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
I bought this watch sometime between 2005 and 2008 for around $90 new, it was my very first divers watch. I remember being so in love with the dome shaped crystal and matching sloped rotating bezel…it was so cool. Put up against all of my watch waring co-workers and friends my Seal Marlin looked like it had tons more tech-swagger than all the others while still keeping it’s rugged adventurous flare. Now enter….the Super Illuminator feature - dual LED lights positioned at the 12o’Clock and 6o’Clock positions which caused my watch to soared above all others. None of my friend or co-workers had a feature like this, you would think that I pulled out a Jedi light saber gauged by their reactions when I pressed the illumination button to light up the dial….ha!
To this day my Sea Marlin Super Illuminator still turns heads, and remains a fast seller on eBay when found in good condition. Luckily I own two, one is for casual ware and the other one is setup as a work watch with a Bond-style NATO strap. These watches originally ships from Casio with a form fitting black rubber strap which was actually very comfortable and with my first Sea Marlin I stuck with the rubber strap for years but later I longed for leather. The strap change-out was made a few years ago when I found someone on eBay making custom straps from old RED Wing boot leather. I have never had an issue with this watch….NEVER! Both have their share of nicks and scratches but still holds their good looks. They keep pretty good time, can take a little abuse when the going gets tough, and looks great when worn as casual, dress, or sport. These watches will always have a place in my collection.
Movement: Cal. 3304 Quartz Movement
Complications: Date
Case: 42.5mm
Case Back: Screw-down
Band: 22mm
Crystal: Domed Mineral
Crown: Screw-down
Bezel: Unidirectional
Feature: Super Illuminator Dual LED Lights
WR: 200-meter