Luminox Commando Raider - review
Nobody needs more than one watch, especially if all you need is an Outdoor Adventure watch. I am two sentences in and already I am cringing.
The green Commando Raider XL.3337 combines all the details for which Luminox is famous – tough, luminous, extremely water resistant, highly legible – with a sand-coloured dial, military style numbers and military time.
Fair enough - it’s 46mm and bright green. It is about as subtle as a fart in Church. A blue suit would not save this from a fashion faux-pas. My eyes. Nuclear green is probably the most subtle of the sour palette.
I could talk about CARBONOX, tritium tubes, and all sorts… I won’t. I will just cut to the chase.
This watch is £589 RRP (as of 22/09/23). We will start here.
It comes in a nice box (plastic hard case - probably what some of the money gets you). Open said box, this is your first impression.
F**k. That’s a lot of green.
Movement - It’s a GMT. The GMT is a Ronda 515. It’s a cheap movement in an expensive housing. The GMT hand is a little bit temperamental to set, akin to Bambi-on-ice, but that is a hang up of the cheap movement. It relates to the numerals around the inner bezel (obviously) but they are hard to read mainly because of the luminosity of the green everywhere else. Movement works, I suppose that is the thing, but you are paying for the housing. Oh, seconds hand misses all the markers as well - nice. I expect nothing more though.
Housing - light, the bezel is clicky-clicky one-way only, and feels like plastic (but is CARBONOX). The 12 o’clock has a protruding nubbin that houses a little bit of tube, but it catches EVERYTHING. Have handle, will crank.
Sapphire crystal and AR coating - ok.
200mm water resistance with screw down crown - ok.
Dial - legible, to a point, but migraine inducing, That is not considering the green.
Bezel - lime green compass. Probably useful, but only if you pop ibuprofen and wear sunglasses.
Lume - supposed to be one of the headline acts, but there are only two orange tubes at 12, and three green at 3, 6, and 9. The hour and minute hands have orange, and the compass nubbin has a small orange one. That is your lot. I suppose I do not wish to be sniped by insurgents whilst walking at night, but I also think they really skimped on lume considering the price. £589 at RRP.
Strap - 24mm rubber. YOU HAVE TO CUT IT TO SIZE YOURSELF. It’s easy, and there are instructions, but you need to take time out to get this right in order to enhance wearability. It is comfy, but you get what you put in. I do think it’s odd that they have a black case and do not offer a rubber with a PVD clasp, it’s stainless only. I do not often wear white socks and black shoes, but hey, this is not a dressy watch. The clasp also has 3 holes for micro adjustment, so you have to get this right when you set up - no pressure. It’s functional, but I know people like to complain.
Price / Value - remember the RRP, it is not worth that. I will just say it now: this watch is not a £589 watch. I will offer a curveball, I did not pay RRP, I paid £200. I have said this before for Timex, and their oddball pricing scheme, the price of entry will determine how much mileage and enjoyment you get. At £200 it’s easy to forgive some, or most, foibles that the watch has, at £589… hell no. Plus, if £200 is still ok for a little bit of profit, why £589? Sorry folks, this watch is overpriced.
It wears comfy, and does the job. If you want it - try and get it at an outlet…
Luminox Commando Raider - review
Yes
No
- Lightweight, and therefore comfortable to wear
- Bold - if that’s your thing
- Very hard-wearing, does the job
- Price - far too expensive considering what you are getting
- Light on lume, especially for a Luminox
- Possibly at the limit of acceptability and comfort in terms of colour
- Compass point of bezel constantly catching on clothing or other things. Click click f**k
- CARBONOX bezel feels cheap and plastic
- Lume is not amazing… even in the quantity you get
- Ronda 515 movement is pretty much bottom of the barrel in terms of price and quality. It functions, but…
- GMT hours on inner bezel/wall hard to read
You have woken me from a particularly good dream…
That’s extactly how I’d review mine - spot on 👌
That’s extactly how I’d review mine - spot on 👌
Does the job, but it’s not worth the RRP.
I’m honest.
I did buy it mainly because I thought it would upset the wife - it did. I’ve been wearing it all week and it is comfy, but yeah, it’s an eyesore.
Does the job, but it’s not worth the RRP.
I’m honest.
