Pinion Axis Bronze Hands-On Review
During SalonQP last year, Pinion was introduced and showed their Axis collection to the public. Not too long ago they sent us the bronze version simple called the Pinion Axis Bronze. ‘Hold on to it for some time as it only get’s more beautiful’, they explained. So we did. Our pinion arrived in a small package containing a flat, cotton like bag holding the Axis in a nicely crafted leather ‘watch wallet’, and user manual. Information in the manual is really straight forward and no-nonsense. So our first impressions are good!
Pinion Axis Bronze
For me this is the first ever time I actually get to wear a bronze watch. And from the looks of it I think it will be a nice experience. Where we try to write an article as objective as possible, personal views are always depicted no matter what. With the amount of watches we get to test and review, personal taste will determine the actual wrist time any watch gets. In case of the Pinion Axis, it was a lot of wrist time.
Machined from a single block of marine grade bronze the case is nice and shiny upon arrival, slowly changing colour and ageing over time, giving it that special look and feel. The case measures 42 mm without, and 45.5 mm including the steel crown and is 13.2 mm thick. Not the smallest watch on the block, yet it wears very comfortable and doesn’t look too big om my wrist. Where I normally say that 40 mm is the max for most watches (Speedmasters excluded of course!) the Pinion Axis Bronze just feels right at this size. With the lugs slightly pointing down, the Pinion Axis Bronze wears very comfortable as the strap attaches at the same level as the steel case back. There we find the engraved Pinion logo along with other markings. Inside the Pinion Axis Bronze beats the trustworthy, self-winding ETA 2824-2 movement with a power reserve of 38 hours.
With only a very small bezel the dial is highly visible and sits underneath a slightly domed, sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating. We love the green colour of the dial which combines great with the bronze of the Pinion Axis case. Super Luminova was applied to the hands, hour markers and 3-6-9-12 Arabic numbers. These are made with some relief, with is a tiny but nice detail. In between the 4 and 5 o’clock position there is a small date window with black numbers on a white base.
The natural grain calf leather strap, with colour matching stitching is hand made. And although the strap is quite thick it’s still very smooth. It has the same width (22 mm) from the lugs to the buckle with a rounded end. I cannot think of many other straps that are re-enforced at the holes for the push pins. Beveled edges of the buckle don’t just make it look better, but this also is practical as it prevents the buckle from hooking behind things. Yes this happens to me occasionally, perhaps I’m just clumsy or coarse at times.
Our verdict? The Pinion Axis is in every way a very straight forward watch. The people at Pinion have done a great job on the design and over-all build quality with an eye for detail. We loved it on our wrist and the ageing, wow! Seeing the bronze colour changing almost on a daily basis just gives it that special character, something that I normally only find (and enjoy) in vintage watches.
More information can be found on the official Pinion website where you can also discover their other watches.
They attend SalonQP in London next month where you can see the Pinion Axis and their latest watches in the flesh.
