SOTC 2023: Happy New Year!

Here's the content that nobody asked for: my SOTC 2023! A horological virgin, I really only got into this hobby in March of this year, and I may have gotten over-enthusiastic. I began with seven, I now have almost fifty!

This one's going to be long, but I'll do my best to break it down and give a short description of each. Each watch is numbered to the left to make it easer to follow. Blue numbers mean it carried over from last year. If you'd like a closer look, I've posted most of them in WRUW.

Aerospace I'm a bit of a space geek, so I'll start it with my space case.

1. Quasar Starlight. I got this one because I knew my girlfriend would like it. I get to look at her pretty face, she gets to look at this one. The dial is sandstone, so not quite aventurine.

2. Sturmanskie Gagarin, small seconds. This one's based on the first watch in space, worn by cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin.

3. Citizen Promaster Skyhawk. The logarithmic scale is a great way to figure out how to split the check after a dinner with friends. People think you're magic when they see you use it.

4. Vostok Komanderskie. I'm pretty sure that's a Sukhoi Su-35 on the dial. I thought it looked cool.

5. Timex Navi XL. I liked the NASA worm logo on it and the overall design.

6. Xeric Trappist-1 Saturn V. The seconds hand is the Trappist-1 planetary constellation, the closest habitable system to Earth.

7. Swatch Mission to Saturn. My wonderful girlfriend gifted this one to me and started my interest in the hobby. It might get a lot of hate, but I love it. I've used it in a good amount of field training.

8. Bulova Lunar Pilot. The history and moon connection appealed to me despite the long lug span.

Dress Pieces

9. Kennth Cole New York KC1514. My first mechanical watch, my parents gifted this one after I became a project manager.

10. Seiko Presage Cocktail Time SRPB41. The AD gave me a really good price on this and a King Samurai Dark Manta. My fanciest looking watch.

11. Seiko SNK063J5. Next to its bigger sibling, with a modded lumed Arabic date wheel.

12. Seiko SNKP21J1. I saw this one on Instagram, from Watches of Espionage. I taught myself some Arabic on deployment so I was immediately drawn to it. Now I can only read numbers. Modded for color matching day and lumed Arabic date wheel. One time, my girlfriend said, "Hello, handsome!" ...She was looking at the watch.

13. Casio MDV106. I really like the blue version, so I got a second one to dress up. Modded with a sapphire crystal with date magnifier.

14. Casio Edifice EFR-S108. I’m not a fan of integrated bracelets, but I knew how remarkably comfortable they are on the Edifice. It has an amazing dial, sapphire crystal, and 100m water resistance for less than $100 USD.

15. Casio MTP-M100. A great looking moonphase with a clean dial.

16. Citizen AP1050-81E. A classier looking moonphase with a tri-compax dial and a pointer date.

17. Bulova Precisionist. Probably the best movement this side of a spring drive. I’ve only had to set the time twice: when it arrived and after Daylight Savings. It’s lost a second since then, likely due to the colder temps.

18. Seiko SRK047P1. Quartz with a classic look. The endlinks fit better than on the Presage, and with sapphire for a fraction of the cost.

Tacticool These are the watches I use most in the military.

19. Seiko MACVSOG Mod. SNK381 dial with arrow hands, housed in an aftermarket SKX case with sapphire crystal. I needed a dive watch that I could quickly read so I made one.

20. Citizen Promaster Diver BN0157-11X. I liked my other Promaster so I got one to use in uniform.

21. Casio AE1200. Hydro-modded. It's my dedicated travelling watch, extremely useful when you have multiple connecting flights.

22. Casio AW80. Hydro-modded. Handy in dodgy situations. Same functionality as the AE1200, but with the addition of a Telememo databank. You can discretely store phone numbers and addresses, or make your own unique alphanumeric cypher.

23. Casio Pathfinder PAG240. I got it to replace my Suunto Core after I broke it. It's been superior in every way. Once calibrated, it's exceptionally accurate. The sunrise/sunset function is practical for planning movement in darkness.

