The Unofficial Sinn U series ownership experience thread

[Tim got his boots back]

This thread is all about the U ownership experience.

The U series of watches have caused quite a stir within the horological world since Bazel 2005. The lastest series of EZM's by Sinn. the U1, U2 and the UX are all now in the marketplace and have been sellling like hotcakes. Assuming, you have done a little research here and there on the Sinn website as well as the autorized distributor sites and have browsed the Sinn forums, you probably have a handle on the technical and engineering specifications of the three watches in question and now......you think you might want to buy a U. So now, comes the big real world stuff. We all heard what the ADs have to say about the technical specs and how wonderful these watches are and how you absolutely have got to have one to be on the cutting edge!...but....what about the new owners??..what do they think? What is their ownership experience like?

To help the good folks out there and to answer some of their questions, I would like to call on all you U owners to cast a few words on your ownership experience. Your likes, dislikes, things you would like Sinn to address, alternatives with regards to straps and clasps, anything. It doesn't have to be a two page thing, just a few words to help anyone looking to go down the same path you did.

Thanks!!

[Tim got his boots back]

I'd like to start things off by telling you of my U2 ownership experience.

I was turned on to Sinn by a fellow Seiko Citizen watch forummer from Singapore who, while chatting on the SCWF chat line, told me to check out a few links on the new Sinn U1. He sent a couple of links to me and I was just floored, really God-smacked!! I came to the Sinn forum here and asked a ton of questions and probably drove a few guys mad. They were all very helpful and informative. I quickly fell hard for the U2. I himmed and hawwed for a while and when the pics of the first U2s started to come out, I was sold. I put my name down with watchbuys (the N.American authorized distributor) around the first week of October 2005. My watch arrived, just as I was about to go insane with anticipation, on Dec 30th.

I have been wearing my U2, for almost all of the last two months. I have taken it off every once in a while to wear my rare Casio g-shock frogmen and my old seiko 6105 diver but for the vast majority of the time, I have worn my U2. The honeymoon phase has long since worn off and I can really look at the ownership experience from an objective point of view...so here goes...

It should be said first and foremost that the reasons I went for the U2 over the U1 was the fact that the U2 has the stay-dry tech. This was really important to me as where I live (north eastern Ontario Canada) the winters are very harsh with temperatures dipping into the -40 celsius range at times. I like to go out for walks in the cold on the old trapping trails and I like to wear my watch on the outside of my cold weather gloves. I also like to snowmobile and would like to get back into ice-fishing, again with the intent to wear my watch on the outside. I need a watch that won't seize up and won't fog up on me. The Sinn U series with the special oils and stay-dry tech was just the ticket.

Ok, now after two months....what do I think??? I think the U2 is the most well designed and engineered watch I have ever seen. Everything screams German engineering and especially Sinn engineering. This watch is somewhat heavy at 170g and is somewhat large at 44mm diameter and 15.5mm thick but it wears very well. It doesn't seem like it is that heavy or big when it's on my 7.5 inch wrist. The rubber band is just the ticket for me and the clasp has really grown on me. Here is an explanation of how the watch wears on me from a posting of mine on a thread here.

"The clasp is very wide. The clasp looks to be hanging below the wrist and it is..it's suspended below the wrist by 1 mm. The front part of the clasp is suspended by about 3 mm. If I drop my wrist straight down, the back of the clasp touches my wrist and the front is about 1mm away. The watch doesn't move because the rubber straps acutally "grabs" if that's the right word, the side of the wrist. It doesn't leave marks on my wrist but then again, I have what the nurses at the hospital call, "rubber skin" a rare condition where the skin has a rubbery, tough feel to it. If you have regular or sensitive skin, the experience might be different for you. If you move your wrist to extremes during your daily activities, you should like the way the clasp sits on your wrist. When you have your arm down, the back of the clasp sits on your wrist while the front part is suspended a little bit."

"I find the feel of the rubber strap and clasp very comfortable and secure even though my wrist is 7.5 inch. This watch feels better on the wrist than any watch I have ever worn. Then again, I really like the rubber bands with the deploy clasps. I have purchased several for my seiko 6105 and 6309 divers. That's just the way I like it. I also like my watch kind of snug, but not tight!! and it's just perfect for me. I like the clasp to be suspended as the underside of my wrist is the more sensitive part of my wrist and I don't like it when the clasp is sitting on it. When I move my wrist while active, a clasp on that part of my wrist, if sitting on it, will dig in. Part of the reason it's so comfortable for me is that I twist my wrist to the extremes, many times a day and the clasp is almost not there...completely out of the way. The rubber band keeps it secure. PERFECT!!"