I did buy it mainly because I thought it would upset the wife - it did. I’ve been wearing it all week and it is comfy, but yeah, it’s an eyesore.
I wear mine for work, the tritium does it’s job (I drive at night) and it is definitely comfy but as you say, they are not worth the money they ask 🤝
I wear mine for work, the tritium does it’s job (I drive at night) and it is definitely comfy but as you say, they are not worth the money they ask 🤝
I find the darker it gets the better the tritium behaves, so I am not knocking the tech. I’m also not knocking the CARBONOX as it’s hard-wearing and light-weight. The bezel does “feel” plastic-y, but I have Tag F1s, I can live with mixed-media. I do feel that if I was to pay £589 it would need:
Better movement, or at least something that could include WaveCeptor type technology, or solar powered. This is an adventure watch, my G-Shock Gulfmaster does more for less, which is also what I wear in extreme environments (I travel off-grid a lot).
More tritium. So much more. Go nuts. Be like Ball.
PVD clasp with micro adjustment
More than one strap, or one that doesn’t need to be cut.
Better legibility for the GMT
At £200, I can live with it, but not recommend it…
That’s extactly how I’d review mine - spot on 👌
Yours looks better though!
If I was 9, and keen on joining the sea cadets in a few years, this would be my dream watch.
Good gravy, man, what compelled you to pick it up in the first place, even at the deal you got?! That Swiss Bliss tax is real though.
Thanks for taking one for the team.
I like Luminox and I think they're too expensive, compared to how they used to be in the 90's and 00's the quality has started to slip somewhat with cutting corners and a heavy reliance upon CARBONOX for everything.
Not to mention those awful Bear Grylls collaboration watches with positive inspirational words all over the dial, they always seem to be on sale at massive discount as clearly nobody bought them.
It is an abomination. Which is ok, if you like that sort of thing.
Some people just want to watch the world burn. Also I’m vintage only apparently, which is completely incorrect.
Plus - too many 5/5 reviews. This is how you do it, even with a watch you own. Leave your bias at the door.
Luninox is terrible on lume. The watch is a joke for watch they think it’s worth. Take a look at Deep Blue. Fantastic watch, fantastic lume. Can’t say enough about them.
I like your review, seems very fair and I do agree it is well overpriced at RRP, but and it’s rather a large but ………. I’m drawn to it aesthetically I love the fluorescent look to it and as I have 8"+ wrists I reckon it may wear well.
Thanks 👏🏻
Btw - my usual wilderness watch is the Gulfmaster.
I paid £350 new at Duty-Free for this about 6 years ago. It has two modes of time display, GMT via function, compass, barometer, thermometer, altimeter, stop watch, back light, solar power, and radio-controlled time update. It is tough as nails. I think they were around £500-600 RRP. I know what seems better value on paper.
Btw - my usual wilderness watch is the Gulfmaster.
I paid £350 new at Duty-Free for this about 6 years ago. It has two modes of time display, GMT via function, compass, barometer, thermometer, altimeter, stop watch, back light, solar power, and radio-controlled time update. It is tough as nails. I think they were around £500-600 RRP. I know what seems better value on paper.
I've never seen this watch before. Beautiful
I've never seen this watch before. Beautiful
I wouldn’t ever call a G-Shock beautiful.
The GWN-1000B-1BER has long been discontinued. It did have an update a few years back which took some of the numbers off the bezel, but it’s not one you can pick up, and I don’t think they make anything like it anymore. One on eBay in Japan atm, if you are interested.
Luninox is terrible on lume. The watch is a joke for watch they think it’s worth. Take a look at Deep Blue. Fantastic watch, fantastic lume. Can’t say enough about them.
Good point I have two deep blues,I really like them.One is T100,nice&bright.I also have three older lumi’s.One is original black model.It’s 20 years old,lume still works well;and I beat the hell of out this watch at work.Still keeps good time.
Good point I have two deep blues,I really like them.One is T100,nice&bright.I also have three older lumi’s.One is original black model.It’s 20 years old,lume still works well;and I beat the hell of out this watch at work.Still keeps good time.
Yeah, I believe Deep Blue is one of those secret watches that one day will be discovered then become very very expensive.
Good point,hopefully they get discovered &don’t raise their prices.