24. Casio Pathfinder PAG240T. I liked it so much that I bought the titanium version. It's my most used watch.

25. Casio Pro-Trek PRW2500T. Slightly less functionality than the Pathfinder, but it has a moonphase and tide graph. The moonphase lets you estimate the level of illumination at night. The tide graph I mostly use for the beach.

26. Vostok Amphibia KGB. Modded lumed bezel. Usually paired with the titanium Pathfinder. The friction fit bezel is silent, essential for recon work. I had to regulate it in the middle of the jungle because it was running fast by minutes per day. It was a good guess, now it's only 10spd.

27. "Subsurface Simian". Harambe dial in an aftermarket SKX case with sapphire. Everybody loves this one. It's a good reminder not to take things too seriously.

Divers Only the bottom row has actually gone diving. Besides the SKXs, the other watches have been in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

28. Zelos Mako v3. This is when I knew I had a problem. Great brand and great watch.

29. Zelos Hammerhead Titanium. Up until this point, most of my watches had blue dials. This hammered red dial was too enticing to pass up.

30. Revelot R10 Admiral. My first GMT. I liked the whirlpool pattern on the dial and that the hands are based on Navy ships.

31. SKX007. I was going to buy one to mod, but I was able to get this one for a decent price with the upgrades I planned on doing anyway.

32. SKX013. The prices on these were insane, so I opted to get a build kit. The only thing I needed was the NH36. It looks better on a two piece nylon than the rubber strap.

33. Citizen Promaster Diver BN0151. Max depth: 90ft. My most used watch for diving. I'm lucky that I was able to get it with the NDL table on the strap.

34. Casio MDV106. Max depth: 60ft. Hydro-modded. My first watch of 2023, and my most complimented. Looks great on a single pass nylon.

35. Hawaiian Lifeguard Association HLA5421. Max depth: 60ft. The first watch I used for diving, and in Hawaii. They claim part of the proceeds goes towards the Hawaiian Lifeguard Association.

36. Seiko SRPE33. Max depth: 50ft. King Samurai Dark Manta. I hadn't planned on buying a watch that day, but I just happened to see it passing by a watch shop. Even the AD said, "Wow, you went right to it."

Casio Row 37-40

37. Casio Edifice EFR-S107D. Another great offering under $100. The indices are beveled in the same color as the seconds hand.

38. Casio A168. I like the digital retro look and superior backlight.

39. Casio F91W. Used for yardwork and carpentry. In case of an accident, the band will break before your wrist does.

40. Casio CA-53. Purchased while on vacation in Florida, it promptly went to visit the Delorean parked at Universal Studios. I wear it often for when I can't have a cell phone but still need to do math.

Undefined 41-42

41. Seiko Kinetic SKA783. An interesting concept, it combines the advantages of quartz and mechanical movements. I keep it on the winder so it holds a charge and doesn't break the capacitor.

42. Zelos Swordfish Field Nebula. The Swordfish diver didn't have a fully marked bezel like the Mako or Hammerhead, so I went with the field version instead. It will likely stay my only field watch.

Mod Squad 43-45

43. "Leather Daddy". My first build, great at parties. I'll eventually swap the handset. The mercedes style was the cheapest I could find at the time.

44. Frankenseiko. The face of the SNXS, the body of the SNK, and the heart of the NH36. Modded with a lumed Arabic date wheel. The dial of the SNXS was too pretty for its case so I wanted to class it up. I want to add a red-tipped seconds hand.

45. My latest build, I don't have a name for it yet. It has an Omega vibe with the dial and hands. I was really happy with how it came together. It's set for local time, Honolulu, and Manila.

If you made it through all that, then I salute you!

Hopefully next year's SOTC won't take so long. I plan on dipping my toes into the luxury tiered pieces if I can. Oh, I also need to look for a ring. Thankfully they sell those on Jomashop, too!

Thanks for reading and have a Happy New Year!