Invicta Men’s 9211 Speedway Collection Chronograph Watch
- Precise Japanese-quartz movement
- Anti-reflective mineral crystal
- Case diameter: 40mm
- Stainless-steel case; white dial; date function; chronograph functions
- Water-resistant to 660 feet (200 M)
Classically styled and channeling your need for speed, the Invicta Speedway Chronograph watch for men (model 9211) offers a bold accent to both business wear and casual dress. The three chronograph subdials can measure time within intervals of 1/60 of a second and up to 30 minutes of elapsed time, and it features start, stop, and reset functions. The round silver stainless steel watch case measures 43mm (1.69 inches) with engraved units per hour markings on the bezel. It has a white dial backgro
List Price: $ 355.00
Price: $ 59.00
Old versus New Model,
You probably read that some models do not have tachymeter function, while others have. After reading the reviews and doing research on the web, here how to differentiate between the old vs new version of 9211. I believe it is correct, but not guaranteed.
The old version of 9211 uses Miyota OS20 movement. This is the movement with true tachymeter function. The large second hand is used only for chronograph function. The small second subdial at 6 o’clock is used for counting seconds. You can tell the difference on the dial. The subdials are closer together. There are room for small index at 3, 6, 9 o’clock, just outside the subdials. The stock photo used by Amazon is a photo of the old version.
The new version of 9211 uses a different movement. As far as I can tell, it does not match any of the Miyota movement. It is very similar to JS20, except JS20 has 30 minute total counter while 9211 has 60 minutes. The large second hand is used for normal second counting. The subdial at 6 o’clock is used for timing. The tachymeter is not usable. So this really defeats the purpose of the 9211 bevel design. With this new movement, the subdials are further apart and are closer to the dial’s edges. There are no room between the subdial and the dial’s corner. So there are no index at 3, 6, 9 o’clock.
If you look on eBay where the actual watch photos are posted, you can differentiate between the 2 types. Look to see whether small index (indices) exist at 3, 6, or 9 o’clock positions. Old 9211 model with tachymeter function has these indices. New 9211 model does not have these indices.
Miyota OS20 is a very common movement used in chronographs. You can search for videos on this movement. When you reset the chronograph after using it, the second hand will flyback to the 12 o’clock zero position in 1 rotation. On the new 9211, the second and minute hands will wind backwards (at a high speed) to the zero position. It is not just single rotation, it will rotate as many turns as the timer was used. So if you had the timer running for 10 minutes (10 rotations), it will take couple minutes for the timer to wind around and around and around (10 turns in high speed) back to zero. It is pretty weird and interesting to watch, but really defeats the use of timer feature.
I purchase 9211 from Amazon in Nov 2010. I was hoping I would get lucky and get the old version. No such luck. I didn’t keep the watch as I wanted the chronograph/tachymeter function, which is how the watch was designed originally.
Here is my take of the watch. The watch is decent, but you get what you pay for. Invicta cut some corners with this watch, as you can tell by the actual sale price. Where did they cut corners? (1) Movement. Described above. (2) It does not have solid end links. The last link, where the bracelet is connected to the lugs by pins, is made of rolled metal piece, rather than solid piece. (3) The buckle or clasp is thin. (4) The crown is really flimsy. On other watch with screw down feature, I can feel the screw down engage. On the 9211, it is spongy and I cannot feel the screw down engage at all. I suspect this can easily cause cross threading. Or maybe the unit I got was already cross threaded.
On the positive, the watch case and bracelet links are solid. The watch and bracelet weigh 155g. Solid and hefty.
Also, the watch size can be a bit small for some. This really on your preference. But I will provide the detailed measurements here. The case measures 39.5mm without the crown; this is not large by today’s standard. With crown, it measures 42.5mm. And because the watch has wide bezel taken up by tachymeter marking, the crystal and dial only measures 30.5mm in diameter. Because of the small crystal/dial size, 9211 appears smaller than it’s almost 40mm case would suggest.
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|Better in person than online – nice timepiece,
When I ordered this watch I was expecting to get exactly what I paid for….a $95 watch, but what I received far surpassed my expectations. First, the box it came in was ginormous and well protected. Seriously you could have fit 3 or 4 of these watches in that thing, and it included a suede or suede-like polishing cloth as well.
