In Review: Orient Bambino 75th Anniversary Edition

Orient Bambino Version 2 75th Anniversary Edition – $325

• model: ra-ac0027s30b (Bambino V2 75th Anniversary Edition)
• size: 40.5mm width, 12mm thick, 21mm lug width
• movement: In-house automatic caliber F6724. Hacks & hand-winds. 40-hour power reserve.
• water resistance: 30m
• crystal: Domed mineral
• etc: Comes with two stock straps (tan suede and brown croc-embossed calf). Both are equipped with quick release spring bars for easy strap changes. Exhibition caseback. Rose-gold-tone roman numerals. Blue hands. Retro script logo. 3 year warranty when purchased direct through Orient.
• TL;DR Grade: A-. Would have liked to have seen a black strap included to complete the “set.”

Comes with two straps, one light suede, one dark brown croc-embossed leather.

75 years is a long time. That’s how long Orient had been in business when they released this Special 75th Anniversary Edition of their hugely popular Bambino V2 automatic dress watch. But 70 dollars is also a lot of money. And that’s precisely how much more the special anniversary edition costs ($325) compared to the standard Bambino V2 ($255):

So is it really worth it?

Well.

Yeah.

Yeah?

Yeah.

In house automatic movement with 75th branding on the exhibition caseback

The V2 OG and the V2 75th Special Edition are almost identical, except for a few tweaks which make a weirdly big difference.

The dimensions are the same, the movement is the same, and even the slightly-odd 21mm strap/lug width is the same. (C’mon Orient, it’s so much easier finding 20mm straps. Lots of us already have plenty of 20mm straps on hand!) They made 4 truly noticeable changes to the 75th Special Edition:

1. The dial’s logo has been changed to a classy, simple, heritage script (no shield or rampant lions)
2. The roman numerals are rose-gold tone instead of the standard silver
3. There’s some matching rosy 75th anniversary branding on the exhibition caseback.
4. It comes with not one but two straps, each of which have quick release spring bars:
   1. The V2 OG’s standard brown-croc embossed strap
   2. An extra tan-suede strap.

40.5mm width, 12mm thick.
Shown on a 7.5″ wrist. 

“C’mon, is that really worth seventy bucks?”

Kinda. It all adds up to a watch which stands out quietly. It’s interesting and expensive looking and old-money without being stuffy. The blue hands play really well with the rosy numerals, and that script logo is the definition of the cliche “less is more.” Coulda done without the script on the caseback, as it’s too busy layered on top of their standard decorated rotor. But the design changes, when worn, do make it look like an upgraded version of the V2 OG.

Blue hands. Rose-gold-tone numerals. 

The tan suede strap is also a terrific bonus. Especially in the warmer months when dressed up (try it with a blue suit and bluchers), or in the cooler months when dressed down (think the textures of wool sweaters, tweed jackets, & dark denim). One little wish would be that they would have chosen to also include a black crock strap in with the package. Yes, that’d shrink their margins. But to have a black leather/brown leather/tan-suede setup, all with quick release spring bars (which you don’t get on the OGs)… then this could be your one and only dress/smart casual watch for years to come. It’d make a heck of a graduation or congrats gift to someone making a big step in their life. “Here, I got you a watch which can do the job of like three watches and it looks expensive and classy but it’s really decently affordable.”

Both straps have quick-release pins for easy swaps.
Lug width is a somewhat odd 21mm though.

Getting one for a steal might be tough though. For whatever reason, the gray market for Orient watches has really tightened up the last couple of years. Prices have not only gone up, everywhere, but availability on Amazon or some of the more common gray-market sites has really nose dived. Even on their most basic models (OG Bambinos, Ray divers, etc.) So going direct through Orient seems to be the way now, especially for a special edition like this.

12mm thick. Domed mineral crystal.

Thankfully they recently bumped up their warranty from one to three years (terms apply of course). So there’s a bonus of ordering direct through them. And there’s just about always a 10% off code floating around. Sometimes they’ll run a 15% off deal. Outbound shipping is free, but return costs are on the buyer.

Again, 75 years is a long time. May we all make it that long.

This watch may not still be running three-quarters-of-a-century after purchase, but with it’s relatively accessible price, heritage design tweaks, and ultra-versatile strap setup… one should be able to get more than their money’s worth out of it in the years to come.