“I'm very happy with my purchaser of the Airain Type 20 Brown Limited Edition. The watch is very nicely designed and constructed and has a great vintage look. The movement is excellent and has a great, smooth operation. The owner, Tom, is very hands on and great to deal with. We received many emails detailing the status of assembling and delivery, and he even included an extra watch strap when delivery was delayed a couple of weeks. I highly recommend the company.”
“Très beau chrono.
Le vert militaire donne beaucoup de caractère à cette montre et une grande discrétion (camouflage🙂). Le bracelet est un peu moins discret mais s’accorde bien.
Le seul petit regret est que le bracelet NATO donne une sur épaisseur à la montre.
Un bracelet plus classique fera gagner en discrétion à cette très belle montre.”
“The wait was long but finally when I had the watch in hand all that time seemed worth it. But unfortunately I have not worn the watch since I got it all due to one simple design flaw. The irony is that that flaw is in the strap buckle and not the watch. One side of the buckle just sits out so prominently that it is visually disturbing. I know I can change the strap but yeah now I need to find an alternative to get to finally wear this watch and enjoy it. The watch is such a looker and exactly what I hoped for, but that buckle has just spoiled all that excitement I had for it!
Fortunately, Airain values their customers. Since my initial review Tom has personally reached to help me out with a solution. It’s is great to see Airain values their customer’s feedback as this what brings you back to the brand and not just their products.”
Hi Roshen,
We are sorry to hear you don't wear the watch because of the experience with the buckle. We are aware of the fact that in some cases the designed buckle is not comfortable for everyone.
Fortunately, there is something that we can do about it! We are meanwhile developing a new buckle for the Airain Sous Marine which is a normal single buckle. As soon as it is finished, it will be available for our customers and we will be happy to send you one of these so you can enjoy your watch to the fullest.
Thank you and best wishes,
Tom @ Airain Watches
Hi Anthony,
We are sorry to hear about your experience with the buckle. We are aware of the fact that in some cases the designed buckle is not comfortable for everyone.
Fortunately, there is something that we can do about it! We are meanwhile developing a new buckle for the Airain Sous Marine which is a normal single buckle. As soon as it is finished, it will be available for our customers and we will be happy to send you one of these so you can enjoy your watch to the fullest.
Thank you and best wishes,
Tom @ Airain Watches
P.S. the Lebois & Co Heritage Chronograph will indeed have a new better fitting version of the double buckle which is more angled than the Airain one. Also, it will have a single buckle included as well.
“I purchased the Airain Type 20 Vert Militaire Limited Edition.
It is a beautiful watch and of very high quality. The winding of the movement is very smooth. The price of the watch is very reasonable for what you are getting and the presentation is excellent.
The service provided by Airain is great and super.
I am looking forward to the release of the Lebois & Co. Heritage Chrono from their sister brand in the near future.
"Airan Watches is voor elk inidividueel dat een prachtig en van zeer hoge kwaliteit horloge waardeert"”
“Well executed and I can see the passion of the maker! All details have been thoroughly thought of and I am very happy to put on my wrist to show off!”
“My Airain Type 20 Vert Militaire is exactly what I wanted it to be. A vintage, military styled flyer with a modern build and excellent time keeping. The camo green is a subtle hue that works well with the off white lume. The counters, the hands, the case all have enough detail to hold my interest and keep the watch on my wrist.”
“It took a while. I can’t dismiss the fact that receiving my watch from Airain took a while. This was the first time I’d ever ordered a watch like this that hadn’t been produced or even finished the design stage before I sent off my money. Then COVID got in the way as did supply issues. Things slowed down and the wait got longer. Through it all, however, Tom van Wijlick stayed in touch with updates and information. Now that my Type 20 Brown Limited Edition has arrived and gotten a fair amount of wrist time I have no doubt that the watch was worth the wait. The company makes some wonderfully well thought out and executed products. I’ve very happy to own this one and I hope to own others in the future.”
“I have well received my Airain Type 20 'vert militaire' : it is really a wonderful watch ! Every detail is superbly studied, movement is smooth, and it is a good size for me. And it was a good moment, from the discovery of this new old brand, the countdown for purchasing it with my crashing computer, and the reception of it. And above all : your very commutative enthusiasm all along the project !
Many thanks !!!
So thank you very much for everything.
I send you a (not very good) picture with me and the watch, and another without it, but with the accessory which could be gone with it...
Very kind regards,”
“I purchased the Type 20 Vert Militaire and it is outstanding. The entire process of the purchase through the delivery was extremely easy and very well communicated by the seller. The watch itself is outstanding, the quality is excellent. Thank you, CDMLEC!!”
“Overall, the package is acceptable. On the plus side, the vintage hesalite doom crystal, the dimension and the flyback chronograph are delightful. On the minus side, the case is a little too light; it does not have the heft of a tool watch and the top pusher is a bit mushy. The wait for a full year for its delivery is a real spoiler. But the price is good. So overall, I am happy (but not so before receiving it).”
“Hello all,
The wait was certainly worth it. Such a beautifully executed expression of the original which I had the pleasure to own a few years ago. The quality, fit and finish is most excellent. I really love the big winding crown. The modern size, without being over the top at 39.5 mm is perfect. The brown dial is simply amazing. The bronze reflections of the sundials are very special. Great legibility and smoothness of operation. Flyback function is crisp. I love the high quality strap and unique engraved buckle.
I would have wished for deeper engravings on the bezel and better accuracy as the watch runs about -8 secs per day. Certainly not disastrous but I was expecting a little better perhaps on the fast side. Those to items would have brought this fantastic chronograph to 5 out of 5 stars!”
Hi Federico,
Thank you very much for your review and the great photos. We are happy you like the watch so much!
Regarding accuracy, our experience is that the movement can perform much better so it might have gotten magnetized on the way to you. We'll get in touch with you via email and see if we can arrange a demagnetization at a watchmaker near you.
Best wishes,
Tom
“Congrats to this beautiful timepiece! It came out really well! The brown tone is really nice – I was worried a little bit, that it might be too “redish” given the pics I saw from the crowd… It changes - depending on the light from "dark brew" to "cappuchino" and even coppery...
Quality is great! This counts especially for the dial and the hands.
However - 2 exceptions (that is why I was not able to give a 5* rating)
1: I do not like is the strap. Too long and the clasp is on the wrong position on my wrist. Personally, I also think that a brown strap for a brown dial is not perfect; but that’s a matter of taste. However, I can change it… the first thing I did! ;)
2: The case has serious flaws! It is kind of sharp edged - but that is ok. What is not ok is the brushing on the side (9 o'clock). It is easy to see (I wonder how it passed quality control). If I would have bought it at the retail store, I would have brought it back! This is not easily possible here, so I will have to live with it. (The pic shows the flaws - it cannot be removed, it is in the brushing. The freckles below the brushing on the case back, is dust)”
“In my opinion, the Airain Type 20 Re-Edition, limited edition watch, very closely matches the design and specifications of the original 1950’s Type 20. It may not be identical but it is close enough to be appreciated and respected. When I initially received the watch I noticed that the case both looked and felt as if it should cost much more than I paid for it. I'm a bracelet wearer and before wearing this watch I put it on a period correct Forstner "Klip" bracelet. I can't be happier!”
“The Type 20 far exceeded my high expectations (which were already high given the progress reports provided throughout the process). Size is perfect. The movement has been very accurate. I especially appreciate the reflections off the sub-dials. I afar from a watch expert, but I am a believer in Airain and Tom.”
