Laco Aachen 39mm Review
Hello Watchcrunch, how is it going? today is friday night and i have nothing to do so i decided to look at my old watch photo and write a review about it. This laco was bought at 2020 and its my fourth watch.
so im a guy who likes to match my shoes colour with my watch strap. i have this dr martens boots for a long time and it didnt go quite well with my current collection (orient bambino with aftermarket brown strap). estethically speaking this orient is too polite for this boots (at least in my head).
sometimes after i meet one of my friend which has a decent watch collection wear a stowa type a dial and at that point i love the design of the watch, it is badass and match with my boots (especially with rivet on the strap). he tells me its a german luftwaffe pilot watch at ww2, so i do a little research about that particular watch style.
i found most of the info about this "flieger" style from teddy balldassare and urban gentry channel you know the rest. so i search at some flieger watch at my local watch store, and surprisingly some of them sell a laco watch.
truthfully i love type a dial, its more clean looking but i dont wanna be the same looking watch as my friend. so im trying to bought something different so i choose entry level type b dial which is an aachen 39mm.
upon arriving i was so excited to look into it. and here are my thought:
case:
case diametre is 39mm, they also have 42mm but i think 39mm is fit for my small wrist. made from 316 stainless steel with all brushed finishing, built quality is also good for the price. and it got an open caseback which i like, at that point i dont have a watch with open caseback. (usually i try to explain what an automatic movement to a nonenthusiast friend using the back of this watch 😂)
dial:
dial is as busy as what type b flieger usually looks like but i kinda like it, it has a "steampunk" esthetic to it. indices are printed with superluminova lume which is good. it has small laco brand in it (the more expensive laco model doesnt have a laco brand printed on the dial)
crown:
it has a onion style crown with blasted finishing, comparing to the original flieger it has smaller crown proportion to the case, but its quite good size for me and easy to use.
movement:
it is modified miyota 821 which laco called caliber 21, which has laco brand on the rotor which is nicer than my 4r36 seiko movement decoration. i dont know anything about movement but this miyota can free spin which is fun to watch lol. it has handwinding and hacking feature. things which i dont like is a ghost hand on this aachen, its okay but it didnt feel right.
strap :
things which i dont like is the strap width is a little bit too small for the watch proportion only 18mm. but the quality is superb for me, it made from top grain leather with decorative river. why they dont make it real for the rivet i wonder 🤔.
crystal:
made from flat saphirre crystal which is superb at 400$ pricepoint consider it made from german
conclussion:
im very happy with it. its bang for bucks for me and a great entry piece. so do you love flieger watch? did you have one? let share in the comment below. thx for reading, cheers🍺
Laco Aachen 39mm Review
Yes
No
- affordable price
- badass style
- built quality
- strap width too small
- ghost position
Considering myself as a man of culture and taste
I have the 42mm Aachen. It runs well and I enjoy it regularly. Even with a 7 3/4" wrist, the 42mm is as big as I'd want to go- those watches are all dial!
BTW- The basic movement is the "Laco 21" which is the Miyota 821, not the 921. The 921 is the "Laco 31" and it's available for a slight increase in price.
I have the 21, and it runs fine. They are criticized for being loud, but I've never noticed.
I own two 42mm type-B fliegers, both from Chinese makers (Corgeut and Hruodland). Hruodland is the better, cost me £150, so approximately half the price of that Laco. The design is obviously similar, but the Hruodland's dial has on the inner ring also hour markers, not just digits. The minute indicators are also enclosed by an outer ring - all that paint is lumed. The minute hand is a bit thinner on the Hruodland. I order my Hruodland with a PT5000 movement, for an extra £100 it is available with a Selita SW200 instead. The case-back is not see-through, instead it has writing on it that mimics what WW2 fliegers had on the inside of their case-back. (The Corgeut has see-thru case back.)
I had first bought the Corgeut for about half the price, but on unboxing it suddenly appeared to me that its hour hand was going substantially beyond the inner ring which I disliked immensely, but had somehow failed to spot on the listing.
I have the 42mm Aachen. It runs well and I enjoy it regularly. Even with a 7 3/4" wrist, the 42mm is as big as I'd want to go- those watches are all dial!
BTW- The basic movement is the "Laco 21" which is the Miyota 821, not the 921. The 921 is the "Laco 31" and it's available for a slight increase in price.
I have the 21, and it runs fine. They are criticized for being loud, but I've never noticed.
thx for correcting me my friend. i already editing it. cheers for fellow laco user 👍
I own two 42mm type-B fliegers, both from Chinese makers (Corgeut and Hruodland). Hruodland is the better, cost me £150, so approximately half the price of that Laco. The design is obviously similar, but the Hruodland's dial has on the inner ring also hour markers, not just digits. The minute indicators are also enclosed by an outer ring - all that paint is lumed. The minute hand is a bit thinner on the Hruodland. I order my Hruodland with a PT5000 movement, for an extra £100 it is available with a Selita SW200 instead. The case-back is not see-through, instead it has writing on it that mimics what WW2 fliegers had on the inside of their case-back. (The Corgeut has see-thru case back.)
I had first bought the Corgeut for about half the price, but on unboxing it suddenly appeared to me that its hour hand was going substantially beyond the inner ring which I disliked immensely, but had somehow failed to spot on the listing.
thats nice, i didnt know chinese watchmaker produced a flieger before. can i see those watch? thx
thats nice, i didnt know chinese watchmaker produced a flieger before. can i see those watch? thx
well, here's my wruw shot from a couple of days ago of my Hruodland:
thx for correcting me my friend. i already editing it. cheers for fellow laco user 👍
One of the bonuses of the 42mm is that it has 20mm strap lugs.
Much like the "noisy" Mitoya movement, the ghost position doesn't really bother me, but it does seem to bother others.
thats nice, i didnt know chinese watchmaker produced a flieger before. can i see those watch? thx
Steeldive makes the SD1940 flieger in both A and B dial options (with the non-traditional date...).
Very affordable, and Steeldive seems to have a decent reputation for what it is. https://www.steeldives.com/products/steeldive-sd1940
One of the bonuses of the 42mm is that it has 20mm strap lugs.
Much like the "noisy" Mitoya movement, the ghost position doesn't really bother me, but it does seem to bother others.
i got no trouble with movement whatsoever, agree i almost buy 42mm but it is too big to my wrist😢
Steeldive makes the SD1940 flieger in both A and B dial options (with the non-traditional date...).
Very affordable, and Steeldive seems to have a decent reputation for what it is. https://www.steeldives.com/products/steeldive-sd1940
thats true, they also produced many of the seiko homage for affordable price
I have the 42mm Aachen. It runs well and I enjoy it regularly. Even with a 7 3/4" wrist, the 42mm is as big as I'd want to go- those watches are all dial!
BTW- The basic movement is the "Laco 21" which is the Miyota 821, not the 921. The 921 is the "Laco 31" and it's available for a slight increase in price.
I have the 21, and it runs fine. They are criticized for being loud, but I've never noticed.
Laco 31 is actually miyota 8315, an upgraded 821A with 60hr power reserve and blued screws.
Considering getting one of these - found for around $300 online. It's between this and the Orient Flieger , which I have found for approximately $160. I'm thinking the price increase might be worth it, but I haven't quite decided yet. I do like the Laco branding and "Made in Germany". Thanks for the review!
Considering getting one of these - found for around $300 online. It's between this and the Orient Flieger , which I have found for approximately $160. I'm thinking the price increase might be worth it, but I haven't quite decided yet. I do like the Laco branding and "Made in Germany". Thanks for the review!
thx, i think i prefer laco built quality than the orient as i have both.