The Pontvs Nessi is the first model from the Pontvs watch company. Pontvs is named after an ancient, pre-Olympian sea-god, Pontus. Pontus, who represented strength, is the inspiration for the Pontvs watch company, who use strength and reliability as the main characteristics of their watches. Taking inspiration from vintage diving, the Pontvs Nessi aims to take some of the aspects of vintage dive gear and put it on your wrist.
The Dial
At first glance, the face of this dial of the Pontvs Nessi looks almost black, but when the light hits it you see a wonderful dark navy blue sunray. On top of that dark navy blue face are large gold rim hour markers filled with vintage colored Japanese Super Luminova. This is a simple three hander with each hand painted with the same vintage colored lume. The Pontvs logo is also using the same vintage color as the lume. There is date window at the three o’clock position which is white with black text, making the date very legible. That dark navy blue paired with the brass really works well visually.
The Case
If you are a fan of the old Mark V vintage dive helmets and old vintage dive gear you will love the case of the Pontvs Nessi. The case is made from blasted brass and has a stainless steel case back. Looking at this watch, right away you will see that the bezel looks like a riveted window on a vintage dive mask. There is large 10.5mm stainless steel screw down crown that looks like a knob on a pressure valve. The case is pretty large at 47mm in wide and 58mm lug to lug but really looks good at this size. It has that vintage commercial diver look and should be large and stand out on the wrist like its a part of the dive gear. Water resistance is a respectable 200 meters and for sure could be used as a diver, but since it is made of brass you would need to make sure to rinse it well after being in the water. Good patina is great, but corrosion is not so great.
The Straps
The Pontvs Nessi comes with two straps. There is a 24mm blue leather which is 4.5 mm thick with tan stitching, and a 24mm blue camouflage rubber strap. Although pretty thick, the leather strap is very soft and comfortable. The leather is coated with wax to add water resistance. It is not recommended to use the leather strap in the water; for that you need to wear the camouflage rubber strap. The rubber strap is very comfortable and looks great, but out of the two, I really like the look of that thick leather strap. The buckle on the leather strap is also large and unsigned, whereas the buckle on the rubber strap is smaller and signed with the Pontvs name.
The Lume
Using Japanese Super Luminova, the glow from this watch is pretty impressive, does not take much to charge, and keeps its glow for a good amount of time. I do like that they made sure to put lume on the bezel because, what use is a bezel on a dive watch if you can’t see when you marked your time?
Overall Impression
There are a lot of large watches out there that really just look like they were made to be large, but nothing was done to make them interesting. Why show off something boring? This Pontvs Nessi is large, but looks like it has a purpose. It looks like a real tool watch, plucked out of an old diver’s gear chest. The strap choices are great, and the overall look really appeals to me. You don’t have to worry about banging this up, since that will only add character along with the patina. Priced at $399.00 USD, this a pretty good price for a cool looking tool watch. If you like what you see, and I am sure you do, you can check them out at pontvswatch.com.
Summary
- Brand and model: Pontvs Nessi
- Price: $390.00 USD ( price incl. DHL International Shipping)
- Who’s it for? Vintage diver fans
- Would I wear it? Anytime
- What I’d change: Nothing
- The best thing about it: The brass case.
Tech Specs from Pontvs
- Case diameter: 47mm excluding the crown – lug to lug 58mm
- Movement: Seiko NH35 automatic
- Case material: Blasted brass with stainless steel case back
- Bezel: Blasted brass
- Crown: Stainless steel screw down crown 10.5mm
- Crystal: Sapphire
- Dial: Dark Navy Sunray 32mm diameter Japan Super Luminova with golden rim.
- Water-resistance: 200m
- Strap: 24mm blue leather 4.5 mm thick with tan stitching and 24mm blue camouflage rubber strap.
- Buckle: Blasted brass Introduction
- Price : 390.0 USD ( price incl. DHL International Shipping)
