Received my Pelagos today - from what I can tell there aren't any major differences between the V3 and V2 - the V3 claims to have upgraded brushing on the case and bracelet, but it's very hard when comparing photos alone. I'll mostly be covering details about the case finishing, as there are plenty of Pelagos photos in the wild showing the beautiful dial.
Overview
The watch is simply gorgeous. I've looked at hundreds of photos, but I was still surprised on opening at how nice it is in the flesh. I was a bit concerned about the angles of some of the markers on my QC, but it's very hard to discern with a naked eye. On macro photos, you can see the some of the angled markers are off angle by a couple of degrees, perhaps most noticeable to me on marker #7. The date text has a gentle gloss to it that catches the light nicely. All font is printed centrally and clearly.
The SEL is evenly flushed on both sides, with a clear difference between brushing on the SEL - which is more of a dark satin effect - and the casing.
The Gas Escape Valve also has a nice contrast between finishes, with a circular brush underneath the text, and an angled coarse brush on the centre of the valve. The brushing along the side of the case runs horizontally, paralell to the dial. The engraving is crisp and uniform.
The chamfered edge joining the edge side to the dial side has a unique brushing pattern that creates definition in daylight - a very cool touch.
The crown feels robust, the Tudor logo protrudes by a slither of a mm making it clearly visible wrist-face-on. There is a very subtle indentation along the circumference of the crown face, creating a nice mix of depths that highlights the outer indentation work nicely. The (fluting?) around the crown is uniform and very well executed. The brushing on the crown guards meets along a central line, accentuating the guard's peaks.
The bezel has a nice action to it, and a satisfying - albeit somewhat anemic - click. A far cry from the gen rolex bezels I've played with, but better than many reps! It's not as satisfying as the Black Bay bezel, but it's much easier to turn. I'm not sure if it's just my imagination, or the camera differences between photos, but the bezel font/markings may be slightly bolder.
Bracelet
The bracelet is very soft to the touch and has a number of brush patterns. The surface is quite polished compared to the case, making it slightly stand out in standard lighting conditions. I'm not sure about the brushing on the V2, so if anyone has any photo's to share I can mock up a side-by-side to see if the V3 claims are true.
The microadjustment bracelet is functional, and works very well. There are three static length options which can be adjusted in a few seconds, and a spring-loaded expandable option. The spring allows a small range of expansion and contraction,and provides a firm but comfortable grip on your wrist.
Lume + Markers
The hour markers have a 'pillowcase' like shape, and have a fairly substantial height in three dimensional space. They are a known area of contention on QC, many people want to double check on the alignment. Honestly, the space between the recesses and markers are in the tenths of a MM - you won't notice any alignment issues without a loupe!
The lume is strong - even without intentional charging - and is a cool, electric blue colour at high excitation level, which takes on a weaker almost green hue under low excitation. One photo is taken under long exposure (see blurred seconds hand) which is closer to what it looks like with your naked eye. At 'high charge' it lasts around 3-5 minutes, with residual charge lasting another 3 hours. Several hours after that there is a very faint glow in pitch black.
Conclusion
Overall I'm thoroughly impressed at the quality and overall finish of this replica. For the price it is an absolute bargain! I'd give this a /10 - if the text were more three dimensional, and the centre pin was updated it'd be a 10!
For those who don't know, the gen centre pin has a shiny centre to it, and is one of the quickest tells if you know what you're looking for:
Overview
The watch is simply gorgeous. I've looked at hundreds of photos, but I was still surprised on opening at how nice it is in the flesh. I was a bit concerned about the angles of some of the markers on my QC, but it's very hard to discern with a naked eye. On macro photos, you can see the some of the angled markers are off angle by a couple of degrees, perhaps most noticeable to me on marker #7. The date text has a gentle gloss to it that catches the light nicely. All font is printed centrally and clearly.
The SEL is evenly flushed on both sides, with a clear difference between brushing on the SEL - which is more of a dark satin effect - and the casing.
The Gas Escape Valve also has a nice contrast between finishes, with a circular brush underneath the text, and an angled coarse brush on the centre of the valve. The brushing along the side of the case runs horizontally, paralell to the dial. The engraving is crisp and uniform.
The chamfered edge joining the edge side to the dial side has a unique brushing pattern that creates definition in daylight - a very cool touch.
The crown feels robust, the Tudor logo protrudes by a slither of a mm making it clearly visible wrist-face-on. There is a very subtle indentation along the circumference of the crown face, creating a nice mix of depths that highlights the outer indentation work nicely. The (fluting?) around the crown is uniform and very well executed. The brushing on the crown guards meets along a central line, accentuating the guard's peaks.
The bezel has a nice action to it, and a satisfying - albeit somewhat anemic - click. A far cry from the gen rolex bezels I've played with, but better than many reps! It's not as satisfying as the Black Bay bezel, but it's much easier to turn. I'm not sure if it's just my imagination, or the camera differences between photos, but the bezel font/markings may be slightly bolder.
Bracelet
The bracelet is very soft to the touch and has a number of brush patterns. The surface is quite polished compared to the case, making it slightly stand out in standard lighting conditions. I'm not sure about the brushing on the V2, so if anyone has any photo's to share I can mock up a side-by-side to see if the V3 claims are true.
The microadjustment bracelet is functional, and works very well. There are three static length options which can be adjusted in a few seconds, and a spring-loaded expandable option. The spring allows a small range of expansion and contraction,and provides a firm but comfortable grip on your wrist.
Lume + Markers
The hour markers have a 'pillowcase' like shape, and have a fairly substantial height in three dimensional space. They are a known area of contention on QC, many people want to double check on the alignment. Honestly, the space between the recesses and markers are in the tenths of a MM - you won't notice any alignment issues without a loupe!
The lume is strong - even without intentional charging - and is a cool, electric blue colour at high excitation level, which takes on a weaker almost green hue under low excitation. One photo is taken under long exposure (see blurred seconds hand) which is closer to what it looks like with your naked eye. At 'high charge' it lasts around 3-5 minutes, with residual charge lasting another 3 hours. Several hours after that there is a very faint glow in pitch black.
Conclusion
Overall I'm thoroughly impressed at the quality and overall finish of this replica. For the price it is an absolute bargain! I'd give this a /10 - if the text were more three dimensional, and the centre pin was updated it'd be a 10!
For those who don't know, the gen centre pin has a shiny centre to it, and is one of the quickest tells if you know what you're looking for:
