This is the replica, not the gen
Sinn 6100 Technik
The technical Regulateur
I am fond of unusual watches. The Sinn 6100 Technik is such an unusual watch as it is a Regulateur type. I would now like to review the replica and compare it to the gen on basis of my own photos that I took at Baselworld 2011 and on official material that I obtained from Sinn directly.
Up front I am a bit sad that the 6100 series has been replicated at all. Sinn is a innovative company. Their prices are moderate and they need the turnover. However, since the rep is here, I will review it now.
What it is about
The 6100 REGULATEUR Technik belongs to the successful Regulateur series made by Sinn. In comparison to the other Regulateur watches, which are designed after historic predecessors, the 6100 Regulateur Technik has a modern look in which perfect readability has absolute priority.
Product range
Technical specs of the Sinn 6100 Technik (gen/rep)
* Movement: Sinn caliber SZ 04; a rebuilt 6478 with added features (rep: Asian 6478)
* Handwind, 17j, 18.000bph (rep: accurate)
* Case material:Stainless steel, polished, satinized (rep: accurate)
* Black electroplated dial, UV resistant (rep is black)
* Crystal: Sapphire, with anti-reflective coating on both sides (rep: looks accurate to me, stated sapphire)
* Case back: Sapphire, with anti-reflective coating on the inside (rep: looks accurate to me, stated sapphire)
* Water resistant as per DIN 8310 (rep: lol)
* Pressure resistant to 10 bar (rep: lol)
* Low pressure resistant (rep: lmao)
* Diameter of case:44,0 mm (rep: accurate)
* Watch thickness:10,6 mm (rep: accurate)
* Weight:80 g (rep: accurate)
* Band lug width:22 mm (rep: accurate)
History of the Regulateur
Originally the term "Regulateur" described a very accurate clocks, e.g. wall clocks, grandfather type clocks or chronometers, which used regulators for precision time keeping.
The regulator dial was first used in the 1660s by the Dutch astronomer, mathematician and physician Christaan Huygens. As early as 1657, he engineered pendulum clocks with a deviation of just 10 seconds per day.
Heinrich Johann Kessels,a Danish-German clock maker and designer of precision watch instruments, designed the dial around 1810 that we know today as the Regulateur dial: It has a central minutes ring with two subdials for hours and seconds; the minute being the relevant time unit for astronomical observations of that era. This arrangement of the hands and dials at the Regulateur dial provides optimal readability of the time. High quality Regulateur chronometers were accurate to a second per day already already around 1800. The last pendulum Regulateur clocks were manufactured and shipped around 1959.
Because of the precision design today's makers of Regulateur watches wish to imply that their products are very precise and prestigious.
Dial of a Precision Regulateur from Strasse & Rohde, Glashütte, Germany. Around 1880.
Rep vs. Gen
Crown, case, case back, screws, crystal height - the rep matches the gen 6100 Technik very well.
There has been an IWC Portugese Regulateur replica around which seems to be identical in build. I presume that the rep makers were able to re-use this set-up to replicate the Sinn 6100 series.
While technical, the 6100 Technik has a very elegant look IMO.
If you look closely, you can see the concentric rings on the subdial. Identical to gen IMO.
Gen pics
Case and crown
I took the photo I made of the gen at Baselworld and tried to match the photo of the rep so you can compare for yourself. All heights match.
Dial
The tells on the dial
Hour hand (small sub dial on top): The ring at the stem is a bit too small at the rep.
Minute hand (center): The ring at the stem is WAY too small at the rep.
Sinn logo: The Sinn logo is a bit shorter than the gen. However, this is barely noticeable.
In the photo below I tried to overlay and match rep and gen. I could not remove all distortion but it is obvious that the dial is nearly perfect in terms of font, placement of markers, concentric rings at the lowered subdials, etc.
The appearance of the dial is exactly like the gen (gen claims to be electroplated).
Movement
Gen movement
Comparison between rep (to the left, with sticker still on [sorry]) and gen (to the right). Threp here is the 6100 Classic B, but the back is the same.
Note the difference in screws (blued on the gen vs. completely blue on the rep). Slightly different plates to the right. Shock absorber is different.
Correct engravings on the movement, very nice CdG finishing.
Sinn has added a Glycodur mainspring and has visibly modified the movement in that area.
