Regular readers know I love the cheap and simple Vostok Amphibia. I’ve owned three, including the fan favorite “Scuba Dude” dial in the 40mm 420 case, and a beefy 41mm 090 tonneau. I’ve modified the Scuba Dude with an aftermarket bezel from Murphy Manufacturing and decided it was high time I did something similar to the 090. Through the magic of eBay, I discovered One Second Closer of Lodz, Poland and their intriguing array of replacement bezels. I ordered The Shark Black Classic One for $35 (plus $4.50 shipping).
The bezel arrived in about a week, along with a pair of bezel-insert-sized 3M adhesive strips and a handwritten thank you note. The Shark Classic is one of the few bezels offered that includes an insert and it is already fitted so the strips went into the Watch drawer for use on another project.
One Second Closer machines their bezels from 316L stainless steel, unlike the Vostok’s factory unit, which is plated brass. The surface is bead blasted but not the matte grey one would normally associate with the process. Instead, it retains a bit of sparkle, creating a finish that is remarkably close to that of the 090. It is larger than the original too, measuring 42mm across and a full 5mm thick. The teeth are awesome, deeply cut and very aggressive, but properly finished so there are no unpleasantly sharp edges. The black insert has silver printed markers and a lume pearl on top. The lume is about as good as the stuff Vostok uses, which is to say, not great, but you don’t buy an Amphibia for lume.
Installation is the same same as I documented here. Use a case knife to separate the old bezel from the case. Wrap the blade in sturdy plastic to protect the surfaces, use a firm hand a steady pressure to pop the bezel free, then examine the scratches you made despite your best efforts. For the 090, I attacked it at 9 o’clock, which has the narrowest area between case and bezel so the resulting blemishes were hidden.
Once off, I noticed the sticky film of sea salt trapped under the bezel and the first spots of corrosion inside. Hey, a $65 watch has got to cut corners somewhere.
The stainless case was not damaged, but I did take the opportunity to clean it up. I removed the retaining wire from the old bezel, inserted it into the new one, and pressed it into place. Pro tip: if the bezel does not want to snap down, remove the wire and turn it upside down. That did the trick.
The new bezel looks positively badass although it is so tall that you lose the effect of the Vostok’s domed acrylic crystal. Bezel action is loose, but that is to be expected. You can try to tighten it by playing with the tension of the wire, but frankly, once it was on, I had no interest in messing with it. In my experience, Amphibias have two settings: too loose, or too tight. This was just fine by me.
Overall, I am impressed with One Second Closer. Shipping was quick, the price was cheap, and the product is far better than the original. With the Shark bezel and an olive cross-hatch leather strap from WatchGecko.com, the 090 looks amazing. If you have been looking for something to spruce up your Amphibia, I highly recommend it. ⬩
