Ocean Crawler Lume Rush
I am not a diver, nor have I ever claimed to be. I just happen to love dive watches. Being real, this watch I am reviewing today might never be used for diving either, though I am pretty sure as far as construction goes, it could handle it. The Ocean Crawler Lume Rush Diver is not your typical dive watch, especially with the sandwich cut-out dial, but it is fun to look at, fun to photograph and fun to wear. This is a standout model from Ocean Crawler. They have more traditional three hand dive watches available on their site, variations of this model and a new one on the way. Sometimes you want something different though, and this entire watch is pretty different to say the least.
Ocean Crawler Lume Rush Specifications:
- Case Diameter (excluding crown): 44.2mm
- Case Thickness: 150mm
- Lug-To-Lug: 51.8mm
- Lug Width: 22mm
- Case Material: 316L Stainless Steel
- Bezel: Unidirectional Rotating Bezel with 120 Clicks and Swiss Super Luminova Marker
- Movement Accuracy. +/- 5 seconds/day in 3 positions
- Water Resistance: 300 meters, 1000-feet or 30 ATM
- Rubber and Leather Straps
Price (at time of publishing) $749.00
*At the moment, only the PVD version of this model is available. The stainless steel version seen in this review should be launched soon.*
https://www.oceancrawler.com/collections/frontpage/products/lume-rush-black-pvd
Who is Ocean Crawler you ask? That is a good question and a good place to start. They are a very new microbrand that has really been making a splash online and especially social media. I am not going to copy text from their website or paraphrase, so you can go to the Ocean Crawler website and read their story and all about how the brand came to be, but I will tell you my initial thoughts when I first saw the brand. Now, keep in mind, I am always real here and the first time I saw the brand online, I dismissed them. I saw the name and some images of their first model and immediately thought, “That looks more like a pilot watch than a diver”. I did not look at the site long, and simply glossed over it, not to think about them again. I then started to see images from some great photographers on Instagram popping up of the original diver and the more I looked, the more I liked it. “ Why did I dismiss them so fast?”, is what was running through my head. Then I saw the Ocean Crawler Lume Rush Diver and I knew I had to get one in hand for review.
Now, let’s be clear here. If you have not watched the video yet, the dial is clearly inspired by Sarpaneva Watches. I have not shied away from that fact and I do not believe Ocean Crawler is either. I mean, it would be hard to do so with a dial such as this. The design of the dial is not an exact copy by any means, but it is obvious where they got the idea from. I am okay with homages of course, and the rest of the watch is an original design as far as I know, so now that it is out there, we can move on. You know how you get a new watch in and catch yourself staring at the dial over and over again? Well, get one of these in hand and I guarantee you will stare at this watch more than you ever thought was possible. It is just beautiful. The applied lume dots on the inner circle of the dial, all the precise cutouts, it is just awesome. Of course, as you can see in all of the pictures, it is even better in the dark. If you are a lume junkie, you will overdose on the Ocean Crawler Lume Rush Diver.
Powering the Ocean Crawler Lume Rush Diver is a modified Seiko 4R36b automatic movement. It is stated it is modified to have even better accuracy and better shock resistance. Ocean Crawler states it is guaranteed to keep precise time for 5 years. There are many tests done to the movement and the watch itself, and you can read all about it on the Ocean Crawler Website, but I will copy this portion just so you can get an idea of how serious they are about building a hard use watch:
“Ocean Crawler watches have to pass ten different drop tests before their launch. The most severe is the high impact hammer test. This shock testing equipment submits the watch to an impact equivalent to 6,000 G – Hundreds of times more than a car crash test. Yet the watch has to remain unharmed and fully functional afterwards, maintaining a high standard of accuracy.”
It is pretty obvious that I love the Ocean Crawler Lume Rush Diver, and I have a standard PVD version in hand as well right now that I am checking out and love it just the same. That does not mean there are not a few areas for improvement. One of those would be the orange rubber strap. The strap itself is fine in looks and the comfort department, but the keepers have me confused. They are just really not needed with the way the deployant clasp works. The leather strap is great, but a little on the short side, especially if you are someone with a larger wrist. One other area would be the case would benefit from drilled lugs. It is tight fit with the straps, the leather having curved spring bars, the the rubber having the molded end piece, that it would be great to have it be easier to get the straps on and off. Actually, as I type this, quick release spring bars would really be great here.
When it comes to comfort and fit, the Ocean Crawler Lume Rush looks and feels great on the wrist. I still have not decided whether I like the rubber or leather strap better, it might be a tie. It is also nice to have the option of both, as both do make the watch look different. While the Lume Rush is not really a watch you can dress up, I feel the leather strap works better for more every day wear, and the rubber for when in the water or at the beach, etc, which I’m sure is what Ocean Crawler intended.
I stated in the beginning that I do not think many will be taking this version of the Champion Diver diving, and I still stand by it. I mean, if you do take it diving, you are probably not timing anything with it, because let’s face it, it is a little hard to see the hands and markers with all that is going on with the dial. That is okay though. While the watch can certainly handle most of what you can throw at it, I feel the allure is that badass dial and it will most likely see more desk diving than anything. If you want a more traditional diver, check out the other versions of the Champion Diver. If you want something more funky, more out there and just plain cool, you might want to grab the Ocean Crawler Lume Rush. While I may have been quick to dismiss, I am a believer now. Ocean Crawler is a brand to watch for 2018. They may be microbrand of the year as far as I am concerned, and the year has only just begun.