Caseback engravings are identical. It looks like the gen has deeper engravings (not sure).
CdG bridges in comparison to a rep Pam 177
Strap and clasp
The rep 6100 Technik comes with a PU leather strap with white stitching, lined with genuine leather underneath and a polished stainless steel butterfly clasp with an engraved (not etched) logo. The PU leather feels like plastic and looks artificial. This is a big minus for me, but what do you expect for this price. However, the rep strap at least looks very much like the gen strap.
Engraving on the clasp
Butterfly clasp
The gen has a number of different straps available (more than pictured here). The straps offered by Sinn are conservative. With a convenient lug width of 22mm replacements are easy to find, however.
Lume
The gen claims to have strong white lume.
The lume of the 6100 Technik rep is weak. In the pictures you can see the faint bluish lume on the hands. The hour markers barely showed at all. N.B. the other 6100 models have no lume as per genuine.
To illustrate the color I randomly picked 5 other watches for comparison and put them in a box. I charged the watches for 20-30 seconds under a 25W lamp and shot a picture in the dark (unfortunately without tripod) but with a strong lens. Exposure time was about 1 second. Apologies for the blurry pic, I need to replace that ASAP.
Back row (l.t.r.) Gen diver, stock 6100 Technik, superlumed 177h.
Front row stock 005k, stock ceramic submariner, stock Milgauss LV.
Lit box
Manual and advice from Sinn
(excerpt from the manual) "General advice
To preserve the water resistance for as long as possible, the watch should be rinsed whenever it has been in contact with seawater, chemicals, etc.
If your watch is frequently worn in/under water, we recommend having its water resistance checked at yearly intervals. The watch is designed to withstand high levels of mechanical wear and tear and is shock resistant as per DIN 8308. Nevertheless, it goes without saying that continual mechanical stress in the form of impacts or vibration will affect its durability. Care should therefore be taken to protect your watch from unnecessary wear and tear.
It is only possible to judge how well the watch keeps time after it has been in operation for approximately eight weeks, since it takes that long for the working mechanism to become adjusted, especially in view of the fact that everybody has different lifestyles and habits."
How does the replica wear?
Very well
It has the same size as a Panerai (without the crown guard). It is not as high, making the 6100 Technik comfortable to wear with a shirt and suit.Pictured here at the Deutsche Börse (stock exchange) in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, close to its original home.
How big is this watch?
The Sinn 6100 Technik is 44mm wide (without the onion crown). As you can see, the small rim gives it a very good presence.
Pros and Cons
Pro:
The dial, casing and crown are very well replicated.
The movement and the caseback are close. The movement itself is solid (I had 48 and 49 hours power reserve on two models) and it is nicely finished. The decorations (Sinn logo and "SZM04" and "seventeen jewels") are engraved on the movement.
Crystal is claimed to be sapphire both front and back including AR.
Overall appearance is very good.
Cons:
Maybe someone can convince the factory to update the minute hand. The small base of the central minute hand is IMO the flaw of the Sinn 6100 Technik replica watch.
The rep would also benefit from a re-lume job with white lume on the hands and the markers.
Screws in the movement are blue whereas the gen screws are blued (leaving a white slot).
The PU leather strap leaves a lot of room for improvement.
Conclusion
At a cost of between 120 and 150 USD I think that you get very good value for money with this replica of the Sinn 6100 Technik. You are getting a closely replicated dress watch at moderate cost. The watch is subtly different - especially the cool black dial, the big minute hand and the two subdials are something out of the ordinary.
The original received two design awards, btw.
IMO this is an undeservedly underloved watch.
However, the gen is not entirely out of reach: At the cost of around 1.800 Euro you can get the gen 6100 Technik - with all the bells and whistles (and a glycodur mainspring).
I sourced my Sinn 6100 series replicas through Replikamake (Lay), but Hont (Hont) and Puretime (Angus) have them as well.
Similar (replica) watches:
There are Regulateur watches around, but they are mostly with a white dial and feature the classic dial and hands, not this modern approach. Therefore I'd say the Sinn 6100 Technik is really unique.
Coming up next: Comparison of both 6100 Classic B and 6100 Classic 4N to gen (4N pending arrival)
(rep to the right)
Thank you for reading all this
Now go and order it...
