Watch Reviews From Verified WatchBuys Buyers

Verified Owner Comments: It is been a month since I have purchased my Sinn 857 Lufthansa Cargo whatch. It was my first watch, that I bought online without trying. Was kind of awkward. Overall I am very happy with my purchase. It is very nice, standout watch, as described on website.

Very readable dial in the low light. The lumen, as other people already mentioned, wear off pretty quickly. Probably will last 2-3 hours in complete darkness. My Seiko and Omega watches doing much better job keeping the brightness. The accuracy is pretty good, however it runs about +3 sec ahead per day. Looks and feels very good on the hand. The band is very sturdy and stiff but I like it.

Hovewever, I am going to buy metal bracelet since I am getting my hands wet pretty often.

The service really standouts. I felt like it is one of few, rare companies that really care about their products.

Verified Owner Comments: Absolutely love this watch and so glad I did not let it get away. I had been watching and wanting this watch since released about 6 years ago, and eventually saw a while back that it was sold out. I thought since it was limited edition to 777 pieces that I was out of luck and unsuccessfully tried to find one used over the past couple years.

I then randomly saw on Watchbuys that it was back in stock. Watchbuys informed me that Sinn does a separate releases of limited edition pieces usually 2 years in btwn releases, but this was the last release for this watch. I have owned the watch for about a month and it is superbly accurate- has literally been 0-+1 sec average over the month.

It feels awesome on the wrist, looks amazing, easy to read, durable, a fantastic tool watch and conversation starter. Only con is the strap. Incredible stiff out of the box and not exactly my style (I guess with time will soften up a bit- maybe?). Not a big deal since I have other straps that I can pair with that.

For those interested, I ended up getting a Marine Nationale watch from Erikas Originals with a dark grey strap and orange accent thread down the middle. The orange matches exactly with the orange on watch face and I can't tell you how many people have complimented on how well the band goes with the watch. Super awesome band, so plug for Erika.

Also, Watchbuys could not have been better to deal with. Amazing customer service, confident buying experience, fast shipping, zero issues.

Verified Owner Comments: I love nearly everything about this watch. The full kit including a cargo box and 777 miniature is excellent. The watch has a unique finish with its Tegimented steel. The watch overall is surprisingly light on the wrist. At 43mm it wears perfectly as a sport watch on my nearly 8 wrist.

The resemblance of dial+bezel to an analog instrument from an aircraft flight deck is perfect, with the yellow-orange contrasting the black dial nicely. And the Boeing 777-specific touches on the dial and caseback, vice the standard 857 UTC VFR, really bring it home. My one and only nit is the strap. It's built like a tank (for a leather strap), the stitching complements the dial, and the signed buckle is the same material as the case. But it just doesn't feel like a cargo pilot's watch strap, IMO. Again, a very minor nit for an otherwise excellent timepiece!

Verified Owner Comments: I bought this watch because I wanted a German watch that had the TESTAF Cet. and very happy I did. This is a very nice pilot watch and the band fit well. AS a watch collector, I think anyone would be happy with this as a day to day watch.

Easy to read. I am thinking about buying another watch from Sinn.

Verified Owner Comments: My 2nd Sinn from Watchbuys has not disappointed! The 857 UTC TESTAF Lufthansa LE is very easy to read, tough as nails, and is keeping time 0 and -1 seconds/day!

I had Watchbuys put it on a fully tegimented bracelet before shipping, and it arrived perfect.

Verified Owner Comments: I’ve been filing flight plans since 1970. Although trying to keep UTC time straight was sometimes challenging, I thought I’d found the answer in 1971 when I bought a GMT Master. In the years since, I’ve had 24 hour watches, watches with 24 hour bezels, watches with 24 hour windows, dials, and digital readouts. But until I put this Sinn 857 UTC TESTAF Lufthansa Cargo Limited Edition on my wrist and studied it, I had never realized how confusing all the other watches were! Sinn nailed this to the simplest, clearest, common denominator.

The inner 24 hour ring with its own hand so clearly points to whatever time zone it is set for that it is instantly readable. Not so with any of the other "GMT” watches I have owned. You’re always trying to see where the 24 hour hand is pointing on the bezel or having to open up a digital display, or interpolating from an hour hand to a bezel. Not with the 857! And that’s just the UTC function. I fly an EMS Airbus H135. So I’ll never have the time zone leaps that Andrew H. talks about. But I do have to file IFR and VFR flight plans using UTC. Also, being right on the border Central and Eastern time, sometimes it’s easy to get confused. But no more! I find the 857 to be an extremely comfortable watch to wear.

