# Full Review of the Ticino Big Pilot 47mm (Tons of pics)!



## Big_Pilot (Jun 10, 2008)

Hello WUS Members,

I have a very special review today, I received my Ticino Big Pilot 47mm nav b style pilot watch today and couldn't been happier. In Fact I got so happy that I decided to shoot pics of it and then make this review. Before I purchased this watch, I could barely find any reviews, pics, or any good info so this oughta help the new guys who are looking into this watch. I hope this will educate you guys; hopefully push you over that fence you've been climbing and I hope you all enjoy this thread/review as much as I did making it. Cheers!:-!










Also please forgive me for the horrible pics, My friend had to barrow my cannon so I used a cheap kodak flash camera instead:roll:. Enjoy!

THE DESIGN: 
The design is beautifully done with a- 


onion crown 

Xl pilot crown
 Mindblowing Caseback

 A very smooth second hand
A good mineral ( not sapphire) dome
Nice airplane looking Arabic numbers
That somewhat "Altimeter" look I always Wanted hence the cockpit picsb-)
I like everything about this watch except its horrible lume. I wish it had better lume like the Seiko Monster or the Omega SMP in Green. 










*And ofcourse the modern day avionics*









*THE TICINO BIG PILOT


























A Beautiful Clear Caseback( Looks to be a 6497)









Another Sweet View








*​
And lasty a size comparison with my Invicta Pro Diver 200m
( Its a bit fuzzy:-()









*Overall this is a great watch. It has a great movement, good timekeeping, smooth design, and an awesome see through thats really pleasing to the eye. I would give it 8 out of 10. If it had better Lume I would give it 9 out of 10. A 10 out of 10 would be the IWC BIG PILOT :-!









*


Bonus: Some Pics of Similiar Style but Way more expensive

THE Azimuth Jagdbomber










Steinhart Grand Marquis








The Steinhart Nav B
( This is pretty good too, its very popular|>)








THANK YOU FOR VIEWING!
PLEASE LEAVE ANY COMMENTS

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## Deldog (Apr 28, 2008)

I'm also surprised at the lack of info out there on Ticino big pilots.

I bought mine new for less than $150 on eBay. I was skeptical about such a "low-priced" watch and thought at the least I could get an up-close look at such a huge piece to see if I like the style.

Well, I was pleasantly surprised. The watch is solid and the movement -- most likely an Asian Unitas clone -- runs and winds smoothly. My wrists are on the thin side, so I must admit it felt ridiculously huge at first. I got used to it, though, and now wear it several days a week. 

The strap it came on was lame, so I ordered a nice, thick riveted one from Debaufre. It cost nearly half as much as the watch but was definitely worth it. I liked the watch with the old strap, I love it with the new one.

If an IWC, or even the more reasonably priced Nav-Bs -- Debaufre, Laco, Stowa, etc. -- are out of your range, the Ticino is a good place to start.


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## Big_Pilot (Jun 10, 2008)

Yea its a great watch


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## eqdok2007 (Dec 3, 2007)

I'd love to get the 10/10 IWC Big Pilot (especially the older model); BUT my credit cards would explode at the very thought....

Nice watches though.


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## bizjetkeeper (May 28, 2008)

Pretty neat watch. I too have eyeballed one on the 'bay' for some time but recently purchased a Debaufre from a fellow WUS member. Great looking and wearing time piece. I did decide to put it up for sale as it is just too large for me and my Fortis B42 is as large as I'd like to go.

The lack of a saphire on the Ticino for such a big watch is a concern I'd have. The Debaufre is saphire. It's good for the extra bump and rub that happens here and there.

If they made them just a few millimeters smaller in case diameter then I'd be all over one permanently!

BTW, love the 727 cockpit shot!


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## Big_Pilot (Jun 10, 2008)

bizjetkeeper said:


> BTW, love the 727 cockpit shot!


yea I love it too, I wanna get something exactly like, but not something like bell and ross. I think the big pilot did a pretty good job coming close to those avionics.

Watch this video on youtube. The begining shows the IWC Big pilot series matching up with an Airplane. A must see, I love it. ( the first 1 minute where the plane takes off ) Cheers!


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## Deldog (Apr 28, 2008)

Wow. Thanks, Big Pilot. That video is cool.


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## incognito (Dec 5, 2007)

Just got mine today... my first manual wind watch... its neat


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## Big_Pilot (Jun 10, 2008)

incognito said:


> Just got mine today... my first manual wind watch... its neat


Yea ithis is my first manual wind watch as well


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## brainless (Jan 3, 2008)

bizjetkeeper said:


> Pretty neat watch. I too have eyeballed one on the 'bay' for some time but recently purchased a Debaufre from a fellow WUS member. Great looking and wearing time piece. I did decide to put it up for sale as it is just too large for me and my Fortis B42 is as large as I'd like to go.
> 
> The lack of a saphire on the Ticino for such a big watch is a concern I'd have. The Debaufre is saphire. It's good for the extra bump and rub that happens here and there.
> 
> ...


Have a look at STEINHART:

They now offer that watch in 43.5 mm diameter; as handwound (UNITAS 6497) or auto (ETA 2824-2). You can order at their shop:
http://www.steinhartwatches.de/index.php?id=67&artnr=120&Sel_ID=18#120

Regards,

brainless


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## abmw (Apr 7, 2008)

Can someone let me know where they got their Ticino? I did a search on ebay but the only one they have is a gold plated version of the pilot watch.

thanks


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## Deldog (Apr 28, 2008)

Keep an eye on the eBay seller Sizzlin Watches: http://stores.ebay.com/SizzlinWatches.

