Duzu Watches Pilot
Titanium Case
86 grams
42mm Width
Miyota 9122 Automatic Movement
14mm Thick with Crystal
50mm lug to lug
22mm Lugs
SAPPHIRE Crystal
100m water resistant
C3 lume.
Price $545
https://www.duzuwatches.com/shop/
A good 8-10 years ago, the Duzu Watches Pilot would have probably been at least 45mm. As with all things-fashion, watches, cars, etc, some trends come and go, and size is always the main contention for a watch. Now, there are still large (or what most consider large) watches out on the market, but the current trend is for smaller watches, and I see this from mainstream brands as well as micro. Under 40mm seems to be very popular actually, and for me, that is not a trend I am fond of. Long gone are the days of me wearing a 48-50mm watch. Nothing wrong with those who still prefer a large watch, or those who prefer a small watch or if you are like me, and are more middle of the road. Now, that all depends on body and wrist size to a certain extent as well, but I would consider 42mm to be more mid-size these days. So that is a long, roundabout way of saying the DW-P2 is a good size and because and very lightweight due to the titanium construction. It does appear to be thicker than it is though, one of those optical illusions with watch cases because with no bezel to break it up, it looks like a thick, chunky beast, where in reality it is under 14mm thick, and that includes the domed sapphire crystal.
For those not paying close attention, the dial is not a chronograph, but a day/month/date complication, and it is an interesting sandwich dial. The numbers and markers are still printed, usual for a sandwich dial, with the subs-dials coming from the lower dial, as well as the lumed logo. This creates a nice depth to the dial not usually seen, especially when looking at it from different angles. I saw a comment on the YouTube review saying that this dial was useless with this complication, and maybe I am in the minority but I could not tell you the last time I used a chronograph on a watch. In fairness, I don’t use a dive bezel either, but in this use case, I find the day/month/date complication very useful. I don’t know about all of you, but this year has been one big blur to me, and most days the redundancy has taken its toll, and while I have a smartphone to tell me all I need (including the time if you want to do down that road), it is nice to have a watch display more than just the date, and I like how this Pilot watch has integrated it. The dial itself is relatively clean as well, with the most minimal dial text in with a font that I don’t find to be generic nor over the top. It just works.
The titanium case of the Duzu Watches Pilot is all brushed for that tool watch feel, and even though the screw-down crown sticks out a good way even when fully closed, it does not touch the back of the hand and become a nuisance. The 2 o’clock pusher is for the day/month sub-dials and has a nice tactile feel to it when depressed. The more I look at this watch though, the more I have to question it being dubbed a pilot watch. It doesn’t have anything we normally associate with a pilot watch, no chronograph, no tachometer, no 24-hour scale, so maybe to me it is more field watch than a pilot, though not sure if that fits as well. Maybe just a multi-purpose watch? However you want to categorize it, the case, dial, crown, and case back are well put together. Speaking of the case back, it is not every day you see one that is acid etched, and I think most by now know I am a sucker for a nicely engraved or in this case etched case back. Most automatic movements are very mundane and undecorated. I honestly loathe most of the Miyota movements in terms of looks and will always prefer to have a case back like the one on this Duzu.
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In terms of comfort, the watch head itself sits nice and flat on the wrist and I find it to be above average in terms of fit, but the combination canvas/leather strap will take a significant break-in period. Now, this is a good thing, as this strap is very well made and seems it should be durable enough to last a few good years, but just keep in mind it is not going to fit like butter on the first day. For my 7 1/2 inch wrist, it is more than long enough, with a few holes left over, so I would say if you have an 8-inch wrist or less, you should be good to go. Another nice touch is the custom buckle. Not just a buckle that was pulled out of a bin or picked from an Alibaba webpage, but one that looks like some thought and time were put into designing it. It’s a shame that watches 5 times this price do not have buckles this nice. Don’t believe me? Make sure you are signed up for our newsletter or subscribed to our Youtube and you will see what I mean in a few weeks.
Lastly, let’s talk about the lume. As you can see, the Duzu Watches Pilot has lume everywhere, even on the crown, a fun but mostly useless feature-that is unless you like to set your watches in the dark, and finding the crown has always been a cumbersome task. If you set your watches outside of the darkened bedroom or a cave-like most of us, it’s more gimmick than anything, but I will admit it does look cool walking into a dark room and seeing the crown glow. Overall I would give the lume a grade B. It is C3 lume on this example (BGW9 and orange lume also available) but the hour and minute hand are where you will be let down. The hands only have a small area for lume compound to be applied and as such, it does not glow as well as the rest of the dial. It also is a little sloppy on the hour hand, at least on my example. If the hands were possibly redone where more lume could be applied, then the score would easily be an A.
The Duzu Pilot is a watch I never expected to review if being frank, but I am glad I did. This watch in terms of aesthetics is much better in my opinion than their first offering, but beyond that, it looks to be a custom design all the way around, and with it being titanium, sapphire, and a Miyota 9000 series automatic, at $545, that is impressive. Wayne seems to be moving in the right direction and this pilot offering is a watch that could be a daily wear piece, at least for me. As with things like customer service, I can not speak to that, but from what I have seen online and my interaction with him via email, he seems to be a pleasant chap (I don’t think I can pull that phrase off), so hopefully, if any issues arise they will be taken care of promptly. I see on the Duzu website there is already a third model in the works, and from the initial renderings I have seen, I can say I am not in love with it, but renderings can be deceiving, so hoping to see prototypes next year to get a better idea. But, just because a design is not for me, doesn’t mean it isn’t for you, so take a look at the Duzu Website when you have time to check out all the of the Pilot lineup and other existing and upcoming models front this Australian based brand.
