own standing too especially in a 42mm case. I was seriously considering a Rolex and the BLNR was in my top three, the size of the BLNR being 40mm and this Davosa being made me move towards the Davosa as I prefer 42. And for my Rolex I am zeroed in on the Datejust with jubilee. Another classic forever.
  2. Execution is top notch in terms of case finish. For me one of the main attraction points in a watch is it’s case finish and construction. With the Ternos I find this achieved to perfection. The dimensions are right. The edges are clean and the overall look well balanced on the wrist.
  3. Bracelet tapering is precise. The tolerances of tapering in making a tapered steel bracelet is a very tough thing to achieve and I find Davosa have done a super job here. The taper and its smoothness is perfect.
  4. Mix of polish and brushed finish really adds a clean yet rugged character to the watch. The case sides at 9 and 3 are polished and the bracelet sides are polished to match this finish. This is attention to detail and it’s really loveable on the wrist.At the same time the lugs front is brushed and so is the bracelet top side. And even though the lugs brushing is at a slight angle compared to the straight vertical brushing on the bracelet, there is no conflict at the lugs, due to the lugs brushing being very slight.
  5. Movement functions are precise and the GMT hand is well aligned. I know of some cases where some Ternos do not have a proper alignment, but I also know that with GMT watches this often happens in shipping too. I have bought and sold enough GMT to have this experience myself too. It’s a small correction that can be achieved by most watchmakers.My watch keeps time accurate to 1.4 seconds plus a day. Which I am very happy with.Time setting and date setting is a breeze as you would expect on any ETA Cal. 2893.
  6. The dial is simple and as clean as it can be. Only the index at 3 has made way for the date window and the rest all indexes are intact and well positioned.
    In particular the seconds/minute track markers are subtle and just as much as required, without being bold or overbearing. They are there when you want to see them and they are hiding beside, sort of underneath the bezel when you don’t want a disturbance.
  7. Hands are in a style matching the case and the design and most importantly true to the watch it pays a homage to.

The GMT hand is the beautiful blue is a good match for the bezel. Well yes, it’s not an exact match to the dot, but it’s more a match than its not. Close to 95% matching in color with the bezel. Thankfully it’s not too bright and doesn’t disturb the look of the watch, making the second time zone visible to you only when you want to see it and otherwise quite silent.

  1. Wrist feel is that of wearing a glove. Now to add a little perspective my wrist size is 6.25inches and to me it feels just right without being large or small.
    Much of the credit on this point goes to the case design and execution as the well curved and thick lugs provide the precisely sized comforting fit yet a commanding wrist presence.I am not sure if the the bracelet is made of solid links or hollow ones. The weight feels like it is solid but at this price point I wouldn’t think it is solid. If it’s solid that’s a huge plus for Davosa. Also to add the weight is not overbearing, rather it’s just right to provide substance to this beauty on the wrist.
  2. Bezel is smooth and reassuring. Unidirectional as you would expect on a dive watch even though this is a GMT version.The ceramic insert is a real beauty. The two tone on the day/night version of the watch is immaculately executed. The colours are deep and well done and the division right and precise. One can spend much time staring and appreciating this work. The half blue to denote the day time is such a rich colour of blue that it adds the jazz to the watch in a very mature fashion. Colour on the wrist but in a very understated way.
  3. Colours introduced throughout the watch are all on the darker and deeper tone of the colour spectrum. This adds a lot of masculine character to the watch. Especially when paired with various leather straps and NATOs. It’s stylish yet essential. This makes the watch an almost any occasion wear. Regardless it’s a shirt you want to sport it with or a t-shirt.
  4. Price point for this watch with its workhorse GMT ETA 2893 and superb construction is justified at USD 1199.On the wrist you know it that you have gotten pure watch for the money paid. No marketing fees, just pure watch housing a quality reliable Swiss automatic movement.
  5. Large crown really suits this watch it’s commanding size of 42mm and the sort pinched crown guards coming out thickly from the case (as I personally call it) are a fantastic aesthetic match for the size of the crown. The polished finish on the crown top with the Davosa logo silently sitting there and the wholly polished crown guards made it a slick integration with the polished case side adding a very luxurious feel to the side look.
  6. The caseback is solid, minimal and well design to ensure ease of opening the caseback when required. As well as adding the security of the screwed feature on the caseback to ensure water tightness. Appropriate details are engraved on it with the Davosa branding taking the center stage and an individual case number engraved too for warranty identification.
  7. Bracelet removal is a easy due to the well spaced gaps provided in the rear of the endlinks. Most springbar tools will go in easily and assist in a firm bracelet removal should you choose to play with straps, like me.
  8. Bracelet integration with the case is something I really look at critically in every watch I buy on bracelet and I have to say, this is closest to perfection I have seen in a micro brand.The bracelet endlinks are deeply integrated into the case and seemingly 0.2-0.3 mm deeper inside almost under the bezel to hide away any slight gaps that might be left for bracelet flexibility. This creates for a super clean and singular look when the watch is on bracelet or strap. The bezel curve and the lugs integrate perfectly to hide away the joining of the endlinks to the case completely. To me this is as clean as it gets. No gaps on or off the wrist, regardless of one wearing the watch- tight, snug or loose.
  9. Screwed in bracelet links. Who doesn’t love these? I feel a majority of watch enthusiasts, if not all love screwed bracelet links. Due to the fact that bracelet sizing is just made easy and reassuring due to the screws. Huge plus point this.

