We all have that want list when it comes to watches. I personally have want lists that can be broken down into two categories. One want list can be defined as an unobtainable want list. That list contains all the watches that I really would love to own, but I am well aware that I will never be able to obtain them for obvious financial reasons. My other list, is my obtainable want list which is also known as my favorite list. These are the watches that I know that I will eventually obtain through some hard work. These watches bring me great satisfaction and joy. There a so many obtainable watch companies that I want to experience their watches from. Nauticfish has been on this list for some time now, and I am very excited that we get to have the opportunity to explore my first Nauticfish together.

Naturally I was very excited when this watch arrived and when I opened up the shipping box my excitement immediately grew when I saw the cool yellow waterproof box that contained the watch. My excited fingers where tripping over each other to get this box opened. There was definitely a lot to take in visually when I finally stumbled to get this box opened, there it was in the “green flesh” Thûsunt gruoni vintage dive watch. “The Old High German word thûsunt (thousand) stands for the outstanding reliability and water resistance of over 1000 meters of the new NauticFish generation.” The first thing that grabbed the attention of my visual sense was the gruoni aka green color, all the fantastic shades of green throughout the watch. I honestly didn’t think that green could be so stunning on a watch.

There was a battle of who wanted my attention more, the bezel and the strap. It was a tie, so I will start with the outermost part, the Italian handmade green leather strap. I love the distressed look of this strap and quite honestly I couldn’t wait to see it in person after seeing the pics of it on http://www.nauticfish.com/gruoni.html. When you see this strap attached to this watch, it’s that perfect combo of strap complementing the watch. A straight up green strap would not do either, and Nauticfish knew this, so the went with a vintage leather handmade in Italy, with beautiful aged/distressed finish. The strap really allows for the matte green found on the bezel and dial to really pop.

I have a current daily beater that is 43mm, which is what this Nauticfish comes in at and I have to say that I really appreciate this size. I have also come to the realization that when it comes to watches for me personally, size doesn’t matter. A good friend of mine recently posted on his FB watch group that got me really thinking. I realize that if I like the overall design of a watch, then I am going to like it on my wrist. I was briefly brainwashed into believing that I only like certain size watches. This was complete marketing bullshit. I was missing out on great pieces because of the trickery that watch size matters. It doesn’t to me anymore with my anti-bullshit glasses on. Take a lesson from me my friends, too much thought goes into watch size, don’t miss out like I did because of judging a watch by it’s size.

I really like the case shape on this watch, as I would describe as more of an oval shape than a round shape. Nauticfish went with an all brushed finished stainless steel case and for this I am very excited to see. This isn’t your “baby me” kind of watch. This is balls to the wall rugged and tough Made in Germany master craftsmanship. On the non side of the case there is an automatic valve for automatic pressure compensation, which is PVD coated. I like the contrast that this creates against the brushed finished stainless steel which looks great together. What I also like is that I can clearly see that there is a valve on the case, I don’t need any tacky engraved or printed text on the dial or anywhere near the dial telling me that there is a release valve.

Nauticfish knows that they design a watch to be worn while in conditions outside of the office. This knowledge helped them design a bezel and a crown that can be easily gripped in wet, cold, with bare hands/with gloves on, etc….. In my opinion on a watch of this design requires two things when it comes to the crown design, it needs to be oversized and it needs to have edges that are machined to be gripped. I don’t need anything foo-foo or fancy, I need it to be functional and that’s exactly what Nauticfish gave me, a functional crown. Adding a touch of detail, Nauticfish engraved the crown with their shark logo, which can also be found on the solid, screw down stainless steel case back. Just like the crown, Nauticfish designed the bezel to be easily gripped and operated in all weather conditions. I can attest to that as I have worn this watch in the rain, snow, freezing rain and in a river. With and without gloves, wet and dry hands, the bezel and crown grip/operate without flaw.

