The 6R15 Alpinist is a watch that I enjoy. Besides wearing it, I enjoy holding it in my hands and looking at it from various angles. It has a Rolex Oyster style case characterized by thin and sharp lugs, solid caseback as well as sapphire crystal and screw in crown. In particular, the sharp lugs are nice to look at.
I like solid casebacks and I enjoy looking at them. The Alpinist has a nice one that is engraved with the Alpinist emblem. The engraving is not very deep but just enough so it won’t wear off over its useful life. I have seen some 4S15 Alpinist with very faint emblem. They wear off after some time but the 6R15 Alpinist uses a different style of engraving that will probably last much longer.
Unlike the Rolex case (Explorer I), the Alpinist case comes with a pair of crown guards which is a plus. It is larger at 38mm and very well made with its combination of brushed and polished surfaces. Above the case sits a flat sapphire crystal that does not have a loupe over the date window. More aesthetically pleasing in my opinion. In addition, the second crown for rotating the compass ring provides ‘more to play with’ when holding the watch. Compass ring rotates in both direction and I like to leave the ‘N’ point on the compass ring at the 12 O’Clock position most of the time.
The gold markers and gold hands are very legible on the green dial which is not too dark. Under close examination, I can see that the dial has a very slight sunburst effect. When seen against the light, the markers shine as you can see in the picture. It has a white on black date wheel that is not so distracting compared to black on white. However, it seems that dark brown is the only strap color that goes well with the green dial.
Overall, this is quite a bulletproof watch with 20Bar water resistance, sapphire crystal, screw in crown and crown guards and a solid caseback. I wear it to work as a dress watch as well as during the weekend as a errr… weekend watch.
I hope I am enjoying my Alpinist the right way. If there are some other ways of enjoying it, please let me know. Share you madness.
It’s a cell phone shot. My hand is not that pale.
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Why do I love this watch so much? I am enamored of it’s lines and that beautiful dial (whose beauty is so difficult to capture in images)! I find myself holding it in my hands and contemplating it for a long periods of time, turning it around to see it from every angle. I mean, for some reason, I even find myself loving the case back every bit as much as every other aspect of the watch. I don’t want to sound like a fool, but with my Alpinist on my wrist, my craving for a “higher end” watch has subsided. The quality and beauty of this watch, in my humble opinion, can put a tough fight to several other watches prized hundreds of dollars above. This one is a keeper!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this watch.
I couldn’t have put it better myself. 👍. I whole heartedly agree with every point especially quelling the desire for the more expensive Rolex Explorer. The Alpinist has a distinctive rococo old world charm, with a unique pastoral and bucolic personality as one review succinctly put it. Even worn with a business suit it ceases to be an accessory and becomes a point of interest. Top job Seiko…