# Tauchmeister T0046 1000m Diver, my first impression on my first German watch by member DM7



## StufflerMike (Mar 23, 2010)

Hi Everyone,

Now that I have your attention :-d and since i couldn't find any real review of this particular model, I thought I would share my first impression about that affordable 1000m watch made by Tauchmeister, or should I say Aeromatic. First, don't worry, I know it's not a German Made watch, I just couldn't resist. But before I bought one, I did some Googleing to find more info on a brand I thought had nothing German besides the name, to find out (here on WUS) that it was actually owned by Germans and established in Germany but sourcing their parts from China, Japan and who knows where. So basically like many of the Boutique brands and like some call it, a Germasian watch. What I don't know is if they are assembled in Germany or China but I would guess that it's a 100% assembled in China. Please, if I'm wrong or if anybody knows more about the origins of the company, share your knowledge.

Tauchmeister is a brand I discovered on eBay a few years ago, but since most of their models were based on XXXL watches, a lot with huge canteen crowns, I had never really clicked on the brand until I saw the T0046.










What really attracted me to the watch, was the case. I just love this case and after seeing Momentum, Aqualung, Deepblue and others using it. I started thinking that the watch might have some quality in it and started looking for which one would be the best pick. Now, I have never handled the other models and went with Tauchmeister for the specs: 46mm X 14.5mm, Sapphire crystal, black dial and black hands and automatic movement being, Miyota 8215. So, I'm there thinking, with all these respectable specs, what could go wrong? Deepblue has a good reputation and is using the same case, so it shouldn't be that bad, right? Just too bad theirs is a quartz and the dials/hands combo of their model and of the other brands I found, were just not appealing to me. So I looked around for a good deal and found the best price on eBay, watches-for-sale is the name of the seller I bought if from. It was a very pleasant transaction, the watch took about 11 days from Germany to Canada, which is much faster than I was expecting. At this point I have no idea what too expect but when I received it, I was quite surprised. I don't care about the box it came in, so I will skip this part, but it was descent for what I paid for. Also, the watch has a 24 month warranty, which is nice, if they are not like Invicta to handle warranty work.

*Case:*

The case is very nice from every angle and is well finished, no sharp ends and the brushing is quite nicely done. I just like the fact that it's a hooded lug case so despite the size it will fit small wrist, talking about the size, it's more a 44mm than a 46mm case, I guess they include the crown guard in the specifications I read everywhere. Nonetheless, the watch has a nice wrist presence and is super comfortable to wear. Also, I like the bezel guards à la Seiko Tuna and this was one of the key elements that attracted me to it. The case back is polished and the Tauchmeister logo and some data are lazer etched on it. It is not as nice as the Deepblue IMO, but it's ok with me. It's also polished and even if I would have prefer it was brushed, i can easily live with that.

sorry for dust on Q&D pics:-(



























*
Bezel:*

The bezel is a little deception. While it does align perfectly (big turn off for me when it doesn't), it has some play in it. It seems to be a 120 clicks (didn't count them) and unidirectional, but has some backlash in it, not the worst I have seen, but still. Also, it does have a bit of play on it's axis, up and down. When you push at 12 o'clock, you see the bezel lifting at 6 o'clock by maybe half a mm, so again, not major but it's there and it's the only diver i have with play like that. The bezel guards are not too intrusive and do not make the bezel hard to turn, and if you look at the teeth on it, you have plenty of grip to move it,which is a good point for me. It's also very smooth to operate and make me believe that even with the bezel guards, because the teeth sits a bit over the guards, it might be easy to move if you hit it. I would be curious to hear owners of the other brands using this case, to see if they have the same observations about the play and performance of the bezel. Please share your thoughts.

*Dial & Hands: *

The dial is mat black and the printing on it is ok, but the lume could be a bit more define, specially the five minute dots, although you have to look very closely to notice it. The hands are Citizen's (Have the same on two auto divers) which makes sense to go with the Citizen (Miyota) movement. They have a glossy black finish and I personally like the appearance. My only gripe would be the all black second hand, which is hard to see on the black dial, despite the lume dot at the opposite side. I decided that I would arrange that by painting the tip orange or red to make it more visible. It's a simple mod to do, and will make it more useful IMO. Will post pics when done.

*Lume:*

Well, here I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. First, the hands and dial are of different colors, which could be a big turn off for some, but not that much for me. The hands are a bit more yellow while the dial is more green. The first night I had the watch, I charged the lume under a lamp fro about 30 sec. then went to bed at around midnight. You could immediately see that Citizen lume was superior and stronger than the lume on the dial, but still, I woke up at 6AM a was able to tell the time, everything was still light up and easy to read! Not Seiko lume, but pretty descent.

*Crowns:*

Their are two crowns on the watch, one at 9 O'clock (HRV) and one at 4 O'clock (time/date setting) I didn't noticed right away, but they do not have the same finished. Both are screwed down but have different kind of grip, see pics above. Again, a small detail and I would have prefer both to be the same but not very noticeable. The time setting crown is quite hard to unscrew/screw because of the crown guards, but I prefer good protection even if makes the crown operation a bit more difficult. Once engaged, both are very smooth to screw down.

