# Citizen Promaster PMV65-2271 Review



## DenverCO55

About a week ago I received this great watch from a seller in Japan and it's time for a review.

First of all, I LOVE it. It is exactly what I was looking for. It has a busy face, lots of technology, its durable and long lasting, everything I could want in a watch. That being said, if it's not your cup of tea, no big deal, but for those that it is... enjoy 

The watch is amazingly light. I had a SS watch that was much, much smaller and despite the size of the Citizen, it's even lighter (only 5 grams but that counts). The Duratect treatment on the titanium case and band looks great. It has the right amount of shine and is expected to be extremely durable. The clasp is pretty neat as well, it has an adjustable link that can be moved in and out about one full link length so you can fine-tune the size of the band after you remove the appropriate amount of links. 

Lets talk technology. Being an Eco-Drive, it'll never need a battery or need to be in constant motion, just a peek at the sun is all it needs. According to the manual, 4 minutes of light is all it needs for a full day of movement. The atomic clock radio reception is great. I'm about 1800 miles from the USA clock and my reception status is always "High" or "Medium". Every night it syncs up and gets the correct time. I love the world clock feature since I watch a lot of UK programming (EPL). What's also nice about it is you can turn off some cities so you don't have to scroll through all of them every time you want to switch. 

The luminescent hands are great and if you need to see the screens, just hit the button and a light comes on for 2 seconds, perfect. 

It has a perpetual calendar, chronograph (with split time), and two alarms (which can be set to go off on based on another cities time, great for knowing when matches start).

I thought the slide rule was going to be useless but it actually has come in handy. You can very, very easily do multiplication, division, square roots, unit conversion (km/mi/NM, L/US gal/Imp gal, lbs/kg). It also has plenty of flight calcs but to be honest I have no use for those (I'm not a pilot). The one thing that is tough about the slide rule is the crown to control it is on the left side of the case so you really have to take it off to use it. 

The crystal looks great, the anti reflective coating does the job. I haven't had a chance to go 200 m below the surface so I'll let you know when I do... 

Overall, this watch is perfect for me. I love the busy face. It's large but it doesn't look huge. Love the weight. Love how it is self-sustaining, no changing the date/time, no winding, no moving around. This watch will last longer than I will.

If anyone was considering it, take the leap. It has a great price tag to go along with all these features. It's too bad it's only available in Japan, I think the US market would eat this timepiece up.


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## hiro1963

A very nice pick up. Enjoy!


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## jason_recliner

Nice write-up of an incredible watch, surely one of the sweetest chronos around. It just looks perfect. Great pics, too.


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## MetaLMurf

Such a tempting watch, I love all the technology along with the excellent finish. Great write up!


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## DenverCO55

Thanks guys!

It's a great looking watch and has the muscle to back it up. Sometimes I find myself staring at my wrist far longer than it takes to read the time...


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## Motorcityjoe

Excellent acquisition! May that bad boy serve you well for many years to comeb-)


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## thraxeh

I bought mine while travelling Japan. Normally not a fan of Titanium but the finish is lovely. Citizen really know how to pull off a busy dial.


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## carlowus

It surely looks great. Isn't it kind of expensive though?


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## ap10046

hi *andrewjhermiz*
Very nice watch.
If I do get one, I will be putting a rubber strap on it ..but just a small query...have you noticed any scratches on it after a week's wear?


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## Igor71

Really tool watch!!!
Can you tell me wath size from lug to lug?


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## DenverCO55

carlowus said:


> It surely looks great. Isn't it kind of expensive though?


It's supposed to be about 100,000 yen, whatever that works out to be I'm not sure but I think it's between $1,000 and $1,500. I got mine in an eBay auction so I only paid $700!!!


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## DenverCO55

ap10046 said:


> hi *andrewjhermiz*
> Very nice watch.
> If I do get one, I will be putting a rubber strap on it ..but just a small query...have you noticed any scratches on it after a week's wear?


No scratches whatsoever!


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## DenverCO55

Igor71 said:


> Really tool watch!!!
> Can you tell me wath size from lug to lug?


From the left outermost edge of the case to the outermost tip of the crown is 47mm.