Really, I find the large clasp an advantage with the thick rubber band. Because the clasp extends to the end of your wrist, the band doesn't have an extreme bend, digging into the soft underbelly of the wrist, to reach the clasp. It's a slight slender bend making the feel comfortable, even if worn all day and night.

So it feels wonderful on my wrist and the band and clasp are perfect for me. What about the watch itself. Well, I love the dial. There is hardly any glare with the double AR coatings. The time is easily read as the minute hand is almost twice as long as the hour hand. The second hand all but dissappears because of the red colouring. The gmt dial sort of dissappears also. The black and white contrast is really what my eye sees first. A quick glance from any angle gives you the time.

The bezel is a wonderful work of art and absolutely screams exacting German engineering. The bezel rotating action is very industrial like!! Very nice clicking action and it just stays put. I only use the bezel for timing my parking meter and my walks in the bush and the occasional boiled egg. It doesn't bother me that there is only 60 clicks, it's not necessary to have 120 for me. It actually makes the rotating movement more sturdier, to me anyway!!

The crown is large, super strong and sturdy. Very robust. 4 complete turns to screw it in. The crown is easy for me to grip and if you have a really big finger and thumb, trust me, you should not have a problem with winding.

The ETA 2893.2 movement runs steady at +3.5sec/day.

I would also like to say that I don't baby my watch at all. It just goes along for the ride and no special consideration was or is made to protect the watch. Well, if I absolutely know that reaching in to grab something WILL scratch it up, I will take it off. Anyway, over the two months that I have owned it, I have not put a scratch on it. The crystal is mint!!, the case and bezel, mint. It really looks brand new!! The clasp, well, that's stainless steel and is all scratched up!!, not dented or gouged, but scratched!! I love it, it adds a lot of character. Really, it's starting to look antique.
____________

But this is really why I love this watch. It just feels right. It just feels like it's a part of my body. The clasp is now nicely scratched up and has a bit of character. Here's another one of my post replies...just updated for this post. I think it says it best.

"When I worked underground, we wore a thick nylon mine belt with a thick steel D loop on the back for safety lines. On the right hip was the big red battery, on the left, two 12" adjustable mine wrenches, a speed wrench for victaulic clamps, a couple of pouches, one for my knife, line tester, electrical tape, stuff like that, and another with some wrenches for the loading gun, an oiling tube for the gun, assorted small wrenches for fixing scoops etc. I became so accustomed to wearing it and the wrenches being there that I just became a part of my life. It weighed several pounds but I never noticed it after a while. When I was at home and needed a wrench, subconsciously, I reached for my mine wrench, when I walked into a dark room, I automatically reached up to twist he light switch on my helmet lamp. I just naturally assumed it was there!! It was hard getting used to it not being there after the accident and just didn't feel right without all that weight!! It's wierd but true.


Like my old mine belt, my U2 has become a part of my wardrobe. Like my carhartt bib overalls and my ole 45 year old hunting cap and my leatherman wave which has worn itself into the sidepocket of my overalls, it's just standard issue now. When I wear another watch, it feels different. The weight's not there. It doesn't wear the same so it feels wierd. When I look at the time and it's a different face, it sort of doesn't feel right. I'm not saying it's because it's better, it's because it's MY watch. I really love the Casio frogman and have a couple of them and really love to wear them from time to time, also I have the same feeling towards my Seiko 6105 diver, I just think they are wonderful but It's always a re-assuring feeling to re-strap on the U2. I've only had it for 2 months and it just moved in and took over the wrist. I guess there's no need to buy another watch, save up my money and put it towards my dream garage!!"

Really there's nothing like walking down a nice bush trail on a cold -30 celsius day with my U2 on my glove. The snow just has that special crunch to it and the feel to the frozen deep woods is pristine, clean and fresh, it cleanses the spirit and re-energizes you. It reminds me of my younger days with my uncle and his clydesdale horses going out for wood in the bush. The heavy breathing of the horses with the clinking of the bridals. When I look down at my U2, it just feel good. the dial just looks antique, sort of like an old boiler guage. It somehow takes me back to a simpler time when I was young and there was magic in the air. Graceful. Chances are, if you run into me 15 years down the road, I will still have my long ponytail,grey for sure, my carhartt brown overalls and my old hunting cap.....and if you look on my left wrist, there will be a really well worn U2.

