# Vostok Europe Reliability



## riknoneil (Aug 21, 2007)

I have two Vostok Europe watches (a K3 Submarine and a 2006 Expedition), both of which have developed problems. The screw down crown on the K3 doesn't screw down (even after having been "officially repaired" once already) - the watch is just over 1 year old and was my "daily wearer". The Expedition is less that 1 month old and, after only light wear, it sounds as if the weight from the automatic winding mechanism has come loose and is striking the inside of the casing.

Are these watches unreliable and poor quality, or have I just been really unlucky?

Cheers....


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## minkle (Mar 17, 2008)

I have never heard of any issues with them, they seem to be pretty tough :huh:

Send them off to Roy, he'll sort 'em


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## Hemlock (Aug 20, 2007)

I have a Vostok Europe N1 and the crown no longer screws down after 9 months of use. To be fair its in for a free repair at the moment. Also own an ordinary Vostok, the Â£30 special jobs. No problem with that. After my experience with the N1 bought a Seiko automatic from Roy for the same money (a bit less) than the N1 and must say its far better watch in finish and quality. For one I will be wary of getting another Vostok Europe.


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## blackandgolduk (Apr 25, 2005)

I do like the look of many the Vostok Europe models, but I've often thought about the pricing. The movement is bomb-proof, but can be had in watches that cost Â£20 - Â£30 that are proven and tough, although basic. When compared to Seiko divers and the like, I'm not sure they stand up tbh. Having said that, the price point for a Monster or 007/009 could be seen as low...


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## Griff (Feb 23, 2003)

What he said


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## blackandgolduk (Apr 25, 2005)

Cheers, Griff - at least we agree on _some_ things! :lol:

I should add that I am a _huge_ fan of bog-standard Vossies - I have three and plans for more. Like I say, if it aint broke...


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## rdwiow (Aug 15, 2008)

Sorry to resurrect this old thread. I have a Vostok Europe K3 Submarine, it has suffered the usual stripped screw crown thread.

Anyone know if the crowns can be purchased? If not, does anyone know if a fully threaded stem is available for this movement so I can shorten it so the crown sits against the case, unfortunately the stem fitted is not fully threaded and cannot be shortened.

Any help appreciated gents

Rob


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## luckywatch (Feb 2, 2013)

I use a K3 every day. Had it from new for about 5 years. It has never missed a beat, totally reliable.


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## Kutusov (Apr 19, 2010)

Screw down crowns have to be treated gently, essentially on daily wearers.

As to VE, I tend to think of them in two periods. The first is the last models using Russian Vostok movements. Yes, they are much more expensive than the Russian Vostoks but they are worth the cost. Much better finish and, in a watch, the movement is not necessarily the most expensive part. I know they stop making the Arktika on bracelet because the bracelet manufacturer realized it couldn't keep on making them at the initial price and had to set it on â‚¬80 a pop to VE. Bracelet alone is much more expensive than the movement.

Then there's the Seiko movements period. Here, I think they are too expensive. I have no doubt they are wonderfully done but at their price range, there's a lot of other options.


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## rdwiow (Aug 15, 2008)

luckywatch said:


> I use a K3 every day. Had it from new for about 5 years. It has never missed a beat, totally reliable.


That is the one I have with the dodgy crown, I did buy it knowing the crown thread had gone, but a quick Google revealed that mine was not alone.


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## rdwiow (Aug 15, 2008)

Kutusov said:


> Screw down crowns have to be treated gently, essentially on daily wearers.
> 
> As to VE, I tend to think of them in two periods. The first is the last models using Russian Vostok movements. Yes, they are much more expensive than the Russian Vostoks but they are worth the cost. Much better finish and, in a watch, the movement is not necessarily the most expensive part. I know they stop making the Arktika on bracelet because the bracelet manufacturer realized it couldn't keep on making them at the initial price and had to set it on â‚¬80 a pop to VE. Bracelet alone is much more expensive than the movement.
> 
> Then there's the Seiko movements period. Here, I think they are too expensive. I have no doubt they are wonderfully done but at their price range, there's a lot of other options.


I had no idea that Seiko movements had been used.


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## Kutusov (Apr 19, 2010)

rdwiow said:


> I had no idea that Seiko movements had been used.


Not in the past tense, that's the movements they use on nowadays models. Seiko NH25 for the autos, Miyota quartz for chronos. That move was made because the Russian Vostok couldn't assure a steady production of the modified to VE specifications movements.

Some of their new movements look great, like the new N1 or the Anchar. I bet they are really good too. My main problem is they keep making them bigger and bigger. Optionals are pretty expensive also. A basic N1 on leather goes for something like â‚¬250. Add a bracelet and and it's â‚¬100 more. Add tritium tubes and you are already on â‚¬450. Add black PVD and it's â‚¬520, more than twice the price of the basic model.


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## rdwiow (Aug 15, 2008)

Thanks for the information, Miyota (Citizen) chrono movements do seem very widely used by a lot of brands nowadays, I guess the unit cost is favourable?


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## Kutusov (Apr 19, 2010)

rdwiow said:


> Thanks for the information, Miyota (Citizen) chrono movements do seem very widely used by a lot of brands nowadays, I guess the unit cost is favourable?


Probably. Could also have something to do with readily availability. But they do seem to be cheaper than Seiko quartz modules that are essentially the same thing.


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## carlt69 (Feb 26, 2010)

I've got 2 VE's and they both seem very bullet proof with no issues!!

I probably shouldn't have said that!!! :lol:


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## Kutusov (Apr 19, 2010)

carlt69 said:


> I've got 2 VE's and they both seem very bullet proof with no issues!!
> 
> I probably shouldn't have said that!!! :lol:


No, they are good! The very first ones, like the K3 and N1 first versions have the Vostok bomb-proof movement but, from what I've read, the rest wasn't much better than a regular Amphibia. But the second phase of the company has very good quality all over, that's why they were so much more expensive than a regular Vostok and that has put a lot of people on the fence. This third phase with Japanese movements should be even better and the prices are probably fair... the problem is that they went into a market with much more strong contenders and losing much of their appeal by ditching the Russian flavour (you only have it on the name of the models now...)


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