Author Topic: Citizen Promaster Super Pilot JY8020-52E  (Read 6087 times)

Offline artyca

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Citizen Promaster Super Pilot JY8020-52E
« on: November 10, 2017, 09:55:38 PM »
I have been on the lookout for quite awhile, for a fully titanium watch due to the material's hypoallergenic and lightweight properties. My previous experience with a Tudor Pelagos was somewhat mixed, as the case and bracelet are in titanium but the over-engineered clasp with the diver's extension mechanism is actually made from stainless steel, which resulted in skin allergy and itchiness unless the watch was regularly cleaned after being exposed to sweat.

I was also looking for a daily beater watch which I could wear all day, at work or on weekends, either with business attire or in t-shirt and shorts. A watch that wouldn't scratch easily and would retain its new look even after being exposed to the harshest environments.

Initially, I shortlisted the Omega Skywalker X-33 but was put off by its poor water resistance and battery life span of only 2 years. Thereafter, I came across this Citizen Promaster Super Pilot, which ironically is only sold in Europe. As a friend of mine was in Germany recently, I did not hesitate to ask him to pick up the watch for me, and finally it is on my wrist!

My first impressions: A very well built watch for its price! No other watch comes close to offering so many features, as well as a titanium case and bracelet at its price point. The watch features the U680 movement powered by the EcoDrive solar powered mechanism that provides up to 180 days of power with a full charge of battery. It was synchronized with the radio-controlled atomic clock in EU and therefore is accurate down to the second! It has a beautifully functional slide rule bezel (that took me awhile to learn but once you've learned it, it's really easy to use to perform simple calculations), permanent UTC time display, power reserve meter, day/night indicator as well as the usual perpetual calendar, chronograph, timer and two alarms which can be set according to world time zones.

The watch was initially quite complicated to operate but after reading the instruction manual and playing around with the watch for a few days, I've got it all mastered and it's quite a remarkable watch to use - especially if you're a frequent traveler crossing multiple time zones or if you are working with foreign offices around the world and need a global reference time easily. Changing home time and world time is a quick feature that I fully appreciated, especially during a recent business trip to India which is -2.5 hours from Malaysian time. When you're frequently traveling, it doesn't make sense to wear an automatic watch as changing the time takes a lot of effort especially if you're paranoid about spoiling the date mechanism and only insist on setting the time forward. With this watch, just pulling the crown out to position 1 and then pressing both top and bottom buttons results in the home time and world time being swapped... a really neat feature. The alarm is loud enough to wake you up and the digital displays even come with small LEDs for night time viewing.

Lume is not fantastic but it glows a nice blue when fully charged. The dial is quite busy but once you appreciate all the features the watch has, it really make sense that this is the ultimate tool watch for world travelers!

I'm quite surprised that this particular model is not sold anywhere except in EU. A quick glance in the global Citizen website shows that the model has been discontinued and replaced by the latest models featuring GPS time synchronization. What the new models lack though, is quirkiness and the Super Pilot is certainly quirky due to the two digital displays on the dial. The American Citizen website shows newer iterations of the model with more color and bigger case sizes. I decided to get this Super Pilot instead as I prefer a monochromatic look in black and white, which is the typical colors of a true Pilot's watch!

Although the case diameter is measured at 45mm, the watch wears comfortably on my smallish wrist and after two weeks of daily wearing, I haven't had the urge to wear any other watch in my collection. This watch is just so complete and has all the information and functionality that one could wish for, in a time piece.

Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed my quick and dirty review.