Roger Dubuis CHRONOEXCEL Easy Diver Review

PuristSPro.com "On The Wrist" Review of the ROGER DUBUIS EASY DIVER CHRONOEXCEL

by Dr. Ming Woo and Anthony Tsai 

Team PuristSPro had an opportunity to get familiar with a 'On-The-Wrist' review of the Roger Dubuis CHRONOEXCEL Easy Diver.  Of the wide categories of products offered, the Chronoexcel is part of Dubuis' Sports Activity Watch (SAW) line.

Master watchmaker Roger Dubuis and Mr. Carlos Dias founded the manufacture in 1995 and in 1999 became Manufacture Roger Dubuis.  In 2003 they produced their own balance and spring regulating organs to achieve full vertical integration and thus their in-house status.  Although the man behind the brand name is no longer associated with the company, the manufacture is committed to its founding philosophy of providing innovation and exclusivity in each product.  Each time piece proudly wears the Geneva Seal for quality and standards of excellence.

The Roger Dubuis ChronoExcel Easy Diver in stainless steel:

The brushed steel finish case is 46mm wide with lugs that round downwards which fall on smaller wrists very well.  The large case feels solid with a nice heft to it, definitely a sports watch! 

For those who prefer a watch with a noticable presence on the wrist in terms of both weight and appearance, the Chronoexcel is also available in various rose gold variants.  Other options include black, brown, or white dials with red indicators and/or red rubber accents.  With such a variety, there's a CHRONOEXCEL to suit most tastes.

The application of the flat black colored rubber with brushed stainless steel adds a unique dimension to the watch. 

The integration of rubber accents in the bezel is well executed and seamless - if you rub your thumb on the bezel, you will not feel any difference in height between the rubber inserts and stainless steel bezel.  The edge of the integrated rubber is also beveled like its stainless steel counterpart.  Rotating the bezel feels firm with solid, fine audible clicks indicating it will unlikely move out of position inadvertently.  Another nice design element is the rubber gasket between the case and bezel.

Both the chronograph pushers and crown are lined with rubber, making for easy operation.  One advantage of having a large 46mm case is the increased space between the crown and pushers.  There is more room for larger fingers to operate the functions; so if you have difficulty gripping or operating small pusher locks, this watch is made for you. This is a form derived from function to allow bezel operation with diving gloves on.

The tactile feedback when activating and stopping the chronograph buttons was not uniform - the start/stop button required more pressure than the reset button.  Initially, the start/stop button was stiff and required slightly more pressure to activate than I'm normally used to.  The reset pusher however was too soft and could easily be accidentally activated.

 

Over a period of three weeks of chronograph use, the start/stop button did loosen and felt crisp upon activation.  The reset button feel became slightly stiffer but was still too easy to activate.  If this watch were mine, I would have sent it back to my AD to be checked out by the Dubuis service center.

The carbon fiber (CF) accents on the side of each lug add to the overall sportiness of the watch.  I did not notice any breakdown or degradation of the CF with my extreme use, and the CF appears to be solidly inserted.  The attachment of strap is held by a solid screw adding to the durability of the CHRONOEXCEL.

The watch is fitted with a thick comfortable rubber strap that is embossed with the RD motif on both sides.  In some watches, you may hear squeaking or rubbing noises as a result of the case and strap friction but not with the CHRONOEXCEL.  The rubber strap is firmly attached to the case and lugs with no budge at all.

 

Since the strap is very pliable, it conforms very well to the wrist and adds to the overall comfort and wearability of this 46mm beast.

The pattern on the underside of the strap provides enough traction on the skin without being too tacky.  On a large watch (and especially more so with a hefty precious metal case) this helps prevent the watch from flopping around.

During our extensive and rigorous testing, the deployant was secure and never came loose.  The deployant pushers had a great tactile feeling but not overly springy.  Addition of the RD motif on the 'hidden' surface of the deployant clasp adds a nice touch to the aesthetics of the buckle.

The rubber strap must be cut to fit the owner's wrist.  And for an even more precise fit, there are also 3 attachment positions as shown below.

The combination of rubber material and steel is also found on the outside of the deployant and once again, well integrated together.  The edges of the deployant are smooth and did not cut into or irritate my wrist.

With a soft towel, dirt was easy to remove from the deployant for a quick cleaning.

The sapphire crystals have anti-reflecting coatings on both sides for easy legibility of the dial and visibility of the movement through the display back.  The small seconds is a bi-angled cut arrow tipped polished hand located at the 9 o'clock subdial (picture below).

The inner bezel wall is printed with the words "RD EASY DIVER".

At 3 o'clock is the 45-minute chronograph counter indicated by the blue colored hand.  Roger Dubuis did an excellent job with chronograph readability by contrasting a blue hand on a white background with black lettering.

