Vostok Amphibia Classic 2415

And so we have reached the Classic Amphibian. This is the 2415 model (or more precisely—090914) in the style «1967.» However let’s not be mistaken: in contrast to “Vostok” model «1967», which is almost impossible to buy at the moment, the watches are easy to differentiate because of their bands (in the «1967» model it’s all one piece) and the bezel, which in the 090914 model is made out of brass. And the glass too.

Overall, the watch — a standard Amphibian, but this is a line towards the «new» design.

If you’ve been reading Getat.ru, then you know that our previous acquaintance with the products from «Vostok» was ambivalent. In particular,  with Amfibia Seaman, which we loved, happened a terrible misfortune that botched the overall impression of their watches, which are made solidly, but the quality of their mechanisms let us down.

Now for testing we have the «classic», without all sorts of innovations. We will test them long and hard. So don’t wait for a quick review: first we will test them out in the sea.

And so, what kind of watches are these?

They are, of course, diving watches, with water resistance up to 200 meters. Mechanism — model 2415 (31 stones, self-winding with enough charge to hold up to 31 hours). Screw-locked crown. Diameter — 40 mm (bezel). When measured in length it is approximately 46 mm due to its massive case. Yes, the watch looks large because of the shape of the case. That’s good, because ordinary Amphibians are too small for divers by modern standards. Case height—12 mm, the width of Strap—22 mm.

Well, let’s continue on.

The case. The case is good. Big, polished and made out of steel. Has a decent weight. It’s made well and of high quality, with the exception of the polish on the back of the lugs, they could have done better.

The bezel. The bezel is brass, so it can peel off, but there is a large selection of replacements and Amphibian lovers are said to like replacing them. It moves without clicking, such watches aren’t very fit for divers and generally unsafe.

The crown. It’s large, screwed in confidently… only it gets loose, which is traditional for mechanisms from «Vostok», so don’t be alarmed. I am personally a little bit upset that the crown looks like it isn’t tightened to the end: between it and the body is a miserly 1 mm.

The dial. It’s Excellent. A luxurious blue color, with large «vintage» digits and classical arrows. The dial is done perfectly, precisely and smoothly. There are a couple of small imperfections on the paint, but they’re minor. The hands and the four main points on the watch have are luminous. The illumination isn’t all that bright, but it is decent.

The back cover. Here everything is neat, no complaints.

The bracelet. The bracelets on all the classical Amphibian watches are of poor quality. On this model there is a new bracelet, opaque with polished stripes. It looks nice, but the quality of the material is low. And about ready to fall apart. On this model you either have to change the whole bracelet for a full metal link one or a rubber one. On this model the metal links are weak and could unbend. We will be testing watch with factory default bracelet.

Shortening the bracelet—it’s a task, though simple but not exactly fast. Because of the soft material the links are made of, they just strive to fall apart. The pins are strong, but overall the strap is of the same quality as the watches from Shark.

The result. For $70-80 these watches cost, they’re great. But with a nice wrist strap, they would be even more desirable, even if the price was 1000 rubles more expensive.

The final review will be in September.