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## warthog

I've been very tempted to buy this watch a few times, the one thing that puts me off (apart from it being a little pricey relative to the similarly functioned Ti Skyhawk) is that the dial is so busy, the hour and minute hands don't seem to stand out for easy, accurate time reading. Maybe I'm just getting old. :-(


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## chunala

Hello everyone, I'm new to this forum, and sorry to dredge up this old thread but did have a question regarding this awesome model Citizen.

I recently purchased this watch (heavily influenced by this review and comments of other forum members) and really love all of its great features. It truly is almost an industructible watch with the highest degree of accuracy currently available to the consumer market.

Unlike the other Promaster models I have (with the same water resistance rating (20 bar)) the PMV65-2271 does not have a screw down crown. 

My question is 'have any owners of this model actually gone swimming with the watch"? The lack of screw down crown/pushers and screw down back makes me question the true water resistance of this watch, although I doubt Citizen would "lie" 

Thanks to everyone for such a great forum!

Alan


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## toolworker

warthog said:


> I've been very tempted to buy this watch a few times, the one thing that puts me off (apart from it being a little pricey relative to the similarly functioned Ti Skyhawk) is that the dial is so busy, the hour and minute hands don't seem to stand out for easy, accurate time reading. Maybe I'm just getting old. :-(


The hands stand out fine. They're wide with raised edges and a slight greenish tint to the fluorescent filling. My concern with the hands was blocking the digital readout, but there's enough vertical separation that tilting the watch almost always lets you peek at it.

Another quibble is that it's thick enough (14.1 mm) to be an issue with long-sleeved shirts. I'm hoping to get used to it though.

I love this watch for the functionality as a world travel watch. I was first attracted to the Skyhawk A-T, but the sapphire crystal, treated titanium and ability to set the calendar to local time made the JDM model a no-brainer choice. Shipping to San Francisco from Seiya in Tokyo took 3 1/4 days, and one of them was Christmas!

As great as this watch is, I can't help bemoaning the amount of dial space locked into UTC and 24 hour time, which are of limited interest to most people. It's a "pilot's" watch, but why not make it more useful for non-pilots too?

My old Seiko had an alarm dial that doubled as a second time zone to show home time during travel. I wish the UTC dial or the 24 hour dial could be set to a different zone to serve this function. Yes, the digital display can show another zone, but then the calendar function is lost.

But no watch is perfect, and this one comes really close. With many (all?) of the ATV53 models being discontinued according to dealers in Japan, there aren't a lot of choices for the U680 caliber. I'm glad I grabbed this one.


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## toolworker

toolworker said:


> As great as this watch is, I can't help bemoaning the amount of dial space locked into UTC and 24 hour time, which are of limited interest to most people.


I just realized that the UTC dial can be set to my local zone using Correction of Standard Position, making it a 24 hour dial that will always show time at home, including AM/PM, independent of any other zone settings. Hugely useful!


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## DenverCO55

chunala said:


> Hello everyone, I'm new to this forum, and sorry to dredge up this old thread but did have a question regarding this awesome model Citizen.
> 
> I recently purchased this watch (heavily influenced by this review and comments of other forum members) and really love all of its great features. It truly is almost an industructible watch with the highest degree of accuracy currently available to the consumer market.
> 
> Unlike the other Promaster models I have (with the same water resistance rating (20 bar)) the PMV65-2271 does not have a screw down crown.
> 
> My question is 'have any owners of this model actually gone swimming with the watch"? The lack of screw down crown/pushers and screw down back makes me question the true water resistance of this watch, although I doubt Citizen would "lie"
> 
> Thanks to everyone for such a great forum!
> 
> Alan


I just stumbled upon this again so who knows if you're still looking for your answer. Actually, now that it's been nearly a year and a half, this may be a much better answer.

Yes, I go swimming all the time with this. I've only been about 15 feet down but have done so many, many, many times. I take showers with it, I wakeboard, jet ski, everything. No issues whatsoever. And like I said, it's been a long, long time.

Hopefully that helps.


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## DenverCO55

toolworker said:


> I just realized that the UTC dial can be set to my local zone using Correction of Standard Position, making it a 24 hour dial that will always show time at home, including AM/PM, independent of any other zone settings. Hugely useful!


