ZF 15400 VS APS 15400

[Silvereagle77]

Here is my promised ZF vs APS 15400 comparison. This is my first review and posting pictures so forgive me if my information is scattered.

My photos are pretty bad but I will describe any differences I see among the dial, hands, logos, bracelet and finish.

Full disclosure: I do not own a gen 15400, so any questions regarding how close it looks to the gen, the answer will always be "I don't know" because from my reading of posts here there have been many variations of the 15400 throughout the years in terms of how matte/bright the dial is, the sunburst, etc.

Photos from the top:

Swiss Made Logo - ZF looks a little cleaner in terms of printing. This was with a loop. It was really hard to tell from the naked eye the difference.

Dial Color - APS is closer to JF V5 in terms of the "blue". ZF has a darker more "navy" like dial imo.

Dial Tap - The APS tapisserie seems more of a nice circular through the dial. Meaning the as you get closer to the center of the dial the circle is smaller, but still a circle nonetheless. The ZF dial seems to be more of a vertical oval which brings me to how the light reflects off of it. From the photos you seem to get the desired "sunburst"? with the APS but with the ZF it doesn't look as consistent.

For the side by side comparison photos, the ZF is on the left and APS is on the right.

First picture of the crown is ZF and 2nd picture of crown is APS.

The gasket is between the bezel and the watch is also thicker on the APS vs the ZF.

 

[W.me80]

Thanks for the comparison. So what do you think Is best?

 

[Silvereagle77]

best in terms of what? They're both nicely made. From the naked eye on the wrist they're hard to tell apart. If you're going to try to take it off in front of someone who knows AP, don't embarass yourself.

 

[mech500]

Thanks for this. At the risk of sounding silly, which is which? Ha.

Also, which one looks prettier overall to your eyes? That’s the one I’d keep.


Sent from my iPhone using RWI

 

[mech500]

I meant if I were you, I’d simply keep the prettier one - regardless of the academic differences compared to gen.


These watches are remarkably well repped. No way could I spot a rep or someone’s wrist - even close up to my face for a decent period.


Sent from my iPhone using RWI

 

[Silvereagle77]

They both actually look pretty amazing. They both wrap my wrist well (ZF i took off 4 links, APS I was able to take off 5). Neither of them have really sharp edges or anything.

I do like the way the light reflects off the APS.

 

[ziggycharly]

ZF dial colour looks better to me from a personal aesthetic point of view. No idea on closeness to gen though

 

[Tobel]

Thanks Silvereagle77 for the nice comparison! Would you be able to share pics of the APS under strong artificial and natural light? The ZF lacks a little bit of sunburst but I'm trying to assess whether the APS has the right amount or too much (which IMO is worse than not enough ). Thanks!

 

[Bendori]

Thanks for the post! I hope the AP experts can chime in!

 

[Keylog74]

Is the thickness same on both watches?

 

[j21]

Is the thickness same on both watches?

No, apsf is gen thickness, zf is +0.5

 

[kryptics]

best in terms of what? They're both nicely made. From the naked eye on the wrist they're hard to tell apart. If you're going to try to take it off in front of someone who knows AP, don't embarass yourself.

LOL. The bracelet is a dead giveaway, it is not as flexible as gen.

 

[Tobel]

LOL. The bracelet is a dead giveaway, it is not as flexible as gen.

Please don't talk about things you don't know or have no way of assessing from pictures.

This looks like an attempt to increase your post count, which won't be well received

 

[kryptics]

Please don't talk about things you don't know or have no way of assessing from pictures.

This looks like an attempt to increase your post count, which won't be well received

Why the hostility? For the record, OP was talking about comparing the gen with rep in person, not from pictures. Also, you can see how flexible the bracelet is from pics, based on how far it bends. I have a ZF 15400 myself and I know this is a clear sign it’s a rep.


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[Tobel]

Why the hostility? For the record, OP was talking about comparing the gen with rep in person, not from pictures. Also, you can see how flexible the bracelet is from pics, based on how far it bends. I have a ZF 15400 myself and I know this is a clear sign it’s a rep.


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OP is comparing 2 different reps, and is specifically saying he doesn't own a gen and there's no point asking him how close to gen the reps are.

So you didn't even read his post and you made up that comment. You may own a ZF but that doesn't tell you how it compares to gen. Same applies to your comment about the 15202 movement, the fact that there's one or even a few unlucky folks with movement issues is not concerning, it's the case for every rep and as I said it's also the case for gens.
When I wrote this post the last 7 threads in the AP section had their last message coming from you with such kind of "content", which makes it look strongly like you're trying to increase your post count so you can sell a watch on M2M.
​​​​

 

[Miguel Piguet]

Thanks for the comparison. They both look good in terms of aesthetics in my opinion ... Little mods can be done to upgrade them a lil if needed

 

[legend]

Why the hostility? For the record, OP was talking about comparing the gen with rep in person, not from pictures. Also, you can see how flexible the bracelet is from pics, based on how far it bends. I have a ZF 15400 myself and I know this is a clear sign it’s a rep.


Sent from the RWI App

Just to put things in perspective for you:

I know Tobel personally and I saw his gen blue 15400 in person. My point is that he has been around and knows a thing or two about the 15400 gen and reps, and I do value his input on this forum. He wasn’t being hostile to you. Take it easy.

 

[kryptics]

OP is comparing 2 different reps, and is specifically saying he doesn't own a gen and there's no point asking him how close to gen the reps are.

So you didn't even read his post and you made up that comment. You may own a ZF but that doesn't tell you how it compares to gen. Same applies to your comment about the 15202 movement, the fact that there's one or even a few unlucky folks with movement issues is not concerning, it's the case for every rep and as I said it's also the case for gens.
When I wrote this post the last 7 threads in the AP section had their last message coming from you with such kind of "content", which makes it look strongly like you're trying to increase your post count so you can sell a watch on M2M.
​​​​

Look at post 12. This is what I was responding to from OP:

"From the naked eye on the wrist they're hard to tell apart. If you're going to try to take it off in front of someone who knows AP, don't embarass yourself.".

 

[FiliGelli]

If it can help,
I handled one week ago a gen RO 26331 during a dinner.
I was shocked because i expected a different feeling from the rep that i owned(Jf, zf ) but it was really similar to the jf in terms of solidity of the bracelet and finishes.
Than I received the aps and i can say that it is really close talking about the feeling.
The same sensation that i had when i received the vsf 116610ln and i handled it keeping on the other hand my hulk gen.
What i think is that many times here i see people talking without knowing.
Pictures are not the real life and gen watches are mede of the same steel of the reps( for the most).
Gens don't come from another galaxy...
Off course, a gen watch may has some better finished details but here we are really close.

 

[Tobel]

If it can help,
I handled one week ago a gen RO 26331 during a dinner.
I was shocked because i expected a different feeling from the rep that i owned(Jf, zf ) but it was really similar to the jf in terms of solidity of the bracelet and finishes.
Than I received the aps and i can say that it is really close talking about the feeling.
The same sensation that i had when i received the vsf 116610ln and i handled it keeping on the other hand my hulk gen.
What i think is that many times here i see people talking without knowing.
Pictures are not the real life and gen watches are mede of the same steel of the reps( for the most).
Gens don't come from another galaxy...
Off course, a gen watch may has some better finished details but here we are really close.

Spot on, thank you