Points of further improvements:

Every watch always has points of further improvement, especially when considered from a personal opinion as then personal like and dislikes come into picture. My points as below:

  1. The dial is not as glossy or liquid as the black dial on the Ternos Professional (non GMT) version. I totally love that black dial on the Ternos Professional. I am left wishing that Davosa used that very dial. I feel the liquid feel of that dial would have added an even better look to the day/night bezel.
  2. Dial printing in the lower hemisphere of the dial with all the Ternos, Professional, GMT Automatic, 200 M, printings could have been reduced. It looks a tad too much to my eye. A line or even two lesser would probably keep the lower hemisphere less heavy.
  3. The main colour theme of this watch is BLUE. That’s the standout colour on this watch in my opinion. Then why use a green Superluminova on the hands and indices.I would have loved to see the blue BGW9 lume on it, so that in the darkness too the lume shows blue and keeps true to the colour theme of the Day/night version. To my mind it looks way cooler and in line.
  4. A true GMT watch with a bezel should have a Bi Directional bezel. That would be perfect and extremely in line with the function a GMT offers. I know it would add to the cost but surely would be worth it and would take this watch away from being stuck between a diver and a GMT watch. Anyways the existing bezel on this watch can only be used for measuring another time zone so there is no issue of safety for a diver in giving it a Bi Directional Bezel.

 

Overall impression:

* The watch is an absolutely value for money product like many of the Davosa line-up.

* It was time they added a GMT diver to their awesome lineup of divers and they have done it well.

* Beautiful, well sized and well made homage to a very popular watch. Therefore making a quality watch with a quality movement accessible to a wide range of audience, who choose not to spend massive money on the Rolex or wouldn’t buy the Rolex for various reasons. (Like I mentioned a personal one above)

* A watch that will always have a place in my collection due to its functions, look, built and reliability.

* Least or zero maintenance watch.

* Due to the depth of the colours and the combinations used, takes on various strap options beautifully and changes look too.

* Strong and ‘unmissable’ wrist presence.

* Price, in perspective of GMT watches from micros available in market is on the borderline OK. Not exactly a steal. When seeing the features, the movement and the construction one does understand the price tag better. But for online sale it is a little difficult to explain to the customer, unless they are already aware of the Ternos build and feel.

* Davosa has better black dials in their watches than the one used in the Ternos Professional GMT. Personally I would prefer they use those or similar quality. A slight let down this.

I never pass verdicts on watches and I never ask people to go ahead and buy a watch or to never buy it. That’s not my style.

I believe we never buy a watch; a watch buys us.

So if this one wants to come to home to you, it will call out to you.

I have just presented my observations and all of them in my personal opinion and as per my likings. I hope it has been a good read for you. I am really looking forward to doing more reviews and slowly forming a pattern or a particular style of doing reviews.

The day practice makes man perfect and I am believer of that. So will continue practicing with hoping to never bore my readers.

Demand a quality from your time, Asrar

 

Asrar is a member of Diver’s Watches Facebook Group and, although he runs The Watch Boutique , a watch retail dealership in Bahrain for a few well-known watch brands, he openly writes and talks about multiple brands of watches.

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