# Anyone with an Archimede Deck Watch?



## leamico (Jan 2, 2011)

Hello all, I'm new to the forum and this is my first post.

I have been looking at the Archimede deck watch for a while now. 
ARCHIMEDE DeckWatch | Marine Watch

I am looking for a watch with a white dial and the blue hands. So my question is: the Archimede website describes the deckwatch dial as "silvered" but the pictures look white, in person does the dial look white or silver? I have seen many "white" dials in a jewlers' display case but when the watches are pulled out and under regular lighting they are actually silver and the blue hands now look black.

The other watch I am considering is the Stowa MO which is described as a "white dial". I am in a tough spot because I can't see either in person before I make a purchase. I would appreciate any insight from an owner of these models.

Thanks so much.


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## HilltopMichael (Mar 5, 2008)

I can relate to this - I too purchased a similar watch thinking it was a white dial when it really was silver... 

As for blued hands, those do change color depending on the situation. If you're outside or in a room with white ceilings and hands will reflect the lighter color and can look bright blue. However, if those hands reflect something darker, say the dark shirt you're wearing, they can look almost black. That's the nature of blued hands - and it's actually a very pleasing effect.

I believe that the Stowa MO has a white dial, not a silver dial.


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## Manolete (Sep 13, 2010)

leamico said:


> the Archimede website describes the deckwatch dial as "silvered" but the pictures look white, in person does the dial look white or silver? I have seen many "white" dials in a jewlers' display case but when the watches are pulled out and under regular lighting they are actually silver and the blue hands now look black.
> 
> The other watch I am considering is the Stowa MO which is described as a "white dial". I am in a tough spot because I can't see either in person before I make a purchase. I would appreciate any insight from an owner of these models.


 I'm not an owner of either, but I am a new watch enthusiast who has spent the past few months obsessing about just these issues. MO versus Archimede and silvered versus white. So take what I say with a grain of salt, but here's the what I learned. The deal with the actual color of the Archimede is that it is white. It has a silvered texture to it, if that makes sense, but the color of the dial itself is white. How do I know this? Chatted about it with an AD in London for 15 minutes and emailed with Thomas Ickler himself, proprietor of Archimede. The Stowa MO is a straight cream color, no silvery texture to it. Stowa does produce, however, an MO with a true silver dial, made of sterling silver, which will look silvery. The hands of the Archimede are applied blue enamel. Therefore they will likely look blue pretty much in whatever light you view the watch. The hands of the MO, by contrast, are blued, this is a more expensive and old fashioned process in which steel hands are fired, giving them a blue tone that changes in the light. They'll go from royal blue, to navy to black depending on how the light is hitting them. Very pretty, but often looks black. 
Now, as for MO versus DW in general. From my point of view this is an apples versus oranges situation. An MO is going to cost you around $1,000 from Stowa, depending on the exchange rate at the time you buy the watch. The Deck Watch is $635, straight up. From what I can tell, doing research on my own and lurking on the chats here at WUS, both are excellent watches and both are excellent values. If that is true, and I believe it is, then the obvious conclusion is that the Archimede is a less ambitious watch, worth more than the $635 it costs, but a less fine timepiece than the Stowa, which is worth more than the $1,000 you'll pay for it. The Deck watch's hands are not blued, as on the Stowa, the movement is basic and mostly undecorated and the general quality of the watch is on a lesser scale. The Stowa, by contrast has blued hands, a decorated movement and is in every way a fine example of watchmaking. If you do some searches you'll see many discussions of this topic and the overwhelming response to people who post queries of your type is to buy the Stowa. I'm not going to say that. I would say you are choosing between an excellent watch in the $600 range and an excellent watch in the $1,000 range. Whichever you buy you'll get a great deal at that price.


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## Myron (Dec 27, 2009)

Hi Leamico,

I'm not much of a photographer, but here is a picture of my Stowa Marine auto. I can attest that the face is a very pleasing white. The blued hands are also quite amazing, and I echo the comments others have made about the apparent variability of their color. They show quite black in my picture, but they are in fact a beautiful blue.

Good luck,

Myron


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## persco (Nov 25, 2009)

The Stowa Marine Original and the Automatic are both white dials. Not cream-coloured. Very white. The difference between the two is the Original is a white high-polish dial. The Auto is more like an eggshell texture but also white. I have a Meistersinger with a "white" silver dial. While it's bright and reflects nearly white, it's definitely not a white dial. It looks metallic.

s.


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## rationaltime (May 1, 2008)

Hello leamico,

Welcome to watchuseek and the German watch forum.

All the responses to your question have been helpful and carefully stated.
Thanks to those members for making the effort. It shows the best of this
community.

Happy New Year to all.

