Review of the Primitive Haus Timekeeper Type-A (White Dawn)

This is a quick initial impression and review of the Primitive Haus Timekeeper Type-A (White Dawn).

Note that this watch was purchased by me and no compensation or promotions/discounts were provided to me by the company.

Quick Specs:

• Price: $329 plus shipping

• Lug to Lug: 44mm

• Thickness: 12.3mm

• Lume: 15 Layer BGW9 Swiss Super-Luminova

• Material: 316L Surgical Grade Stainless Steel

• Diameter: 38mm

• Movement: Miyota 82S5 Caliber With Hacking (small seconds variant)

• Crystal: Scratch Resistant, Anti-Reflective Sapphire

• Water Resistance: 200 Meters

• Vibrations Per Hour: 21600 Vibrations Per Hour

• Power Reserve: 42 Hours

• In The Box: 1 Watch, 3 Quick Release Straps (Steel Bracelet, White Tropic Rubber, Blue Nato) Cleaning Cloth, Metal Warranty Card (2 years), and a Travel Pouch in a tan vegan leather.

• Website: https://www.primitivehaus.com/product/type-a

Here are some images of the unboxing and a few quick strap changes:

You'll notice that all three strap options have quick release spring bars

For reference, I have a 7.25" wrist and the Rolex Glidelock™ style bracelet and clasp fit me well without having to remove any screwed in links. I also have about 4-5mm of travel to go (post Thanksgiving should I need it).

I'm not usually a fan of high polished bracelets, but this one is comfortable, has decent weight without being too obnoxious and the clasp is finished better than most in this price range. Specifically, I enjoyed that there weren't any sharp edges around the milled components and while not the most original of designs for the bracelet, for the price, it's really hard to beat - especially when considering that the flip over clasp (lock) is signed.

Next, there are multiple strap options included, mine came with a tropical rubber strap, in white as well as a split style NATO in blue. I appreciated both options, but there is some room for improvement.

Both the rubber and NATO are decent quality, but the case of the watch doesn't have any relief (cut out) for straight bar straps...translation, they'll "catch" a little until the case essentially wears down the material that touches the case...not the end of the world and again, it's a plus to have these options at this price point, but a simply CURVED spring bar solves this problem...you'll see my solution at the end.

Here are some images of both the included rubber and NATO straps that were included:

You can see how great both strap options look, but also how "tight" they are to the case...again, a simple CURVED spring bar solves this issue but with the quick release bars that are included, you essentially have to "break" the included ones to resolve this...or curve them yourself 😉 ...with a spoon like an animal if you wish..here is a tutorial on being a watch degenerate like all of us: https://www.intlwatchleague.com/showthread.php?62508-Bending-spring-bars

Ok, so the review part. This is a good watch, and not like, "Oh, for the money, this is a good value...blah blah blah."

This is a good watch. Full stop.

The fit/finish of the case, the simplicity of the dial, the uniqueness of the hands, layout, 38mm platform, and the neat 4:30 position of the crown makes this a treat on the wrist. Plus, without a rotating bezel, you get a ton of real estate on the dial. The printed minute markers, with additional 24 hour markers are a cool touch, and the pop of color makes this a fun summer addition for sure.

What I love are the "00" at the top of the dial...for a 24 hour watch, that makes sense since 12:00am, in military time is literally "zero."

There is a normal wobble from the Miyota movement, but for those of us who enjoy mechanical movements, we've grown accustomed to the little propeller in there fanning the watch-maker's side of the timepiece.

Mine came in running very tight...see the timegrapher here:

Thee brand itself is relatively new, and some might remember them around 2019 as "James & Muriel" during an inital Kickstarter campaign. I for one appreciate the new look and updated branding, I think Timekeeper is a neat direction for an upcoming brand. You can see an initial review of one of their first offerings here from Loren Sciurba at The Time Bum (https://www.thetimebum.com/2019/07/james-muriel-timekeeper.html). You can also compare / contrast the revisions these folks have put into the newer offering.

As with all my watches/reviews, I think it's best to also give them a direct sunlight shot, so here are those:

I really like this watch, there are way more positives than "things to improve" and in truth, my minor gripes are really, for those of us that spend way too much time in this hobby.

One thing you may notice is the case-back and its not so much the size that may bother some, but the difficulty you might have when trying to remove the bracelet with the provided quick release spring-bars...perhaps it's just my sausage fingers, but I had a hard time quickly removing them because the case back protrudes a bit; again, nothing for folks who have skinny fingers (or don't have arthritis like I do), but just a heads up that you may need to move one side and then another ;)

So, here was my "fix" for the tightness of the straight spring bars..curved ones. I threw this onto a simple tan leather strap and in my opinion, it came to life:

Finally, lume is good. Bright and while it won't last long, it does the trick.

Overall, I had a great experience with their customer service team when ordering. Interactions were awesome.

In all, I'm super impressed with the watch and look forward to future watches from these folks.

…and one look at the watch makers side