Best $300 you can spend on a chronograph
By Dave Kowalski, Chicago ยท
History lesson: the 1963 is a reissue of a chronograph Seagull made for the Chinese Air Force in the 1960s. The red star, the domed crystal, the cream dial. It's a beautiful little watch.
And the movement is the real deal. The ST1901 is a hand-wound column-wheel chronograph. That's the kind of design Swiss brands charge a fortune for. Here you get it for $300 to $400, with 40 hours of reserve and a caseback window so you can watch it work.
Downsides. 38 mm by 13 mm on 18 mm lugs, so it's a bit tall. Acrylic crystal, which scratches but buffs out with polish. Only 30 m water resistance, so treat it like it's made of cardboard around water. And quality control varies, so buy from a dealer that'll swap it if something's off.
If you want a mechanical chronograph and you don't have a lot of money, this is the one. Period. The Baltic Bicompax uses the same engine and fixes most of the problems, but for double the price.