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Old 12 August 2012, 03:01 PM   #1
gregvisser
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10 day review of my Pam 190

It's me again. I have had my new Pam 190 for all of 10 days now and thought I'd have a crack at an initial review. I know these watches have been out for a while now and there's been plenty written and said about them, but I couldn't resist adding my 8 year late review :)

Looks:
This is a large watch. There is no getting around that. At 45 mm it is the largest watch I've had and worn. I have a wrist just over 7" and if it was any larger I could see myself getting very little love in a 'is this watch too big for me thread?' What helps it stay in proportion is the wire lugs. They become part of the strap rather than part of the watch. The Radiomir design is very forgiving in this way.

This watch is a true example of neo-retro. Slightly domed sapphire crystal, clean and simple dial, golden hands. I can sit outside for hours and watch the clouds go by on the sapphire crystal canvas. And sticking to the retro theme, as a bonus you get the large stand-out crown which is a characteristic feature of the Radiomir case.



What can I say about the Radiomir case. The pillow shape is just so right. Normally with larger watches e.g. DS, even the Luminors, the side opposite to the crown normally is styled to mimic a large shiny cliff (to quote a good friend). It feels like folks who designed these watches get to the end and of the day and think 'we've done our job, no-one is going to look at the non crown side, let's go home'. The Panerai folks ordered a take away pizza that night, stayed an hour longer at work and nailed it.

The case back comes with the obligatory sapphire window. It had to be. Not so much from a looks point of view, but how would you see the blued 8 day hand without the sapphire back? It just works.

If I had to be overly critical, I can say that the polished case could be seen as a negative. It is a fingerprint magnet and always looks dirty. In saying that, I don't think this watch would have worked with a brushed case. It becomes a case of taking a concrete pill and hardening up.

Overall looks score: 22/25

Wearability:
I have already said that this watch is large. But it wears small. In fact, it is difficult to tell the difference between this and my Sub (which is a puny 40mm) on the wrist. In terms of weight (apple vs oranges I know, but it gives you a feel), my Sub weighs 159 gr on bracelet. The Pam 190 weighs 126 gr on OEM strap. I also measured both these watches (just roughly) and my Sub is about 13mm tall whereas the Pam is about 14mm tall. The case back in nice and flat and sits well on the wrist. It wears far lower than something like a DS for example. I think it has some clever design features which helps this:
1. wire lugs makes it feel smaller
2. flat back
3. width of strap is just right.

I am currently still wearing it on the OEM strap. It is a 27/22 strap. Quite a bit wider at the case than the 44mm Luminors but narrows right down to a very humane 22mm. I have ordered a few after market straps and have them sized at 27/24. I think the 24mm is more versatile in terms of the buckle market. And again, tapering them works better for my puny 7"-ish wrist.

Being overly critical, the crown is large as mentioned before. In some circumstances, it can dig into the back of your hand. I have taken the same concrete pills as mentioned before and should be able to get through it.

Overall wearability score: 20/25

Performance:
Although I am reviewing this last, it is the most important to me. Hence I am scoring this out of 50.

Lume: This watch has plenty of lume as a virtue of the large face and sandwich dial which Panerai still uses on many of its models. However, it doesn't shine in this department (literally). I suspect it is a poorer quality lume than the Rolex's. So if we have Seiko at 10, Citizen at 9, Rolex at 8-ish, this would get a 6/10.



PR: What can I say. This is NOT an 8 day watch. It is a 9 day and some change watch. It just goes on and on and on and on and on. It never seems to quit. I would give this a solid 10/10. It is the perfect second or third watch for folks without a winder. I am not sure how I am going to go back to a watch with a more common 2 day reserve. Just not sure I can do it....