Thanks,
rationaltime


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## leamico (Jan 2, 2011)

rationaltime said:


> Hello leamico,
> 
> Welcome to watchuseek and the German watch forum.
> 
> ...


Yes very much so I agree and thank you all.

Its good to hear that I am not the only one with the same questions.

Manolete -That was very useful thanks for sharing all your research. I agree the stowa and Archimede are not a straight comparison given the different quality parts and manufacturing processes. Which one have you chosen? For myself the choice may be determined by the post christmas budget.

I'd still love to hear from an Archimede Deck Watch owner just to confirm Manolete's research.

Happy New year to all!


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## Manolete (Sep 13, 2010)

Thanks for asking about my search. I went back and forth and forth and back and in the end put in an order for a Stowa Marine Automatic. I chose the silver dial with no date, an onion crown and matte finished case. I did not go for the MO, because this is going to be my first "real" watch and my first non-Quartz watch, and I wanted something automatic and a bit thinner/smaller than an MO for ease of wearing. If I enjoy wearing the Marine Automatic and don't find the weight or size of the watch to be too much, I am already saving money to buy an MO, Roman, black dial, as a kind of night and day pair with the Marine Auto. I also have my eye on a Damasko Da36. I ordered the Stowa Dec. 6th, so I am only one month into my wait.


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## ctzn (Mar 14, 2010)

The Deck Watch is indeed more white dialed than silver dialed. Here is a pic of mine that I feel is a pretty accurate representation...










Still a great looking watch by all accounts and an incredible value for the money. The quality is very nice, the biggest difference being the undecorated movement. I have a Durowe MO on order so I can say I really love both, again though the DW is tough to beat for the money.


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## ctzn (Mar 14, 2010)

Another shot in natural light


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## leamico (Jan 2, 2011)

Thanks again everyone. Still have some decisions to make between the Stowa and archimede. Thanks for the pics ctzn; I like the strap you put on there, I am not crazy about the Archimede straps.

manolete-I hope you enjoy your new Stowa when it arrives...I am sure you will.


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## mr_raider (Nov 7, 2010)

Manolete said:


> I'm not an owner of either, but I am a new watch enthusiast who has spent the past few months obsessing about just these issues. MO versus Archimede and silvered versus white. So take what I say with a grain of salt, but here's the what I learned. The deal with the actual color of the Archimede is that it is white. It has a silvered texture to it, if that makes sense, but the color of the dial itself is white. How do I know this? Chatted about it with an AD in London for 15 minutes and emailed with Thomas Ickler himself, proprietor of Archimede. The Stowa MO is a straight cream color, no silvery texture to it. Stowa does produce, however, an MO with a true silver dial, made of sterling silver, which will look silvery. The hands of the Archimede are applied blue enamel. Therefore they will likely look blue pretty much in whatever light you view the watch. The hands of the MO, by contrast, are blued, this is a more expensive and old fashioned process in which steel hands are fired, giving them a blue tone that changes in the light. They'll go from royal blue, to navy to black depending on how the light is hitting them. Very pretty, but often looks black.
> Now, as for MO versus DW in general. From my point of view this is an apples versus oranges situation. An MO is going to cost you around $1,000 from Stowa, depending on the exchange rate at the time you buy the watch. The Deck Watch is $635, straight up. From what I can tell, doing research on my own and lurking on the chats here at WUS, both are excellent watches and both are excellent values. If that is true, and I believe it is, then the obvious conclusion is that the Archimede is a less ambitious watch, worth more than the $635 it costs, but a less fine timepiece than the Stowa, which is worth more than the $1,000 you'll pay for it. The Deck watch's hands are not blued, as on the Stowa, the movement is basic and mostly undecorated and the general quality of the watch is on a lesser scale. The Stowa, by contrast has blued hands, a decorated movement and is in every way a fine example of watchmaking. If you do some searches you'll see many discussions of this topic and the overwhelming response to people who post queries of your type is to buy the Stowa. I'm not going to say that. I would say you are choosing between an excellent watch in the $600 range and an excellent watch in the $1,000 range. Whichever you buy you'll get a great deal at that price.


Can anyone comment on the thickness of the Stowa vs the Archimede? Which one is more dressy or formal?


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## Manolete (Sep 13, 2010)

mr_raider said:


> Can anyone comment on the thickness of the Stowa vs the Archimede? Which one is more dressy or formal?


This is an excellent question. The Deck Watch is around 10.5 mm thick and 42 mm across. The MO is 10.8 thick and 41 across. Without having handled them directly, I'd suspect the feel of the watch in terms of size is quite similar. However, I do think the Stowa is more formal because of its design, which to me is quite is retro. The Archimede, by contrast, has a more contemporary tone and that, to me, makes it more casual. Also, there is the Handaufzug written above the small second dial on the Archimede, which somehow makes the watch less formal. Just one person's opinion. No doubt others will differ.