That is my ownership experience. Thanks for reading.

For you new guys...If you want to see some of my U2 pics, here's a link to my gallery posting

http://forums.watchuseek.com/showthread.php?t=308

[Lars]

Terrific posting! Thanks a lot Tim!

You really love your U2 - and so do I. Mine is definitely a keeper as well. I'm just a desk diver and all the extremely overengineered gadgets are just nice to have for me - but it's very satisfying to know that there are there ...

I also like the comibination of thick rubber and high-tech steel. If ever the corresponding bracelet comes out I don't think that I'll get one. I'm more interested in getting one of those new butterfly deployant claps.

Wearing a U2 is a very pleasant understatement. There are very few guys out there who know what this thing is capable of - or even know the brand. The U2 - like most Sinns - separates the real aficionados from the crowd.

[bfgreen]

Tim, fantastically informative as usual. I do have a question about the U2 though if you don't mind?

Does unscrewing the crown of the U2 in any way ruin the integrity of the Argon (AR) gas that the case is filled with - it seems like it could but I'm hoping Sinn thought of that and have a fail safe?

Also I've seen several pictures of the watch with its caseback off - wouldn't that let all of the AR gas out, I'm guessing it was for publicity purposes only, you wouldn't want to do that yourself right?

[Tim got his boots back]

Tim, fantastically informative as usual. I do have a question about the U2 though if you don't mind?

Does unscrewing the crown of the U2 in any way ruin the integrity of the Argon (AR) gas that the case is filled with - it seems like it could but I'm hoping Sinn thought of that and have a fail safe?

Also I've seen several pictures of the watch with its caseback off - wouldn't that let all of the AR gas out, I'm guessing it was for publicity purposes only, you wouldn't want to do that yourself right?

Hi Brian,

Thanks for your kind words!! Unscrewing the crown will not let any of the argon gas out as there are gaskets inside the stem assembly. The only way to let it out would be to unscrew the caseback. The crown can be unscrewed at any time and this will expose the gaskets to the outside. Just unscrew your crown, wind it up or correct the time and screw it back in. Always make sure to screw it back in. This maintains the w/r integrity.

Never attempt to unscrew the caseback!!. This will definitely let the argon out. The pics you seen were for photographic purposes. Any and all servicing must be done in Germany. If you bought it from an AD, make arrangements with them to have your watch shipped to them and they will make arrangements with Sinn and send them the watch. If you bought it from a non AD you will probably have to make your own arrangements with Sinn.

In Frankfurt, Sinn will service the watch and replace the copper/sulphate capsules and refill with argon gas.

Drop us a few lines with your impressions on your new U2 when it comes in Brian. I am so sure you will be very impressed!!

[Lars]

Tim, fantastically informative as usual. I do have a question about the U2 though if you don't mind?

Does unscrewing the crown of the U2 in any way ruin the integrity of the Argon (AR) gas that the case is filled with - it seems like it could but I'm hoping Sinn thought of that and have a fail safe?

Also I've seen several pictures of the watch with its caseback off - wouldn't that let all of the AR gas out, I'm guessing it was for publicity purposes only, you wouldn't want to do that yourself right?

I wouldn't recommend to open the U2 by yourself. Most likely you will ruin the 2000m water resistance - and of course you will lose the Argon filling. Pulling the crown is not an issue. My first Ar filled watch was a 203 St. I bought right after it came out. I used the pushers and crown quite oftenly but never had problems with the Ar (besides the normal diffusion effect of course which leads to the blueing of the copper sulphate capsule).

[pugridiron]

I wouldn't recommend to open the U2 by yourself. Most likely you will ruin the 2000m water resistance - and of course you will lose the Argon filling. Pulling the crown is not an issue. My first Ar filled watch was a 203 St. I bought right after it came out. I used the pushers and crown quite oftenly but never had problems with the Ar (besides the normal diffusion effect of course which leads to the blueing of the copper sulphate capsule).

How do you know you "never had problems with the Ar"? The Ar gas could have leaked out of the watch and you would be none the wiser.