As I have determined the bezel to be a functional one right down to the fine detent, this bezel doesn’t disappoint in the looks department either. Matte finish, 5 exposed screw heads, a super-luminova point, it really doesn’t get much better on a tool/dive watch that this. Nauticfish got the matte finish on this bezel is incredible and I really like how Nauticfish matched the dark shade green of the bezel, with the darkest shade that is on green color gradient dial. Speaking of lighting, this bezel even appears almost black at certain angles and with certain lighting. Like the bezel, the color gradient dial also plays quite nice with lighting changes.

If you take a look at the dial, starting at the inside edge of the applied hour markers and working to the outer edges of the dial, this is where the green is the darkest. Like the deep depths of the sea, but as you swim towards the surface, or in this case towards the center of the dial, the green gradually becomes a lighter shade. Nauticfish did a nice job with the green dial and it absolutely sets the tone for the rest of this dial. As I mentioned earlier in this review, Nauticfish stayed consistent with the finish on this watch, opting for staying strictly with a brushed finish. Well consistent they remained with the dial as well. Take special attention to the edges of the hour markers, both the round and rectangular. What do you see? Brushed. Matte. Beautiful. Please don’t stop there, take a look at the hour and minute hands. Not only the same finish but the killer shape. These hands manage to pull off being lovely both in daylight and at night when the lume comes out to play, and comes out it does.

Minimal text is an added bonus of detail on this dial. A small touch of red on the tip of the second hand pulled in with the red printed ‘F’ in Nauticfish. It’s little details like this that shows a company’s dedication to design and a complete overall look. I can say the same about the date window. Some dial purists prefer that no date look, but to please both sides of that argument, I like Nauticfish’s design decision. The date window was placed in the darkest point of the green, so Nauticfish used a black date wheel with white printed numerals. What’s my point? Well, this allows the date window to nicely blend into the dial without sticking out like a sore thumb. Nauticfish really made it apparent to me that they were 110% dedicated to staying true to their design and executed it in the design phase throughout until the final production piece.

German watches are definitely making a name for themselves in the watch world. Of course this isn’t something new, but with watches like this it is hard not to take notice of this. This watch in extremely well made, extremely rugged and extremely accurate.(ETA-2824/2) I really put this watch through some series of tests and it passed them all as you can see below. This watch walked away with a few hairline scratches, no biggie for a watch like this.(pictures all taken after review tests)This was designed to handle the challenges I put it through. Whether if you are a desk diver or an outdoors adventurer, there is enough for both sides to appreciate here. Two suggestions were all that I can find to nit pick about here, the exclusion of lume on the seconds hand is one and the other I would have really liked to see drilled lugs with screw bars. When I review a watch like this, it excites me both as a watch reviewer and as a watch enthusiast, which just adds crazy fuel to the fire inside. “Damn I love watches” is the bumper sticker on that car that gets that fuel.

Thank you all for reading and as always your comments and questions are welcome below.

Thank you to Nauticfish.

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Review tests passed for the case, movement and strap:
*24 hours in below 20F degrees temperatures
*24 hours in below 0 degrees temperatures
*comfort and durability test on the wrist while in snow, rain and mud.
*comfort and durability test during hiking, climbing, biking.
*comfort and durability test during 11 hour active work days
*timing at various positions +7 seconds average per day
*bezel and crown operating in cold, wet weather conditions with and without gloves on

Specifications
* Case: brushed steel, brushed, bezel with fine detent and super-luminova point
* Case diameter: 43 x 43 mm, height: 15 mm
* Automatic valve for automatic pressure compensation, PVD coated
* Water resistance: 1000 m / 3280 feet
* Crown: screwed, diameter: 0,8 mm
* Glaas: Domed lupe sapphire crystal with AR coating (inside, back steel
* Dial: Vintage style with color gradient
* Index & hands: super-luminova
* Movement: automatic, ETA-2824/2, Swiss Made
* Strap: 22mm, stitched and very flexible silicone strap
* Box: Big size outdoor box, water proof, pressure equalizing valve
* Option: vintage style leahter strap (Made in Italy), steel bracelet (Made in Germany)