Disclaimer: this video/review was not sponsored by Aleksandr Nesterenko or any other entity. This watch was generously loaned to me by my friend @watchsymmetry. Please check out his Instagram to see more photographs of this watch and other exceptional pieces.
Video
Review
I spend an unhealthy amount of time looking at watches and seeking out new and obscure watch brands that almost nobody else knows about. That’s a key aspect of the watch journey for me, and it brings me a lot of joy. But even I wouldn’t have been able to find and purchase this watch, made by independent watchmaker Aleksandr Nesterenko, based in Saint Petersburg, Russia. My friend @watchsymmetry, on the other hand, is much more skilled than I am at discovering new and upcoming watchmakers, and this particular piece, the Art Deko, was loaned to me by him.
Aleksandr Nesterenko doesn’t even have a website; his only real online presence is his Instagram page, along with a few reviews from SJX Watches, The Limited Edition, and Watch Affinity. So whatever I say here is mostly paraphrased from those respective articles. These watches have a retail price of roughly $6,000 USD, although given their highly bespoke nature, I’m sure prices will vary based on the exact specifications you want.
Let’s check it out!
Case
I measured the case to be 38.5 mm in diameter, 46.5 mm from lug tip to lug tip, and 10.8 mm in overall thickness, including the top and bottom sapphire crystals. The case is made entirely of what I believe to be Grade 5 titanium, and the case design is easily my favorite aspect of this watch. I can’t stress enough how impressive this case is in person.. the design and finishing are outstanding!
The mid-case has a rounded profile with excellent brushed finishing that transitions into lugs featuring matte-finished sides and polished top surfaces. The contrasting finishing styles look amazing, and the case construction is a lot more complicated than it may seem. The lug width is 20 mm, and there is a particularly impressive recessed section behind the lugs that makes strap changing very easy and helps limit the risk of scratching the case.
There is a concave bezel that sits above the mid-case, with a vertically brushed section that leads into a highly polished concave region. Above this sits a slightly domed sapphire crystal. I wish the crystal had a bit more anti-reflective coating, as it tends to be a bit of a reflection magnet.
There is a 6.15 mm push-pull crown at the 3 o’clock position that is slim but easy to grip and operate. Flipping the watch over, you’ll find an exhibition case back that gives a good look at the Raketa-based caliber architecture that powers this watch. The watch is rated for up to 30 m of water resistance.
Overall, I think the case design is exceptional and gives the watch a very unique personality. I love that it is made of titanium, and I find the attention to detail quite impressive, specially when you consider that most independent watchmakers and micro-brands in this price range tend to overlook case design and go with very boring and conventional designs.
Dial
If the above-referenced articles are accurate, Aleksandr Nesterenko makes these dials himself, and this particular watch, the Art Deko, is heavily influenced by the Art Deco period and the related design era in his hometown of Saint Petersburg.
The center of the dial features a guilloché pattern, which is said to be turned by hand by Aleksandr himself. I’m not entirely sure if that is true for this watch, since the dial doesn’t look hand-turned to me, but consider me a highly untrained observer.
There is an inner brushed metal ring that contains the brand’s name at the 12 o’clock position and “Saint Petersburg” at the 6 o’clock position. Surrounding this is a dark grey or black region that contains elongated blue diamond-shaped hour markers, without contrasting white surrounds. There is a railroad-style minute track that includes Roman numerals in a similar blue and white color scheme. The minute track itself is printed in a very dark blue or black color.
The watch has a simple two-hand layout, with both the hour and minute hands following an Observatory-style design. Others refer to this as a Breguet hand design, but I am not sure if there is an exact name for this style. The hands have sharp triangular tips with large, hollow circular elements that are brushed and finished in a purple-blue color. There is certainly some inspiration from Kari Voutilainen and that school of independent watchmaking here. The dial is not the tidiest I’ve seen, but given the handmade nature of this watch, that is not surprising either.
Movement
Most independent watchmakers in this price range, or similar, tend to work off existing calibers; most commonly the Unitas 6498. So I’m pretty used to seeing a million variations of that architecture in a watch, which is why I was caught off guard by this movement.
It initially resembled a Peseux 7001 to me, but on closer inspection, it looked quite different. I had also never seen a regulating mechanism like this before.
This movement is based on the Raketa Caliber 26-09, which was originally developed during the Soviet era by the Petrodvorets Watch Factory. The factory itself has an illustrious history dating back to 1721, when it primarily specialized in stone carvings and stonework.
Aleksandr has reworked this movement quite a bit, particularly at the balance cock, which now features a very interesting regulating design, and a balance cock bridge with a hand-hammered top surface finish along with very wide, hand-polished bevels and some sharp exterior angles.
The movement’s main plate features radial Geneva stripes executed in a fairly industrial manner. There are gold chatons and an interesting click spring mechanism that reminds me somewhat of a Simon Brette watch. The main plate also has hand-polished bevels, mostly with rounded inner angles and some sharp exterior ones. Overall, the finishing is quite good. It isn’t at the level of more mainstream independents, but it is a commendable effort that looks terrific to the naked eye.
On The Wrist
The 38.5 mm diameter and 46.5 mm lug tip to lug tip distance fit great on my 6.75″ wrist, and the lightweight titanium case, combined with the 10.8 mm overall thickness, makes the watch feel very easy to wear.
I like the lug design and how it wears on the wrist. It is a very stable and well-grounded design that extends to the matching titanium buckle, which is designed and finished to the same standards.
Wrapping Up
Overall, the case design is what speaks to me most with this watch. I think it is fantastic. Every aspect of the case design seems so well considered, and the resulting design is one that is hard to take your eyes off. There are just so many great details here, from the combination of finishing styles to the recessed spring bar holes, to the sleek yet practical crown.
I find the movement to be quite engaging and very good-looking, even if its finishing is more industrial than artisanal. I like having variety in movement designs and architectures, and I’m slightly bored of the recycled architectures that are common today. The dial is perhaps the aspect of the watch that impresses me the least, but even that is made very attractive by the handset. So, this is a pretty impressive watch overall, and it is another great option in the ever-growing category of watches made by independent watchmakers that don’t require you to take out a second mortgage on your home.