Hi,
I'm not familiar with the "Correction of Standard Position" to modify the small UTC dial. How does one set this up (is it in the manual?) and does it incorporate daylight savings time on that dial.
Thanks,
Andrew


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## toolworker

andrewjhermiz said:


> Hi,
> I'm not familiar with the "Correction of Standard Position" to modify the small UTC dial. How does one set this up (is it in the manual?)


Check out this fantastic interactive user manual. Click "Standard Position."



> and does it incorporate daylight savings time on that dial.


I wish! The watch still thinks it's showing UTC, so no correction for Daylight Savings (which the watch calls Summer Time).

Mostly I travel during the expanded U.S. Daylight Savings months, so I will probably just leave it on DST year round.

BTW I just got back from Asia, and it was really useful to have a 24 hour dial set to home (Pacific Daylight) time.


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## ky70

andrewjhermiz said:


> Hi,
> I'm not familiar with the "Correction of Standard Position" to modify the small UTC dial. How does one set this up (is it in the manual?) and does it incorporate daylight savings time on that dial.
> Thanks,
> Andrew


I believe I found what toolworker was referenceing. On the link below, select "All reset/Standrard position" in the left margin. Flip through the instructions for this section until you get to UTC.
U680_main

I've been looking heavily into skyhawks and specifically this variation (your review was very helpful) and will be buying this model in a few days. If this UTC adjustment works that will put the functionality of this watch to another level.

Edit: I see toolworker alreadyrepsonded. Great stuff. Thanks.


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## toolworker

Can anyone else report the accuracy of this watch when no radio synchronization is available?

A couple of months ago I was in an area for a week where no signal was available, and my PMV65-2271 lost 3 or 4 seconds. This is at the edge of the Citizen spec which says +- 15 seconds/month ("average"). But that's about what I get from the $20 fake Breitling I bought in Thailand. My old Seiko 7T32-7A2A is good to about a second a month.

But - when it is synced, what a rush to listen to WWV and see the second hand exactly in sync with the ticks!


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## brett kenny

toolworker said:


> Can anyone else report the accuracy of this watch when no radio synchronization is available?
> 
> A couple of months ago I was in an area for a week where no signal was available, and my PMV65-2271 lost 3 or 4 seconds. This is at the edge of the Citizen spec which says +- 15 seconds/month ("average"). But that's about what I get from the $20 fake Breitling I bought in Thailand. My old Seiko 7T32-7A2A is good to about a second a month.
> 
> But - when it is synced, what a rush to listen to WWV and see the second hand exactly in sync with the ticks!


im in oz so obviously get no signal. mines at about +4/5 sec/month.

ive had literally dozens of eco drives over the years and the worst ive had is about +8sec/month, the best +1sec/month for a couple of them. pretty good really.


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## ky70

Just ordered mine. Been wanting an Eco drive for years but everytime I came close to buying 1, a dive watch would get my attention. Doesn't make much sense as those simple 3 hand watches with a bezel don't come close to having the functionality of the various ecodrive. When I stumbled onto this version o the skyhawk there was no dive watch appealing enough to pull me away. Can't wait.


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## M1K3Z0R

I know this is an old thread, but I just had to thank the OP on the awesome pics! 

I happened upon this watch while perusing the assortment of skyhawk models, never been a huge fan of those mostly for the busy dial, mineral crystal, and the very wide looking bracelet. Well, this model has the busy dial but somehow frames it in a much more attractive way - knurled "bezel", duratect Ti, slide rule under sapphire, and a classy speedmaster-esque bracelet to top it off. I think I've found my next purchase!

I had some sticker shock when I went to check the new prices from the usual JDM dealers, but it seems they sell for a much more reasonable $350-400 used, and as usual I missed out an an excellent minty one back in June. 

I still have some reservations though - the super busy dial is packed with features, but apart from the slide rule it feels like a solar/atomic gshock can pretty much render this watch redundant in every way except style/flash.


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## toolworker

*Citizen Promaster PMV65-2271 - Interactive Manual*

Thanks for waking up the thread.



toolworker said:


> Check out this fantastic interactive user manual.


The old link for the interactive manual is broken, but there's one here.


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## SnookDawgg

Waiting on mine to arrive from Japan - having a hard time accepting their stores are closed ALL WEEK LONG for Golden Week. C'mon...I gotta get it!



