Archimede watches had been, and continue to be on my radar. Their pilot watches had a permanent place in my mind whenever I was thinking of getting a new watch. Although I do like IWC watches, I’ve always thought that their Mark series was overpriced. As I enjoy the Flieger look, I started looking at alternatives. Most would tell me to look at Sinn, some at Laco. For some reason, I never got the urge to get either although there are some great looking Sinns, so that might be something to look at later. However, The Black Forest area in Germany holds many other goodies, and I chose the Archimede Pilot 42.

Without regurgitating the story of the brand can be found on the website. Archimede is family company with expertise in case making. They make cases for themselves and other brands, and apparently are an in-house brand, designing and making all of their watches except for the movement, and I presume sapphire crystals.

The movement of the Archimede Pilot 42 is an ETA 2824-2. Kudos to them for not renaming their movements to make it sound like they make their own. At 51mm lug to lug, this 42mm diameter watch stretches the wearability for me, but ends up being just right. The “Big Pilot” crown which was a requirement for me in a watch such as this, looks great. While wearing it on its leather strap, the crown occasionally digs into my wrist when I move it. The case is only 9,8mm thick, so having a wide crown means you’ll feel it. I did not anticipate that, however it’s easily fixed when I put it on my Fifth Wrist Chicken nato. The extra mm or two of fabric under the watch gives me enough space to not feel the crown anymore. For those who might be bothered by this, Archimede can make these “on order”, so you can get an onion crown which will stop this from happening.

I try to get something that I don’t already have in my collection when I get a new watch. It’s not a steadfast rule, but in this case, (pun intended), I chose to go with the titanium case, and no date. (Pilot 42 A Titan.LS). I had never handled a titanium watch before and the weight difference with steel is quite noticeable. Its lightness makes it a great summer watch. This model has a flat sapphire crystal on the front and the back. The movement is undecorated, but along with an onion crown, you can also purchase a decorated rotor, or upgrade to a closed back. One thing I really like with Archimede is the plethora of upgrades you can get. There are domed sapphire crystals, different crowns, engravings, handwound movements, blued hands, etc… They’ve also listened to clients, and offer their pilots in sizes such as 36, 39, 42, and 45mm. I’m not marketing for them, but it’s just nice to see all these options (not just strap options) from a company. You can really get what you want.

I’m glad I waited to get mine as the previous models only offered 30 or 50m of WR, but now that’s been upgraded to 100m. The crown does not screw in, but you don’t go swimming with something like this. Just know that it could handle it if you wanted to. The lume is great to look at, and will stay illuminated for a while.

When I bought it, they were on a holiday break. They said it would be a few weeks before they would be able to send it. I told them I was buying it for my birthday and that I was disappointed that I wouldn’t get it on time, but I understood, and that it was my fault for waiting too long. They actually went in to see if they had that specific model in stock, they did, and they sent it to me. I got it the day before my birthday! Now that is customer service! Writing this reminds me, I should look at what else they have…