# BALL Trainmaster Moon Phase: Welcome Back, Lit Moon.



## robattopper (Apr 1, 2009)

*BALL Trainmaster Moon Phase: Welcome Back, Lit Moon.*









_The BALL Trainmaster Moon Phase NM3082D-LLFJ-BE_

Prior to the release of the 2015 Trainmaster Moon Phase, two other three-hand BALL moon phase watches have preceded it. The first was the Engineer Master II Moon Phase, which came out in the mid 2000s. It featured the signature 40mm Engineer Master II case, a backlit crown-operated moon phase, and Arabic twelve, nine, six, and three o'clock markers made out of tritium tubes. The watch's signature feature, and in my opinion the reason why it has held its value so well over the years was its backlit moon; resulting from BALL's ingenious idea to backlight the moon phase register with an array of tritium tubes. The Engineer Master II Moon Phase was replaced in 2009 with the Engineer II Ohio Moon Phase.









_The Engineer Master II Moon Phase from the late 2000s. _









_An Engineer Master II Moon Phase that recently appeared on Topper Pre-Owned Select._









_The BALL Engineer II Ohio Moon Phase._

Like its predecessor, the Engineer II Ohio Moon Phase featured a case measuring 40mm in diameter and 13.2 mm thick. Ball removed the Arabic numbers constructed from tritium tubes and replaced them with the Ohio Collection's signature mixture of applied Arabic and triangular markers. The moon phase aperture was enlarged, particularly at the edges, the framed date window was moved from four-thirty to three o'clock, and the sunburst dial became much more pronounced.

What was missing from the Engineer II Ohio Moon Phase, and something that fans of the brand have expressed to me that they truly did miss, was the backlit moon phase. Save the occasional new old stock (NOS) that would occasionally turn up in a stock balance, there hasn't been a back lit moon phase in the collection for several years. This is why the new Trainmaster Moon Phase is such a big deal. BALL has finally brought the back lit moon back! This post will look at a both the blue and silver dial versions of the Trainmaster Moon Phase.

What's clear looking at this watch is that it brings its own stylistic energy to the piece. When writing about the Cleveland Night Express recently, I wrote that BALL's Trainmaster watches always include display backs, minimalistic tritium tubes, and formal finish on the dials, and that there is a core group of watches that take design cues from the American era of Ball pocket watches. This model is not that type of Trainmaster.

As far as I can tell, (and BALL pocket watch experts, please correct me) the Trainmaster's scalloped dial doesn't particularly spring from pocket watches of the past. Instead of featuring the Ohio's pip style tritium tubes, the watch features tubes placed lengthwise directly on the markers. The indices also seem higher than those found on the Ohio. The entire moon phase opening and presentation of the moon and night have been reimagined. Instead of the crescent-shape opening of watches past, the opening is a complete circle. The stars are both on the dial and in moon complication itself. At 14.5mm thick, it is slightly thicker than the Ohio models. The Trainmaster moon is also much prettier and more sparkly than the Ohio moon.

Below are photos of the Trainmaster with focus on the backlit moon in various phases. What do you think of BALL's newest moon phase effort?









_BALL Trainmaster Moon Phase NM3082D-LLFJ-SL._









_The moon phase complication of the BALL Trainmaster Moon Phase NM3082D-LLFJ-BE._









_The date and moon phase complications of the BALL Trainmaster Moon Phase NM3082D-LLFJ-BE._









_The scalloped dial of the BALL Trainmaster Moon Phase NM3082D-LLFJ-BE._









_The moon phase complication of the BALL Trainmaster Moon Phase NM3082D-LLFJ-SL._









_The scalloped dial of the BALL Trainmaster Moon Phase NM3082D-LLFJ-SL._









_The crown and case side of the BALL Trainmaster Moon Phase NM3082D-LLFJ-SL._









_The standard black alligator band and deployant clasp of the BALL Trainmaster Moon Phase._









_The case back of the BALL Trainmaster Moon Phase._









_The movement of the BALL Trainmaster Moon Phase._









_The lume signature of the Trainmaster Moon Phase._

*MOON CALENDAR PORTION*









_November 11th, new moon._









_November 17th, waxing crescent._









_November 20th, waxing crescent._









_November 25th, full moon._









_November 30th, waning crescent._









_December 5th, waning crescent.

