OrientMen's Japanese Automatic / Hand-Winding Stainless Steel 200 Meter Diving Watch

I'll get this out of the way first: The Orient Ray (Black) is my daily-wear watch, and I love it. I say it's in the Non-Pro category only because, for a number of reasons, including water resistance rating of 20ATM (200 Meters) it is not suitable for deep diving. Now, let me tell you why I love it, giving you the high points and low points.***Important: My evaluation is based on my personal preferences in watch styling and mechanics. The only hard & fast rule in watch preferences is that there ARE NO hard & fast rules in watch preferences, so take my points in that context. If you see watches in the same way I do, you may find them helpful.1. Dive Styling: 41.5" case size turns out to be my sweet spot, and the black bezel with larger marked 10 second increments is clear, easy to read. The face is black, and it's a DEEP DARK BLACK, as is the bezel, contrasting well with the hour markings. The hour & minute hands are modified "sword styling", the second hand a long, slim pointer tipped with a bright red spear. It's a little thing, but the detail finish on all three hands is the quality of a much more expensive timepiece. All three are lumed, and it's a bright, long lasting lume - I can easily read mine in the dark after eight hours of sleep. Ditto on the hour markers and bezel pip. Which brings me to a personal preference - the Ray's hour markers are either round or rectangular, with a slightly larger wedge shape at "12" position - no "numbers". I believe this gives a dive watch a much cleaner look, but some folks like to see some numbers - if you do, consider the Orient Mako, with numerals at 6,9 & 12. Personal preference.2. Case: Orient makes a heavy-feeling SS case w/screw-down back. It feels solid, and supports the 200M depth rating, and I'm guessing might actually rate considerably higher. Top surfaces are finely brushed, with side surfaces polished, for a subtly expensive look. Crown is screw-down, as a dive watch should be, with grip a little on the hard to grasp side, but still acceptable. Crown is polished, with the Orient logo embossed on the end, a classy touch. Action is firm when adjusting hands & day/date. Threads engage firmly, with an appropriately sized thread tube that does not "wobble" when the crown is grasped. The Ray has built-in crown guards formed as part of the case - I find this one it's most attractive cosmetic features, and of course it makes perfect sense to protect the crown. Crystal is "mineral"...I would have paid more to get the same watch with a Sapphire crystal, but understand the cost/benefit calculation. Having said that, I've been wearing Orients with mineral crystals for about five years now, with no scratches, and I'm a clumsy oaf with my watches, so it must be a pretty hard surface.3. Bezel: As mentioned, bezel on this model is a deep, inky black, with minute numerals crisply rendered in a SS tone. The Ray's bezel is a 120 click version. Here is one if my two criticisms - the action on this bezel, like the older model Ray & Mako's I've owned, is really too tight for diving use - there is no possible way it could be turned under water with or without gloves, because the "teeth" around the circumference are too small & smooth considering the tight action. This actually works well if worn as I do, in a "desk diving" mode, where bumps do not dislodge it, but not underwater, if that is a consideration.4. Movement: The new Ray features a hacking house-built Orient beating automatic heart, #F6922. My previous Orients used the older, Non-Hacking movement, which is one of the key reasons I fell in love with Orient Automatics. The older movement ran just a bit slow for me, but more importantly was ALWAYS very CONSISTENT, with a very quiet winding pendulum. The new movement seems already to be just as high quality - and my particular F6922 is running consistently about 10-12 seconds fast per day, which I consider perfect for an automatic. No guarantee yours will do the same, but believe me, this movement is the equal of far more expensive engines. The Day/Date function is crisp & seats perfectly in the viewing windows. Thank GOD Orient has ditched the "Day" Pusher located at 2 o'Clock on the old Ray case, with the arrival of the new movement. It was ugly, cheap looking, and another way for the watch to leak (I put up with it because I loved the rest of the watch so much). Another small Orient detail - the silver Day/Date window "frame" is beautifully finished & perfectly seated. The second hand sweep is not as buttery smooth as a 28K or Hi-Beat movement would be, but perfectly acceptable, and the red tip gives that little extra "instrument panel" look to the overall analog face. While we're talking movements, personal preference #2 - Automatic movements are my requirement vs Quartz...I've owned lots of both, don't own any Quartz's now. There are great Quartz divers out there - the Seiko Tuna monoblock titanium Quartz was one of my first "crushes", but I'm strictly an Auto guy now.5. Bracelet/Band: I removed the bracelet as soon as I unboxed the watch, and placed the watch on a black 22mm ballistic nylon 2-Pc. Strap. This is one of those personal preference deals - I like a light wearing watch/strap combo - and you may prefer a bracelet, no problem. It's an OK bracelet, medium weight class for a SS bracelet, although a ratcheting dive clasp replacing the deployant clasp would be cool. My least favorite features are the non-solid end link covers - they are the usual flimsy covers, and in my opinion have no place on a timepiece purporting to aspire to the name "Dive Watch". I left the plastic & paper wraps on mine, and will be selling it. If I ever want a bracelet for this watch, I'll go aftermarket, possibly the solid end-link model w/ ratcheting dive extension used on Orient's own Saturation Diver, which also has a 22mm Lug width.6. Overall, I'm in love. My watch collection is down to two - this and a Deep Blue Pro-Aqua Auto, for those days I feel like wearing a brick on my wrist. If one dive watch is all you want to worry about, and you don't dive for a living, some color version of the Orient Ray will make you a very happy Desk Diver.