Here's an interesting feature of the CHRONOEXCEL - note that the hour and minute hands are polished on one side and bead blasted textured on the other, with luminova material applied on the outer half of the hands.  It took me a couple weeks to notice this subtle difference.  And off the top of my head, I cannot recall any other watch incorporating this same bi-finishing of the hands.  This bi-finishing of the hands is very usual but is highly effective in accentuating the bi-angled cut hands.  The polished sides of the hands do reflect light at certain angles but is not distracting.

 

The central chronograph seconds hand is the same matching blue as the chronograph minutes hand at 3 o'clock, and the blue paint is evenly coated.

The hour numerals and markers are finely polished while the printing on the dial is crisp and easy to read at various angles. 

The CHRONOEXCEL utilizes the Roger Dubuis calibre RD 78 automatic micro rotor movement consisting of 273 parts with a power reserve of 42 hours.  The 36 jeweled movement is rhodium plated and adjusted in 5 positions, and the back is secured by 8 screws.

 

Layout of the movement and the rotor is extremely aesthetically pleasing to the eye.  When you first glance at the movement, the little voice in your head will scream, "WOW!  What movement is this!"

The regulator is finished with double arrow tips, and the jewel and screw countersinks are polished and beveled. 

 

The micro-rotor spins freely, and the skeleton plate covering the rotor reminds me of the international 'Radioactive' symbol.

At the left of the picture below is the CHRONOEXCEL's chronograph column wheel. 

The movement, as a whole, is finished beautifully.  From arm's length, the movement exhibits an ethereal glow and sparkle; but upon close inspection, you will discover there are visible flaws in some parts of the movement which hinder my visual enjoyment of this particular Dubuis movement.  For example, blemishes were noted near the column wheel as highlighted below.  What's ironic is these blemishes are located right next to the Geneva seal.

 

The mix of brushed and polished steel, red rubies, blue screws, and the gold lettering gives a nice depth to the look of the movement.

Below is another close-up of the movement finishing by the craftsmen at Roger Dubuis.  Finishing is exquisite but as mentioned before, not perfect, at times.

Rubber inlay accents are also applied to the transparent caseback area.

Luminova applied to the hour, minute, and hour markers glows brightly in the dark.

Water-resistant rating is to 300 meters so fortunately we had some rain when I was testing the Roger Dubuis while mountain biking at night (sic).  No problems to report after prolonged wet exposure.  Although wet, manipulation of the chrono was easy as the rubber accented pushers provided excellent grip.  As it started to get really dark, the lume on the dial was easily legible.  However, I would have preferred lume on the chrono counter as it would have been useful during the bike ride. 

With all the concussion and shock of bike riding and shooting of firearms that I had put on the CHRONOEXCEL, it was only +10 seconds over a 1.5 month period.  Even with splatter from spraying of trichloroethylene (BirchWood-Casey Gun Scrubber spray), the rubber parts did not crack or discolor and look as good as when it was delivered. 

A quick wipe with a dry towel and it was good as new.

Yes, it does rain in Southern California!

The finish of the watch held up to multiple strikes to the bezel, lugs, and deployant, and I doubt anyone would exert this same abuse to his own personal watch!

During my shock testing the Roger Dubuis kept on ticking without a hitch.

My aluminum Surefire 9N (tactical shooting flashlight) repeatedly brushed up and contacted against the case, rubber parts, and bezel during low light firing exercises.  As you can see, there are no visible scratches and the rubber areas are intact.

In conclusion, the Roger Dubuis Easy Diver CHRONOEXCEL is a solid, reliable, and beautiful watch able to handle the activities of daily wear.  For functionality though, I prefer a 60-minute chronograph register instead of the 45-minute register of the CHRONOEXCEL.  As for fit, the watch felt comfortable and didn't look out of place despite my small wrist.  The CHRONOEXCEL's versatility on the wrist was evident due to the classic stainless steel case and white dial as it matched well with tee-shirts & jeans to dress shirts.

Cutting the strap to size is a design element that I never cared for, as it's an expensive replacement issue, if you miscalculate and cut it too short.  But if you have an experienced AD, finding the perfect fit should not be a problem.  In the past, the US distribution system had issues with quality control and after-sales service.  I would be curious to hear from current owners and hope they may provide us their insights to how RD are currently handling things.

 

In my opinion, the finishing could have been better especially at this price range as a few flaws were noted upon macro photography and a 10x loupe (although I'm sure the AD would have sent to the service center to correct at no charge for the customer).  The CHRONOEXCEL competes in a tough and crowded category as there are many other high-end column wheel sport chronographs available at this price point.  The current Roger Dubuis styling is not for everyone but those looking for something bold and want a mechanical timepiece that makes a visual statement on the wrist, the Roger Dubuis Easy Diver CHRONOEXCEL may be your answer.

-MW