Probably just out of them. That's where I got mine, and I was happy with their service and the watch.

Heck, maybe just go for the gold!


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## Big_Pilot (Jun 10, 2008)

abmw said:


> Can someone let me know where they got their Ticino? I did a search on ebay but the only one they have is a gold plated version of the pilot watch.
> 
> thanks


You could buy one from sizzlinwatches.com or try ebay. 
Good luck


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## GQ1 (Jan 30, 2007)

I'm just curious, if these have Asian movements, why are Ticino so expensive as compared to Invicta or Alpha for that matter? I mean, is it just because of their design because the movement seem to be Chinese or maybe Japanese, definitely not Swiss? Am I right? Please comment. Thanks.


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## rationaltime (May 1, 2008)

AUG 22, 2008

Hello GQ1,

Surely you don't believe that national origin is the primary determiner
of quality and price. Look again through the back window of the Ticino.
With the tooling marks, beveled winding gears, and blue screws, the 
movement is attractive. In addition, the Ticino watches don't fall apart
when you shake them a little bit.  You might think about that when
comparing the Ticino to other watches.

Thanks,
rationaltime
[disclaimer: I have no affiliation with Ticino or Ticino watch vendors.]


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## Deldog (Apr 28, 2008)

Mine was less than $150 on eBay. In this world, that's not bad at all.


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## GQ1 (Jan 30, 2007)

rationaltime said:


> AUG 22, 2008
> 
> Hello GQ1,
> 
> ...


rationaltime:

Being a proud owner of many Invicta and Alpha watches, I surely don't believe that national origin is the primary determiner of price and quality however, considering the quality and pricing of Alpha and Invicta watches and then comparing them to Ticino, I see a big price difference. You will find the colorful movement inside a $100 Marina Militare watch as well. Additionally, Alpha and Invicta watches do not fall apart when shaken either. In fact, they provide long lasting movements and solid casebacks and bracelets. My argument was considering the fact that Ticino are also Chinese made watches (?), with Asian 21J auto movement (?), why the high price tag? Thanks.


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## Big_Pilot (Jun 10, 2008)

GQ1 said:


> rationaltime:
> 
> Being a proud owner of many Invicta and Alpha watches, I surely don't believe that national origin is the primary determiner of price and quality however, considering the quality and pricing of Alpha and Invicta watches and then comparing them to Ticino, I see a big price difference. You will find the colorful movement inside a $100 Marina Militare watch as well. Additionally, Alpha and Invicta watches do not fall apart when shaken either. In fact, they provide long lasting movements and solid casebacks and bracelets. My argument was considering the fact that Ticino are also Chinese made watches (?), with Asian 21J auto movement (?), why the high price tag? Thanks.


Go make another thread;
It makes no seance to continue this ; this is simply a review not a debate.


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## incognito (Dec 5, 2007)

it's marketing...

The design will sell higher (pilot design) vs non... regardless

If Invicta came out with a Nav B Pilot, I assure you it will be at a higher price, just because they know they can sell it for that higher price.

Just an opinion...


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## PeterFromSanDiego (Oct 20, 2008)

I just got this watch less than a week ago. I have to say, it's very impressive. Really cool watch. Sits well on the wrist. But I think I'm going to sell mine, I have the sterile dial version. I think I may go for the black PVD.


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## wardog (Feb 11, 2006)

I have one too and really like it. I did have some problems with it at first, but service and support were top notch.


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## beginner (Feb 3, 2009)

Thanks for the great review!! :-!

I noticed the specification from Sizzlin site:

Dial black with SuperLuminova
Hands with black trim has SuperLuminova 

Does yours come with SuperLuminova on the hands and dial cos I am surprised that the lume is poor.

I am considering this but the lume must be good!


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## tunge (May 31, 2008)

just added the manual wind steril dial Ticino to my collection...

it's great, the lume is very good too, no problem w that.


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## 440saw (Feb 1, 2012)

PeterFromSanDiego said:


> I just got this watch less than a week ago. I have to say, it's very impressive. Really cool watch. Sits well on the wrist. But I think I'm going to sell mine, I have the sterile dial version. I think I may go for the black PVD.


I have the B dial with no logo on it (sterile). I also have the IWC but I am wearing the Tacino daily. It sits nice and keeps great time. This crystal is easy to source in Saphire, but I'll wait till I kill it first.
The fliegers are so hot now and there are so many options-it's eye candy extraordinaire!

These Sea Gull ST's and other chinese hand wind movements have been debated many times. I have them in a number of units and they all seem fine to me. And, Sea Gull does make a large portion of the world's supply of movements: more and more.

I like the Tacino a lot and think it fits well into my collection of Fliegers as it would in yours.

The B that I have has a solid caseback and I think that is fine too. I know whats in there. The display backs are nice as well. Just an all around nice piece for a good price.

If you want a bit of an upgrade to this you could go to Laco; either in Sea Gull or ETA. (both work just fine and last a long time). Or there is always the ramp up from there-ending in IWC.

The big point is there are a vast number of good pieces from different sellers at various price points; enough to satisfy us all. That's good.


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## sammy2012 (Jan 8, 2012)

Thanks for the great review! Wear your new watch in good health


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