There Are Pandas, and Then There Are Pandas.
And this isn't either of them! The Pandas we're talking about here, are watches, not bears. And what got me thinking about them (again) was a link posted this morning by @cm.rook who pointed a few of us to the very attractive (and not terribly priced) Yema "Rallygraph" Panda which, in it's most traditional arrangement, looks like the one on the left, but can also be had in the version on the right: The model on the left is a true Panda, while the model on the right is called a reverse Panda. The reason for that distinction is clear--Panda bears, only come in the first arrangement. Now at this point, everyone should be thinking about the most well-know Panda, The Rolex Panda, which is actually a Daytona, and among Rolex Daytonas, the most famous of which is the Paul Newman Daytona, which was famous first, because it was Paul's, and second because it sold at auction for $17.8 million (US Dollars). The story of that auction is well-known so I'll only...
Nov 8, 2019
This watch was released by Seiko some time between 2009 and 2011 selling for a MSRP of $225.00 - I picked it up used for a cool $20 several years ago. I bought this watch not really knowing how cool solar powered watches are. Just beneath the sweet black satin dial is a solar cell that collects light to charge the internal battery. When fully charged this watch will run for many months without needing another charge. I normally charge it once every 2-3 months by setting it near windows in my house offering direct sunlight throughout the day. By the end of the day it gets about 7-8 hours of charge time which is enough to keep it running with no power issues. I find the watch to be very accurate, in fact I don't think it's ever lost a single second of time in between uses.
As always, I swapped the stainless steel bracelet for a custom leather strap which plays well against the polished stainless steel case and satin black dial. The bezel and stainless steel case back has a few light scratches but overall the watch shows well.
Movement: Seiko cal. v158 Solar Powered Japanese Quartz
Complications: Day & Date
Case: 40mm Polished Stainless Steel
Crystal: Scratch Resistant Hardlex
Band: 20mm
WR: 200-meters
Power Reserves: 10-months w/full charge