Hi all. Had this for about a month now, and thought I'd post a bit of an amateur review in case anyone's umming and ahhing about one. Apologies for the crappy photos
Design, exterior: Fantastic rosewood colour, with gold locks and assorted bits. Fit and finish is excellent, with the lid lining up exactly with the base. There is a glass viewing lid at the front which makes for good viewing. The only gripe would be the dust that the finish collects, but that probably is mostly due to where I live. Great, compact shape makes for a convenient desktop or other display area setup, or would equally fit well in a safe. The lid is fixed by gold plated hinges on the sides, letting it flip vertically. Once up, it hinges vertically out of the way and doesn't feel like it's gonna come crashing down at any point, either. It's got a lock, and the key has a fancy tassle hanging off it, however it's hardly the lock of the century, so I'd wager it's only for curious little fingers. Overall dimensions are 250mm long, 200mm high and 180mm wide. A good size, in a convenient wedge shape.
Design, interior: Lovely white pleather finish, coupled with gold assorted bits. The inside design is angled toward ergonomics of use and display through the glass. The winding setup is viewable from most angles, and is setup at about 45 degrees, maybe a bit less. There are three spare spaces at the front lowest part, which gives me space for 3 more automatics :thumbsup:
Winder: whisper quiet, even with the lid up. I'd have no issues with this being on the bedside table. The motor seems smooth, and cuts in and out as per selected setting. I don't know if the larger models would be noisier, but I can't see why they would. The watch pillows fit snug in the winding cage (if that's the right term) and have an inner pillow with a sleeve that can be slipped off for sizing securely. I've taken the sleeve off personally.
It has 5 settings, with a nice looking gold plated dial with a pleasing minimalist design. Setting outlined below:
Off.
2mins clockwise, rest 6mins
2 mins counter-clockwise, rest 6 mins
2 mins clockwise, rest 6 mins, 2 mins counter-clockwise, rest 6 mins
5 mins clockwise, 5 mins counter-clockwise, repeat for 3 hours, rest 9 hours.
Electrickery: as previously mentioned, 5 settings (is off really a setting?) controlled by a microprocessor. Handy power switch at the back, beside the 240v power cable, though I'm sure there'd be an adapter for any other countries power supply. Mine came from a Sydney seller so it had the Australia plug etc.
Package: mine came in a good box, with foam packaging and wrapping, and arrived well packaged up. Also came with instructions, which is handy. They come as a 2 watch, a 4 watch (2 winding cages of 2 watches), a 6 watch, and an 8 watch. Based on the size of mine, the 8 watch would be too big, but good for larger collections. Not sure how many spare watch spaces the larger winders have.
Cost: These can be had pretty cheaply off ebay, however postage is a bit of a killer. Buying nationally is a good way to keep costs down. To be honest the 710 bought me this one, so I'm not too sure of the actual price, however they're pretty reasonable off the bay overall.
Overall Impressions: Love it. It's a great display piece, and with it being so quiet it doesn't need to be packed away in a spare room or cupboard covered in a towel or blanket. I know watch winders get mixed opinions on here, and I usually wear my autos until they run down and then swap for another, but now I've always got one or two wound and ready to wear. I'd thoroughly recommend the ALG winders, based on mine. Great for day date complications, non windable autos etc.
Cheers
Design, exterior: Fantastic rosewood colour, with gold locks and assorted bits. Fit and finish is excellent, with the lid lining up exactly with the base. There is a glass viewing lid at the front which makes for good viewing. The only gripe would be the dust that the finish collects, but that probably is mostly due to where I live. Great, compact shape makes for a convenient desktop or other display area setup, or would equally fit well in a safe. The lid is fixed by gold plated hinges on the sides, letting it flip vertically. Once up, it hinges vertically out of the way and doesn't feel like it's gonna come crashing down at any point, either. It's got a lock, and the key has a fancy tassle hanging off it, however it's hardly the lock of the century, so I'd wager it's only for curious little fingers. Overall dimensions are 250mm long, 200mm high and 180mm wide. A good size, in a convenient wedge shape.
Design, interior: Lovely white pleather finish, coupled with gold assorted bits. The inside design is angled toward ergonomics of use and display through the glass. The winding setup is viewable from most angles, and is setup at about 45 degrees, maybe a bit less. There are three spare spaces at the front lowest part, which gives me space for 3 more automatics :thumbsup:
Winder: whisper quiet, even with the lid up. I'd have no issues with this being on the bedside table. The motor seems smooth, and cuts in and out as per selected setting. I don't know if the larger models would be noisier, but I can't see why they would. The watch pillows fit snug in the winding cage (if that's the right term) and have an inner pillow with a sleeve that can be slipped off for sizing securely. I've taken the sleeve off personally.
It has 5 settings, with a nice looking gold plated dial with a pleasing minimalist design. Setting outlined below:
Off.
2mins clockwise, rest 6mins
2 mins counter-clockwise, rest 6 mins
2 mins clockwise, rest 6 mins, 2 mins counter-clockwise, rest 6 mins
5 mins clockwise, 5 mins counter-clockwise, repeat for 3 hours, rest 9 hours.
Electrickery: as previously mentioned, 5 settings (is off really a setting?) controlled by a microprocessor. Handy power switch at the back, beside the 240v power cable, though I'm sure there'd be an adapter for any other countries power supply. Mine came from a Sydney seller so it had the Australia plug etc.
Package: mine came in a good box, with foam packaging and wrapping, and arrived well packaged up. Also came with instructions, which is handy. They come as a 2 watch, a 4 watch (2 winding cages of 2 watches), a 6 watch, and an 8 watch. Based on the size of mine, the 8 watch would be too big, but good for larger collections. Not sure how many spare watch spaces the larger winders have.
Cost: These can be had pretty cheaply off ebay, however postage is a bit of a killer. Buying nationally is a good way to keep costs down. To be honest the 710 bought me this one, so I'm not too sure of the actual price, however they're pretty reasonable off the bay overall.
Overall Impressions: Love it. It's a great display piece, and with it being so quiet it doesn't need to be packed away in a spare room or cupboard covered in a towel or blanket. I know watch winders get mixed opinions on here, and I usually wear my autos until they run down and then swap for another, but now I've always got one or two wound and ready to wear. I'd thoroughly recommend the ALG winders, based on mine. Great for day date complications, non windable autos etc.
Cheers