Invicta Men's Pro Diver 40mm Steel & Gold Tone SS Automatic Watch

majorhavoc

Feb 25, 2022 12:36 AM

3.1K Comments

Joined Oct 2008

majorhavocFeb 25, 2022 12:36 AM

3.1K Comments

Our community has rated this post as helpful. If you agree, why not thank majorhavoc

I own this watch in this exact color way. Invicta haters regularly come out of the woodwork, trash this watch and then recommend something costing two or three times as much. For $45, this thing is a steal. It's powered by a well regarded Seiko automatic movement and the case is all stainless steel and nicely finished. And the exhibition caseback is just plain cool. People who will nitpick over the mineral versus sapphire crystal, alumimun vs ceramic bezel, hollow endlinks and pressed steel clasp seem to lose sight of the fact that we're talking about a sub $50 automatic watch.

Legitimate reasons not to buy this watch:

If you don't appreciate the old fashioned charm of automatic (self-winding mechanical) movements, look elsewhere.
If you hate the idea of a Submariner homage, look for an original design. But but don't harp on Invicta for copying Rolex's iconic design, because they're far from the only company that does this.
If you're willing to brave the wild world of Aliexpress and other Chinese retail sites, you can get a similar Submariner homage with better specs for not a lot more ($75-$100)
The Invicta logo engraved on the side of the case bugs the crap out of some people.
Are you sure you want a dive watch? It gets its 200 meter water resistance in part due to its screw down crown, as does just about every other dive watch on the planet. If you forget to screw that crown back down after setting the time and get it wet, even once, you WILL ruin your watch.

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1

ChrisP4081

Feb 25, 2022 12:41 AM

10 Comments

Joined Dec 2014

ChrisP4081Feb 25, 2022 12:41 AM

10 Comments

If you have a large wrist the SS Invicta Grand Diver is quite a good deal on Amazon today at $75.00. Same movement but beefier build. Limited time deal.

LINK here [amazon.com]

2

mostholycerebus

Feb 25, 2022 12:50 AM

1.7K Comments

Joined Aug 2007

mostholycerebusFeb 25, 2022 12:50 AM

1.7K Comments

Change the name, and this is a $200 watch by anyone else. Seiko hacking & handwinding movement, 200m water resist, stainless case. This is a great deal on a great watch. A nice intro if you wanna see if Automatics are for you, at a reasonable price.

5

1

diversification

Feb 25, 2022 1:04 AM

1.3K Comments

Joined Nov 2012

diversificationFeb 25, 2022 1:04 AM

1.3K Comments

Quote from majorhavoc

:

I own this watch in this exact color way. Invicta haters regularly come out of the woodwork, trash this watch and then recommend something costing two or three times as much. For $45, this thing is a steal. It's powered by a well regarded Seiko automatic movement and the case is all stainless steel and nicely finished. And the exhibition caseback is just plain cool. People who will nitpick over the mineral versus sapphire crystal, alumimun vs ceramic bezel, hollow endlinks and pressed steel clasp seem to lose sight of the fact that we're talking about a sub $50 automatic watch.

Legitimate reasons not to buy this watch:

If you don't appreciate the old fashioned charm of automatic (self-winding mechanical) movements, look elsewhere.
If you hate the idea of a Submariner homage, look for an original design. But but don't harp on Invicta for copying Rolex's iconic design, because they're far from the only company that does this.
If you're willing to brave the wild world of Aliexpress and other Chinese retail sites, you can get a similar Submariner homage with better specs for not a lot more ($75-$100)
The Invicta logo engraved on the side of the case bugs the crap out of some people.
Are you sure you want a dive watch? It gets its 200 meter water resistance in part due to its screw down crown, as does just about every other dive watch on the planet. If you forget to screw that crown back down after setting the time and get it wet, even once, you WILL ruin your watch.

You didn't address the single biggest issue with this watch. The gold coloring rubs off *very* quickly even if you're careful -- to be fair, this is true of any cheap gold tone watch, and it's why I would never recommend any of them. It just looks tacky at that point, and if you won't wear it because it looks tacky (which I'd assume must people wouldn't) then you're just out $40 that could've been spent on a watch without the gold that would've lasted longer.

Your points about the rest of the package are all well and good, though I'd *still* say Duro over this simply because it's going to be more durable (auto vs quartz.)

1

5

slickska

Feb 25, 2022 1:04 AM

2.3K Comments

Joined Nov 2010

slickskaFeb 25, 2022 1:04 AM

2.3K Comments

How does invicta make money on this watch? Lol
The movement is like…say $20, then the other parts $5, labor, etc

Do they make like $5 per watch?

1

BigDDPOO

Feb 25, 2022 1:13 AM

92 Comments

Joined Sep 2018

BigDDPOOFeb 25, 2022 1:13 AM

92 Comments

I have owned 2-3 Invicta in the last few years. Let's just get one thing out of the way, at this price its not like you got a lot to lose. I have the older version of this watch and it looks great on the wrist. The gold plating actually looks like gold. The watch ran pretty well although I never timed it for accuracy. I liked the style so much that eventually I bought the Rolex TT sub. I will most likely give it to my kids when they are old enough to wear something like this. The down side to these watch is the construction is cheap, its a 50 dollar after all. One thing i have noticed is the spring bar have tendency to fail. If you buy one try to purchase some quality spring bar and switch it out.

