Bulova Sea King Owner Review : Adventurous, virile and luminous

Bulova: A legendary name in American watchmaking. Bulova joined the Citizen group in 2008, without however benefiting from CITIZEN technologies (Eco drive, radio control, GPS etc...). Bulova SEA KING is MASSIVE and features a Precisionist movement known for its very high precision. By taking a look at the Bulova SEA KING ref 96B228, you will realize that it inspires solidity. The case is thick, in stainless steel, with a diameter of 48mm, you will not go unnoticed... But the advantage is the clarity and hyper visibility of the dial. The whole is waterproof to 300m. The glass is a 3mm thick sapphire. Bulova is known for its exceptional diving watches and the Sea King does not disappoint. The strap is made of rubber. The material is also waterproof. That being said, its massive appearance amplifies the raw and robust side of the watch. The colors of the dial: Orange, gray and black are not the most attractive. However, the bright orange is very eye-catching and gives very good readability underwater. The indexes are large circular markers with the number 12 at noon. The C3 luminova is of excellent quality and ensures good visibility in complete darkness and underwater. The unidirectional bezel rotates 360 ° in 120 clicks, the 'shark tooth' shaped pins help to grip the bezel. The screwed crown is large and protected with a guard on both sides. Bulova's Sea King is a serious watch ready to dive! The Precisionist technology of this Bulova SEA KING is a high-frequency quartz movement operating at 262 Khz, compared to the 32.7 Khz quartz modules usually used in watchmaking. That is an oscillation frequency 8 times higher than conventional quartz, known as "watchmaking". Precisionist watches feature a "continuous" sweep seconds hand, or "fluid second hand" that advances at 1/16 of a second! Which is very unusual for a quartz! The seconds hand literally seems to float smoothly on the dial, like the seconds on some train station clocks. Bulova has called its Precisionist range the most accurate watch in the world! The claimed accuracy is 10 seconds per year. Which is remarkable for a non-radio-controlled quartz… Bulova explains that the accuracy of the quartz and its calculator depends on two factors: Temperature variations and the oscillation frequency of the quartz. This quartz is therefore thermally compensated and has triple "pins" which allows a stable frequency of 262 Khz (or 2p18 hertz or exactly 262144 hertz!). The Bulova SEA KING will not go unnoticed, it has the adventurer look of the depths... The button cell is a CR 2016, whose lifespan, in use, is 3 years. There are 2 versions of different colors (Steel or full black). The Bulova Precisionist SEA KING had a catalog price of $299 to $399 depending on the version of the bracelet... Today, you can find them on the second-hand market for around €200/300, for a model in perfect condition. I really appreciate this timepiece for my aquatic outings... In conclusion, thank you to Bulova for inventing and marketing these high-frequency quartz movements. An ultra-precise and friendly watch at a reasonable price.