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_Wrist shot of the Ball Trainmaster Moon Phase on Burlingame Avenue._
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_Wrist shot of the Ball Trainmaster Moon Phase on Burlingame Avenue._


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## gangrel (Jun 25, 2015)

Hmmm.

I think the dark spots help a bit; you get at least a sense of the craters. I strongly prefer that the new model is simpler and cleaner; in daylight, given the dial space occupied by the moon phase section, you either have to go for a really big dial, or IMO get crowded with the numbers. Under the lume, it's NO contest: the Trainmaster looks awesome.

I'm still questioning, tho, whether it's too bright. It is a moon. It's not all that bright.  And I still think that a backlit version could work better.


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## timefleas (Oct 10, 2008)

I like the new dial textures, but for a Moon Phase watch, to me, the most natural dial color would be BLACK, as in NIGHT, with the other colors distant second or third choices. I liked the original EM II Moon Phase for everything except for the lack of T-tubes (bars or pips) on the 1,2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, and 11 hours--that seems incongruous for a "Night" watch, not to have their trademark tritium tubes on all hours. Never really liked the Ohio version, for several reasons including lack of t-tubes on the moon phase wheel. The newest Trainmaster incarnation looks attractive, though I could do without the sparkles that seem to cover the moon phase wheel--get rid of the sparkles (if possible) and make a black dial, and I think it would be great.


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## robattopper (Apr 1, 2009)

timefleas said:


> I like the new dial textures, but for a Moon Phase watch, to me, the most natural dial color would be BLACK, as in NIGHT, with the other colors distant second or third choices. I liked the original EM II Moon Phase for everything except for the lack of T-tubes (bars or pips) on the 1,2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, and 11 hours--that seems incongruous for a "Night" watch, not to have their trademark tritium tubes on all hours. Never really liked the Ohio version, for several reasons including lack of t-tubes on the moon phase wheel. The newest Trainmaster incarnation looks attractive, though I could do without the sparkles that seem to cover the moon phase wheel--get rid of the sparkles (if possible) and make a black dial, and I think it would be great.


The good news is that there is a black dial as well, it just hasn't arrived in the store yet. I believe the texture of the moon is the same for all three dial colors.


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## gangrel (Jun 25, 2015)

You're not going to have the dark spots without the sparklies.

I would agree that a darker blue would be better, but my objection to black is...it's so common.  And twilight and pre-dawn skies have a touch of blue, to me. It might depend on how you do the moon...in silver or gold. In silver, ok, go black. In gold, you're not really in the night sky, you're in the artist's version of the night sky.


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## gangrel (Jun 25, 2015)

How about this thought for the dial....

As you move away from the horizon, the sky gets darker. So...dark blue at/near 6, transitioning to black at 12. That could be impressive.


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## timefleas (Oct 10, 2008)

robattopper said:


> The good news is that there is a black dial as well, it just hasn't arrived in the store yet. I believe the texture of the moon is the same for all three dial colors.


Sounds great (yes, I could live with the sparkles, especially since they are rather tiny in real life, I would imagine)--definitely look forward to seeing the black dial version!


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## Daswann (Jan 17, 2010)

Firstly, thanks for the great write up and stunning photos. The white face dial looks great on the wrist. My only negative would be that it seems hard to read the time.


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## Sparrowhawk (May 22, 2006)

Daswann said:


> Firstly, thanks for the great write up and stunning photos. The white face dial looks great on the wrist. My only negative would be that it seems hard to read the time.


Believe that's a Silver Dial.

I do like the 12 sides ring on the back, to open the back cover.

Hope it comes with the option for a nice Trainmaster bracelet.


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## samanator (Mar 8, 2008)

Very glad to see Ball getting back to some unique textured dials. Much more high end. I guess Trainmasters are getting a bit thicker and the UFO crown going forward? The first I'm not sure about, the second I'm OK with since it is adding a signature item for the line.


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## KiwiWomble (Sep 13, 2012)

It's hard to make out the dial texturing in the first picture....and I think I like it more "untextured"...