1

majorhavoc

Feb 25, 2022 1:13 AM

3.1K Comments

Joined Oct 2008

majorhavocFeb 25, 2022 1:13 AM

3.1K Comments

Quote from diversification

:

You didn't address the single biggest issue with this watch. The gold coloring rubs off *very* quickly even if you're careful -- to be fair, this is true of any cheap gold tone watch, and it's why I would never recommend any of them. It just looks tacky at that point, and if you won't wear it because it looks tacky (which I'd assume must people wouldn't) then you're just out $40 that could've been spent on a watch without the gold that would've lasted longer.

Your points about the rest of the package are all well and good, though I'd *still* say Duro over this simply because it's going to be more durable (auto vs quartz.)

Please define "*very* quickly". You seem quite confident of that so I assume you own this watch, yes? According to Amazon, I purchased mine in November, 2017 and I've worn it to death. The gold tone looks terrific. Sorry you got a QC fail.

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2

diversification

Feb 25, 2022 1:26 AM

1.3K Comments

Joined Nov 2012

diversificationFeb 25, 2022 1:26 AM

1.3K Comments

Quote from majorhavoc

:

Please define "*very* quickly". You seem quite confident of that so I assume you own this watch, yes? According to Amazon, I purchased mine in November, 2017 and I've worn it to death. The gold tone looks terrific. Sorry you got a QC fail.

I have owned other similar Invictas with the gold plating, yes. Within 2 years they've all started balding. Glance at watch forums or reviews and you'll find plenty of similar experiences and advice. I'm not sure what wizardry you've done to completely avoid this situation.

By the way, as I've indicated this isn't an issue limited to Invicta. Any inexpensive (and even some expensive) jewelry will suffer from this.

1

2

NavySardine761

Feb 25, 2022 2:58 AM

699 Comments

Joined Oct 2019

NavySardine761Feb 25, 2022 2:58 AM

699 Comments

Quote from slickska

:

How does invicta make money on this watch? Lol
The movement is like…say $20, then the other parts $5, labor, etc

Do they make like $5 per watch?

It is a lot crazier than that. Yeah, their cost on the movement might have been $20.

But with the current shortage of NH35s, the movement itself can sell for as much as this watch costs to the end user. Honestly it is insane, the sad part I see in all this is the fact that very respectable movement could have been used in a watch that gets more respect.

If the trend continues on, I'll likely kick myself in a few years for not picking up one of these just to have the movement that I could replace one of my many other watches that use the same one in, but look better.

1

NavySardine761

Feb 25, 2022 3:01 AM

699 Comments

Joined Oct 2019

NavySardine761Feb 25, 2022 3:01 AM

699 Comments

Quote from Tragiconda

:

A lot of people love Invicta. This is one of the few they sell that isn't huge and garish. If you like it, get it. It's 50$, for that much, it's fine. If you want to go 150-200, yeah get a Seiko, Citizen or Orient dive watch. If accuracy matters to you, get a quartz watch. Automatics
in this range will likely gain or lose 10-20 seconds an hour.

I don't know how Invicta regulates these, but every NH35 in my collection (like this watch has) is within 10 seconds per day, not per hour. Granted the movement has specs that allow for something like +/- up to 45 sec per day. But at any rate, no where close to as bad as you think they as it frankly has a better Seiko movement than Seiko uses in that $150 price range you speak of. '

3

steeduhh46gt

Feb 25, 2022 3:24 AM

313 Comments

Joined Mar 2012

steeduhh46gtFeb 25, 2022 3:24 AM

313 Comments

Quote from Sudumalli

:

These are craps, go for something you can enjoy. Spend couple of hundred more and get a good watches. Say iconic seiko skx009j or seiko sport 5 srpe53 or hamilton khaki field or if u wanna save more orient meastro. Go for automatic not quartz its like Samsung phone vs apple resale values retains.

+1 for the khaki field. Check reddit or ebay for a used one. Sell it for what you paid when you get tired of it.

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3

Jodirt

Feb 25, 2022 4:26 AM

65 Comments

Joined Feb 2022

JodirtFeb 25, 2022 4:26 AM

65 Comments

Quote from newell74

:

The movement (NH35A) isn't a bad one and it's a better movement than what's in the Seiko watches that others have posted. Those Seikos have a 7S26 which is pretty much bottom of the barrel when it comes to automatic Japanese movements. The movement in the Hamilton is a pretty good one - the H-10 is basically a modified version of the ETA 2824-2. That ETA movement is, arguably, a better movement than what is in the Invicta.

That being said, most people are gonna laugh at you for getting an Invicta...

Lol, the NH35A is a Seiko movement so how can it be better than what's in a Seiko watch.

And anyone that laughs at someone for something they wear like clothes or a watch deserves no respect.

Buy what you like, wear what you like, because it's your money and your life. Let the haters hate.

5

jamesherati

Feb 25, 2022 4:39 AM

193 Comments

Joined Jul 2013

jamesheratiFeb 25, 2022 4:39 AM

193 Comments

Get a fake Rolex. It will be better quality

4

vwatchrepair

Feb 25, 2022 5:03 AM

1.1K Comments

Joined Jul 2015

vwatchrepairFeb 25, 2022 5:03 AM

1.1K Comments

I do watch repair. To buy a replace NH35 is around $50-$60. Plus, to pay someone like me to install it. You're looking at at least double that. I don't like the Invicta brand, but even I admit this is a decent deal for what it is.

6

Speedmaster1

Feb 25, 2022 6:23 AM

682 Comments

Joined Nov 2016

Speedmaster1Feb 25, 2022 6:23 AM

682 Comments

Hard pass for me.

1

4

Invicta Men's Pro Diver 40mm Steel & Gold Tone SS Automatic Watch

$45

$56

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