I have relatively small wrists, just over 7 inch diameter, and it sits very comfortably on both wrists. My watch has been running about +2 seconds per day since I got it. So even though it’s not a chronometer,” I believe Sinn does adjust the ETA movement through 5 positions. It shows! Matt walked me through the ordering process, offering information, answering questions, and being a great sounding board for any questions I had about the watch. I picked the Lufthansa version over the regular UTC and the VFR UTC primarily for the lumed display and lumed second hand. Having the small jet as a pointer on the UTC hand was a bonus. The only complaint I have about the watch is the lack of a longer-lived lume. When charged, it glows wonderfully. But that glow fades pretty rapidly. That being said, a short dose from a small pen light makes it very visible rapidly. And truth be told, even in my cockpit which is lighted for Night Vision Goggle use, the watch is generally readable by ambient light. (I guess having used watches with tritium tubes has spoiled me…)

Once you figure in the wonderful build quality of the watch, the strength and attractiveness of the tegimented steel, and the incredible readability of the watch face, the comfort of the leather strap (and the tegimented strap!) this becomes one of the very best values anywhere for a true pilot’s watch. I do have one other small complaint, since this watch arrived, I’ll be damned if I can wear another watch for more than a couple of hours. I put one on, wear it for a bit, look at it, and find myself looking for the Sinn.

Be warned!!! You may be storing "other” watches if you purchase one. But you won’t regret it!

Verified Owner Comments: Love this watch, simple in design lightweight great feel. Very happy with my purchase The only thing I would change is a longer strap. my wrist is 7 1/2 inches and its a little tight, guess I’m going to have to pick up a silicon strap also. Would highly recommend this to anyone!

Verified Owner Comments: The Sinn 857 UTC is a no-joke pilot’s watch.

As a long-haul B777 Captain, this Sinn is the perfect watch for me when I’m on the road. It’s at a glance readability with the UTC hour hand make’s a pilot’s life much easier as our weather reports, forecasts, and flight planning related times are always expressed in UTC (formerly GMT) time, so having an accurate timepiece with that capability uncomplicates my life to a material degree.

Many pilot’s watches are ridiculously complicated but I much prefer this uncluttered Sinn design with it’s very effective, at a glance, readability. I find it’s design to be close to perfect for my needs. For most crews, it’s UTC time that’s most problematic in determining and not local nor "body-time”. For most aviation professionals, watches tend to be left on home based time and layover (local) time is simply determined by adding or subtracting the difference from " body, or home-based” time.

Trust me, discussing the time amongst flight crews is often the subject of confusion, humor, or shock ! The 857 UTC encompasses everything I need in a watch. I love the uncomplicated and no non-sense design that convey’s an at a glance air of precision. The Tegimented case and sapphire crystal "battle hardens” the watch and the bezel comes in handy for third time functions. My only recommendation to Sinn would be to improve the lume. What’s there is very effective when it’s "charged up” but loses it’s illuminosity after an hour or so. It then becomes necessary to turn on a light to recharge the watch in order to see what time it is.

I’m glad I purchased the watch and it’s definitely a keeper for me.

Verified Owner Comments: Two important factors in buying a watch: the watch itself and the company from which you buy it.

The special edition 857 UTC is my first Sinn watch, though I own several flieger style Hanharts and Tutimas that I'm still quite fond of and that provide a frame of reference for these comments. The Sinn 857 just happened to be the right watch at the right place at the right time. From mechanical aspects to looks to that great leather strap it comes with...love at first sight.

Watch buying process? I've worked with some very fine watch companies over the years...no disrespect to them intended, but the customer reps at WatchBuys are as good as they come. I worked with several reps as part of the 857 purchase process...they were all efficient and helpful.

The website is easy to use, and when WatchBuys says the watch will arrive at a selected time, they and FedEx make sure this happens. I'm hooked.

Verified Owner Comments: I have had my first Sinn for about a month. After due diligence including several telephone conversations with WatchBuys, I placed an order sight unseen for the 857. I received it approximately three weeks before the date I was promised. The 857 has been great. I wanted a unique and rugged automatic and my expectations were exceeded.

Accuracy has been excellent. Feel and appearance are outstanding. Hoping to acquire another Sinn at some point. A++ overall.

Verified Owner Comments: My first Sinn watch. Really wanted this as its a special limited edition collectors item!

Ordered it on a Sunday and Rob confirmed order immediately! The whole process was very easy and the guys at WatchBuys were very helpful addressing my questions and taking care of the shipping. Have been wearing the watch now for a few days. It sits perfectly on my wrist and surprisingly very light making it comfortable to wear.

The dial and indices are very clear and legible to read both during the day and at night. So far it has kept time accurately. During the initial set up, I synchronised the seconds hand with my Citizen Satellite Wave Promaster Navihawk as a means of evaluating the time. My Sinn has indeed kept up with my satellite wave watch!

This is a special watch to me, being an aviator and my friends in Lufthansa Cargo told me about this limited edition watch and advised that WatchBuys is the sole distributor of Sinn watches here!

So, kudos again to WatchBuys! Very happy to have purchased my watch from your company!

Verified Owner Comments: This is my first Sinn. I called on a Sunday night to ask about Sinn products. I didn't realize that I called after hours (I'm on the west coast).

The owner Rob called me back and we spoke for about 30 minutes. After our conversation I ordered this limited edition watch. It was a special order and they kept me updated about the status of my purchase.

I was impressed with the customer service. The watch itself it perfect and as described on the Sinn website. I already banged it a few times on a car door, office door frame, window, and mailbox.

There are NO signs of wear to date. I am now thinking of getting the fully tegimented U1, which has the same 22mm strap size.