My First Product Review: Chase-Durer Pilot Commander XVI Watch

One thing I like, other than flying is horology (for those who don't know, it involves timepieces). And, my favorite type of watch is one that has a practical use in the cockpit.

I have seen pilots with my airline wear everything from cheap digital watches, to big name brands like Omega and Breitling (the latter being way more popular among pilots for obvious reasons).

I bought a Chase-Durer Pilot Commander XVI this past April with my tax refund check (there was plenty left to spare).

I'll tell you that I originally heard about Chase-Durer in an aviation enthusiast magazine from when I was in middle school. The advertisement was for one of their Pilot Commander watches (the generation from 1998), which was made for the USAF Thunderbirds demonstration team. And if I remember correctly, it was a chronograph with a white face and flight computer bezel (essentially a scaled-down version of the calculator side of a mechanical E6-B flight computer). I fell in love with the watch, as well as with the brand, and I hadn't seen anything from them from that time until a few years ago when Chase-Durer began supplying Sporty's Pilot Shop with the Pilot Commander XVI chronograph watch (along with their Blackhawk and Falcon Command watches). That's where I bought my Chase-Durer watch.

I had been considering purchasing a watch simply because I was itching to get one. I had previously had a Fossil watch (one that is now out of production...it had a dragon on the liquid quartz display face of the watch, which could be set to have the dragon on all the time, or disappearing while emitting flames every few seconds, a really nice style). But, the band was pretty tight, and it affected my skin shortly after moving to Florida (whenever I would even think about getting out of an air-conditioned space, I would sweat like there was no tomorrow). It affected the skin directly under the watch bracelet, right below the palm of my left hand. Once I noted the rash, I promptly stopped wearing watches until recently (note that this was only a few years ago). I purchased the watch while I was in my senior year, and I bought it because of the style. I had (and still have) a strong affinity for Asian culture (particularly for Japanese culture...just look at some of my playlists in iTunes), and that is what prompted me to get that Fossil Big-Tic dragon watch. Before that, I had another watch, an unknown brand, but had the logo of the University of Southern California that my dad bought at the bookstore there (he used to work for USC, and we were practically raised Trojans, even though none of us go to SC). But, the band on it, a leather band, created a rash on my wrist that caused scaling, odor, and discharge, so I stopped wearing any type of band made from skin.

For my first watch, I was looking around towards other watches. I shopped around, visited the local department stores and jewelers for the watch that I wanted. I was decided on getting a watch with a flight computer on it, and preferably one with a chronograph (a term for "stopwatch", not to be confused with "chronometer", which is any watch certified by the COSC in Switzerland) as well. Among the brands I looked at were Citizen, Seiko, Pulsar, Wenger, and Torgoen, aside from Chase-Durer. However, I had close contact with Citizen, Seiko, and Pulsar watches. Citizen's SkyHawk line is nice, but the watch seemed complicated to use. The price wasn't bad, but it varied so much from one place to another, and could be found just about anywhere, it seemed "too" popular. Seiko's watches are big, and have a real nice flight computer on them, but it is hard to turn with just two fingers on one hand. But they were pricey. Pulsar's watches are also nice, and their chronograph feature is of conventional use (just like the Seiko). And, Pulsar is a subsidiary of Seiko Watch Company, and use their movements. But the styling seemed a little much. It would look out of place when wearing a suit or uniform. Plus their flight computer watch seemed to me to be a little on the cheap side.

I wanted a watch that would look good when wearing a suit (as I often do), as well as when wearing slacks and a polo, to simply a t-shirt and jeans. So, I narrowed my search for a watch to two brands: Torgoen, and Chase-Durer.

Torgoen's line is designed by and for pilots, according to their marketing. All of their watches and movements are made in Switzerland (in fact, in every watch, "SWISS" appears on it, normally below the "TORGOEN" name on the watch face). Their advertisements are dotted all across Flying, Plane & Pilot, and AOPA Pilot magazines. They are also carried by many online pilot shops, like Aircraft Spruce and Specialty, PilotMall.com, and Sporty's. The one thing about it was that I had to look hard to find one that has a metal band. And their prices seemed a little high. But, unlike Chase-Durer, I had not previously heard of Torgown until a few years ago. But they supposedly have a strong following in aviation (I have yet to see one of my airline's pilots to wear one).

The Beverly Hills, California based Chase-Durer has been making watches for Hollywood and for military pilots in the USAF. In fact, their logo is the silhouette of an F-15 Strike Eagle, and is seen in every one of their watches. Their watches are functional, and the chronograph feature is conventional (the second hand stays still when the chronograph is not running, and the 1/10 second hand can be toggled to either show seconds, or be stopped completely to the 12 o' clock position). They have many styles, so you can find just about whatever tickles your fancy. But for me, a pilot watch with a flight computer was the watch for me.

I ended up going with Chase-Durer's Pilot Commander XVI (which is now, out of production). Though it has no alarm, it has everything else that I want in a watch. It tells time (duh!), and it can give you time elapsed. And the flight computer is helpful for those pesky fuel burn calculations.

The pros: It's a nice, heavy watch. It has a classic, professional style in the band, and it buckles nicely on your wrist. The chronograph feature is very helpful when situations warrant its use. The watch face is also very stylish, sporting the inner scale of the E6-B calculator, a tachymeter, and the three subdials for the chronograph.

The cons: The numbers on the E6-B are a tad small, especially those in the inner scale. And the moveable outer scale on the bezel can only be moved counter-clockwise, as it is ratcheted. And I also believe that the watch could also benefit from different colors. I would have preferred one with a blue face (most of my slacks are blue, and I have one blue suit as well).

All in all, it's a nice watch. I enjoy wearing it, and I have received compliments on the watch.

The movement in the Pilot Commander is the Miyota OS60 chronograph movement, manufactured by Citizen. It's a very nice movement that requires little in resetting (normally it's off by maybe a couple of seconds by the time I go to adjust the time on the watch, which I have only done twice, unlike the many other clocks in my house).

I also met the owner of a Breitling Emergency watch, just after I noticed the watch on him. I asked him about it, and he told me about how the ELT (emergency locator transmitter) works on the watch. He told me, after inspecting my Chase-Durer, that the Pilot Commander is well built and it has a good weight. And I am also quite satisfied with the watch.

However, I will say that purchasing this watch is what turned me onto horology. I'm already considering my next piece. It will either be the new Pilot Commander II (an updated style on the classic) from Chase-Durer, the Citizen SkyHawk Atomic (a rather large watch with an E6-B flight computer on it), the Seiko Kinetic Flight Computer watch with Zulu Time (a stylish watch that does not need batteries), the Torgoen T1 chronograph (one of my final choices from this last time), or the Wenger Commando SR (I avoided Wenger becasue I never saw anything of theirs with an E6-B on it, until I saw their Commando SR).

Five watches from five companies in three countries: Japan's Seiko and Citizen, Switzerland's Wenger and Torgoen, and USA's Chase-Durer. I'll keep you posted on which watch I choose next.