Direnzo DRZ03 Eclipse
Posted: Tue Sep 22, 2020 4:01 pm
The eagerly anticipated third release from Direnzo was fully funded on Kickstarter in a matter of minutes, if not seconds. It's easy to see why. Direnzo has a strong design language that is unique but still safely within the boundaries of "normal" for most folks.
Basic specs:
Case: 316L Stainless Steel
Crystal: Double-domed sapphire with anti-reflective coating
Case diameter: 40mm
Height: 12.5mm
Lug to lug: 48mm
Movement: Sellita SW-200-1 Elaboré + Incabloc
What drew me to it:
The attention to detail in the design. The ball on the second hand traces over the outside edge of the inner ring, eclipsing the date window. The markers on the bezel are paired with the indices - that is, the round indices at 3, 6, and 9 have oblong indices on the bezel and vice versa for all other markers except the paired triangles at 12.
Unboxing and first impressions:
The kit comes in a black, drawer-like box. The full kit for Kickstarter backers includes a canvas and suede three-slot watch roll, a black tropics rubber strap, a coordinating NATO strap, and the Eclipse on a steel strap. My first impression was that it looked larger than 40mm possibly because of the thin bezel. The bezel's coin edge is a little hard to grip, but the bezel action is smooth if a little stiff.
The bracelet is generously sized, fitting up to an 8.5" wrist. I removed 6 links to fit my 6.5" wrist, plus one notch in on the clasp microadjustment. There are 6 microadjustments available on the clasp, but no half links on the bracelet. The dual-lock clasp is nice and tight, but also very long to accommodate all of the microadjustments. It spans most of the width of my wrist. Someone with smaller wrists might have a hard time wearing the bracelet without replacing the clasp.
Wearability
I find it very comfortable, especially on the rubber strap. It's rare that I can forget I'm wearing a 40mm steel watch, but this does it. There were some complaints pre-production about the lugs not curving down, but that doesn't bother me. It sits nicely on the wrist and the slimness helps it disappear.
How about that quick-change strap mechanism?
It works! Not as magically as I'd hoped, but no complaints. It works best with the bracelet which simply snaps back into place, no tools required. Regular spring bars also snap into place, but not quite as easily. I opted to use a spring bar tool to not damage the spring bars. The included NATO was a pretty tight fit, but still slipped on. Not sure how a thicker leather NATO would fare.
Accuracy
I'll revisit this after a few days. So far it's +.2s/d, but not a statistically significant number of samples.
Complaints
The bezel is slightly, maybe 1/4 second, misaligned
The tan markers on the bezel are translucent, and I think the bezel structure underneath is showing. Here's my best attempt at a macro (camera phone + loupe) to show it:
Overall
It's a keeper. It's comfortable, accurate, and visually interesting. I wouldn't have paid full retail for it, but it also retails at a price range I rarely venture into (665 CHF/~$725USD) Considering the popularity of the Kickstarter, the black and blue models should be reasonably easy to pick up on the second hand market. If you want the Blood Moon (red), you're probably in for a good hunt.
Basic specs:
Case: 316L Stainless Steel
Crystal: Double-domed sapphire with anti-reflective coating
Case diameter: 40mm
Height: 12.5mm
Lug to lug: 48mm
Movement: Sellita SW-200-1 Elaboré + Incabloc
What drew me to it:
The attention to detail in the design. The ball on the second hand traces over the outside edge of the inner ring, eclipsing the date window. The markers on the bezel are paired with the indices - that is, the round indices at 3, 6, and 9 have oblong indices on the bezel and vice versa for all other markers except the paired triangles at 12.
The kit comes in a black, drawer-like box. The full kit for Kickstarter backers includes a canvas and suede three-slot watch roll, a black tropics rubber strap, a coordinating NATO strap, and the Eclipse on a steel strap. My first impression was that it looked larger than 40mm possibly because of the thin bezel. The bezel's coin edge is a little hard to grip, but the bezel action is smooth if a little stiff.
I find it very comfortable, especially on the rubber strap. It's rare that I can forget I'm wearing a 40mm steel watch, but this does it. There were some complaints pre-production about the lugs not curving down, but that doesn't bother me. It sits nicely on the wrist and the slimness helps it disappear.
It works! Not as magically as I'd hoped, but no complaints. It works best with the bracelet which simply snaps back into place, no tools required. Regular spring bars also snap into place, but not quite as easily. I opted to use a spring bar tool to not damage the spring bars. The included NATO was a pretty tight fit, but still slipped on. Not sure how a thicker leather NATO would fare.
I'll revisit this after a few days. So far it's +.2s/d, but not a statistically significant number of samples.
Complaints
The bezel is slightly, maybe 1/4 second, misaligned
The tan markers on the bezel are translucent, and I think the bezel structure underneath is showing. Here's my best attempt at a macro (camera phone + loupe) to show it:
- bezel-market-loupe.jpg (81.08 KiB) Viewed 4774 times
It's a keeper. It's comfortable, accurate, and visually interesting. I wouldn't have paid full retail for it, but it also retails at a price range I rarely venture into (665 CHF/~$725USD) Considering the popularity of the Kickstarter, the black and blue models should be reasonably easy to pick up on the second hand market. If you want the Blood Moon (red), you're probably in for a good hunt.