After much umming and ahhing I will be buying a 38mm chrono at some point soon as haven't had one since the Tissot PRC-200 and miss that. Just need to decide between 1 of 2 choices. The price difference between both is rather big all things considered but the difference comes in with some key features and of course fully automatic + adjusted vs mecaquartz...
Either:
Dan Henry 1964 Panda (Seiko VK64 Mecaquartz):
https://danhenrywatches.com/collect...an-turismo-chronograph?variant=32561830559826
(The Evil Panda Bicompax option with no date).
+ Looks great
+ Perfect size
+ Blue painted needles a nice aesthetic
+ Quartz so accurate (up to +30s a month)
+ Comes with beads of rice bracelet, leather strap, watch role for travel storage
+ Nice styling fitting of the 1964 chronos
- Mineral glass with sapphire coating
- The subdial at 3 is a 24hr display of the current time and cannot be adjusted to function as a 2nd time zone for example which is a more useful feature or at least be 12hr.
MAEN SkyMaster 38 (ETA 2894-2 top grade & adjusted to 5 positions):
https://www.maenwatches.com/pages/skymaster
(Jet Balck or Panda colour with the Sapphire crystal option.
+ 20mm lugs, no need to buy new straps
+ Bezel is bidirectional so can be used as a GMT
+ Automatic
- Sapphire crystal is optional
- Bracelet is optional
The MAEN you are getting less as an overall package, but the movement and overall quality is of a higher standard. I just need to decide if the + points of the SkyMaster a worth spending more on vs how much I really want a chrono in my collection. I like the modern aesthetic of the SkyMaster, but also love the vintage vibes of the 1964 and as such think the 64 is a a bit more charm whilst the SKyMaster is more of a professional looking tool which is also cool.
Still intrigued!