M1K3Z0R said:


> I still have some reservations though - the super busy dial is packed with features, but apart from the slide rule it feels like a solar/atomic gshock can pretty much render this watch redundant in every way except style/flash.


Except I don't know if any Gshocks that can display three time zones simultaneously...

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## M1K3Z0R

SnookDawgg said:


> Except I don't know if any Gshocks that can display three time zones simultaneously...
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Good point, though flipping through the time zones on a G-shock is pretty quick and easy. I've never handled this watch so I'm not sure how intuitive it is to use, but my experiences with other citizen AT watches make me feel that a pure digital is better at handing multiple functions rather than having to fiddle with the crown and wait for hands and mode dials to whiz around into their proper positions. Maybe I just love the atomic/solar square G-shock too much, though the skyhawk in a Ti nighthawk case look appeals more to me than I/my wallet would like to admit


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## glazer1972

Since the thread got woke up. I broke down and made an offer on a used one. Apparently my offer wasn't low enough so I now have one inbound.


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## M1K3Z0R

glazer1972 said:


> Since the thread got woke up. I broke down and made an offer on a used one. Apparently my offer wasn't low enough so I now have one inbound.


How are you liking it? what did you pay for it? These seem to rarely come up for sale, but when they do they have been around $450 and I missed them each time.


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## hoss

I just purchased the Citizen Navihawk A-T Black Dial Black Rubber Mens Watch JY8035-04E from eBay. I just received the watch earlier today and I'm currently wearing it. The one that I got is the all black ionized case with the black rubber strap with the folding clasp. It has the same U680 module/movement inside of it like the PMV65-2771. The only thing different between mine and the PMV65-2771 is the color of the watch case, the black rubber band and the negative display. I just saw the Titanium model with the positive LCD display and titanium metal band and I fell in love with it. I'm thinking of getting one. I noticed that the titanium model is made 100% in Japan and that it's only for the Japanese domestic market. Do you recommend the titanium model if one already owns the other JY8035-04E that comes in the black ionized watch case? Both are supposed to be the same exact watches with the same exact functions. The only thing that differentiates both watches from each other is the sapphire crystal in the titanium model, case color/material and titanium band, the lcd display and the buttons/crown. Would it be worth it to buy the titanium model that has the same functions as the all black ionized model if one already owns the all black ionized model? Should I get a different Navihawk model that might be coming out soon? Or maybe get a Skyhawk model? What's the best thing to do?


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## hoss

Bump..............................Anybody???


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## hoss

Bump...............Anybody?


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## SnookDawgg

hoss said:


> Bump...............Anybody?


hoss, are you still looking... 2 years later? I'm toying with putting my PMV65 on the sales thread.


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## CitizenPromaster

In Japan good used examples are still selling for $400 and there are plenty of takers.
I thought about selling mine, but decided to keep it. It was LNIB, and I wouldn't have let it go for less than $450


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## HorologicOptic

hoss said:


> I just purchased the Citizen Navihawk A-T Black Dial Black Rubber Mens Watch JY8035-04E from eBay. I just received the watch earlier today and I'm currently wearing it. The one that I got is the all black ionized case with the black rubber strap with the folding clasp. It has the same U680 module/movement inside of it like the PMV65-2771. The only thing different between mine and the PMV65-2771 is the color of the watch case, the black rubber band and the negative display. I just saw the Titanium model with the positive LCD display and titanium metal band and I fell in love with it. I'm thinking of getting one. I noticed that the titanium model is made 100% in Japan and that it's only for the Japanese domestic market. Do you recommend the titanium model if one already owns the other JY8035-04E that comes in the black ionized watch case? Both are supposed to be the same exact watches with the same exact functions. The only thing that differentiates both watches from each other is the sapphire crystal in the titanium model, case color/material and titanium band, the lcd display and the buttons/crown. Would it be worth it to buy the titanium model that has the same functions as the all black ionized model if one already owns the all black ionized model? Should I get a different Navihawk model that might be coming out soon? Or maybe get a Skyhawk model? What's the best thing to do?


The PMV65-2771 is still far and away the most refined watch using the U680 movement. I say if you can pick one up for an agreeable price you should get one, for the quality they are a great bargain.


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