This is my first "review" so please be gentle.... Your feedback is more than welcome! I apologize for the length and poor quality photos in advance.
Background
As some on this board might know, I've been on the hunt for a Flieger-style watch for about 6 months. The classical flieger design is something I wanted desperately in my collection. I took a serious look at a whole range of options including IWC, Stowa, Muhle Glashutte, Laco and other lesser known brands like Sinn, Eklund, and finally Damasko.
I landed on the Damasko DA36 as my final choice because, IMO, it offered the best combination of classical styling cues, features, quality materials, and "uniqueness" for the price (1100 USD). I'm aware there are better flieger watches out there but needless to say, at my age and income bracket, the IWC Big Pilot is out of the question.
The Watch
So, on to the watch! I've been wearing the watch for a few days. Below are some photos and my impressions thus far.
This watch hits all the right notes with respect to features I consider being indicative of a quality timepiece. The crystal is double AR coated sapphire, screw-down crown, automatic winding "standard" grade ETA 2836-2 movement with 25 jewels, 28,800 VPH, 42 hour power reserve, day/date display with quickset date function and quick date-change operation.
All these features are well and good but Damasko prides itself on its use of materials as a means to differentiate them from other manufacturers at this price point. For example, the gaskets and o-rings in the DA36 are made of a specialty elastomer called "Viton" which is a fluorinated synthetic rubber. It is considerably more chemically resistant than the standard rubber gaskets used in most watches. I can personally attest to resilience of Viton as it's used extensively in the chemical industry when conditions are at their harshest.
The watch case material is unique to Damasko. It’s a special alloy of steel which is nickel free and tempered in such a way that the material is hardened to about 700 Vickers – something Damasko calls “ice-hardening”. For comparison, standard 316L SS has a Vickers rating of about 170. While not as hard as tungsten carbide (~2200 Vickers), Damasko’s watch cases are extremely hard through and through.
The finish on this watch is bead-blasted and results in a very “tool” appearance. Ambient light plays with this finish well and actually casts an almost iridescent luster. This is something that is difficult to capture with my puny point and shoot, but I really like this look. The machining and construction of the case is really quite well done.
The dial is matte black with the classic flieger styling (diamond shaped hour and minute hands, triangle at the 12 o’clock position, etc…). While the dial is very clean and legible, there is enough on it to stay visually interesting.
The crosshairs and use of a yellow second hand turn this watch from a very standard looking flieger, to something that is very unique.
The strap and tang/buckle that are included with the watch are surprisingly good. Reviews and photos I’d seen online had me prepared for a plasticy, puffy, and cheap looking strap.
While not up to Breitling’s standards, this strap is fairly comfortable and should last a while. The strap itself is a type of waterproofed leather – with the inside being coated in silicon. There is also a small flap that covers the inside of the buckle that really adds to the wearability of this strap. The signed buckle and double-stitching (black outer ring and white inner ring) are nice touches, IMO.
I personally hate wrist shots (related to a phobia of arm hair) but I took one anyway to give an idea of what this watch looks like “in the metal”.
At 40mm case diamter, the watch sits comfortably on my 7” wrist.
Well, here’s hoping I didn’t bore you to tears. If you’re in the market for a flieger, give Damasko a good hard look.