Which watch to get my brother on his comissioning date?

[ratjr81]

Okay, first and foremost, I know nothing about aviation. Zip, natta, nothing.

Second, my little brother has been enlisted in the navy as a parachutt rigger for about six years now. Couple of years ago he got into some type of ROTC, enlisted to officer, slot-program. He is getting ready to graduate and comission this comming march. After which he is going to florida for a slot in a flight program, his end goal to land in the rotor jockey side of the biz.

Third, I am way proud of my little brother. The reason he joined the Navy six years ago was to get a chance to go to flight school. I am totally proud and excited that he is finally there after all these years.

Fourth, I totally want to get him a once in a life time gift that will blow his socks off in March. I want to get when he comissions instead of when he graduates flight school because there is a good chance I will either be back in Iraq or in a graduate program when he is scheduled to graduate flight school. I have been snooping around and I guess the traditional gift to get someone going into aviation is a high end watch. I would love to get my little bro a nice Rolex or Britling; but there is no chance in h*** it is going to happen. I just don't have the cash to make it happen. So, since I can't get him a high end nogstalic mechanical watch, I wanted to err on the side of functionality and get him a watch that he could get a ton of every day use out of.

I have been looking at this watch, it is a Citizen Promaster PMV65-2242

This watch is still way over my budget, but it is still in the piss my wife off and do it any way range.

Is this a watch that someone going into aviation would actually use? I mean to piliots actually use the slider rule calculator thing and the GMT dial bit? Or is this just a over priced goober nerd watch that does not hold any actually funcutality?

Advise? Help?

Thanks in advance. Can't tell you how much I apprichated how you guys saved my a** while I was on the ground in Iraq.

 

[HH-60H]

I have similar version of that watch, and I like it. Keep in mind that many watches made by Citizen, Seiko, and similar competitors retail far under the MSRP. Just shop around and you can get most models for much less.

 

[insanebikerboy]

That's a nice watch but damn if it doesn't seem to have a lot of stuff on it.

 

[HeyJoe]

Good on you (even if wife gets pissed off...get her something like jewelry to offset the pain). He's your brother after all. I have a couple of Citizens and a lot of Seikos and a Brietling, but never really used the bells and whistles except for time zone feature on the Citizens. But aviators need a cool looking watch like that regardless so don't worry about whether he'll use the features. Check out the competition on the Great AW Watch thread for a lot of perspectives.

 

[bb1125]

That's a nice watch but damn if it doesn't seem to have a lot of stuff on it.

Very true. My wife was looking at this same watch for my Christmas present. We went to try it on and it's way too cluttered and a little too big for my taste. We went with Seiko as usual.

 

[Fetter]

I always liked the Breitling B-2 from a couple years ago, I think it got discontinued though. It was all analog, had a slide rule/bezel from hell; it looked bad ass.

 

[Fetter]

 

[Harrier Dude]

That Citizen you have your eye on is perfect for him. I have a similar model and love it (backup watch now). Good on you!

Stay safe!

s/f,

 

[ratjr81]

"...way to cluttered"

"...but damn if it doesn't seem to have a lot of stuff on it."

I totally agree, but I thought having a super watch that does everything was kind of the point!!?

What do ya'all think about this little feller,

It is the Citizen Attesa ATV53-2834 Limited. Basically it is the other kid's first cousin, and is the same watch but without the bezel slide rule caculator thing.

Still to cluttered?

Will my bro actually be able to make use out of the slide rule bit or is it just for show?

Thanks again.

 

[bb1125]

Personally, I liked the design of the Promaster, I think it's a really nice watch, just not for me. Like I said, too cluttered and a little too big. The whiz wheel is cool if you just want to show off being a aviator, but probably won't use it much in the aircraft. Having the second time zone, IMO, is a great thing so you always have GMT on your wrist. Myself, I just love Seiko. They have some great looking watches at very reasonable prices, ie <$500.

 

[phrogpilot73]

I do like the look, but it is way too cluttered in my opinion... I hardly use any of the features on a watch other than the time, date, 2nd time zone, and MAYBE an alarm (mostly I use my smartphone for that). Other than the Omega that I have and wear maybe once a week, this is my watch of choice:

It's got a couple of different band/case options. Mine is stainless steel, but I think the black looks nice as well. Very clean and simple, time, date, 2nd time zone. Plus, it's got the cool-looking whiz wheel that I can show people and say "Look, I'm a pilot, I know how to use it!". However, I wouldn't go with a whiz wheel unless you like the look, 'cause no-one is really going to use it very often in a cockpit.

I think I picked mine up for around $300 (MSRP is $395).

 

[HercDriver]

+1 for the Citizen Nighthawk

The Zulu time (that little airplane pointer on the arc at 9 o'clock) is really easy to see...this is a watch at this price point that I recommend.

 

[Schnugg]

Ow my eyes!!! :icon_smil

 

[llnick2001]

I have a citizen Skyhawk and I'm a big fan. Also, I got mine for about half price on Amazon, so may be something to look into for you.

 

[HueyCobra8151]

What do you guys think of this one:

Seiko Flight Chronograph