Before you even ask, the answer is no; Stalingrad is not a Russian watch brand. It hails from Hong Kong and is named for the battle, not the city. That aside, the Kursk they gave me for this review is a big, beefy, bronze brute, and it can be yours if you enter (and, of course, win) the giveaway at the bottom of this piece.
The Kursk is a 200m diver in a decidedly Italian style. Its brushed bronze cushion case is 45mm wide, 51mm long from lug-to-lug, and 15.5mm thick from the case back to the top its domed sapphire crystal. One would hardly call it small, but the wire lugs do tend to keep your eyes focused on the central case, making the watch appear slightly smaller, even on my modest 6.75” wrist.
Buyers may choose from three color schemes: a green dial with an antique bronze-finish bezel, blue dial with a blue bezel, and the black with matte black you see here. The bezel moves cleanly through its 120-click rotation. Why does a bezel with no discernable markings rotate? I haven’t the slightest idea, but it hardly matters. Its primary function is to look cool, and it does, although a lume pip would have gone a long way here.
As you would expect from a diver, the crown is large, easy to grip, and screws down. Unlike the case, it is not bronze but antiqued stainless steel, as is the case back frame and the signed buckle. This, I confess, let me down. I can understand why they did it. Given that bronze is reactive and forms a patina, you generally don’t want it right up against your skin, and because it develops a patina over time, you don’t want bronze parts touching each other as the oxidation can fuse them. The complicated way around this is to engineer your crown, so the bronze never contacts the case. The easier route is to use a different material. Stalingrad took the second route. I would have preferred it be the same material as the case but the grizzled antique finish is pretty wild in and of itself, and also enough to that of the case so as not to draw untoward attention.
The Kursk sports a California dial, and you know I love that. Each numeral rises high off the sand textured dial and is topped with a layer of green Swiss lume. Rounded paddle hands are a nice touch. They are gold, as is the red-tipped second hand and the frame around the porthole date window.
Inside is a 21-jewel Japanese automatic movement. While Stalingrad does not identify it, it looks like the stalwart Miyota 8215, here adorned with a signed rotor.
Each Kursk is equipped with a 24mm black leather strap on quick-release pins. The thick slab suits the watch’s burly nature, and I like the way the tan stitching complements the case. The “Stalingrad” engraving on the buckle’s broad, flat frame is deep and clear. As with the crown, I would have preferred it the be actual bronze. Because of its larger surface area, the difference between the yellow, coated buckle, and the natural patina of the case is rather obvious when placed side-by-side but not terribly apparent when it is secured to the opposite side of your wrist.
My biggest concern about the Kursk is its $600 price tag. This puts it up against some stiff competition like the $650 BOLDR Odyssey Bronze. If you can trade bronze for brass, then the well-equipped $349 Maranez Rawai offers a similar look for even less. Both top the Kursk on specifications and have crowns and buckles made from the same material as their cases. Still, the Kursk has a look of its own, particularly the blue bezel model. If you would like to see more or make a purchase, head over to the Stalingrad Watches Webstore. Before you do, enter the giveaway below and you might just win this one for the outstanding price of “free.”⬩
The Time Bum Stalingrad Kursk Giveaway
[This giveaway has ended and the winner has been contacted.]