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## rationaltime (May 1, 2008)

Hello Mr. Raider,

This reply is not directed at you, but your question recalls others
that asked about suitable watches for formal occasions.

In my view:
"Formal" is a social convention that arrived on boats from Europe, like the
barnacles that infest our sea ports. Formal events are not about you or me
or other men. They are about women. At formal events men wear a sort of
uniform style of clothes. They are not supposed to stick out of the crowd.
They provide a back ground for the women. Part of the uniform is shirt
cuffs that hide the wrists. At formal events keep your jacket on and sleeves
down. Your wrist watch will not be visible. So, really it doesn't matter
whether you wear a wrist watch or what watch you wear. At the event if she
sees you checking your watch more than once you are likely to get feedback
about that more than the watch style.

So:
polished, brushed, or gold case?
black or white dial?
Roman, Arabic, or baton hour marks? 
hand wind or automatic movement?
central, small, or no second hand?
lume or not?
date display or not?
alligator or leather strap or bracelet?
black or brown strap?

All of those can be discussed, but they don't matter at the event. 
The watch should not be visible. Wear what you like.

Next time, an opinion about watches for interviewing and business wear.
You can guess the conclusion.

To answer the question:
The Stowa Marine original is 41 x 10.8mm
The Stowa Marine auto is 40 x 10.2 mm
The Archimede deck watch is 42 x 10.5 mm

There is not a significant difference in the thickness.
The thickness just doesn't matter.

Thanks,
rationaltime


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## mr_raider (Nov 7, 2010)

rationaltime said:


> At the event if she
> sees you checking your watch more than once you are likely to get feedback
> about that more than the watch style.


One of us needs to check our watches. If we left it up to her we'd be late everywherel


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## rationaltime (May 1, 2008)

Hello Mr. Raider,

You make a good point, and remind us the most important feature
of a watch is the time keeping.

Thanks,
rationaltime


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## Unce_Turbo_997 (Oct 18, 2010)

That's a great looking strap! Do you mind if I ask who makes it?


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## spotvi (Jul 20, 2010)

Hi Leamico,

I have purchased my Archimede Deck Watch last fall (2010). For your question about the dial's color, to me, it's white. As for the hands, as mentioned by another member, they appear darker under different lighting, which is a bit of a disapointment.

I upgraded my purchase to a domed crystal. 

A few years ago, I had seen a watch on someone's wrist, it had a white dial, blue hands and a really pronounced domed crystal. I didn't get the chance to get more details, but it became the fetish watch I was looking for.

I must say that the dome is quite discrete compared to what I was expecting, but it prevents reflections.

I am unsure that I would purchase another hand wound. 

Part of the issue is that I find that the crown is somewhat too low profile and it is hard to wind when on or off the wrist.

I do get many compliments on the watch.

Another comparable is the Steinhart Marine Chrono.

Hope this helps,

Steph


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## LH2 (Oct 25, 2009)

spotvi said:


> I am unsure that I would purchase another hand wound.
> 
> Part of the issue is that I find that the crown is somewhat too low profile and it is hard to wind when on or off the wrist.
> 
> ...


It is good to see feedback on the Archimede Deck Watch from an actual owner. You make a good point about the crown's accessability. I'm very much drawn to this watch based on photos, but I do wish it had a larger (onion?) crown considering how important the crown is on a hand wind watch.


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## priceofdesign (Feb 17, 2011)

I have had the opportunity to be with this watch for roughly 10 days with an unbiased point of view and i don't know if i necessarily agree with you on the crow accessibility. I found it be very easy to operate. I think visually an onion crown would have worked as well but would have changed the aesthetic. Just one mans opinion. If you you'd like to read my full review of the watch and check out some pics please do so. here is the link edited by mod, pls. contact me


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## NRS (Mar 4, 2011)

rationaltime said:


> Hello Mr. Raider,
> 
> This reply is not directed at you, but your question recalls others
> that asked about suitable watches for formal occasions.
> ...


What a good reply! Very good.


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## whatmeworry (Jul 31, 2009)

Interesting thread, I have recently started looking at the Deck Watch myself and it ticks a great many boxes for me. The pics posted here have done nothing but increase my desire! My only concern now is that maybe I should be paying the extra for the Stowa in order to get a slightly smaller watch (which is my general preference).


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## cadomniel (Nov 20, 2010)

I was looking at Stowa Marine automatic too but now I have the Stowa Flieger and it is in the same case, if I remember correctly. Anyway it is the same dimensions and I think 40mm would be too big for this type of watch on my wrist. The flieger auto is perfect but they are supposed to wear larger.
The marine auto with a polished bezel and big white dial would look bigger than the Flieger...

But I love Stowas and the extra money is worth it over the Archimede. AT least for the pilot watches it was worth it


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