As many reviews have already echoed, this is one of the best automatics available at this price point, and it punches above its weight class in many categories.Pros:- Lume is better than most watches at this price.- This is a great looking watch. I didn't initially love it after wearing a Submariner clone for years, but it has really grown on me and I think this is a fantastic, unique design.- The case feels and looks thin, making this a relatively low-profile and non-bulky diver.- The band feels and looks sturdier than similar watches at this price point (i.e Invicta Pro Diver) and the clasp is smooth and strong.- The movement is quite accurate, and certainly for this price point. I'm seeing ~5spd fast, however other reviews have reported that this will change as the movement wears in (they are assembled in a non-used state).Cons:- Lume is not as good as 'nicer' watches- The mineral-crystal glass seems to 'smudge' more easily than other watches I've used. Reviews mention scratching, which is probably likely, and a sapphire replacement is a common upgrade.- The crown is a little too small and not knurled enough, as has been reported ad-nauseum.- Some reviews complained about the bezel being hard to turn. It *is* harder to turn than some other divers, but I haven't had a significant issue.- I would love to see a clear case back for this.- The date wheel in the second language is a little weird and it takes a bit of time to change over. If you're up in the early morning you may get an unexpected date reading.

For the price, I think this is a great watch. It has a beautiful blue dial and has been accurate in keeping time. I usually only have been wearing it on weekends in the few weeks I've had it and it's kept the time accurately. I had it sized for my 6.5" wrist. Honestly, at 41.5 mm and 13 mm high this is a big as I should go for a watch. It's a little tall on mu wrist, but it does look good IMO, but I would not go bigger. I'm now looking for 2nd diver (Omega Seamaster) at 41 mm which I hope will be my sweet spot. The instruction manual was a bit confusing in the instructions on how to wind the watch, but I figured it out watching a YouTube vid: You have to unwind the crown until it completely disengages and then turn it clockwise for about 30 turns, that's it. It has hacking and hand-winding features that its closest Seiko competitor does not have. I was worried that it would be difficult to rotate the bezel: it's tight but not as impossible as I've seen others state on Youtube. It's actually loosened up a little bit for me and that's a good thing. Only criticism is that I wish it had 2 more micro adjustment slots in the bracelet. The bracelet is fine, not great. I don't dive, so I might put a leather or nato strap on it. If you can get it for <$160, buy it! I paid $150 at the time ... price does fluctuate from time to time. Good little watch. And of course, Amazon is amazing . . . I got it in 2 days with Prime.