[Crusader]

How do you know you "never had problems with the Ar"? The Ar gas could have leaked out of the watch and you would be none the wiser.

Between the copper-sulphate capsule and the Argon gas, I think the former is much more important than the second.

[Kool Cat]

Before I participate, 2 Questions...

1) Tim, are you now being commissioned by Sinn to do this :-D ??

2) More importantly Tim, are you getting paid or earning commission from the sale of Sinn U series watches ?? :-D :-D

And now to get my share of money in case Tim is getting any money :-D , my experience, hee hee...

A. Experience

My Sinn U2 has been with me for about 2 months now and though I wear it on occasion, it is an extremely robust, well built and engineered sports utility watch in my opinion. The copper sulphate capsules, argon gas filling, submarine steel, Anti-reflective coating on sapphire crystal, tegimented bezel, design, size and weight for me is just perfect.

B. Likes

Like I mention above, the submarine steel, argon gas filling etc. is great. Now what I really like the U2 is that it meets my very specific need of having robust dive watch with a two time zone function at a reasonable price. There are few watches out in the market with such functions, but they are either not robust enough for me, or too expensive. This factor, Sinn wins hands down.

C. Dislikes

Now there is little to dislike about the U2, but I have some niggling points which I hope that Sinn would consider improving.

1) The deployant clasp. Personally, I prefer the butterfly deployant clasp that was featured for those with smaller wrist and more importantly, it should be made of submarine steel and be tegimented. Simple reason, less suceptible to scratching as this is usually the part of the watch that scratches easily. Moreover, having the clasp made of tegimented submarine steel makes sense as the weak part of the watch is usually the strap and the clasp.

2) The rubber strap. While I personally do not use the rubber strap that comes with the watch, I feel that it is well made. However, I personally feel that Sinn should offer the option to have the watch fitted with either, the rubber, leather (preferably sharkskin) or metal bracelet, or at least incorporate 2 type of straps in the package. The reason is simple, the strap change thing is not only interesting for watch owners because it offers them a choice to match the watch for different occasions. More importantly, restricting the choice to rubber strap alone makes wearing the watch in hot and humid conditions (like Singapore) very uncomfortable. Likewise, wearing only metal bracelets in cold conditions may not be so pleasant and wearing leather strap alone in hot and humid climate is also troublesome-think smell :-D

3) Paying attention to customer feedback. This is one major gripe that I have having read Crusader's post the other day. It appears that up to now, from what we know, Sinn pays little attention to forum like this. I think it is very disappointing that Sinn does not actively monitor this forum. Honestly, how else would you be able to improve your product, and bottom line if you do not use vehicles like this forum to gather feedback and opinions? That is why if Sinn is still not paying attention to a leading Sinn forum like this, then it is a great pity, as they will miss out on the chance to improve their product, service, image and bottom-line. Personally, I think Lothar Schmidt, the CEO of Sinn should appoint someone senior in the company to monitor and gather users feedback and opinion. While not all opinion and feedback will make sense or are useful, fair and even just, i still think it is an important business tool. I think it also makes sense that once in a blue moon, Lothar Schmidt himself joins the forum discussions like asking "what is the wish for Sinn forumers in the 2007 regarding new Sinn watches?" Not specifically looking for complains or compliments but the type of product to be rolled out in the coming year- in meeting the desires and needs of Sinn customers after balancing other considerations. I remember Angelo Bonati of Panerai doing such an act in the Paneristi Forum some time back. Just look where Panerai is today in the horological world

Thanks for hearing me ramble, but I certainly hope that Lothar Schmidt or Sinn is "listening in" on this post. If not, could I ask Crusader or any of Sinn forum moderators to alert Sinn on this particular feedback, pse. Thanks

Jeff

[Crusader]

3) Paying attention to customer feedback. This is one major gripe that I have having read Crusader's post the other day. It appears that up to now, from what we know, Sinn pays little attention to forum like this. I think it is very disappointing that Sinn does not actively monitor this forum.

Jeff,

I didn't say that Sinn aren't monitoring the forum - I have no idea. I would assume they do, but one never knows.

But my last attempt to get in touch with them as a forum moderator fell on deaf ears. I'll launch another attempt tonight or tomorrow.

But I fully agree that Sinn could probably benefit from closer involvement in the forum. No need become the official forum sponsor (I like our "independent" forum), but being available to answer the occasional technical question would increase their popularity even more. B-)