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## ~tc~ (Dec 9, 2011)

Glad to hear Ball might be listening to their customers and undoing some of the mistakes they have made recently.


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## mpbrada (Feb 14, 2014)

It looks pretty good. I really need to make a trip up to Burlingame.


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## ChuckMiller (Mar 4, 2008)

The silver/white dial is stunning, but dammit they put the date down in a crater (pun) again.


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## Its-an-addiction (Jun 17, 2015)

Not a fan of the sparkly moon, and that date window is much too deep-set in my opinion. Absolutely love the textured dial and the applied hour markers though.


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## kdon999 (Jan 4, 2009)

Should ADs have these now? I was hoping to try one on in person but haven't come across any yet.


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## samanator (Mar 8, 2008)

kdon999 said:


> Should ADs have these now? I was hoping to try one on in person but haven't come across any yet.


Rob had at least three to make his photo post.


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## kdon999 (Jan 4, 2009)

samanator said:


> Rob had at least three to make his photo post.


Thank you, yes, this much was obvious. I was more curious regarding ADs at large seeing as how this reference doesn't even seem to be on the ball website yet and I can't find them locally. Its great that Rob has them but I'm not going to buy a watch until I try it on first.


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## mmarc77 (Mar 24, 2015)

Picked this up today and I'm so pleased with it, it's the only watch in a large rotation I'm going to wear for the next few weeks at least. The second hand just glides across the blue dial which is much darker than pictures indicate. I typically prefer leather but the steel band on this is outstanding and the watch wears very comfortably. I will post more pics when I have time.















Straight from the box with no hit from flashlight or any other light.


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## christam (Apr 19, 2015)

Looking forward to more pics. I'd persuaded myself I didn't need one of these (I really don't) but that looks so good. I'd also persuaded myself that if I did get one it wouldn't be the blue version, because I've got a blue Marvelight. And now I see the blue of this is completely different. Oh dear ....... the New Year might be more expensive than expected.


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## ChuckMiller (Mar 4, 2008)

That is really nice. Enjoy.


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## chesthing (Jul 18, 2012)

What a shame Ball watches are all so enormous, I really like some of the designs.


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## Thunderdome (Aug 26, 2013)

mmarc77 said:


> Picked this up today and I'm so pleased with it, it's the only watch in a large rotation I'm going to wear for the next few weeks at least. The second hand just glides across the blue dial which is much darker than pictures indicate. I typically prefer leather but the steel band on this is outstanding and the watch wears very comfortably. I will post more pics when I have time.
> 
> View attachment 6186098
> View attachment 6186114
> ...


Thanks for the pics. The lume should always be the same brightness exposed or unexposed to UV light. It will decay with time (radioactive).
I like the watch, but I feel the sprinkles and the 6 stars diminished the beauty of it. What do you feel about them?


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## m95c (Apr 5, 2014)

I made a quick trip to Burlingame this past weekend to look at this watch. It looks beautiful in person as I am in the market for this particular model. I didn't spend too much time in the store since it was closing time, but I am truly fascinated with the design and details of this model. I am hoping to make another visit or two, try it on again, and make a purchase before the end of this year. 
Congrats to those who made the purchase. 


Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk


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## clarken (Nov 30, 2013)

I like it personally probably could do without the glitter but not a deal breaker

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## tiananmensquare (Jun 18, 2010)

The dialwork on the blue one is so detailed!


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## Ard (Jul 21, 2014)

Congratulations!

I really like this new model, there will probably be one of these with the black face in my future. I've had 2 moon phase watches and enjoyed both but I had a lot of watches and eventually sold many of them so that the 3 I had left would get worn regularly. The moon phases I had are below:





The Enicar was very unique and although I wore it very infrequently I sorta miss it................

But getting back to the Ball Moon Phase, I've been prowling around the brand ever since I joined this forum. Prior to joining I'd never heard of Ball but when I did I went looking. I'm surprised that I didn't buy the Streamliner model but just recently I bought a Fireman Racer with black dial. It's 1mm larger than my sweet spot diameter but it has a look I'm hoping to like once I can put it on my arm.


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