Elysee Rally Timer Review

Another feature that is noticeably different from most watches is that instead of having normal hour markers, the Rally Timer has numbers in the form of a 60 minute stopwatch, again, giving that racing stopwatch vibe. Some people are going to like this. Some will call it gimmicky. For me… I like it. I know what hour and minute it is by the hands, so the numbers are not necessary for me. The Rally Timer is just like a watch that doesn’t have Arabic numerals, like the ones that have dot hour markers or such, so keeping with the overall theme is a good thing to me.

The white dial is nice and crisp. The dial doesn’t have that milky look to it like some lume dials have been known to have. Overall, the dial is well done for a chronograph, but it could have been less cluttered without the writing on the dial at the 3 position. Anyone who follows my reviews have probably figured out that I do not like a lot of writing on the dial, but that is just my personal opinion. I would have rathered the date been in this area, instead of jamming it into an area where you cut of the number 2 of the 20 marker.

Something that I really appreciate is the choice of a solid leather strap as opposed to the racing straps with the holes in them. I just never cared for them, so I was glad to see a regular leather strap. The strap is nice quality with a red leather backing, and has a basic square steel buckle. I had no issues with the watch fitting my 7 ½ wrist, though I would say this watch would fit up to an 8 inch wrist at the most, maybe a little less, so keep that in mind if you have large wrists.

The entire case design is unique, as least as far as I know. There could be other similar style racing watches out there, with the beveled hooded lugs and the case with the milling, but not that I am actually aware of off the top of my head. The center case is high polished, while the top of the lugs are brushed, and then the sides of the lugs high polished again. It gives a lot of contrast, and it shows attention to detail. The case back is attached using 6 screws, 3 on each edge of the back. More attention to detail with the case back finishing, as the majority of the back is all finely brushed, but the edges are high polished. The case back is extremely comfortable on the wrist, but due to the case design of the watch, it does give the appearance that it is thicker than it listed 15mm specs. The domed sapphire crystal also aids in that as well. While it might not look like it on paper, on the wrist, the Rally Timer is a fairly tall watch.

The lume is very sufficient with the entire dial and hands glowing a bright green. It is not going to be a flashlight by any means, but you should still be able to easily read the dial in the dark. I noticed the lume, if it was in proper lighting most of the day, lasted a good few hours before fading completely.

For the price point, I think Elysee did a nice job on the Rally Timer model. I would have liked a little more contrast with the bezel; the silver portion is a little monotone to me with the white dial. I think the black and red bezel used on the black dial version would have looked a little better. But as usual, I am nitpicking as I am known to do. If you like a racing themed watch, are looking to add something different to your collection, or have been wanting to check out a bullhead style watch, you might want to give the Rally Timer a look. With a Miyota movement, excellent case finishing, sapphire crystal and better than average lume, what more can you ask for at under $400? Elysee seems to be creating a lot of bang for your buck with their models, and I look forward to checking out more of them in the future.

Thank you to Elysee watches for providing this model for review. You can purchase this model HERE if you choose to do so.

Thank you for reading.