Accuracy:
For an 8 day movement it is remarkably good. To be fair, it is remarkably good for an any day movement. The watch run a very tight +3 to +4 seconds for the first 8 days. At day 6 I was out by a total of +19 secs. At day 8 1/2 I was at +25 secs in total. Here is where it gets interesting: we've all read that the JLC 1877 movement becomes a bit random after 8 days. I needed to know how random. So I just let it run. And found that it just gradually slows down to a crawl.

At 9 days I had +25 secs in total (the same as 8 1/2 days which means it gained 0 secs for that 1/2 day)
at 9 days and 2 hours I had +16 secs in total (which means it lost 9 secs in 2 hours)
at 9 days and 4 hours I had it at +0 in total (which means it lost 16 secs in those 2 hours)
at 9 days and 6 hours - I felt sorry to see it struggling and gave it a wind.



Aaaaaaah. That's the sound I make while winding it. You have not experienced anything until you've wound the JLC 1877. It is as smooth as a glass of Macallan's 25 year old Whiskey.

So in practice this is easily an 8 1/2 day watch.

I will give it 25/30 for accuracy.

So 41/50 all up for performance.

Out of 100: This watch gets a solid 83/100. It is very close to the perfect Panerai. I doubt I will ever this sell one.

Greg
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Old 12 August 2012, 03:47 PM   #2
manilenyo
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That was a very well written review, thanks for sharing.
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Old 12 August 2012, 04:03 PM   #3
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Great review and great pics!
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Old 12 August 2012, 04:10 PM   #4
Andad
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Good review Greg.

I just need some more pix.
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Old 12 August 2012, 04:17 PM   #5
Passionata
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190 was my fav pam
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Old 12 August 2012, 09:27 PM   #6
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nicely said
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Old 12 August 2012, 10:39 PM   #7
leeye
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Nice review and one of my fav Radiomir watch to own!
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Old 12 August 2012, 10:43 PM   #8
Bruce123
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Thanks for the great review. Love the 190.
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Old 12 August 2012, 11:39 PM   #9
mfer
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Great review. My only disagreement is on the lume comment. I have Rolex and Panerai (and the 190 in particular). The lume of Panerai blows away the Rolex in terms of initial brightness and duration. Double check that you had it charged correctly. If I give mine a quick min charge with a standard 60w bulb, I can easily see the lume all night.

Glad you are enjoying the 190! Definately a keeper.
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Old 12 August 2012, 11:45 PM   #10
nauticajoe
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Great review.
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Old 12 August 2012, 11:59 PM   #11
RUpanerai
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Great review!!!

Thanks for sharing, very well written and I think you were spot on on everything but really the lume is only 6/10???

Miss my 190 a little.
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Old 13 August 2012, 12:51 AM   #12
B. Doggy
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Thanks for sharing!
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Old 13 August 2012, 05:23 AM   #13
Rex312
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Great review!
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Old 13 August 2012, 06:56 AM   #14
texex91
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Nice detailed review Greg. Great watch.
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Old 13 August 2012, 11:37 AM   #15
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nice review
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Old 13 August 2012, 11:47 AM   #16
tomato
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Great review! The 190 is one of the nicest PAM's.
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Old 14 August 2012, 03:19 AM   #17
ocwatching
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mfer View Post
Great review. My only disagreement is on the lume comment. I have Rolex and Panerai (and the 190 in particular). The lume of Panerai blows away the Rolex in terms of initial brightness and duration. Double check that you had it charged correctly. If I give mine a quick min charge with a standard 60w bulb, I can easily see the lume all night.
Quote:
Originally Posted by RUpanerai View Post
Thanks for sharing, very well written and I think you were spot on on everything but really the lume is only 6/10???

I am with these two very fine and long time Ristis..
being a 190 owner as well I have to differ on your opinion of the lume as well!

nicely done and great review!

the Blue is different and may appear brighter but the dial and the sticks/numbers on the 190 dial just glows like a torch...
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Old 14 August 2012, 03:57 AM   #18
cwilson13
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Thanks for the review. Love my 190.
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