There is a lot of beauty in this world if we just stop a minute from our busy, overly complicated lives and admire what is around us. This year has taught me many lessons, and stopping to smell the roses is one of those lessons I have learned. It doesn’t have to be on the magnitude of the Grand Canyon beauty, beauty can be found in all things, big and small. When the Andersmann Ocean Master arrived it made me stop to admire a different kind of beauty, dive watch beauty. My 4th review of an Andersmann watch and I kind of have certain expectations because of my past experience with Raymond Chan’s watches. He is a very passionate dive watch enthusiast whose passion has been quite apparent in my past reviews;therefore, I had a certain expectation of the Ocean Master before it even arrived. 

Allow me to get back to when this watch arrived in the traditional plastic Andersmann box. I still want to see one of their handmade wooden boxes in person by the way. A few quick releases of the snapping style buckles on the box and I was ready to dive right into handling this watch. With the lid flipped open, there was that large, gleaming stainless steel beauty. 47mm of badassery in terms of case design and case execution. This Ocean Master has a finish that is a combination of both polished and brushed ss. Personally a watch of this magnitude and style, I would prefer all brushed. During my photo shoot the polished portions of this case did sustain some light scratching from the rocks/waves.

That being said, watches are made to be worn and scratching of the case builds personalized character. Some will say that the watch is too big and heavy for them, which is fine because they don’t have to buy it and this watch wasn’t made for them in mind anyway. Andersmann made this watch for the select individuals like myself who appreciates a large, well designed, heavy, quality dive watch. I want to know, see and appreciate a watch when it’s on my wrist, especially when I am in the water or doing outdoor activities. I believe in wearing a watch that is correct for the situation. That’s where the naysayers always get it wrong, “this watch is grotesquely big and won’t fit under my dress shirt cuff”. Well pretty boy, this watch wasn’t designed for your dainty ass wrist for office use, it was designed to be used in the office that’s located in the ocean. 

The meticulous attention to detail on the case design is apparent throughout. For example take a look at how the edges of the bezel perfectly match the edges of the crown. That kind of meticulous detail is also thoughtfully carried over the the case back. Andersmann even wanted to give the wearer something pretty to look at with the decorated ETA movement. The matte ceramic bezel insert is badass and beautiful all at the same time. Seeing the carefully planned out quality of detail is awesome and all but it doesn’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing……..I mean quality of functionality. Well I wasn’t let down in terms of how the bezel and the screw down crown function on the AN813. Both are easy to grip, both operate smooth and both line up nicely.  It really is the super hero of crowns with the raised A on the crown. A little detail that adds to the overall great finish the AN813 has. As for the lugs, they didn’t want to miss out on the quality/design party because their angles consistently match the angles on the bezel and on the crown. Passion made apparent.

The AN813 dial is a simplistic work of horological art which I what I have become accustomed to on Raymond’s watches. The details instantly identifiable as an Andersmann are the textured black dial, sandwich style, balanced, simplistic which combine into a beautiful and legible dial. This dial is what I want when it comes to a dive watch. It’s large, simple and legible. A legible dial in all lghting conditions and environments thanks in part to the lumed markers and the lumed hands. Speaking of the hands, the hands are proportional to the dial itself which is an important detail in my opinion, especially when diving. Eliminating the chance of timing errors is crucial when it is a matter of life and death. Andersmann always keep their text to a minimum on all of their dials which I can appreciate the lack of unnecessary bullshit on the dial. The double domed sapphire crystal allows the wearer the ideal window for gazing into this dial.

There are definitely different tiers when it comes to ‘microbrands’ (a title that I never cared much for). Some closed minded watch snobs would disagree by stating all are the same. Andersmann falls into the upper tier of the small brand watch world. The quality and finishing definitely puts them into that upper tier. Raymond Chan’s passion for dive watches translates so well into his watches. He has a very meticulous eye for quality and for execution of his passionate vision. Every piece that I have reviewed from Andersmann thus far has not disappointed me in terms of quality, design and functionality. Andersmann watches are made for people who share Raymond’s passion for large, quality dive watches. The 47mm case isn’t for everyone and I definitely get that. Those of you who love big, heavy divers know what you want and except from this kind of dive watch. Yes these watches are big, but they are also surprisingly comfortable for their size. They have awesome wrist presence that always brings a smile to my face when I look down at my wrist. Andersmann Watches definitely deserves a closer look at for those fans of larger dive watches, who demand quality and want peace of mind that their watch won’t fail them.

As always thank you all for reading and your questions and comments are welcome below.

Thank you Raymond and the Andersmann team.

 

 

 

http://andersmann.com/product/oceanmaster-i-1000m-ann0813/

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