The watch itself was covered in a clear protective film which was easily removed. Upon inspection the first thing I noticed was the face and how it has a very detailed raised background which adds a lot of class to the watch. An additional nice feature is the screw down crown which allows you to “lock” down the dials without worrying about water getting into the watch through the adjustment shafts. Invicta didn’t overlook the details here, and it shows.
A quick review of the included guide and I had the second hand adjusted to the 12 o’clock position and it was ready to go. I did have to remove a few links to get it to the proper size, but it was a straightforward process even without the proper tool. If you are unsure how this process works or are nervous that you might scratch the watch, you can purchase a pin removal tool right here on Amazon for about $15 which would surely make the job much easier.
A week later and it hasn’t lost any measurable amount of time, so it appears that it is doing exactly what it was designed to do. This watch does use a Japanese movement (indicated by the micro-printing on the face which reads “Japan Movt” at the 6 o’clock position), but the modern Japanese movements are on par with anything the Swiss can make, and in some cases are arguably better – although they don’t carry the same veneration as being able to say you have a “Swiss watch”.
Admittedly the second hand isn’t as smooth as a $3500 watch and it doesn’t “sweep” like a Rolex….but honestly what do you expect for around $100? I’m guessing about 99% of the average citizen would have no clue if this was a $100 watch or a $3500 watch – and I’m not about to spend a few extra thousand just to have the name Rolex glued to the face. They both tell time, only this one comes with the added feature of a fat wallet as well.
The stopwatch function is nice, but honestly isn’t that valuable. It might be neat to watch the second hand swing back up to 12 when you reset it, but with the exception of testing a speedometer I doubt it would be precise enough for much else. I won’t use any of the chronograph functions, but again I believe they add a touch of class to the watch and make it look much more expensive than it is.
The fit and finish as extremely good, and even though I have worn it every day since it arrived and haven’t exactly been gentle thus far there isn’t a scratch to be found anywhere on the face or even the band. The clasp itself is more of a brushed stainless material which is appreciated since it is the part which comes into contact with hard surfaces most often, and it should be somewhat resistant to scratching.
If I have any complaints at all it would be the embossed “INVICTA” found on the 9 o’clock side of the watch. It isn’t that noticeable when worn, but it seems a little representative of a Seiko or Timex….could have done without it. The Invicta logo on the face is very tasteful and well done – not distracting from the rest of the face at all.
All things considered I wouldn’t hesitate for a second to purchase another Invicta, and assuming this watch stands up to my usage over the next year or two I most likely will add to my collection. This particular model is nice enough to be worn in a business or formal event but also can be worn with jeans and t-shirts.
The watch itself is a little beefier than what I was coming from, but it hasn’t bothered me thus far and even though I have smaller wrists I don’t believe it looks too big. However, if you are looking for more of a streamlined timepiece or something which is thin – you won’t appreciate the bulkiness of a chronograph or this model in particular.
Update 11/01/10: Over three and a half years later and I am still very happy with this watch. I wear the watch every day and have had no significant issues thus far. I did break a pin which resulted in me losing one of the end links on the band (my fault), but I ordered a replacement band from Amazon which solved the issue (I wrote a separate review for that as well). About a month ago I noticed the second hand on the watch stopped working but the hour and minute hands were still working just fine. I thought the watch was broken, but aside from the second hand everything else seemed ok so I continued to wear it. About a week or ten days later the entire watch stopped, so I replaced the battery and all is well again (including the second hand). The next time I notice the second hand stop, I’ll consider it a warning that the battery is about to die on…
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|Another great look-alike,
Loving the look of the Rolex Daytona, I spotted this watch on Amazon and just had to have one (at the price).
Arrived in a well padded display box, with all parts of the watch and strap covered in a protective plastic – so no scratches.
Taking out a few links for that custom fit just took a couple of minutes.
The watch looks great – better than the images on the Web – and it works as described.
Other posters that have had issues should read the manual! It does all of the chrono functions, and has full adjustments for hand alignment etc. – Fantastic!
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