*Crystal:*

Sapphire but I have no idea how thick and it doesn't have AR coating, but it's *sapphire* |>|>

*Strap:*

Mine came on what seems to be an exact copy of a Seiko curved vent strap 99.999% identical, but curiously, is way more supple and comfortable than any Seiko strap I have and never used because too stiff. And it's not silicone, it's seems to be rubber. Anyway, I'm not crazy about the look and ordered a 24mm black/black Maratac elite strap (with the end cut at 22mm to fit between the horns) to replace it. I'm also thinking of a 22mm Watchdoo, I know it fits that case perfectly.

*Water resistance:*

Would it resist 1000m :think: Don't know, don't care. It sat in my bath for an hour and was ok, so I guess that up to 50 feet, I should be ok since it's all i need :-d

*Movement:*

Not much to say there besides I'm happy it's a Miyota and wouldn't have bought the watch if it would have been a cheep Chinese Movement. Mine runs fast at about +15 a day and if it doesn't settle down, i will simply do a quick regulation to bring it down. In my experience with this movement, it can be set to be very precise and is very reliable

*Conclusion:*

The watch sell for about +-$250 plus shipping, I paid mine a $150 shipped. Does it worth $250? You tell me, I wouldn't have bought it at $250. I know that for what I paid for, i find it's a good deal and I'm happy I pulled the trigger. It's not perfect, but it's a cool watch that didn't cost me an arm and will become one of my weekend beater!

Sorry it was so long, I hope you enjoyed and thanks for reading! Your thoughts are welcome, good or bad! I will be back to post a wrist shot and once I have painted the second hand. Also to say if it still working flawlessly in a few weeks from now... ;-)


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## DM71 (Feb 6, 2009)

*Re: Tauchmeister T0046 1000m Diver, my first impression on my first German watch by member*

Thanks for moving my post Mike, I see you put my user name in the title, thanks! I wanted to had some wrist shots on my 7'' wrist. Also the lug to lug distance is 44mm. Would easily fit 6 1/2 wrist IMO.


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## gigfy (Apr 13, 2007)

*Re: Tauchmeister T0046 1000m Diver, my first impression on my first German watch by member*

I was searching through the forum and found your review. Very nice! I do like these little 'tuna can' watches. Mine is a cousin to yours. A 300m Deporte with Sea-Gull ST16 movement.









cheers,
gigfy


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## Nolans (Feb 10, 2009)

*Re: Tauchmeister T0046 1000m Diver, my first impression on my first German watch by member*

Great review, a lot ot watch for the money. I just saw a a T0078 on the bay. I quite like the orange in the hands. I'll have to find an English site to check the specs. I haven't used my German since school


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## DM71 (Feb 6, 2009)

*Re: Tauchmeister T0046 1000m Diver, my first impression on my first German watch by member*



gigfy said:


> I was searching through the forum and found your review. Very nice! I do like these little 'tuna can' watches. Mine is a cousin to yours. A 300m Deporte with Sea-Gull ST16 movement.
> 
> View attachment 393093
> 
> ...


Thanks gigfy! I like your yellow dial too. This is actually the only other version I see with an automatic movement in it, how is the ST16? Most of them are quartz. Also, one thing I find very strange and makes me doubt a lot about the 1000m WR of my version, is that your watch, and also a 200m version I saw, all seems to be identical. I really don't see what would make the T0046 700m more WR than the Deporte you have, or maybe your's could be 1000m too? :-d I opened mine and nothing extraordinary in there, very regular gasket... Anyway, I wore the watch a few times and it keeps great time and I'm still very satisfied with it. I'm just not sure anymore about painting the second hand tip, but I'll see.

Thanks for the compliment Nolans, it's a watch I can highly recommend under $200!:-!


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## YOUNGIAM (Jan 6, 2012)

*Re: Tauchmeister T0046 1000m Diver, my first impression on my first German watch by member*

Do you have a link for this watch? Nice watch by the way!



DM71 said:


> Thanks for moving my post Mike, I see you put my user name in the title, thanks! I wanted to had some wrist shots on my 7'' wrist. Also the lug to lug distance is 44mm. Would easily fit 6 1/2 wrist IMO.


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## DM71 (Feb 6, 2009)

*Re: Tauchmeister T0046 1000m Diver, my first impression on my first German watch by member*



YOUNGIAM said:


> Do you have a link for this watch? Nice watch by the way!


Thanks! I can't find it on eBay anymore but you can go directly to the Tauchmeister site here: Tauchmeister Professional Diver Watch 1000m T0046

Or here cheaper: Tauchmeister T0046 Watch but I have no experience with these two sellers, i guess that the Thauchmeister site is safe though. I just notice they have another model with a different dial and hands that I like a lot! Tauchmeister T0046 Watch

Do a search with Google for Tauchmeister T0046 and you will have a few other options.


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## Cobia (Nov 24, 2013)

*Re: Tauchmeister T0046 1000m Diver, my first impression on my first German watch by member*

Bump for a great review of a great little watch, its a great afforables brand and this case design looks really good in hand.
Thanks for the review Mike.


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