BulovaMen's Precisionist 3-Hand Calendar in Stainless Steel with Black Leather Strap and Black Patterned Dial Style: 96B158

Firstly, absolutely nothing you've read about the movement of this timepiece is an exaggeration, the second hand sweep is truly mesmerizing. The only other watch that even comes close is a Grand Seiko with a spring drive, one of the most advanced mechanical movements ever used in a watch, and even Bulova's mecha-quartz still beats at a frequency roughly 33% higher than that. It's so smooth, if you place the watch right up against your ear in a quiet room and listen closely, you can just barely hear the delay between beats, it's so fast it sounds like a miniature helicopter on your wrist.I purchased this watch for my collection as my primary dress watch, I wanted something to wear with a dress outfit that wasn't a diver. Price needed to be right since I wouldn't be wearing it very often. Something stainless steel, leather band, not necessarily automatic, and still had a level of character unlike some cheap fashion watch from kohl's. Bulova as a brand is a staple in American horology, and this Precisionist is somewhat of a spiritual successor to the original Accutron Spaceview, which in the 1960's was one of the main catalysts of the Quartz Crisis.The watch itself, even at a 42mm diameter, wears much smaller than it actually is, I believe this is in part due to the lack of any kind of mechanical movement, as it is realistically just a quartz watch. The stainless steel construction feels very robust with great-quality finishing, although it does smudge easily. Definitely carry a small microfiber cloth with you. The crystal is definitely a mineral crystal, so it will scratch, although not easily. The back of the watch is adhered closed and is not a screw-down, which will make battery replacements more difficult, and will rob some water resistance. This particular Precisionist has a black dial with a unique printed swirl pattern, which from a distance makes the face closer to a dark gray than pure black. Lume is extremely faint and almost non-existent.Overall quality feels good, in exception to the band. The factory black leather band is very stiff and will take some time to break in. The surface of the simulated-crocodile pattern leather itself is very coarse, and doesn't feel very smooth or soft. For how often I plan on wearing this watch, the band will get the job done. If you plan on wearing this as a daily driver, you will need to invest in a better quality band, maybe a leather nato or something similar.As a sub-$200 timepiece, this Bulova is an unrealistically great value. I can't think of many other dress watches that come close to this value proposition. So, if you need a dress watch but don't want to spend over a thousand bucks on something you'll probably wear 10 days out of the year, look no further. This watch will not let you down.

I like watches. I particularly like Bolova watches. I have two others. A rugged sports chrono, and a Frank Lloyd Wright special edition. I also have a super thin Rotary.I have always wanted a Precisionist. But these were usually a bit out of my price range. Amazon had a special sale price, and I grabbed it. I am so glad that I did.The quality is obvious, and the sweep second hand is mesmerizing. The size is perfect. It is not the huge diameter that seems to be the fad right now. It is has a classic look. It is simple, yet elegant.I have always thought that the other much more expensive brand that features the sweep second hand, was ostentatious. That is the watch that I have seen every car salesman wear. I find them to be boorish. Even if they were in my price range, I probably wouldn't own one.I like the understated look of this watch. It looks expensive. Classic, but not gaudy.I switch out my watches, depending on the occasion. But this will probably be my daily wear.

This watch is probably the simplest design of the Bulova Precisionist line. It is elegant with an extremely interesting face and the famous smoothly moving second hand. I bought it to use as a dress watch. It is appropriate for office wear, a dinner date or possibly even with a tuxedo. Others have correctly pointed out that the leather band supplied is awful. I replaced it with an inexpensive but infinitely better black leather band. The watch also looks great with a stainless mesh bracelet.The watch’s accuracy is, so far, astonishing. Using the Watch Tracker app, I compared the time shown on the watch to the Atomic Clock numerous times over a two month period. During the first month the watch was kept indoors at around 72F for 95% of the time. It was worn only occasionally. During the second month the watch was worn approximately 12 hours a day. The app measured a total difference of -0.2 seconds over 60 days, a rate of loss of only 0.004 seconds per day!The app's potential measurement error is estimated to be +/- 0.25 seconds (per measurement). So, based on the measured difference of -0.2 seconds over two months, the range of possible total offset is -0.7 seconds to +0.3 seconds over two months, which projects as a worst case gain or loss of between -4.2 seconds and +1.8 seconds per year.After a reset for DST, the accuracy for the third month remained remarkable, measured at a rate of -1.1 seconds per year.We'll see if this amazing level of accuracy continues for this watch. If so, the expected annual gain or loss will be consistent with Bulova's circa 2010 marketing claim, now abandoned, that the watch is accurate to 10 seconds per year.UPDATE- After seven months (with two resets) the watch has lost a combined total of 0.7 seconds, or a tenth of a second per month, and continues on the same projected annual loss of about one second per year. Incredible.I paid $258, at which price this watch is a good value.