Citizen Promaster Diver 200 mt Automatico NY0040-09W Men's Watch Beige/Black Strap, Beige/Black, Bracelet

Product Information

Both have their pluses and minuses, and your preferences might be different than mine. Because aesthetics are important in this race, I'd buy the Citizen again, if given the choice between it and the 007. But there's room for both in a collection (particularly if you buy a 009 or the SKXA35, with their considerably different aesthetics, or if you're up for modding an 007, which is much easier to do with a plethora of off-the-shelf parts available). But the real win, to me is that the Citizen really contends. Every time we recommend an 007, we really should be also recommending the NY0040. Sure, maybe it's a little hard to find, and maybe it is or will soon be discontinued, but as long as it's around, it's a competitor, and a viable alternative, for folks wanting that inky dial and chrome-lined indices. In addition, I am amazed at the accuracy. The watch has varied from +/- 1-3 SPD but at the end of one week, it is dead on accurate to the second! That is a level of accuracy that exceeds many quartz watches. I don't know how long that will last but, for now, it is truly remarkable. Caution: I do not know if the EcoDrive diver this bracelet was meant for was distributed in markets other than the US. If so, the model number of the watch and/or the part number of the bracelet may differ from the numbers I’ve used. Regarding comparing the NY0040 to Orient Divers, it is another example of comparing "apples to oranges". The Orients may carry the 200M rating but are really "dressy" dive style watches. With the NY0040 (or SKX), you are getting the real thing: a rugged and dependable working watch. After looking into the watch design, quality, features, and pricing this watch received a 9/10 from us at The Watch Blog.

One final thought, if others agree, I would like to propose we come up with a name for the 09W and would welcome suggestions. After all, there are Seiko "Monsters", Orient "OSD", Omega "Speedys" and the like. Based upon my earlier comments, here are my two suggestions: the "Ghost Diver" or perhaps, the "Green Lantern". I don't know how to set up a poll, but if there is sufficient interest, I will go research, or better yet, ask that another fan set one up. I've heard reports that the Citizen is better regulated out of the box, but to be honest, I haven't even timed the accuracy of mine yet. I'll accept that as true, but not greatly different from the Seiko. Yes, the Seiko has a direct drive second hand, but I haven't noticed the oft-reported "second hand stutter" on my Citizen. To give an example, when I sleep say at 7pm I wake up at 4am and could tell the hour but not the minutes...This thread is dedicated to the Citizen NY0040-09W ("09W") luminous dial automatic diver. I want to draw attention to this particular model and hope to see postings from others who also enjoy this unique watch. A number of subsequent commenters opine that the Citizen wears smaller (even "women's watch" small.) The Seiko has a slightly more octagonal shape, and, as discussed below, a much bigger, protruding crown. Because of that, I would agree that it wears larger. But in my experience, not extremely so. Protecting the front of the timepiece is a mineral crystal glass. This is commonly found on mid range watches as well as diving timepieces. Mineral crystal glass is specially hardened to offer a good level of both scratch and shatter resistance. The shatter resistance if often a key decider for diving watches as you’d often rather have better shatter resistance than scratch resistance. This is why we don’t see sapphire crystal glass so often. Watch Movement For those unfamiliar with the NY0040 line of divers, it has been around for some time, introduced originally in 1997. I think it is fair to say that it does not get a lot of attention nowadays. It is a conventional sized diver with a vintage look. Here is a summary of the key features that I have been able to glean:

To get things started we’re going to be taking a look at the general design of the dial. As is common practice for diving watches, the Citizen NY0040 has a high visibility design making it easy to read at a glance and in dim conditions. As you can tell by now, like the earlier poster, I too have become passionate about this watch. Indeed, I finally put up an avatar, and sure enough, it is an 09W lume shot that I captured. If you also like this watch and want to "join the club", please feel free to copy the image and use it as your avatar, too. They’ve gone for both a brushed and polished finish which is something I’ve always been quite a fan of. The top of the casing is finished in a brushed style, however, the sides of the casing have a polished shiny finish. I tend to find this sort of design gives a watch a high-quality look. I have had the watch for one week now and my enthusiasm is undiminished. I wanted something different and the 09W definitely meets that criteria. The watch is truly striking without going over the top. Build quality and fit/finish is very good for this price point from a major watch maker. (Note: As I continue to collect watches, my respect deepens for watch makers, especially those that make their own movements, as opposed to "brands" that are merely in the watch business, i.e., outsourcing manufacture, and sometimes even service/support.)I think the watch feels like a 41.5mm watch.. It wears smaller than the SKX007 just a bit, maybe it's the crown location that gives that feeling. Whereas both the Seiko SKX007 and the Citizen NY0040 feature day and date functions, the Citizen is the only model which also features hand winding which is something many people look for in an automatic watch. Dial face always has some green in it, so not yellow as in ripe banana yellow... I'd describe it to be milky green when the lume burst calms when indoors. However, the dial continually changes shades of milky green to grayish bland green, while obviously not appearing too sporty AT ALL. It's one of the watches that could fit any personality and still look subtly exotic. Believe it or not, good Citizen divers are vanishing from market even while been in demand,, even in this day of modern marketing!

I haven't measured the power reserve, but I'm pretty sure it lasts over 35 hours since I hasn't noticed any shortness in energy when switching from modern movement watches daily. I'm almost certain that the lume quality "on the hands" is on par with Seiko's.. But the design makes Citizen's lume too vague after say 9hrs. There’s no denying it’s a well made Japanese watch that’s ideal for diving with the ISO certification and high visibility display. Plus it’s what I’d class as an affordable watch which is something I love featuring on this watch blog. The preceding is coming from a recently converted shameless fanboy of the NY0040-09W. Although it is still a NY0040, the design decisions made using the luminous dial make the 09W something completely different from the other NY0040's and your typical dive watch. I've probably drank too much of the "kool-aid", but believe the 09W is an overlooked gem that should be in everyone's collection. I currently prefer to wear the 09W over the SKX009 any day. I started a thread to discuss the 09W in more detail for those interested. But there are problems. I'd prefer the 22mm lug width on the Seiko (the Citizen's included rubber strap is severely notched, and it's easy to see why... 22mm just feels more proportional for this type of watch). And while the Citizen's all-brushed bezel looks really great straight on (on top of the brushed top of its case) it looks quite odd from a side view when looking at its sleek polished sides. I'll have to go for a tie.Accuracy is very good... I'd say +- 10 seconds.. What makes me like "my watch" is that it appears to deliver great accuracy even when it's energy is below half.