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Hi Guys.
Well, it’s time for my first Sinn UX ownership experience post. I received this new in box UX on the 23rd of August of this year.
All of you have heard of this one and Marcus (oyster) has posted some absolutely awesome pics that have driven us all crazy this year. His pics were the straw that broke my bank account’s back.
For those of you who are new to the Sinn U series experience and are not up to spec on the UX, I shall update you on what a UX is. The rest of you, please ignore the blue text and read on.
The Case and bezel
The UX is basically the same sub steel case, described to death on this thread, as the U1 and U2 except that the case back is flat instead of convex. The bezel is thinner because the UX makes use of a thinner flat sapphire crystal. The overall thickness, depending on where you read it is 12 or 13mm instead of the 14mm thickness of the U1 and the 15.45mm thickness of the U2.
Silicon Oil
The UX is filled with clear silicon oil which is basically incompressible. This makes the UX waterproof to pretty much any reachable depth. The crystal can be thinner because it is not protecting a void from crushable pressure. Please read this excellent silicon oil article pulled from the articles section on this forum. It pretty much says it all.
The Movement
The movement is not an automatic movement like the U1 and U2 but is an ETA Thermo-compensated quartz movement which is claimed to be accurate to about 10 seconds a year. Actual reports are coming in at between +5 and 10 sec/year for watches with similar T/C quartz movements. These movements are the most accurate movements available anywhere. Because its quartz, it’s far more resistant to shock. (less moving parts) The quartz movement is the weak link in the depth rating of the UX as components inside will crush at a depth of between 5000 and 6000 meters I am told. Others, please correct this if I have the figures wrong.
Now, on to my ownership experience….>
This watch is incredible. The silicon oil really improves the readability of the dial and makes it, to me, the most clearly readable dial I have ever seen. The layout of the dial is perfection personified!! Add to this the darkening of the matte black dial to a super rich featureless black that makes the cut-out for the date and the black portions of the hands totally indiscernible from the dial. It all blends in together. The oil also performs an optical illusion which negates the depth perception of the particulars. The hands and the dial seem to be on the same plane. The only depth noticeable is the edge of the bezel when view from a 90 degreeish angle.
The clarity of vision and readability of the whole dial at pretty much all angles is amazing. Again, the oil performs an optical illusion which, when dragging the angles closer to a flat zero degrees seems to pull the dial and hands up so that it’s almost a part of the crystal and at the most extreme readable angles possible, it almost looks like the dial and hands are litho-painted to the top of the crystal. Please see this video to see this effect in action.
I find this extreme clarity and readability very handy when I’m in appointments which are running long and when a glance for the time is needed, I can just give a quick indiscreet glance and can get the time without drawing attention to the act which may be taken as a rude gesture by the other person. When driving, I can just give a quick glance to get the time. Handy in the Firebird as it has no clock.
Lume.
Here is an excerpt from a post I had recently which pretty much explains it all. “I have this little wire thingy I made up that hangs on my lamp shade. It allows me to hang my UX an inch or so away from the side of my 100w lightbulb. I usually leave it hanging while I get ready for bed.
Once ready, I slip it on my wrist. I like to wear my watch all night as I have a really bad back as a result of a motorcycle accident 5 years ago and moving around in bed can be painful at times. With a watch on, I can just glance at the time on my wrist without having to move to see my nightclock.
The lume on the UX after the 1 to 2 minute exposure as above is very good and will maintain a perfect legibility for a long time. I find that I can clearly read the time 6 or 7 hours after lights out. The fact that the UX has a short hour hand and a long minute hand makes for no chance for a mix-up. With dreary, sleepy eyes in the dark, I can make out the time quickly and easily so it works well for me. There are some who absolutely insist on brilliant luminescence all night but I don't find this very necessary for me. If I can read the time without straining, that's good enough.
The lume is a greenish lume and isn't as bright right off the bat as my U2. The U2 can be clearly seen to be more bright for an hour or two and then the difference is less discernable.
It is my opinion that the silicon oil difuses the light and dulls the lume a bit like it darkens the black dial and the hands a bit in daylight. I don't see this as hampering the lume for the whole night to a point where it makes the oil filling a detriment to the user experience. Others will disagree depending on how important the brightness of the luminoscity is the grand scheme of things for them.
I would therefore recommend to any UX owner an exposure to bright incandescent light for a period of about 2 minutes and then you should be fine for the night. If you are inclined to look in the direction of the best luminescence in the watchworld, well, there's tritium and then there's the Stowa prodiver and Seiko black monster and others to consider. In the end, with a two minute exposure, all of the above mentioned watches will be easily readable in the morning. The difference is that this watch is oil filled and thermo-compensated with submarine steel protecting it."
How does it wear??
Very nicely thank you! It sits much lower on my wrist than my U2 as the case back is flat as opposed to convex and it has a thinner bezel and a flat crystal as opposed to the domed U2 crystal. The thinner UX is nicer for those who wear their watch under their sleeves. Not really applicable to me as I wear sweaters and the U2 was no problem to wear under them. Of note, I took my stainless steel bracelet from my U2 and installed it on my UX and found that my UX wore looser on my wrist than the U2. Not much but noticeable.
The outside Anti-reflective coating.
The anti-reflective coating is prone to smudging but it’s not a problem for me as I just tend to glance at the watch for the time during the day and the time is quickly discernable from any angle and the smudges are not seen. The a/r works well for this. When you really look at your dial from straight on, you can see the smudges and it might bother some. For me, it’s no biggie as this is a work watch and absolute pristine perfection is not important. Cleaning is easy. Just take a napkin and wet the end and clean and rub good. Presto!! Clean.
The crown
It doesn’t screw down four complete turns like the U2 but about 2 ½. The seal seems very solid though. Same nice crown as the U2 and very user friendly.
Crystal…Domed vs Flat.
Here’s a link to a thread I posted comparing the U2 and UX crystals and the dial clarity and readability at angles. Pics included.
U2 vs UX : Dial and refraction pics
Accuracy.
This UX is running dead on. Set to the atomic clock the day I received it, after 18 days, it's dead on. You can't get any better.
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This watch is very highly recommended!!
If one can get over the automatic bias you may just realize that this watch might just be the end of the world if your in search of perfection. It's got it all, Superb construction and simple clean design, super strong and scratch resistant case, perfect size (at least for me), very slim considering the w/r rating, super clarity and readability from all angles, unsurpassed accuracy and it's very shock resistant and completely waterproof!! Can't ask for much more.
Unfortunately, the production cannot meet the already high demand. Put your name on the list or hope for a pre-owned one to come up for sale. You won’t be sorry....It's well worth waiting for!!
Thanks for reading.
Tim
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