Reviews for Bulova Men's Archive Series Lunar Pilot 6-Hand Chronograph High Performance Quartz Stainless Steel and Black Nylon Strap Watch Set, Sapphire Crystal Style: 96B251
People say Bulova is really similar to Omega.
5.0
The quality is evident. Functional and ‘solid’ feel. Who needs an Omega Speedmaster?
The quality is evident when you pick it up from the unboxing. This is a “value” buy. I looked at the Omega but…. Thousands? Why? The Lunar Pilot has the same clarity/look and performs above my expectations. I recently got a promotion at work and wanted to reward myself with a ‘quality’ watch. Through my research, I found out about the NASA lore of the Omega and the Bulova. After researching, the accuracy of the Lunar Pilot (10 seconds per year?!?!) was the deciding factor after the Quality/Value. At first, in my researching, the look of the lever pushers threw me off but the functionality eventually won me over. I don’t need to take my eyes off of what I’m doing to find them. It's Pure efficiency and Quality, my main factors. Oh, and the look fits me as well (Elegantly Simple, Efficiently Functional, no crappy 'fluff'). I also looked at the Seiko SSC813 “Seitona” but this won out due to quality, function, simplicity. The Seitona fell to far into the 'fashion' watch zone for my liking, and it's more of a 'homage' (copy) of the Rolex Daytona whereas the Bulova Lunar has it's own 'Provenance' in it's own right.
5.0
The moon watch that doesn't have an astronomical price tag to match.
It's hard to imagine a better deal than that offered by Bulova for this watch. Often what sets a watch apart from countless other similar watches is the "story" behind the watch. Whether it's the Rolex worn by Sean Connery, the Tag Heuer worn by Steve McQueen, or the Cartier worn by JFK. The most sought after watches have a story. Indeed, one of the most sought after watches is an Omega Speedmaster Professional. This is the watch worn by the American Astronauts for the Gemini, Apollo and Skylab missions, and until recently, were the only watches ever to make it to the moon. However, owning a "speedy" will set you back several thousand dollars, but that's what you need to spend to get a "moon watch". Up until now. The story goes that David Scott, commander of Apollo 15 was given a Bulova prototype to "test" while on mission. While he did not plan on actually "testing" the watch, he did put it in with the rest of his stuff as backup. As luck would have it, it was needed as his Speedmaster failed when the crystal popped out, and Scott wore the Bulova on the moon for EVA 3 and on the return trip. That watch recently sold for 1.6 MILLION dollars in auction and is the only privately owned watch that has been on the moon. Bulova has taken that story and created an homage to that prototype. The Lunar Pilot is the result. Even without the space pedigree, this is one special watch. It's quartz movement beats at 8 times the normal frequency giving the watch an accuracy of approximat... Read More
5.0
The "Other" Moon Watch, Bulova's Lunar Pilot
This watch has been reviewed on Amazon many times already, so I will try to not repeat too much of what has already been said, and if I do repeat, I'll try to condense my words to what you might really be interested to know. First: This watch has some historical significance, as a replica of the only other watch known to be worn on the Moon besides the Omega Speedmaster (which I also once owned). Bulova produced just a few of these back in the early 70's (through their Swiss subsidiary Universal Geneve), submitted some to NASA for testing, and gifted one to David Scott, who took it along as "backup" during the Apollo 15 mission. He ended up wearing it on the lunar surface while piloting the Lunar Rover. That particular watch sold at auction in 2015 for $1,600,000. Second: Even without the historical significance, it's a technically interesting watch with unique features. The watch uses Bulova's UHF quartz movement, in which the crystal vibrates 8 times faster than conventional quartz watches. This provides extreme accuracy of approximately 10 seconds/year as well as very smooth motion of the central chronograph seconds hand. The running seconds hand located on the subdial at six o'clock ticks every half-second, not every second like most quartz watches. Third: The styling is unique among modern Bulova watches, which are often very highly polished, glittery and sometimes "blingy". This watch is more of a "tool" or instrument, with a mostly bead blasted texture, and a little... Read More
5.0
good for larger guys
I have been Wearing this for about a year now. I am using the velcro strap that it came with and its a very heavy duty strap and look great with the watch. As for the watch it keeps very good time and the chronograph works as it should the buttons don't feel as solid as i would have hopped but most of us don't need to use this function much if at all (it just looks cool) I have many watches from Seiko's to Hamilton's to Omega's and I will say I tend to grab this watch out of the case a lot. Its one of the timeless styles that will always look good no matter what you are doing. Get it you won't regret it.
5.0
New king of Chronograph precision
Awesome chronograph. The Omega Speedmaster measures in 1/5 second increments, the Citizen measures in 1/20 sec increments, the Bulova 1/40. Compared to the Omega Speedmaster: The Citizen is 4 times more precise, and this Bulova is 8 times. Attached is a video showing the two amazing chronos in action.
5.0
A more sensible Speedmaster!
This might sound like heresy, but, you asked my opinion....So.... I've wanted an Omega Speedmaster since I was a teen...pre-moon landing. Locally, 50+ years ago, Omega watches were't sold, but the local jeweler convinced me a Tissot SeaStar was ALMOST the same watch for less. Well, the Tissot was a handsome watch and it was a chronograph...but it died from water exposure, and I don't know how...I babied that watch. I kept returning it to the jeweler for repairs (as a kid). Finally, it was never returned to the jeweler and I was out my "expensive" watch. I swore I wouldn't spend big dollars on a watch again. So. I've lived with junky quartz watches ever since. About 4 years ago the Speedmaster bug hit me again. And I looked and looked. I studied all the models and the pros and cons. As much as I'm in LOVE with the look of the Speedmaster Professional, I just don't want to wind a watch every day....I mean, c'mon, it's 2019! So, I set my sights on one of the 44.5mm automatics with a date window....(to me, another MUST). But, $6,7,8,000 for a USED watch??? Um. NO. Then out of the blue-left field, appears this watch. At first I was hesitant, 'cause its "quartz". But after watching a few YouTube INANE reviews, I could see through the reviewers smoke and ordered the watch. I was nervous and was afraid to take the tags off from it at first. But, dang-it, it looks so close at a glance, to an Omega (highly legible, high contrast face and hands) three sub-dials, etc. And the icing on th... Read More
5.0
Loving it
Beautiful watch, it does not feel as big as I read from some reviewers, though it might be the case with very small/skinny wrists. Very precise 262 khz quartz movement, satisfactory clicking buttons chronograph, sapphire crystal, nice brushed finishing (there is a newer one that is polished and does not have date). It feels heavy on the wrist, which you may like or not (I do). In any case, If you want a moonwatch –and this is a legit one– and you can't afford a Speedy (or even if you can) I think this is a great watch –probably the most interesting quartz watch yo can get– and offers better value than the Omega x Swatch. I absolutely loved it.
5.0
The Most Important Timepiece Of This Century (So Far)
The Omega Speedmaster has had the "Moonwatch" nickname for decades. Omega boasts that the Speedmaster is the first and only watch worn on the moon. For many watch collectors, the Speedmaster is the holy grail of wristwatches. Imagine the shock-wave throughout the horological community as NASA astronaut Colonel Dave Scott announced that there was another watch worn on the moon. In the 1971 Apollo 15 mission, Colonel Dave Scott wore a Bulova brand chronograph to replace his NASA issued Omega Speedmaster. The story is almost too perfect: the hesalite crystal on the flight approved Speedmaster popped off so Scott replaced the Omega with his personal backup prototype Bulova watch. Not only was a Bulova wristwatch worn on the Moon but it replaced a broken Speedmaster. Scott's Bulova went secretly into a safety deposit box where it remained largely unmentioned for over 40 years. The watch was extracted from the safety deposit box and on Oct 22, 2015 put to auction. It sold for a record $1.625 million. This reproduction of the Bulova chronograph is a more "earth-friendly" variation of the 1971 wristwatch that went to the moon. Most prominently, the crystal in the reproduction is a scratch resistant anti-reflective sapphire crystal, rather than a hesalite crystal that went to the moon. Hesalite is shatter-proof, which makes it a great choice for enclosed, zero gravity environments, but sapphire is a very hard and long lasting mineral and is a great choice for surface dwelling Terra... Read More
4.0
A beautiful homage to Dave Scott’s Apollo 15 Bulova
The Bulova Lunar Pilot is a beautiful homage to a historic watch—a Bulova chronograph worn on the moon by astronaut David Scott on Apollo 15 in 1971. Featuring a modern, Bulova Precisionist movement, this watch is mechanically a better watch than the original it’s based on. I’ve had mine for a couple of months, and in the time I’ve had it, the Bulova is now about two seconds slow from actual time. That’s about a second a month, making this one of the most accurate watches I own. For a quartz watch, the precision is outstanding. I think there are probably only two ways to get better accuracy in a wristwatch than this—you either get lucky, or you pay a lot more for something like a Grand Seiko. I do not yet own an Omega Speedmaster Professional. At some point I will, but I think it’s more of a ‘show watch’ than a ‘daily driver.’ This Bulova is actually a better timepiece, even if it doesn’t have the same cachet as the Omega. The #1 reason I bought this watch is because the movement is one of the best available anywhere, especially at this price point. You’re just not going to get much more of a bang for your buck than this, if you want an accurate wristwatch. As stated by others, the lume on the hands and indices are adequate but not eye-poppingly bright. I’m a bit spoiled by dive watches, which are meant to be very bright. This is not on that level. I’m just a bit disappointed that the lug width is 20 mm instead of 22 mm. I think 22 mm would have been more appropriate for... Read More
4.0
Pretty Close to Dave Scott's
The reimagining of the Apollo 15 prototype is a pretty close one, with the major exception being its isn't mechanical any more, which is a shame As a quartz, its pretty inoffensive in function. I don't understand the reason why they changed the chrono to be hundredths of a second, which leads to the hundredths register hand stopping to save battery after 30 seconds. I mean nobody operating a chrono by hand is going to get a meaningful number in hundredths of a second. The 262 kilo hertz makes for a fairly smooth sweep, so its all pretty bearable. The inclusion of two straps is a nice touch, but the spring bar tool is pretty mediocre - use a decent one to avoid damage to the case lugs. I regularly use the nylon pseudo-NATO on mine. However, I don't understand what they didn't make it a true NATO style for the added security in that design. The way they have done it, if one spring bar tool fails, you've lost it. So no benefit, other than comfort, over the leather faux carbon and that's what cost it the fifth star. I also think they could have spread the lugs a little. It's a big watch and the strap included looks a little insubstantial. 24mm might have been better. That said, it wears much smaller than its dimensions would suggest, and looks okay on a 19cm/7 inch wrist and is slim enough to fit under a shirt sleeve. Bulova are a poor shadow of their former glory days, and being swallowed by Citizen was a worrying development. It would seem that they might actually come out ... Read More